English subtitles for clip: File:4-17-12- White House Press Briefing.webm

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Mr. Carney:
Good afternoon,
ladies and gentlemen.

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Thank you for being here
today for your daily briefing.

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I don't have any
announcements at the top.

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I do, however, have
with me Brian Deese.

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He is Deputy Director of the
National Economic Council.

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You heard the President today
in the Rose Garden make an

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announcement regarding his call
on Congress to pass a package of

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measures that would crack down
on illegal activity and any

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efforts to manipulate
the oil markets.

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For more on that, I have
Brian to discuss it with you,

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to take your questions on that.

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And as usually is the
case when I have a guest,

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if you could direct all your
questions on that matter or

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other matters that Brian
can answer at the top.

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We'll let Brian go and
I'll be here for questions

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on other issues.

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And with that, I
give you Brian Deese.

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Mr. Deese:
Thanks, Jay.

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And as Jay mentioned
and as you all heard,

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the President today called
on Congress to pass a set of

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measures designed to strengthen
oversight of our energy markets

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and help crack down on
illegal market manipulation

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in oil markets.

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I just want to go through
quickly the details of the

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proposals that the
President outlined today,

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and then can take
your questions.

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First, a little bit of context.

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The President has, since coming
into office and, in fact,

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even before that, made
it a priority to focus on

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strengthening the integrity
of our energy markets.

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And frankly, before
coming into office,

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there were important gaps in
oversight and loopholes that

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allowed too much trading
to go on unregulated and

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in the shadows.

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And so the President and his
administration have taken a

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consistent approach of
trying to close those gaps,

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increase oversight, with
the ultimate goal of giving

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consumers confidence that
illegal market manipulation

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and game-playing in these
markets was not driving

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the price at the pump.

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So whether it's from the actions
that the CFTC took early on in

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our administration to close
what's known as the Enron

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loophole which allowed traders
to evade oversight by trading

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on electronic platforms, or the
London loophole which allowed

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traders to go overseas
to avoid oversight,

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the Wall Street Reform Act --
which had important protections

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to increase oversight and
to protect against market

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manipulation in oil markets,
including position limits,

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which means an individual
trader cannot take such a

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large position in a market that
they would be in a position to

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manipulate it --
and in steps since,

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we have had a consistent
focus on this.

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The steps outlined today
build on those efforts,

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and we think they are justified,
particularly at a moment when

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you have seen increased
trading activity,

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increased prices and
increased volatility in

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oil futures markets.

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So the President outlined
five steps today.

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The first is increased resources
to the CFTC to put more cops on

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the beat in both oversight
and enforcement of energy

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futures markets.

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Second, resources to invest in
technology upgrades to put the

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CFTC in a position where they
have the same cutting-edge

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technology that the traders
that they're trying to monitor

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have as well.

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Those two pieces together
represent a $52 million

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supplemental budget
request for FY 2012.

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Third, the President called
for additional authorities for

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the CFTC to set specific margin
requirement to address price

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volatility and to address
excessive speculation.

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Margin requirements are the
amount of money that a trader

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has to put up against a
trade that he or she is making.

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It helps protect the integrity
of the market and protect

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against people taking excessive
positions without cash behind

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those positions.

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Fourth, the President called on
Congress to institute new civil

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and criminal penalties for those
who do -- are found to have

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illegally manipulated
energy markets.

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On the civil side, he called
for increasing penalties from

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$1 million per firm to
$10 million per firm.

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He would apply those penalties
per day of the violation rather

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than per instance of violation.

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And likewise, on
the criminal side,

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it would increase the maximum
penalty from $1 million to

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$10 million.

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The goal of the penalty
provision is to provide

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a deterrent against
this type of behavior.

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And finally, the President
announced an action that we

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can take on our own
without Congress,

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which was to expand
access to the data,

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the disaggregated trader level
data about what's happening in

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these energy markets.

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And so the CFTC is entering
into arrangements with both the

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Council of Economic Advisers
and the Financial Stability

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Oversight Council, which
is housed at the Treasury

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Department, to ensure that
a greater set of eyes,

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a greater set of experts are
monitoring this data and looking

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at trends and identifying
any activities that

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appear problematic.

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So that's the five-part
plan that the President

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outlined today.

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Again, the first four are
measures that we need Congress

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to act on.

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We're putting this forward
and we're hoping to initiate a

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conversation with Congress with
the hopes that we'll make some

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progress immediately.

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Mr. Carney:
Questions. Norah.

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The Press:
With this new action, how much
do you think it will decrease

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the price of gas at the pump?

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Mr. Deese:
So as you know and
as all of you know,

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the President, as part of
his all-of-the-above energy

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strategy, has said we need to be
doing everything that we can to

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try to increase
domestic production,

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reduce our dependence
on imported oil,

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and protect consumers.

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He's also said there is
no single, silver bullet.

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And so I'm not going to
speculate about this provision

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or any other provision and the
specific impact that it would

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have on prices at the pump.

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But what I would say is that at
a time when you've seen trading

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activity increase by 30 percent,
when you've seen prices increase

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and you've seen uncertainty
in these markets increase,

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that is the most important time
to be doing everything you can

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to have cops on the
beat in those markets,

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have the tools and resources
that regulators need to make

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sure that there isn't
manipulative activity going on.

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The Press:
So what's causing the increase
in the price at the pump?

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Is it instability
in the Middle East,

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or is it market manipulation?

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Mr. Deese:
Well, to start, the price at
the pump is obviously set by

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the price of oil, and
that is a global commodity;

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it's traded on global markets.

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And the price is affected
by a variety of factors.

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You've heard the President talk
about this on several occasions,

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and obviously instability in the
Middle East as well as growth

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projections across the globe are
affecting global oil markets all

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the time.

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I think the most important
thing about this proposal and,

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frankly, about the
administration's consistent

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commitment here is that
particularly when you have

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moments where prices increase
and trading activity increases,

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it's critically important to
give consumers and the market

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confidence that those activities
-- that those price changes are

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not being driven by illegal,
manipulative behavior;

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that we can assure that we have
a regulatory regime in place

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that actually can identify those
instances of manipulation and

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can effectively deter them
so that we can give consumers

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confidence of that.

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So the core thrust of the
proposals today is really

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designed at that.

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And part of -- when you put
additional cops on the beat,

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part of the goal is to send a
signal to those who might take

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advantage of a time of
particular volatility

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in markets.

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And when you increase penalties,
part of the goal is to deter the

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type of activity that
you're hoping won't occur.

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The Press:
My final question -- so
do you have any evidence

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of market manipulation?

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And is there currently not
an avenue within the U.S.

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government to prosecute
people who are engaged

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in market manipulation?

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Mr. Deese:
Sure. So on the first, there's a
component of the first question

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that is really an
enforcement question,

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and obviously the
Department of Justice,

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the CFTC may be in a better
position to answer questions

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about specific
enforcement actions.

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I would say that if you
look over the past year,

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the CFTC has opened cases
against potential energy

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firms for potential manipulation.

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The FTC has an open
investigation into potential

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anti-competitive
behavior by oil refiners.

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And so we are actively,
as an administration,

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deploying the tools at our
disposal to try to identify

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those instances.

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But to your second point, about
whether we have the capacity

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within the government -- we are
much better positioned today to

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address these issues than we
were before the President took

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office because we've closed
some of these loopholes;

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we've brought trading
out of the shadows.

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But the truth is that at a
moment when our regulatory

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agencies are already being
asked to take on substantial

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responsibilities in
implementing Wall Street reform,

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when you've seen the recent
increases in trading activity

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and volatility, they need more
resources in order to do an

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effective job on behalf
of the American people.

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So the increase in resources to
put these additional personnel

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on oversight and enforcement,
the increased resources for

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technology are really aimed
at making sure that we,

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as a federal government, have
those tools and have those

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resources to do the
best job we can.

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The Press:
Following up on Norah's
last question, Brian,

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a few times you've mentioned
illegal activities.

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It was a year ago that the
President asked for the

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Department of Justice and CFTC
to formalize this task force.

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At the time, Holder said if
illegal conduct is responsible,

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federal and state authorities
should take swift action.

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A commissioner at CFTC said we
need to use the tools Congress

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gave us to stop
excessive speculation;

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we need to do it now.

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I've called both places.

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I have not heard
back from the CFTC.

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Justice cannot point us to any
action that has been taken to

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date against any
specific illegal actor.

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This entire move by the White
House today is premised on the

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assumption that there
is illegal action.

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So what concrete evidence
can you point to,

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to suggest that this
isn't just optics?

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Mr. Deese:
So I would say a
couple of things.

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The first, again, if you know
-- as I just stated earlier,

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in 2011, the CFTC filed a civil
complaint against several oil

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companies for potential
manipulative activity.

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Likewise, the FTC has an
open investigation into

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anti-competitive behavior.

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But I think that there is a
broader issue at stake here,

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which is that we know that
when markets are not adequately

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overseen, and when there is
increased trading volume and

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increased uncertainty, then
that creates opportunities

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for illegal activity.

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And I think that we -- we
believe quite strongly that

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the right approach is to be
aggressive about making sure

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that at this moment that
we find ourselves in,

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we're doing everything that we
can to be responsible and to

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deter that type of activity.

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And I think there was a lot of
questioning in the year 2000

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about whether there was anything
untoward going on in energy

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markets, and, of course, we know
in retrospect with Enron that

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there was a lot of manipulation,
a lot of illegal activity.

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Some of this is obviously
difficult to track.

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A lot of it requires very
specialized skills and very

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specialized technology.

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That's why we're trying to stay
as aggressive as we can here.

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And to your point about last
year, I just want to reinforce,

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this has been a consistent
effort on behalf of

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this administration.

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This is not something that
we've come to recently.

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In fact, the President on the
campaign in 2008 raised these

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issues about inadequate
oversight in our energy market.

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When he came into
Congress -- I mean, sorry,

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00:12:39,367 --> 00:12:40,900
when he came into
the presidency,

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00:12:40,900 --> 00:12:42,333
he did something about it.

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00:12:42,333 --> 00:12:44,367
The CFTC closed a set
of these loopholes.

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00:12:44,367 --> 00:12:46,165
Wall Street reform
took important steps

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00:12:46,166 --> 00:12:47,166
in this direction.

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00:12:47,166 --> 00:12:50,700
Last year we mobilized federal
enforcement agencies to work

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00:12:50,700 --> 00:12:54,934
with state attorneys general to
try to make sure that we were

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00:12:54,934 --> 00:12:58,333
coordinated as much as possible
within the federal government.

