‘People Are Coming Here to Do Jobs That Americans Will Not Do’

President Bush’s comments on domestic issues during his year-end news conference.

On Social Security:

Social Security ... is a big item. And I campaigned on it.... I didn’t duck the issue like others have done ... in the past. I said this is a vital issue and we need to work together to solve it. Now, the temptation is going to be ... to get me to negotiate with myself in public -- to say, you know, what’s this mean, Mr. President, what’s that mean. I’m not going to do that. I don’t get to write the law. I will propose a solution at the appropriate time, but the law will be written in the halls of Congress.

And I will negotiate with them, with the members of Congress, and they will want me to start playing my hand: Will you accept this? Will you not accept that? Why don’t you do this hard thing? Why don’t you do that? I fully recognize this is going to be a decision that requires difficult choices.... Inherent in your question is, do I recognize that? You bet I do....

The first step in this process is for members of Congress to realize we have a problem. And so for a while, I think it’s important for me to continue to work with members of both parties to explain the problem. Because if people don’t think there’s a problem, we can talk about this issue until we’re blue in the face, and nothing will get done.... Many times, legislative bodies will not react unless the crisis is apparent, crisis is upon them. I believe that crisis is.

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On revising U.S. immigration laws:

I intend to work with members of Congress to get something done.... First, we want our Border Patrol agents chasing crooks and thieves and drug runners and terrorists, not good-hearted people who are coming here to work. And therefore, it makes sense to allow the good-hearted people who are coming here to do jobs that Americans won’t do a legal way to do so. And providing that legal avenue, it takes the pressure off the border.

Now, we need to make sure the border is modern, and we need to upgrade our Border Patrol. But if we expect the Border Patrol to be able to enforce a long border, particularly in the south -- and the north, for that matter -- we ought to have a system that recognizes people are coming here to do jobs that Americans will not do. And there ought to be a legal way for them to do so....

Once the person is here, if he or she feels like he or she needs to go back to see her family, to the country of origin, they should be able to do so within a prescribed -- in other words, and the card, the permit would last for a prescribed period of time. It’s a compassionate way to treat people who come to our country. It recognizes the reality of the world in which we live.... Now, one of the important aspects of my vision is that this is not automatic citizenship. The American people must understand that. That if somebody who is here working wants to be a citizen, they can get in line like those who have been here legally and have been working to become a citizen in a legal manner....

I fully understand the politics of immigration reform. I was the governor of Texas right there on the front lines of border politics. I know what it means to have mothers and fathers come to my state and across the border of my state to work. Family values do not stop at the Rio Grande River, is what I used to tell the people of my state....

The system we have today is not a compassionate system. It’s not working. And as a result, the country is less secure than it could be with a rational system.

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On making additional changes in Medicare after last year’s overhaul:

I know that we made progress in modernizing the Medicare system, and there’s more work to be done. No question about it. But as you know, it’s a three-year phase-in on Medicare -- or two-year phase-in from now. And in 2006, the prescription drug coverage will become available for our seniors. And I look forward to working with members of Congress to make sure the Medicare system is solvent in the long run.

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On whether he would veto spending bills in his second term:

I submitted a budget and Congress hit our number.... We worked together, we came up with a budget, like we’re doing now, we went through the process of asking our agencies, can you live with this, and, if you don’t like it, counter-propose.

And then we came up with a budget that we thought was necessary, and we took it to the leadership and they accepted the budget. And they passed bills that met our budget targets.

And so how could you veto a series of appropriations bills if the Congress has done what you’ve asked them to do?

Now, I think the president ought to have a line-item veto, because within the appropriations bills, there may be some differences of opinion on how the money is being spent.

But overall, they have done a superb job of working with the White House to meet the budget numbers we submitted....

We’re working very closely with members of Congress as we develop the budget. And it’s going to be a tough budget, no question about it, and it’s a budget that I think will send the right signal to the financial markets and to those concerned about our short-term deficits. As well, we’ve got to deal with the long-term deficit issues ... the unfunded liabilities when it comes to some of the entitlement programs.