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American Morning
2003 Brings Tough International Challenges for Bush White House
Aired January 01, 2003 - 08:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Speaking of the White House, the White House now really heading west, and they're juggling two weapons threats right now. President Bush, however, says that North Korea and Iraq are very different issues. Bush says that he thinks diplomacy is going to persuade North Korea to scrap its nuclear program, but he says that Saddam Hussein refuses to come clean.
Suzanne Malveaux is standing by in Crawford, Texas. We say once again happy New Year to her.
And now the sun has arisen behind you -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, happy New Year, Leon.
One of President Bush's New Year's resolutions he says is to resolve these conflicts peacefully. Yesterday, at a coffeehouse in Crawford, he said when it comes to North Korea it's not a military showdown but rather a diplomatic one, that he is convinced that it can be resolved peacefully through economic and diplomatic pressure. And despite the call from Russia and South Korea for dialogue not isolation, the president is confident that he'll win the support of North Korea's neighbors, those being Russia, China, South Korea and Japan. North Korea depends on its neighbors for its very survival when it comes to oil, power and food.
But the president contrasted this with the situation in Iraq, saying that he doubted Saddam Hussein would comply, that Saddam Hussein came close to producing a nuclear weapon in the '90s. He believes that he is still making those efforts today and that he is defying the will of the international community as he has for more than a decade.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The international community has been trying to resolve the situation in Iraq, the diplomacy for 11 years. And for 11 years, Saddam Hussein has defied the international community. And now we've brought the world together to send a clear signal, we expect him to disarm, to get rid of his weapons of mass destruction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: And while the military buildup continues for a possible war with Iraq, the president again saying that he would like to resolve this peacefully -- Leon.
HARRIS: Well, Suzanne, what do we know about the president's schedule for today? Is he going to be coming out and making any more statements on any of this or what?
MALVEAUX: Well, highly doubtful. He came out yesterday, it was rather rare, but answered a lot of questions, as a matter of fact. But we expect that he's going to spend a quiet day with his family. We know he loves to run and clear brush, and that's exactly what he was doing yesterday as well. So we don't expect any more public statements. But, of course, as you can imagine, things are going to heat up when he gets back to Washington. The deadline is right around the corner for the U.N. weapons inspectors to go back and to actually report on their findings.
HARRIS: All right, good deal. Clearing brush on a holiday, whatever floats your boat I suppose.
Thanks, Suzanne. Suzanne Malveaux on the Crawford, Texas ranch with President Bush. Happy New Year to you once again.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
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Aired January 1, 2003 - 08:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Speaking of the White House, the White House now really heading west, and they're juggling two weapons threats right now. President Bush, however, says that North Korea and Iraq are very different issues. Bush says that he thinks diplomacy is going to persuade North Korea to scrap its nuclear program, but he says that Saddam Hussein refuses to come clean.
Suzanne Malveaux is standing by in Crawford, Texas. We say once again happy New Year to her.
And now the sun has arisen behind you -- Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, happy New Year, Leon.
One of President Bush's New Year's resolutions he says is to resolve these conflicts peacefully. Yesterday, at a coffeehouse in Crawford, he said when it comes to North Korea it's not a military showdown but rather a diplomatic one, that he is convinced that it can be resolved peacefully through economic and diplomatic pressure. And despite the call from Russia and South Korea for dialogue not isolation, the president is confident that he'll win the support of North Korea's neighbors, those being Russia, China, South Korea and Japan. North Korea depends on its neighbors for its very survival when it comes to oil, power and food.
But the president contrasted this with the situation in Iraq, saying that he doubted Saddam Hussein would comply, that Saddam Hussein came close to producing a nuclear weapon in the '90s. He believes that he is still making those efforts today and that he is defying the will of the international community as he has for more than a decade.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The international community has been trying to resolve the situation in Iraq, the diplomacy for 11 years. And for 11 years, Saddam Hussein has defied the international community. And now we've brought the world together to send a clear signal, we expect him to disarm, to get rid of his weapons of mass destruction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: And while the military buildup continues for a possible war with Iraq, the president again saying that he would like to resolve this peacefully -- Leon.
HARRIS: Well, Suzanne, what do we know about the president's schedule for today? Is he going to be coming out and making any more statements on any of this or what?
MALVEAUX: Well, highly doubtful. He came out yesterday, it was rather rare, but answered a lot of questions, as a matter of fact. But we expect that he's going to spend a quiet day with his family. We know he loves to run and clear brush, and that's exactly what he was doing yesterday as well. So we don't expect any more public statements. But, of course, as you can imagine, things are going to heat up when he gets back to Washington. The deadline is right around the corner for the U.N. weapons inspectors to go back and to actually report on their findings.
HARRIS: All right, good deal. Clearing brush on a holiday, whatever floats your boat I suppose.
Thanks, Suzanne. Suzanne Malveaux on the Crawford, Texas ranch with President Bush. Happy New Year to you once again.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
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