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00:12:58,333 --> 00:13:01,233
And today we're asking for
additional authorities precisely

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00:13:01,233 --> 00:13:05,632
because we find ourselves at a
moment when our regulators are

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00:13:05,633 --> 00:13:09,867
overburdened, and we have
additional volatility and

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00:13:09,867 --> 00:13:11,433
additional activity
in these markets.

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00:13:11,433 --> 00:13:13,900
And so we think that this
is absolutely justified,

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00:13:13,900 --> 00:13:15,132
and it's the right thing to do.

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00:13:15,133 --> 00:13:19,467
And I would say having more --
I guess I would put the question

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00:13:19,467 --> 00:13:25,266
back, which is at a moment
when we are wanting to have an

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00:13:25,266 --> 00:13:28,567
all-of-the-above strategy,
when we know we have increased

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00:13:28,567 --> 00:13:32,433
trading activity and increased
volatility in these markets,

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00:13:32,433 --> 00:13:36,100
isn't it the right step to have
more cops on the beat and have

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00:13:36,100 --> 00:13:38,233
technology so that our
regulators are at least

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00:13:38,233 --> 00:13:40,532
operating on the same playing
field that the traders they're

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00:13:40,533 --> 00:13:43,133
trying to oversee are?

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00:13:43,133 --> 00:13:46,333
The Press:
Given that oil is a commodity
that's traded globally,

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00:13:46,333 --> 00:13:48,467
and a lot of that trading
actually happens outside

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00:13:48,467 --> 00:13:51,433
of the United States
-- in London, Geneva,

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00:13:51,433 --> 00:13:55,200
other places -- did the
administration engage with

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00:13:55,200 --> 00:14:00,066
authorities overseas to try to
tackle this issue on a bigger

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00:14:00,066 --> 00:14:03,667
scale, on a coordinated scale?

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00:14:03,667 --> 00:14:05,867
Mr. Deese:
I'm glad you ask
that question because,

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00:14:05,867 --> 00:14:12,233
obviously, oil is traded on
different exchanges and through

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00:14:12,233 --> 00:14:13,333
different clearinghouses.

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00:14:13,333 --> 00:14:15,900
And without getting
too technical,

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00:14:15,900 --> 00:14:20,199
obviously the CFTC has oversight
over oil that trades in the

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00:14:20,200 --> 00:14:24,900
United States, which is WTI and
that's in the United States.

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00:14:24,900 --> 00:14:29,934
The Brent, which is the other
benchmark that's often followed,

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00:14:29,934 --> 00:14:31,766
is traded in London.

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00:14:31,767 --> 00:14:35,333
And so this was one of
these issues -- again,

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00:14:35,333 --> 00:14:38,266
in terms of us being focused on
this issue for some time now --

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00:14:38,266 --> 00:14:41,467
one of the issues that the
President identified in the

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00:14:41,467 --> 00:14:45,633
campaign in 2008 was that we had
what was then referred to as the

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00:14:45,633 --> 00:14:47,633
London loophole, which U.S.

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00:14:47,633 --> 00:14:50,233
energy traders trading U.S.

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00:14:50,233 --> 00:14:55,132
energy commodities were able to
evade oversight by the CFTC by

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00:14:55,133 --> 00:14:57,367
sort of doing an end
run and trading on

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00:14:57,367 --> 00:15:00,099
international exchanges,
particularly in London.

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00:15:00,100 --> 00:15:03,033
And so one of the things that
this -- that the CFTC has been

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00:15:03,033 --> 00:15:07,266
working quite consistently on
is building a relationship with

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00:15:07,266 --> 00:15:11,867
regulators in the UK and in
other European countries to

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00:15:11,867 --> 00:15:15,533
have a framework that stops
that, that closes that loophole

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00:15:15,533 --> 00:15:18,100
and makes sure that
an individual trader,

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00:15:18,100 --> 00:15:20,033
be they abroad or in
the United States,

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00:15:20,033 --> 00:15:21,867
can't just evade
oversight by going

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00:15:21,867 --> 00:15:23,800
around to another exchange.

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00:15:23,800 --> 00:15:26,400
We feel like we've made a lot
of progress on that front,

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00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:29,600
and that's one of the pieces
where we really have made

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00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:32,266
this market more secure.

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00:15:32,266 --> 00:15:33,766
But there's more to be done.

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00:15:33,767 --> 00:15:34,934
Mr. Carney:
April.

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00:15:34,934 --> 00:15:37,934
The Press:
Can you discuss a simple
question -- the punishment

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00:15:37,934 --> 00:15:42,300
for violators, whoever violates
what you're putting in place?

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00:15:42,300 --> 00:15:45,367
Mr. Deese:
So let me just talk through
the specifics of the increased

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00:15:45,367 --> 00:15:48,367
penalties that we're
talking about in this case.

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00:15:48,367 --> 00:15:53,834
First, on the civil side, today
the civil penalty structure is

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00:15:53,834 --> 00:15:59,300
the greater of either $1 million
per violation or the gross

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00:15:59,300 --> 00:16:04,867
benefit to the violator --
so how much the person who

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00:16:04,867 --> 00:16:07,333
manipulated the market
benefited themselves.

305
00:16:07,333 --> 00:16:09,533
We would change that
in a couple of ways.

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00:16:09,533 --> 00:16:13,467
One, we would change the
million dollars to $10 million.

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00:16:13,467 --> 00:16:16,934
So it would be the greater of
$10 million, or two other steps.

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00:16:16,934 --> 00:16:22,199
The second would be to say that
not only should it be the gain

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00:16:22,200 --> 00:16:26,133
that the individual who
manipulated the market derived,

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00:16:26,133 --> 00:16:31,834
but it should be three times the
loss that the other victims in

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00:16:31,834 --> 00:16:36,032
the market were stuck with.

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00:16:36,033 --> 00:16:38,000
And so obviously that's
important because if you're

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00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:41,266
in a market that trades as
a broad commodity and you

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00:16:41,266 --> 00:16:44,632
manipulate a portion of the
market, but that affects prices

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00:16:44,633 --> 00:16:48,233
overall, there is the potential
that the impact to the victims

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00:16:48,233 --> 00:16:51,900
is more extreme than the benefit
that you yourself derived.

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00:16:51,900 --> 00:16:53,934
So that's change number two.

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00:16:53,934 --> 00:16:57,199
And change number three is
that rather than apply those

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00:16:57,200 --> 00:17:00,867
two penalties on a
per-violation basis,

320
00:17:00,867 --> 00:17:04,599
we would impose them per
day of violation -- again,

321
00:17:04,599 --> 00:17:09,332
to provide a stronger deterrent,
because the alternative allows

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00:17:09,333 --> 00:17:14,300
people to make trades for a
small window of a few days

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00:17:14,300 --> 00:17:17,666
knowing that if they do get
caught they'll only be penalized

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00:17:17,666 --> 00:17:19,099
on a per-violation basis.

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00:17:19,099 --> 00:17:21,532
The Press:
So a follow-up -- so the
$10 million would not just

326
00:17:21,532 --> 00:17:24,466
be $10 million, it could
be 20, 30, $40 million if

327
00:17:24,467 --> 00:17:27,033
you go upwards each time?

328
00:17:27,032 --> 00:17:28,632
Mr. Deese:
Per day of the violation, yes.

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00:17:28,633 --> 00:17:33,567
So if you violate -- if you
were found to have been actively

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00:17:33,567 --> 00:17:35,967
engaged in manipulation
for a number of days,

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00:17:35,967 --> 00:17:39,600
then the penalty would
increase accordingly.

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00:17:39,600 --> 00:17:41,500
Mr. Carney:
Mara.

333
00:17:41,500 --> 00:17:44,600
The Press:
The President talks
about this a lot,

334
00:17:44,600 --> 00:17:48,833
whether it's manipulation or oil
prices or energy exploration,

335
00:17:48,834 --> 00:17:53,300
and I'm just wondering if you
think there's a danger that as

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00:17:53,300 --> 00:17:56,100
people see him talking about
this a lot but they also see the

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00:17:56,100 --> 00:17:59,699
price at the pump not changing
and continuing to go up,

338
00:17:59,700 --> 00:18:03,800
if they will think
he's ineffective?

339
00:18:03,800 --> 00:18:08,367
Mr. Deese:
Well, since I am the
economic policy guy,

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00:18:08,367 --> 00:18:12,600
I will leave the sort of
question of the political

341
00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:14,466
perceptions of the
President aside.

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00:18:14,467 --> 00:18:18,233
But on the substance of it,
I think that it is incredibly

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00:18:18,233 --> 00:18:22,567
important that the American
public understand and trust

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00:18:22,567 --> 00:18:25,266
that this President
is doing two things.

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00:18:25,266 --> 00:18:29,500
First, he's being honest with
them about the realities and

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00:18:29,500 --> 00:18:31,100
the challenges that we have.

347
00:18:31,100 --> 00:18:33,766
And I think what you've heard
-- all of those moments that you

348
00:18:33,767 --> 00:18:36,066
point to when the President
has spoken to these issues,

349
00:18:36,066 --> 00:18:39,233
I'd be willing to bet that in
almost every one of them you've

350
00:18:39,233 --> 00:18:42,567
heard the President say
there is no silver bullet.

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00:18:42,567 --> 00:18:44,300
The Press:
Oh, yes, but I wonder if
people are hearing that part.

352
00:18:44,300 --> 00:18:47,600
Mr. Deese:
Well, look, I personally
think it's important that

353
00:18:47,600 --> 00:18:49,833
the President is being
honest and continuing to

354
00:18:49,834 --> 00:18:51,433
reinforce that message.

355
00:18:51,433 --> 00:18:54,433
The second is that I think it's
very important that you have a

356
00:18:54,433 --> 00:18:58,300
President and an administration
that is committed to a pragmatic

357
00:18:58,300 --> 00:19:01,233
approach of doing every
responsible thing that we

358
00:19:01,233 --> 00:19:03,966
can do as part of an
all-of-the-above strategy.

359
00:19:03,967 --> 00:19:06,934
And so when you think about
what the President is announcing

360
00:19:06,934 --> 00:19:11,399
today, not only do we not come
new to this particular issue,

361
00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,800
as I've explained over the
trajectory of what we've done,

362
00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:18,265
but we don't come new to this
issue of what's happening in

363
00:19:18,266 --> 00:19:19,266
energy markets.

364
00:19:19,266 --> 00:19:22,467
And as you say, the President
is out there talking about how

365
00:19:22,467 --> 00:19:24,734
he is going to streamline
regulations to try to get a

366
00:19:24,734 --> 00:19:26,667
pipeline from Cushing
to the Gulf Coast.

367
00:19:26,667 --> 00:19:29,300
He's out there talking about
increasing permits for drilling

368
00:19:29,300 --> 00:19:32,734
on federal land to reinforce
that if we're going to,

369
00:19:32,734 --> 00:19:35,399
as a country, address
this strategy -- I mean,

370
00:19:35,400 --> 00:19:39,900
address this challenge, then we
really do need to be willing to

371
00:19:39,900 --> 00:19:43,133
accept that it's a tough
challenge and deploy an

372
00:19:43,133 --> 00:19:44,233
all-of-the-above strategy.

373
00:19:44,233 --> 00:19:48,133
And I think that you are
seeing that we are making

374
00:19:48,133 --> 00:19:49,133
some progress.

375
00:19:49,133 --> 00:19:50,867
The numbers about
domestic production,

376
00:19:50,867 --> 00:19:54,800
the numbers about the share of
oil coming from imports -- those

377
00:19:54,800 --> 00:19:56,834
are real, tangible progress.

378
00:19:56,834 --> 00:20:00,367
And so I think we just
need to stay at it.

379
00:20:00,367 --> 00:20:01,899
Mr. Carney:
Alexis.

380
00:20:01,900 --> 00:20:04,567
The Press:
Brian, I have three
quick questions.

381
00:20:04,567 --> 00:20:07,033
Can you walk us through
the $52 million?

382
00:20:07,033 --> 00:20:09,800
Can you talk about how that
was pulled together -- how much

383
00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:13,734
would go to personnel and
how much would go separately

384
00:20:13,734 --> 00:20:14,934
to the IT?

385
00:20:14,934 --> 00:20:16,033
Where did you
derive that number?

386
00:20:16,033 --> 00:20:18,699
Do you absolutely need
Congress's approval to

387
00:20:18,700 --> 00:20:20,100
get that $52 million?

388
00:20:20,100 --> 00:20:24,899
And then, secondly, there's so
much focus on what the SEC needs

389
00:20:24,900 --> 00:20:27,100
in terms of manpower
and oversight.

390
00:20:27,100 --> 00:20:29,699
Is the administration
also separately,

391
00:20:29,700 --> 00:20:32,934
separate from the
commodity of oil,

392
00:20:32,934 --> 00:20:36,567
interested in seeing SEC get
more funding for another version

393
00:20:36,567 --> 00:20:39,100
of oversight of the market?

394
00:20:39,100 --> 00:20:42,332
Mr. Deese:
So first on the $52
million, it's, again,

395
00:20:42,333 --> 00:20:44,700
like I said, a supplemental
request in FY 2012 for

396
00:20:44,700 --> 00:20:45,567
$52 million.

397
00:20:45,567 --> 00:20:49,300
About half of it would go
toward increased personnel,

398
00:20:49,300 --> 00:20:55,367
and about half to -- it's
$25 million to personnel

399
00:20:55,367 --> 00:21:01,100
and $27 million to the IT.

400
00:21:01,100 --> 00:21:05,300
With respect to the SEC, which
is obviously -- the SEC doesn't

401
00:21:05,300 --> 00:21:09,433
oversee oil futures markets.

402
00:21:09,433 --> 00:21:13,367
But I think you -- some of you
were here for when the President

403
00:21:13,367 --> 00:21:17,600
signed the JOBS Act just a while
back -- one of the things that

404
00:21:17,600 --> 00:21:22,833
he reinforced in those sets
of remarks was the importance,

405
00:21:22,834 --> 00:21:26,967
as we move forward with taking
steps to make it easier for

406
00:21:26,967 --> 00:21:31,233
firms to access capital
and grow and to go public,

407
00:21:31,233 --> 00:21:34,966
that we need to make a
commitment to adequately fund

408
00:21:34,967 --> 00:21:40,166
the SEC so that it can provide
the important oversight and

409
00:21:40,166 --> 00:21:42,332
enforcement function
that it provides in

410
00:21:42,333 --> 00:21:43,367
the securities markets.

411
00:21:43,367 --> 00:21:46,533
So it's a separate issue but
it's certainly a priority.

412
00:21:46,533 --> 00:21:50,667
And this is one point
where I would point to

413
00:21:50,667 --> 00:21:52,966
an important contrast.

414
00:21:52,967 --> 00:21:54,867
If you look at the
President's budget,

415
00:21:54,867 --> 00:21:58,700
it reflects his priorities, and
if you look at his requests --

416
00:21:58,700 --> 00:22:02,300
this is obviously an immediate
request for FY12 -- but if you

417
00:22:02,300 --> 00:22:07,066
look at the FY13 request for
both the SEC and the CFTC and

418
00:22:07,066 --> 00:22:10,367
beyond, there is a dramatic
difference here between what

419
00:22:10,367 --> 00:22:13,567
the President is calling for and
what the House Republican budget

420
00:22:13,567 --> 00:22:15,867
has put forward and what
the House Republicans have

421
00:22:15,867 --> 00:22:17,233
now passed.

422
00:22:17,233 --> 00:22:22,867
And if you take the cuts in
domestic discretionary spending

423
00:22:22,867 --> 00:22:26,767
in that budget that they voted
for, you apply them to the CFTC,

424
00:22:26,767 --> 00:22:29,867
what you're doing is
dramatically reducing this

425
00:22:29,867 --> 00:22:34,332
agency's capacity to regulate
energy markets and other

426
00:22:34,333 --> 00:22:35,934
important markets.

427
00:22:35,934 --> 00:22:39,867
And a 19-percent
nominal cut by 2014,

428
00:22:39,867 --> 00:22:42,100
which is what is in the
House Republican budget,

429
00:22:42,100 --> 00:22:47,166
would mean cutting five times
more than the entire budget

430
00:22:47,166 --> 00:22:51,466
that the CFTC now spends on
enforcement and oversight

431
00:22:51,467 --> 00:22:52,433
in these markets.

432
00:22:52,433 --> 00:22:58,300
That's a dramatic difference in
terms of the role that we see

433
00:22:58,300 --> 00:23:02,500
these enforcement agencies
playing in oil futures markets

434
00:23:02,500 --> 00:23:06,333
and in securities
markets as well.

435
00:23:06,333 --> 00:23:10,133
Mr. Carney:
Two more. Kate.

436
00:23:10,133 --> 00:23:13,166
The Press:
Following on Jessica's question,
any expectation that Congress is

437
00:23:13,166 --> 00:23:16,399
actually going to take this up?

438
00:23:16,400 --> 00:23:19,667
Mr. Deese:
Well, I certainly -- we
certainly hope that they

439
00:23:19,667 --> 00:23:23,000
will take a serious look at it.

440
00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:28,500
I think we're already seeing a
number of statements of support;

441
00:23:28,500 --> 00:23:31,800
obviously, most of those are
coming from the Democratic side.

442
00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:37,966
But I think that there is
every reason why they should.

443
00:23:37,967 --> 00:23:41,266
And I think it's a question
that we'll be asking obviously,

444
00:23:41,266 --> 00:23:43,667
and it's an important
question, which is,

445
00:23:43,667 --> 00:23:47,766
why should we not be
taking these steps?

446
00:23:47,767 --> 00:23:50,033
Why should we not be putting
more cops on the beat,

447
00:23:50,033 --> 00:23:54,433
stepping up their game in
terms of the IT that they use?

448
00:23:54,433 --> 00:23:57,333
These are basic questions, and
we hope that we'll be able to

449
00:23:57,333 --> 00:23:58,367
make some progress.

450
00:23:58,367 --> 00:23:59,466
The Press:
But they likely
won't take it up,

451
00:23:59,467 --> 00:24:02,300
so it does appear to be
optics in a campaign year,

452
00:24:02,300 --> 00:24:04,166
making this push.

453
00:24:04,166 --> 00:24:08,233
Mr. Deese:
Look, I think that -- I
thought Secretary Geithner

454
00:24:08,233 --> 00:24:10,800
said it well this
weekend when he said,

455
00:24:10,800 --> 00:24:14,233
just because Republicans
oppose an issue doesn't

456
00:24:14,233 --> 00:24:15,700
mean it's a bad idea.

457
00:24:15,700 --> 00:24:18,667
And I think that the substance
of what the President has laid

458
00:24:18,667 --> 00:24:20,934
out today is sound.

459
00:24:20,934 --> 00:24:24,399
It builds on a clear commitment
to increasing oversight in

460
00:24:24,400 --> 00:24:25,600
energy markets.

461
00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:28,567
And I would certainly hope that
in a moment like this where we

462
00:24:28,567 --> 00:24:34,467
have acute concern about energy
prices and what's happening in

463
00:24:34,467 --> 00:24:37,166
oil futures markets that
Congress would be willing

464
00:24:37,166 --> 00:24:41,367
to take a serious
look at this issue.

465
00:24:41,367 --> 00:24:42,300
Mr. Carney:
Last one. Yes.

466
00:24:42,300 --> 00:24:46,100
The Press:
Is there any movement
within here to go after

467
00:24:46,100 --> 00:24:47,567
increased position limits?

468
00:24:47,567 --> 00:24:51,533
And also is there any talk of
doing anything to like limit

469
00:24:51,533 --> 00:24:55,567
the role of financial
speculation in the markets?

470
00:24:55,567 --> 00:24:59,867
Mr. Deese:
So on the first issue and just
so everybody else understands,

471
00:24:59,867 --> 00:25:02,433
position limits, which I
mentioned at the beginning,

472
00:25:02,433 --> 00:25:07,500
set a hard limit on the
overall share of a market

473
00:25:07,500 --> 00:25:10,066
that any individual
trader can hold.

474
00:25:10,066 --> 00:25:15,266
Prior to Wall Street reform you
had a very unsound situation

475
00:25:15,266 --> 00:25:17,400
where, while position limits
were in place in a lot of

476
00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:22,867
commodities markets, the CFTC
did not have authority to set

477
00:25:22,867 --> 00:25:25,533
position limits in oil
futures markets -- futures,

478
00:25:25,533 --> 00:25:27,265
options and swaps.

479
00:25:27,266 --> 00:25:30,166
Wall Street reform took a major
step forward in providing the

480
00:25:30,166 --> 00:25:31,934
authority to do that.

481
00:25:31,934 --> 00:25:36,332
The CFTC finalized its position
limits rule for futures and

482
00:25:36,333 --> 00:25:44,066
options in October of 2011, and
the SEC and CFTC are working on

483
00:25:44,066 --> 00:25:47,433
a set of related rules that
will make those effective

484
00:25:47,433 --> 00:25:48,433
in those markets.

485
00:25:48,433 --> 00:25:51,900
So that needs to
play itself out,

486
00:25:51,900 --> 00:25:54,767
but Wall Street reform did
take an important step on

487
00:25:54,767 --> 00:25:55,834
position limits.

488
00:25:55,834 --> 00:25:59,500
With respect to
financial speculation,

489
00:25:59,500 --> 00:26:01,934
the piece that we haven't
talked much about here,

490
00:26:01,934 --> 00:26:05,200
but on margin requirements is
important because the CFTC right

491
00:26:05,200 --> 00:26:08,800
now does not have the authority
to set specific margin

492
00:26:08,800 --> 00:26:13,033
requirements or to do so
in response to excessive

493
00:26:13,033 --> 00:26:14,466
speculation in the market.

494
00:26:14,467 --> 00:26:17,633
What this would say is -- this
would give them that authority.

495
00:26:17,633 --> 00:26:22,934
This would say that the CFTC, as
and if it determined that it was

496
00:26:22,934 --> 00:26:26,066
necessary to address the
problems associated with

497
00:26:26,066 --> 00:26:28,967
excessive speculation, could
raise margin requirements and

498
00:26:28,967 --> 00:26:30,734
set them specifically
in markets.

499
00:26:30,734 --> 00:26:33,233
The Press:
But would it limit the
ability of people who are

500
00:26:33,233 --> 00:26:39,899
not the end-users to be
able to work in oil sectors?

501
00:26:39,900 --> 00:26:43,367
That is -- it sets a limit like
70 percent has to be end-users,

502
00:26:43,367 --> 00:26:45,000
30 percent can be speculators?

503
00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:45,767
Mr. Deese:
Right.

504
00:26:45,767 --> 00:26:46,700
The Press:
Does it do anything
towards that end?

505
00:26:46,700 --> 00:26:48,467
That seems to be where a
lot of people suggest the

506
00:26:48,467 --> 00:26:50,033
big problem lies.

507
00:26:50,033 --> 00:26:53,000
Mr. Deese:
So I think that the way
that the President's proposal

508
00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:56,433
approaches that issue is
by strengthening position

509
00:26:56,433 --> 00:26:59,066
limits and margin
requirements together,

510
00:26:59,066 --> 00:27:04,333
which have the impact of, one,
limiting the share of a market

511
00:27:04,333 --> 00:27:06,166
that any individual
trader can take.

512
00:27:06,166 --> 00:27:10,367
So if you are a non-end user,
you will -- when those position

513
00:27:10,367 --> 00:27:14,567
limits go into effect, you will
not be able to hold a larger

514
00:27:14,567 --> 00:27:19,500
share than 10 percent of the
first thousand contracts in oil

515
00:27:19,500 --> 00:27:23,500
futures markets and 2.5 percent
of the market after that.

516
00:27:23,500 --> 00:27:26,533
So there will be serious and
strict limits on the share of

517
00:27:26,533 --> 00:27:28,833
the market that you can
hold, and that will apply

518
00:27:28,834 --> 00:27:31,734
to non-end users.

519
00:27:31,734 --> 00:27:34,899
And at the same time, the margin
requirements play a sort of

520
00:27:34,900 --> 00:27:39,633
coordinating role by saying,
as and if you see speculation

521
00:27:39,633 --> 00:27:43,066
increase to levels where
it's concerning to the CFTC,

522
00:27:43,066 --> 00:27:46,100
they could come in and set
margin requirements which say

523
00:27:46,100 --> 00:27:51,433
to traders who are non-end
users that you have the post

524
00:27:51,433 --> 00:27:53,600
additional margin, you have
to put additional cash behind

525
00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:54,600
your trade.

526
00:27:54,600 --> 00:27:56,233
But that's the way that
we address that issue.

527
00:27:59,767 --> 00:28:02,967
Mr. Carney:
Thank you, Brian.

528
00:28:02,967 --> 00:28:06,166
Thank you, all, very much
for your questions to Brian.

529
00:28:06,166 --> 00:28:12,066
I am here and can take questions
on any subject you like.

530
00:28:12,066 --> 00:28:15,800
The Press:
Jay, on the incident in Colombia
involving the Secret Service and

531
00:28:15,800 --> 00:28:18,533
some members of
the U.S. military,

532
00:28:18,533 --> 00:28:20,567
the President said over
the weekend that if the

533
00:28:20,567 --> 00:28:23,667
allegations were confirmed
he would be angry.

534
00:28:23,667 --> 00:28:26,132
But does the President feel
that if these allegations are

535
00:28:26,133 --> 00:28:29,233
confirmed that the director
of the Secret Service,

536
00:28:29,233 --> 00:28:32,433
Director Sullivan,
should step down?

537
00:28:32,433 --> 00:28:32,900
Mr. Carney:
Two things.

538
00:28:32,900 --> 00:28:35,367
One, the President has
confidence in the director

539
00:28:35,367 --> 00:28:37,033
of the Secret Service.

540
00:28:37,033 --> 00:28:42,466
Director Sullivan acted quickly
in response to this incident and

541
00:28:42,467 --> 00:28:48,767
is overseeing an investigation
as we speak into the matter.

542
00:28:48,767 --> 00:28:53,533
Beyond that, I'm not going
to, as the President did not,

543
00:28:53,533 --> 00:28:57,433
speculate about conclusions that
the investigation might reach,

544
00:28:57,433 --> 00:29:00,266
since it is ongoing.

545
00:29:00,266 --> 00:29:03,500
The Press:
Has the President spoken
at all with Director

546
00:29:03,500 --> 00:29:05,500
Sullivan or General
Dempsey about this?

547
00:29:05,500 --> 00:29:07,633
Is he getting updates
on that case at all?

548
00:29:07,633 --> 00:29:11,200
Mr. Carney:
Well, he's certainly
getting updated on the

549
00:29:11,200 --> 00:29:13,533
incident and the fact that
there is an investigation.

550
00:29:13,533 --> 00:29:20,100
He's not being updated on the
process itself or day-by-day

551
00:29:20,100 --> 00:29:23,667
information gleamed
in the investigation.

552
00:29:23,667 --> 00:29:28,332
I don't know that he has spoken
directly to the director or the

553
00:29:28,333 --> 00:29:32,133
chairman, but I can
check into that for you.

554
00:29:32,133 --> 00:29:34,133
But he is updated by staff here.

555
00:29:34,133 --> 00:29:36,166
The Press:
General Dempsey said that
they felt like they let

556
00:29:36,166 --> 00:29:37,466
the boss down.

557
00:29:37,467 --> 00:29:39,467
Does the President
personally feel like

558
00:29:39,467 --> 00:29:41,133
he's been let down here?

559
00:29:41,133 --> 00:29:44,367
Mr. Carney:
The President made clear in his
public comments to those of you

560
00:29:44,367 --> 00:29:49,966
who were with us in Cartagena,
that he believes that all of us

561
00:29:49,967 --> 00:29:57,767
who travel abroad represent our
country and the people of the

562
00:29:57,767 --> 00:30:02,633
United States, and that we need
to behave with the utmost -- the

563
00:30:02,633 --> 00:30:06,100
highest levels of
integrity and probity.

564
00:30:06,100 --> 00:30:10,734
That's a general statement of
the President's perspective on

565
00:30:10,734 --> 00:30:12,766
this kind of matter.

566
00:30:12,767 --> 00:30:17,266
If, in fact, it turns out that
some of the reported allegations

567
00:30:17,266 --> 00:30:21,700
are true, he will be angry
about that, as he said.

568
00:30:21,700 --> 00:30:23,533
The Press:
Just a quick one on Afghanistan.

569
00:30:23,533 --> 00:30:27,367
President Karzai said that in
the long-term partnership that

570
00:30:27,367 --> 00:30:29,567
they're negotiating,
that the U.S. should

571
00:30:29,567 --> 00:30:33,467
specify how much money
they'll provide to the

572
00:30:33,467 --> 00:30:35,433
Afghan forces in the future.

573
00:30:35,433 --> 00:30:38,867
Is that a commitment
that the U.S. can make?

574
00:30:38,867 --> 00:30:43,899
Mr. Carney:
Well, we are in the process
of working with the Afghan

575
00:30:43,900 --> 00:30:50,367
government on the framework
of our long-term partnership.

576
00:30:50,367 --> 00:30:55,800
The specifics of that
are under discussion,

577
00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:59,966
and I don't have an answer to
that specific question about

578
00:30:59,967 --> 00:31:06,367
how assistance to the Afghan
security forces might continue

579
00:31:06,367 --> 00:31:07,332
into the future.

580
00:31:07,333 --> 00:31:13,734
But as the President made clear
in the wake of the Lisbon NATO

581
00:31:13,734 --> 00:31:19,233
meeting, we will have a
longer-term commitment to

582
00:31:19,233 --> 00:31:24,265
Afghanistan, even as we have
transferred security lead over

583
00:31:24,266 --> 00:31:27,633
to Afghan forces.

584
00:31:27,633 --> 00:31:28,200
Norah.

585
00:31:29,166 --> 00:31:30,966
The Press:
Why does the President
have confidence in the

586
00:31:30,967 --> 00:31:32,900
Secret Service director?

587
00:31:32,900 --> 00:31:36,567
Mr. Carney:
As I just said, in answer
to the question from the

588
00:31:36,567 --> 00:31:39,433
Associated Press, the
President has confidence

589
00:31:39,433 --> 00:31:40,500
in Director Sullivan.

590
00:31:40,500 --> 00:31:44,533
The director acted swiftly in
response to this incident and is

591
00:31:44,533 --> 00:31:51,233
overseeing an investigation that
obviously needs to be conducted.

592
00:31:51,233 --> 00:31:56,633
The Secret Service performs
admirably in its number-one

593
00:31:56,633 --> 00:32:00,200
mission, which is to protect the
President of the United States,

594
00:32:00,200 --> 00:32:02,767
to protect the family
of the President,

595
00:32:02,767 --> 00:32:07,033
to protect those who
travel with him or her.

596
00:32:07,033 --> 00:32:10,500
That has been the case for this
President's predecessors and

597
00:32:10,500 --> 00:32:11,500
their families.

598
00:32:11,500 --> 00:32:15,000
And the President, as
he said in Cartagena,

599
00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:19,400
feels very strongly that the
work the Secret Service does,

600
00:32:19,400 --> 00:32:21,867
the men and women who
protect him and his family,

601
00:32:21,867 --> 00:32:27,367
and those of us who work with
him, is exemplary as a rule.

602
00:32:27,367 --> 00:32:31,966
And they put their lives on
the line, and it's a very,

603
00:32:31,967 --> 00:32:33,834
very difficult job.

604
00:32:33,834 --> 00:32:38,967
And he acknowledges
that and appreciates it.

605
00:32:38,967 --> 00:32:41,467
This incident obviously
needs to be investigated.

606
00:32:41,467 --> 00:32:43,533
It is being investigated.

607
00:32:43,533 --> 00:32:47,934
We will see what the
investigation reveals.

608
00:32:47,934 --> 00:32:50,367
We are not going to
speculate about conclusions

609
00:32:50,367 --> 00:32:51,367
it might reach.

610
00:32:51,367 --> 00:32:54,500
The President spoke about this I
think quite clearly in response

611
00:32:54,500 --> 00:32:58,867
to questions from the press
just the other day in Cartagena.

612
00:32:58,867 --> 00:33:01,100
The Press:
Is the President convinced
that this is not part of a

613
00:33:01,100 --> 00:33:03,667
broader cultural problem?

614
00:33:03,667 --> 00:33:11,065
Mr. Carney:
Again, there is an investigation
ongoing that we should let take

615
00:33:11,066 --> 00:33:15,400
its course before we
speculate about its conclusions.

616
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:19,867
The President is confident that
that investigation is underway,

617
00:33:19,867 --> 00:33:25,734
and he looks forward
to its conclusions,

618
00:33:25,734 --> 00:33:27,734
and then we will know.

619
00:33:27,734 --> 00:33:30,867
I'm sure there might be further
comment on it after that.

620
00:33:30,867 --> 00:33:34,567
But as of now, there's not a
lot to be gained in speculating

621
00:33:34,567 --> 00:33:38,433
about what might be concluded,
what of the reports that we've

622
00:33:38,433 --> 00:33:41,166
seen turns out to be true.

623
00:33:41,166 --> 00:33:46,200
The President simply, as he
said, wants it investigated.

624
00:33:46,834 --> 00:33:48,333
The Press:
Was there any moment
when the President or

625
00:33:48,333 --> 00:33:51,533
perhaps his Chief of Staff asked
the Secret Service whether there

626
00:33:51,533 --> 00:33:55,833
are specific rules governing
activities of Secret Service

627
00:33:55,834 --> 00:33:59,567
agents and uniformed officers
when they are off duty?

628
00:33:59,567 --> 00:34:03,400
Mr. Carney:
I do not have for you
readouts of specific

629
00:34:03,400 --> 00:34:06,734
conversations that the President
or the Chief of Staff may have

630
00:34:06,734 --> 00:34:10,632
had with regard to this matter,
so I think questions like that

631
00:34:10,632 --> 00:34:13,500
are best directed to
the Secret Service.

632
00:34:13,500 --> 00:34:19,033
The Press:
And is it alarming to find out
that at least 20 to 21 women,

633
00:34:19,033 --> 00:34:22,699
prostitutes, were brought into
a hotel where the presidential

634
00:34:22,699 --> 00:34:28,165
press corps and Secret
Service agents were staying?

635
00:34:28,166 --> 00:34:32,066
Mr. Carney:
Again, on the specifics
of this incident,

636
00:34:32,065 --> 00:34:33,734
the matters that are
being investigated,

637
00:34:33,734 --> 00:34:36,766
I will defer comment until
the investigation is complete,

638
00:34:36,766 --> 00:34:40,299
and I will refer you until that
time to the Secret Service.

639
00:34:40,300 --> 00:34:41,667
Thanks.

640
00:34:41,667 --> 00:34:42,866
Yes, Jessica, then Kristen.

641
00:34:42,867 --> 00:34:44,500
The Press:
Has the President put a
timeframe on how long this

642
00:34:44,500 --> 00:34:45,533
investigation should go?

643
00:34:45,533 --> 00:34:49,000
Has he asked for it to be quick
before he intervenes or --

644
00:34:49,000 --> 00:34:50,433
Mr. Carney:
He has not.

645
00:34:50,433 --> 00:34:54,800
Obviously, our interest in
general is in both thoroughness

646
00:34:54,800 --> 00:34:57,133
and efficiency.

647
00:34:57,132 --> 00:34:59,000
But I don't have a
specific timeframe for you.

648
00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:00,834
I would refer you to
the Secret Service.

649
00:35:00,834 --> 00:35:03,767
The Press:
Based on the nature of the
information that we have heard

650
00:35:03,767 --> 00:35:07,933
and has been confirmed so far,
does the President believe that

651
00:35:07,934 --> 00:35:11,333
at no point was his safety
or the safety of his staff

652
00:35:11,333 --> 00:35:14,567
ever in peril?

653
00:35:14,567 --> 00:35:18,800
Mr. Carney:
As I believe has been
stated, the Secret Service,

654
00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:23,066
which was responsible for
the President's safety,

655
00:35:23,066 --> 00:35:28,066
has said that his safety
was never compromised by

656
00:35:28,066 --> 00:35:29,533
this incident.

657
00:35:29,533 --> 00:35:35,100
The director, the agency acted
very quickly to replace those

658
00:35:35,100 --> 00:35:40,333
members of the Secret Service
who are being looked at with

659
00:35:40,333 --> 00:35:42,200
regard to this
incident very quickly,

660
00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:45,066
prior the President's
arrival in Colombia.

661
00:35:45,066 --> 00:35:50,100
But for more questions about the
nature of the protection of the

662
00:35:50,100 --> 00:35:53,333
President, I would have to
refer you to the Secret Service.

663
00:35:53,333 --> 00:35:54,133
Yes, Kristen.

664
00:35:54,133 --> 00:35:54,966
The Press:
Jay, thanks.

665
00:35:54,967 --> 00:35:57,266
This isn't the first time
this Secret Service has

666
00:35:57,266 --> 00:35:58,467
come under criticism.

667
00:35:58,467 --> 00:36:03,667
In 2009, there were questions
raised after the reality TV

668
00:36:03,667 --> 00:36:06,866
couple, the Salahis were
allowed into that state dinner.

669
00:36:06,867 --> 00:36:09,533
Shouldn't there at least be a
very serious review of the way

670
00:36:09,533 --> 00:36:12,967
in which the agency is being
led given these two incidents?

671
00:36:12,967 --> 00:36:15,100
Mr. Carney:
Well, Kristen, I would
simply say that we are

672
00:36:15,100 --> 00:36:18,567
only a couple of days into
the investigation of this

673
00:36:18,567 --> 00:36:20,333
specific incident.

674
00:36:20,333 --> 00:36:24,066
I think it's best to wait
for that investigation to be

675
00:36:24,066 --> 00:36:32,700
concluded before we address
other issues that might arise

676
00:36:32,700 --> 00:36:35,000
as a result of that
investigation -- or might not.

677
00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:39,300
So I think we'll we will allow
that investigation to take its

678
00:36:39,300 --> 00:36:43,500
course before we speculate about
what its conclusions may -- what

679
00:36:43,500 --> 00:36:47,900
kinds of actions its
conclusions might precipitate.

680
00:36:47,900 --> 00:36:50,667
The Press:
When you think about the
recent resignation of the

681
00:36:50,667 --> 00:36:53,033
GSA Administrator,
and now this,

682
00:36:53,033 --> 00:36:56,834
is the President concerned that
taken together there might be an

683
00:36:56,834 --> 00:37:00,500
erosion of public faith
in the government?

684
00:37:00,500 --> 00:37:04,066
Mr. Carney:
The President believes
that everyone who serves

685
00:37:04,066 --> 00:37:07,899
the American people by
working for this government

686
00:37:07,900 --> 00:37:12,834
needs to hold themselves
to the highest standards

687
00:37:12,834 --> 00:37:14,600
of public service.

688
00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:20,033
And there's no point in
comparing the singular incidents

689
00:37:20,033 --> 00:37:24,066
of one agency to another, but
that principle is one he made

690
00:37:24,066 --> 00:37:26,533
clear during the campaign that
he would bring to the office.

691
00:37:26,533 --> 00:37:31,600
It is a principle that he
clearly set forth early on his

692
00:37:31,600 --> 00:37:35,500
presidency both in the words
that he spoke and the actions

693
00:37:35,500 --> 00:37:37,533
that he took, and
it is a principle,

694
00:37:37,533 --> 00:37:40,933
as I think was made clear in
the wake of the GSA incident,

695
00:37:40,934 --> 00:37:45,767
that he believes
should be enforced.

696
00:37:45,767 --> 00:37:48,165
Beyond that, again, that's
a general principle and the

697
00:37:48,166 --> 00:37:51,500
general perspective the
President has with regard

698
00:37:51,500 --> 00:37:56,633
to public service
and matters like this.

699
00:37:56,633 --> 00:37:59,265
But on specific
investigations, specific cases,

700
00:37:59,266 --> 00:38:01,633
I want to make it clear that
we need to wait for those

701
00:38:01,633 --> 00:38:03,066
investigations to be completed.

702
00:38:03,066 --> 00:38:05,033
The Press:
But has the President
expressed any concern

703
00:38:05,033 --> 00:38:09,232
about this, that the public
might start to lose faith?

704
00:38:09,233 --> 00:38:12,433
Mr. Carney:
I haven't had that specific
discussion with him.

705
00:38:12,433 --> 00:38:15,934
I think that he is waiting
for this investigation

706
00:38:15,934 --> 00:38:17,633
to be completed.

707
00:38:17,633 --> 00:38:23,533
And we're not going to
speculate again beyond that.

708
00:38:23,533 --> 00:38:24,433
Yes, Kevin.

709
00:38:24,433 --> 00:38:27,567
The Press:
Jay, Democrats are creating
-- or protesting, rather,

710
00:38:27,567 --> 00:38:29,667
some comments that
Ted Nugent, of course,

711
00:38:29,667 --> 00:38:32,933
the musician and
Romney supporter,

712
00:38:32,934 --> 00:38:34,967
made a comment over the
weekend at the NRA convention,

713
00:38:34,967 --> 00:38:38,667
said the administration
was "vile and evil."

714
00:38:38,667 --> 00:38:40,000
Do you have any
reaction to that?

715
00:38:40,000 --> 00:38:42,734
And where do you draw the line,
as we head into this campaign,

716
00:38:42,734 --> 00:38:45,900
for accountability of what
supporters of the candidates

717
00:38:45,900 --> 00:38:48,033
may or may not say?

718
00:38:48,033 --> 00:38:50,533
Mr. Carney:
I think the President has said,
and I and others have said,

719
00:38:50,533 --> 00:38:56,200
that we can't be policing
the statements of supporters

720
00:38:56,200 --> 00:38:58,700
across the board.

721
00:38:58,700 --> 00:39:01,000
The President is
focused on the issues.

722
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:04,000
The President is focused
on doing everything he can

723
00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:06,734
specifically with regards to
helping the economy grow and

724
00:39:06,734 --> 00:39:08,500
helping the economy create jobs.

725
00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:14,800
He looks forward to an important
debate that will take place as

726
00:39:14,800 --> 00:39:18,834
the general election is engaged.

727
00:39:18,834 --> 00:39:21,899
There are very stark differences
-- there is no question --

728
00:39:21,900 --> 00:39:24,967
between his vision
for America's future,

729
00:39:24,967 --> 00:39:26,533
in particular its
economic future,

730
00:39:26,533 --> 00:39:29,400
and the vision put forward
by the Republicans,

731
00:39:29,400 --> 00:39:32,500
embodied in the Republican
budget that we've discussed

732
00:39:32,500 --> 00:39:35,200
quite a bit in this room.

733
00:39:35,200 --> 00:39:39,265
I think those are the issues
that will be evaluated by the

734
00:39:39,266 --> 00:39:43,834
American people in November
when this election is held.

735
00:39:43,834 --> 00:39:49,633
I think a lot of this
other stuff is noise,

736
00:39:49,633 --> 00:39:55,165
and I think most Americans are
pretty sophisticated consumers

737
00:39:55,166 --> 00:40:00,000
of the news, especially as we
get closer to the elections,

738
00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:05,000
and pretty sophisticated
evaluators of the men and

739
00:40:05,000 --> 00:40:07,533
women who put themselves
forward to be President.

740
00:40:07,533 --> 00:40:09,567
The Press:
So does the President believe,
as the Democrats are saying,

741
00:40:09,567 --> 00:40:13,200
that the Romney campaign should
disavow these statements?

742
00:40:13,200 --> 00:40:18,000
Mr. Carney:
I haven't seen the comments that
you're referring to by others.

743
00:40:18,000 --> 00:40:19,400
The President is focused
on doing his job.

744
00:40:19,400 --> 00:40:25,400
He has made the point that we
can't as a general rule police

745
00:40:25,400 --> 00:40:28,266
the statements of
every supporter.

746
00:40:28,266 --> 00:40:35,767
I think best to just abide
by the kind of standards of

747
00:40:35,767 --> 00:40:41,466
behavior and rhetoric yourself,
as he said I think standing here

748
00:40:41,467 --> 00:40:45,600
in a press conference with
you all on one occasion,

749
00:40:45,600 --> 00:40:50,266
and stick to making the
case for your vision,

750
00:40:50,266 --> 00:40:54,100
and doing everything you can
constructively and substantively

751
00:40:54,100 --> 00:40:57,100
both with Congress and
administratively to help the

752
00:40:57,100 --> 00:41:01,100
economy grow and to help it
continue to create jobs as we

753
00:41:01,100 --> 00:41:06,467
recover from the worst recession
since the Great Depression.

754
00:41:06,467 --> 00:41:07,333
Wendell and then Chris.

755
00:41:07,333 --> 00:41:08,600
The Press:
The steps the President
announced today,

756
00:41:08,600 --> 00:41:13,500
are they intended to have a
measureable impact on the price

757
00:41:13,500 --> 00:41:16,633
of oil, or to make sure that a
few people don't make a quick

758
00:41:16,633 --> 00:41:19,700
buck by gaming the system?

759
00:41:19,700 --> 00:41:21,734
Mr. Carney:
I think Brian was asked
this question and answered

760
00:41:21,734 --> 00:41:26,400
it pretty thoroughly.

761
00:41:26,400 --> 00:41:29,700
He was asked specifically
that question about the price,

762
00:41:29,700 --> 00:41:31,533
and I think that what
the President has said,

763
00:41:31,533 --> 00:41:37,667
what Brian says, is that we are
approaching this matter in an

764
00:41:37,667 --> 00:41:38,734
all-of-the-above way.

765
00:41:38,734 --> 00:41:42,066
And the President had made clear
that there is no silver bullet,

766
00:41:42,066 --> 00:41:46,799
there is no pixie dust, there
are no magic beans that will --

767
00:41:46,800 --> 00:41:49,066
or a 3-point plan that
will reduce the price of

768
00:41:49,066 --> 00:41:50,600
gas at the pump.

769
00:41:50,600 --> 00:41:52,433
The Press:
But that's not the
question I'm asking you.

770
00:41:52,433 --> 00:42:00,433
Overall, including the
actions taken prior to this,

771
00:42:00,433 --> 00:42:03,000
are they going to have an
impact on the price of oil?

772
00:42:03,000 --> 00:42:05,133
Or are they just a
policing mechanism?

773
00:42:05,133 --> 00:42:07,066
Mr. Carney:
What Brian said is that
he would not speculate

774
00:42:07,066 --> 00:42:11,066
because there are so many things
that go into setting the price

775
00:42:11,066 --> 00:42:14,866
of oil on a global -- on
the markets when you have

776
00:42:14,867 --> 00:42:17,567
a commodity like oil,
which is traded globally.

777
00:42:17,567 --> 00:42:23,600
So it is hard to know what the
impact will be of the specific

778
00:42:23,600 --> 00:42:24,600
measures you take.

779
00:42:24,600 --> 00:42:27,066
And of course, in this case
-- in this case, Wendell,

780
00:42:27,066 --> 00:42:33,299
we obviously have to see
what kind of actions is taken

781
00:42:33,300 --> 00:42:35,400
specifically with regard to
potential manipulation or

782
00:42:35,400 --> 00:42:37,834
potential speculation.

783
00:42:37,834 --> 00:42:39,866
So it would be pure speculation.

784
00:42:39,867 --> 00:42:42,867
What is also the case is
at a time -- as Brian said,

785
00:42:42,867 --> 00:42:47,033
at a time of demonstrated
volatility in the market,

786
00:42:47,033 --> 00:42:51,299
very high prices in the market,
the opportunity is there for

787
00:42:51,300 --> 00:42:56,233
this kind of illegal activity,
and it would be the wrong thing

788
00:42:56,233 --> 00:42:58,000
to do not to take this action.

789
00:42:58,000 --> 00:43:00,867
I think the question that has to
be asked of members of Congress

790
00:43:00,867 --> 00:43:05,500
is, why are you against
putting more cops on the beat?

791
00:43:05,500 --> 00:43:11,934
Why are you opposed to ensuring
that the agencies involved here

792
00:43:11,934 --> 00:43:14,333
that regulate this market have
the tools they need and the

793
00:43:14,333 --> 00:43:19,500
manpower they need to make sure
that American consumers are not

794
00:43:19,500 --> 00:43:21,433
getting ripped off?

795
00:43:21,433 --> 00:43:26,266
I think most Americans
would support that idea.

796
00:43:26,266 --> 00:43:29,533
And if there is a lack of
support in some quarters on

797
00:43:29,533 --> 00:43:32,533
Capitol Hill, those who do not
support it would probably have

798
00:43:32,533 --> 00:43:34,200
to explain it.

799
00:43:34,200 --> 00:43:34,899
The Press:
Another question.

800
00:43:34,900 --> 00:43:37,467
Did the President watch the
shuttle when it flew over?

801
00:43:37,467 --> 00:43:39,033
Mr. Carney:
You know, I meant to ask
him that when I was with

802
00:43:39,033 --> 00:43:41,200
him earlier, and I did
not, so I don't know.

803
00:43:41,200 --> 00:43:42,100
Sorry.

804
00:43:42,100 --> 00:43:43,066
The Press:
Okay.

805
00:43:43,066 --> 00:43:43,966
Mr. Carney:
Yes, Chris.

806
00:43:43,967 --> 00:43:45,266
The Press:
Jay, do you have some
clarification on something

807
00:43:45,266 --> 00:43:48,000
a White House spokesperson said
yesterday about that -- and the

808
00:43:48,000 --> 00:43:50,967
executive order against
LGBT discrimination.

809
00:43:50,967 --> 00:43:52,700
Last week you said that you
weren't going to be issuing

810
00:43:52,700 --> 00:43:55,033
that executive order at this
time, but a spokesperson said

811
00:43:55,033 --> 00:43:57,567
yesterday you haven't taken
any options off the table.

812
00:43:57,567 --> 00:43:59,367
Does this represent a change
in the White House position

813
00:43:59,367 --> 00:44:00,433
from last week?

814
00:44:00,433 --> 00:44:01,433
I mean --

815
00:44:01,433 --> 00:44:03,233
Mr. Carney:
Well, I don't know about
the comment that you're

816
00:44:03,233 --> 00:44:04,233
referring to.

817
00:44:04,233 --> 00:44:07,400
What I can tell you is that our
position hasn't changed since we

818
00:44:07,400 --> 00:44:10,767
started talking
about this last week,

819
00:44:10,767 --> 00:44:14,332
that at this time we're not
-- we believe that the right

820
00:44:14,333 --> 00:44:20,867
approach is to build support
for passage of ENDA legislation.

821
00:44:20,867 --> 00:44:27,000
And that I think an example of
why this approach can be most

822
00:44:27,000 --> 00:44:31,667
effective is the way that
we approached repeal of

823
00:44:31,667 --> 00:44:33,266
"don't ask, don't tell."

824
00:44:33,266 --> 00:44:34,800
So I don't --
there is no change.

825
00:44:34,800 --> 00:44:37,200
I don't know about the anonymous
quote that you're citing,

826
00:44:37,200 --> 00:44:39,133
or necessarily that it
contradicts -- I'm sorry?

827
00:44:39,133 --> 00:44:40,100
The Press:
So it wasn't an anonymous quote.

828
00:44:40,100 --> 00:44:43,433
It was from (inaudible)
-- it was on the record.

829
00:44:43,433 --> 00:44:45,567
Mr. Carney:
Okay. Well, then, I don't
necessarily -- that's not

830
00:44:45,567 --> 00:44:46,800
how it was presented to me, Chris.

831
00:44:46,800 --> 00:44:49,633
So you just said
a White House --

832
00:44:49,633 --> 00:44:50,700
The Press:
A spokesperson
from the White House.

833
00:44:50,700 --> 00:44:55,000
Mr. Carney:
Okay. I don't believe that it
represents -- what I just heard

834
00:44:55,000 --> 00:44:58,000
you say does not represent
anything different from what

835
00:44:58,000 --> 00:45:01,367
I've said in the past, which
is that at this time we're not

836
00:45:01,367 --> 00:45:02,767
pursuing an executive order.

837
00:45:02,767 --> 00:45:06,200
I'm not going to speculate about
executive orders that may or may

838
00:45:06,200 --> 00:45:08,600
not be pursued in the future.

839
00:45:08,600 --> 00:45:11,033
What I'm saying is
right now we're not.

840
00:45:11,033 --> 00:45:13,366
We discussed this pretty
thoroughly last week.

841
00:45:13,367 --> 00:45:18,166
And the focus is on building
the kind of support for and

842
00:45:18,166 --> 00:45:22,767
coalition behind passage of the
Employment Non-Discrimination

843
00:45:22,767 --> 00:45:28,100
Act that we hope would lead to
the kind of legislative action

844
00:45:28,100 --> 00:45:30,133
that would be especially
effective in this case.

845
00:45:30,133 --> 00:45:32,799
The Press:
A number of LGBT advocates
have expressed displeasure

846
00:45:32,800 --> 00:45:34,834
with the news from last week,
and yesterday the National

847
00:45:34,834 --> 00:45:37,366
Council of La Raza called
on the President to revisit

848
00:45:37,367 --> 00:45:38,300
the decision.

849
00:45:38,300 --> 00:45:41,834
Has the administration misjudged
the patience of its supporters

850
00:45:41,834 --> 00:45:43,966
by not doing this
executive order?

851
00:45:43,967 --> 00:45:45,433
Mr. Carney:
Chris, I would simply
say that the President

852
00:45:45,433 --> 00:45:49,200
believes that in this case,
the right approach is to try

853
00:45:49,200 --> 00:45:50,600
to build support for ENDA.

854
00:45:50,600 --> 00:45:53,433
I think that a good
example, again,

855
00:45:53,433 --> 00:45:57,066
is to look at the approach that
was taken by this administration

856
00:45:57,066 --> 00:46:01,165
in dealing with his commitment
to repeal "don't ask,

857
00:46:01,166 --> 00:46:03,033
don't tell," and working with
Congress and working with the

858
00:46:03,033 --> 00:46:05,667
Pentagon to ensure
that that came to pass.

859
00:46:05,667 --> 00:46:08,266
There was criticism at the
time that we weren't taking

860
00:46:08,266 --> 00:46:09,300
the right approach.

861
00:46:09,300 --> 00:46:12,867
In the end, I think, it has been
shown to have been the right

862
00:46:12,867 --> 00:46:15,300
approach and an effective
approach in both building

863
00:46:15,300 --> 00:46:19,633
support and ensuring that it's
-- in its implementation within

864
00:46:19,633 --> 00:46:22,600
the military, that because of
the actions that we're taking

865
00:46:22,600 --> 00:46:28,633
and the approach that was taken,
that the implementation itself

866
00:46:28,633 --> 00:46:31,332
has been extremely
effective and smooth.

867
00:46:31,333 --> 00:46:33,000
The Press:
Jay, if I could
follow up on this.

868
00:46:33,000 --> 00:46:34,734
Mr. Carney:
Let me move around a little
bit on different issues.

869
00:46:34,734 --> 00:46:35,333
Mark.

870
00:46:35,333 --> 00:46:38,567
The Press:
Yes, Jay, Syrian forces
are again shelling Homs,

871
00:46:38,567 --> 00:46:41,467
other rebel-held areas.

872
00:46:41,467 --> 00:46:42,767
Isn't it back to
square one there?

873
00:46:42,767 --> 00:46:45,299
Is there a continued point of
the administration supporting

874
00:46:45,300 --> 00:46:48,233
an Annan mission that even with
observers in there you're still

875
00:46:48,233 --> 00:46:49,467
getting this kind of violence?

876
00:46:49,467 --> 00:46:52,700
Mr. Carney:
Well, we are extremely
concerned by the continued

877
00:46:52,700 --> 00:46:55,567
violence in those two areas
that you talked about --

878
00:46:55,567 --> 00:46:57,567
Homs and Daraa region I believe.

879
00:46:59,433 --> 00:47:00,934
And I think we
have said clearly,

880
00:47:00,934 --> 00:47:04,800
and I'll say again today, that
the Syrian regime has yet to

881
00:47:04,800 --> 00:47:10,100
abide by all the points
of the Kofi Annan plan.

882
00:47:10,100 --> 00:47:14,667
We support the advance
team of the U.N. monitoring

883
00:47:14,667 --> 00:47:18,600
mission that is now in Syria,
and we're not going to prejudge

884
00:47:18,600 --> 00:47:20,633
the outcome of the process.

885
00:47:20,633 --> 00:47:23,399
But we're keeping a close eye
on the activities of the Syrian

886
00:47:23,400 --> 00:47:25,200
regime, and we're making
clear where it is falling

887
00:47:25,200 --> 00:47:27,533
short of its commitments.

888
00:47:27,533 --> 00:47:30,366
And even as this
process moves forward,

889
00:47:30,367 --> 00:47:32,867
we're continuing to
support the opposition

890
00:47:32,867 --> 00:47:34,834
with non-lethal assistance.

891
00:47:34,834 --> 00:47:38,000
We are continuing to work with
our allies and partners to

892
00:47:40,066 --> 00:47:45,000
increase the pressure on the
Assad regime, and continuing,

893
00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:51,400
obviously as I am today, to make
clear that the Kofi Annan plan

894
00:47:51,400 --> 00:47:53,767
needs to be abided by in full.

895
00:47:53,767 --> 00:47:56,232
The Press:
But doesn't there come a
point in which continuing

896
00:47:56,233 --> 00:47:59,600
to pursue this just
helps the regime?

897
00:47:59,600 --> 00:48:06,200
Mr. Carney:
Well, this advance
team has just arrived.

898
00:48:06,200 --> 00:48:11,232
I think what is happening
in Syria is quite clear.

899
00:48:11,233 --> 00:48:14,967
What has happened and who the
responsible party is for the

900
00:48:14,967 --> 00:48:19,066
terrible violence
there is quite clear.

901
00:48:19,066 --> 00:48:23,165
We need to give a chance to the
Kofi Annan plan to see if it can

902
00:48:23,166 --> 00:48:25,734
work, to see if it
will be abided by.

903
00:48:25,734 --> 00:48:28,734
And we will not let up
as that takes place,

904
00:48:28,734 --> 00:48:31,333
and all the other actions that
we're taking to pressure the

905
00:48:31,333 --> 00:48:34,900
Assad regime, to isolate it
and to provide assistance to

906
00:48:34,900 --> 00:48:35,900
the opposition.

907
00:48:35,900 --> 00:48:44,333
But you have seen a series of
actions taken here around the

908
00:48:44,333 --> 00:48:45,700
Kofi Annan plan
-- the cease-fire,

909
00:48:45,700 --> 00:48:49,533
the withdrawal -- that process
needs to play itself out before

910
00:48:49,533 --> 00:48:54,567
we judge it a
success or a failure.

911
00:48:54,567 --> 00:48:56,734
The Press:
Has the administration
gone any further in talks

912
00:48:56,734 --> 00:48:59,266
with allies about
releasing oil from the

913
00:48:59,266 --> 00:49:02,533
Strategy Petroleum Reserve?

914
00:49:02,533 --> 00:49:04,866
Mr. Carney:
I don't have any conversations
to report to you on that.

915
00:49:04,867 --> 00:49:06,934
I think as a general
matter I've said,

916
00:49:06,934 --> 00:49:12,834
in reaction to specific reports,
that we of course do discuss the

917
00:49:12,834 --> 00:49:19,066
global oil market and its
volatility and the prices

918
00:49:19,066 --> 00:49:21,933
we see on it with our
international partners

919
00:49:21,934 --> 00:49:23,066
and oil-producing states.

920
00:49:23,066 --> 00:49:25,834
But I have no new
information for you on that.

921
00:49:25,834 --> 00:49:27,899
The Press:
So there is a sense that that
could actually do something

922
00:49:27,900 --> 00:49:30,667
about prices at the pump,
right, so why not --

923
00:49:30,667 --> 00:49:32,366
Mr. Carney:
Well, I've made clear
that we don't rule out

924
00:49:32,367 --> 00:49:35,633
that action or others that
we could potentially take,

925
00:49:35,633 --> 00:49:37,966
even as we make clear and the
President makes clear that there

926
00:49:37,967 --> 00:49:43,500
is no single action that can
magically drop the price at

927
00:49:43,500 --> 00:49:48,834
the pump that is causing a
burden for American families.

928
00:49:48,834 --> 00:49:55,667
We need to do everything we
can to deal with the immediate

929
00:49:55,667 --> 00:49:58,033
impact that this is having.

930
00:49:58,033 --> 00:50:01,933
That was one of the reasons why
it was so important to extend

931
00:50:01,934 --> 00:50:04,900
the payroll tax cut so that
American families have that

932
00:50:04,900 --> 00:50:10,967
extra money to deal with
the high price of gasoline

933
00:50:10,967 --> 00:50:12,133
at the pump.

934
00:50:12,133 --> 00:50:14,899
It is why we need to take the
actions that the President is

935
00:50:14,900 --> 00:50:17,767
calling on Congress
to take today.

936
00:50:17,767 --> 00:50:20,899
And it's why we will continue
to examine other options.

937
00:50:20,900 --> 00:50:26,133
It is also why, in recognition
of the fact that this is not a

938
00:50:26,133 --> 00:50:29,500
momentary problem, we need
to pursue an all-of-the-above

939
00:50:29,500 --> 00:50:30,500
energy policy.

940
00:50:30,500 --> 00:50:33,667
We need to continue to increase
domestic oil and gas production,

941
00:50:33,667 --> 00:50:35,500
as the President
insists we must.

942
00:50:35,500 --> 00:50:37,967
And as we have under
his administration,

943
00:50:37,967 --> 00:50:42,133
we need to continue to invest
in clean energy, biofuels,

944
00:50:42,133 --> 00:50:46,165
and other kinds of renewables
that will further reduce our

945
00:50:46,166 --> 00:50:50,734
dependence on foreign oil and
enhance our national security.

946
00:50:50,734 --> 00:50:56,900
And we need to do things
like -- as we did recently,

947
00:50:56,900 --> 00:51:01,367
sign into law the next -- or
pass the next permit for the

948
00:51:01,367 --> 00:51:03,233
first nuclear power
plant in 30 years.

949
00:51:03,233 --> 00:51:07,533
So that's the approach
the President is taking.

950
00:51:07,533 --> 00:51:08,400
Connie.

951
00:51:08,400 --> 00:51:09,400
The Press:
Thank you.

952
00:51:09,400 --> 00:51:11,767
Do you have any comment on the
exorbitant amount of money spent

953
00:51:11,767 --> 00:51:15,767
to help Leon Panetta commute
from here to California?

954
00:51:15,767 --> 00:51:17,265
Mr. Carney:
I think Secretary
Panetta addressed this,

955
00:51:17,266 --> 00:51:19,867
and I would refer
you to his comments,

956
00:51:19,867 --> 00:51:21,900
since he talked about it
just not that long ago.

957
00:51:21,900 --> 00:51:24,033
The Press:
Any plans to change
the situation?

958
00:51:24,033 --> 00:51:26,232
Mr. Carney:
Again, I think I would refer
that to Secretary Panetta.

959
00:51:26,233 --> 00:51:30,000
The issue here has to do with
the fact that the Defense

960
00:51:30,000 --> 00:51:33,967
Secretary needs to travel in
a certain way to allow for the

961
00:51:33,967 --> 00:51:35,467
kind of communications
that are necessary.

962
00:51:35,467 --> 00:51:38,600
But I would refer you to
him and to his comments.

963
00:51:38,600 --> 00:51:40,100
The Press:
What about the (inaudible)
to negotiate that with him

964
00:51:40,100 --> 00:51:41,200
ahead of the --

965
00:51:41,200 --> 00:51:45,332
Mr. Carney:
Again, I don't have anything
to add to what the Secretary

966
00:51:45,333 --> 00:51:46,433
said on that today.

967
00:51:46,433 --> 00:51:49,233
The Press:
That's what the DOD officials
have told me -- that the

968
00:51:49,233 --> 00:51:53,233
President was aware of this
commuting negotiation or deal

969
00:51:53,233 --> 00:51:54,300
before he accepted the position.

970
00:51:54,300 --> 00:51:55,200
Mr. Carney:
There's no deal here.

971
00:51:55,200 --> 00:51:57,265
The Secretary has
addressed this matter.

972
00:51:57,266 --> 00:52:03,000
He, I think, spoke about it and
his desire to try to find a way

973
00:52:03,000 --> 00:52:07,967
to, if there is,
to reduce the cost.

974
00:52:07,967 --> 00:52:10,133
But I don't have anything
else to add to it.

975
00:52:10,133 --> 00:52:11,232
Jared.

976
00:52:11,233 --> 00:52:15,300
The Press:
Does the President support
the idea of putting the

977
00:52:15,300 --> 00:52:17,667
government taxpayer-funded
conferences in tourist

978
00:52:17,667 --> 00:52:21,100
destinations, especially since
that was a position advocated by

979
00:52:21,100 --> 00:52:24,967
the former Chief of Staff and
the Senate Majority Leader,

980
00:52:24,967 --> 00:52:27,066
like the GSA conference?

981
00:52:27,066 --> 00:52:34,433
Mr. Carney:
I think the President has made
clear his outrage upon hearing

982
00:52:34,433 --> 00:52:38,400
about the matter that you
just raised with regard to

983
00:52:38,400 --> 00:52:43,433
the conference
that the GSA held.

984
00:52:43,433 --> 00:52:46,367
The President believes very
strongly that we need to be

985
00:52:46,367 --> 00:52:48,734
careful stewards of
taxpayer dollars.

986
00:52:48,734 --> 00:52:55,567
And he has taken actions to
ensure that we reduce expenses

987
00:52:55,567 --> 00:52:58,967
and we reduce the amount of
money spent on conferences,

988
00:52:58,967 --> 00:53:00,467
specifically, for example.

989
00:53:00,467 --> 00:53:03,233
And I think I ran through the
details of this last week.

990
00:53:03,233 --> 00:53:05,166
So I think his position
on this is very clear,

991
00:53:05,166 --> 00:53:08,767
both on the specific GSA matter
and on the principle in general,

992
00:53:08,767 --> 00:53:13,600
in terms of how taxpayer money
ought to be very carefully

993
00:53:13,600 --> 00:53:17,232
conserved and wisely used.

994
00:53:17,233 --> 00:53:17,667
Alexis.

995
00:53:17,667 --> 00:53:20,266
The Press:
And the President -- he's
got the event tonight,

996
00:53:20,266 --> 00:53:21,900
this afternoon, rather,
with Tony Stewart.

997
00:53:21,900 --> 00:53:24,867
What's his level of
engagement with NASCAR?

998
00:53:24,867 --> 00:53:26,700
(laughter)

999
00:53:26,700 --> 00:53:28,399
Mr. Carney:
The President looks very
much forward to the event.

1000
00:53:28,400 --> 00:53:31,033
And I think that this event
highlights something that this

1001
00:53:31,033 --> 00:53:34,700
President instituted, which is
to raise awareness about the

1002
00:53:34,700 --> 00:53:42,332
efforts that sports teams and
sport stars are engaged in to

1003
00:53:42,333 --> 00:53:47,567
help communities, and not just
pay attention to their successes

1004
00:53:47,567 --> 00:53:50,600
in competition, but the efforts
they make to help communities

1005
00:53:50,600 --> 00:53:51,266
around the country.

1006
00:53:51,266 --> 00:53:52,166
The Press:
Is he a fan?

1007
00:53:52,166 --> 00:53:55,066
Mr. Carney:
Sure. Alexis.

1008
00:53:55,066 --> 00:53:57,567
The Press:
The President is visiting
his second home in Ohio

1009
00:53:57,567 --> 00:54:00,433
tomorrow -- in Cleveland.

1010
00:54:00,433 --> 00:54:02,033
What's he going
to be doing there?

1011
00:54:02,033 --> 00:54:03,000
What's he going to talk about?

1012
00:54:03,000 --> 00:54:06,433
Mr. Carney:
Well, I don't know how much
we've provided on that.

1013
00:54:06,433 --> 00:54:08,700
I'm sure if we
haven't, we will soon.

1014
00:54:08,700 --> 00:54:12,466
But the President will
continue to make, broadly,

1015
00:54:12,467 --> 00:54:15,467
the case for taking the kind of
action we need to take to grow

1016
00:54:15,467 --> 00:54:18,133
the economy and ensure that
more Americans are getting

1017
00:54:18,133 --> 00:54:19,332
back to work.

1018
00:54:19,333 --> 00:54:22,934
That is his principal objective,
it is his principal focus,

1019
00:54:22,934 --> 00:54:28,100
and I am sure that the event
in Ohio tomorrow will focus

1020
00:54:28,100 --> 00:54:28,900
broadly on that.

1021
00:54:28,900 --> 00:54:30,000
But we'll get more
details to you.

1022
00:54:30,000 --> 00:54:30,800
Olivier.

1023
00:54:30,800 --> 00:54:32,333
The Press:
Jay, I saw the comment
that -- the President's

1024
00:54:32,333 --> 00:54:36,600
comments about the Falklands
and the renewed dispute between

1025
00:54:36,600 --> 00:54:39,799
Argentina and Britain, and
I'm wondering whether now

1026
00:54:39,800 --> 00:54:42,467
that Argentina is moving to
nationalize a Spanish energy

1027
00:54:42,467 --> 00:54:45,066
firm, what the White House's
take is on what's going on in

1028
00:54:45,066 --> 00:54:47,033
the Southern Hemisphere
and, specifically,

1029
00:54:47,033 --> 00:54:49,866
whether the White House is okay
with the Argentine move against

1030
00:54:49,867 --> 00:54:52,266
-- or move on --

1031
00:54:52,266 --> 00:54:56,700
Mr. Carney:
Well, I think the President
addressed this as a potential --

1032
00:54:56,700 --> 00:55:00,332
I don't have an update
for you now that the story

1033
00:55:00,333 --> 00:55:01,367
has moved a little bit.

1034
00:55:03,867 --> 00:55:06,166
I think when you say what's the
President's view on the Southern

1035
00:55:06,166 --> 00:55:07,066
Hemisphere, I think he --

1036
00:55:07,066 --> 00:55:09,500
The Press:
No, specifically on what's
going on with Argentina.

1037
00:55:09,500 --> 00:55:12,934
That seems to be two fights that
they're picking with allies of

1038
00:55:12,934 --> 00:55:14,734
the United States.

1039
00:55:14,734 --> 00:55:17,700
Mr. Carney:
Well, I think the
President addressed this

1040
00:55:17,700 --> 00:55:19,033
in Cartagena on Sunday.

1041
00:55:19,033 --> 00:55:20,366
I don't have anything
to add to it.

1042
00:55:20,367 --> 00:55:24,400
I can take the question for
a specific reaction to that

1043
00:55:24,400 --> 00:55:28,333
announcement by
the Argentinians.

1044
00:55:28,333 --> 00:55:29,400
Ken.

1045
00:55:29,400 --> 00:55:34,066
The Press:
Today on the Senate floor,
Senator Rand Paul was talking

1046
00:55:34,066 --> 00:55:37,866
about the need to
discontinue U.S. aid to Egypt,

1047
00:55:37,867 --> 00:55:42,533
in regard to Egypt's treatment
of U.S. civilians there.

1048
00:55:42,533 --> 00:55:44,767
And also he talked
about discontinuing

1049
00:55:44,767 --> 00:55:47,299
U.S. work with Interpol.

1050
00:55:47,300 --> 00:55:48,467
What's the stand on that?

1051
00:55:48,467 --> 00:55:49,934
Mr. Carney:
Well, I haven't
heard those comments.

1052
00:55:49,934 --> 00:55:56,533
I would simply say that it
is very important for us to

1053
00:55:56,533 --> 00:55:59,100
engage with Egypt.

1054
00:55:59,100 --> 00:56:03,600
It has a tremendously
significant role in the region.

1055
00:56:03,600 --> 00:56:12,333
And we have made clear that our
position is treaties need to be

1056
00:56:12,333 --> 00:56:17,567
honored; human rights and
democracy needs to be observed;

1057
00:56:17,567 --> 00:56:21,633
that the principles that
embodied the revolution in

1058
00:56:21,633 --> 00:56:26,533
that country need to be honored.

1059
00:56:26,533 --> 00:56:29,866
But beyond that, I did not
hear the Senator's comments,

1060
00:56:29,867 --> 00:56:33,934
but I think that would
be our general response.

1061
00:56:33,934 --> 00:56:34,734
Thank you all very much.
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