XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX THU NOV 27, 2003 17:00:01 ET XXXXX
HOW IT ALL WENT DOWN: DETAILED REPORT OF BUSH'S SECRET TRIP
**Exclusive**
Trip of the President to Baghdad
Pool Reporter Mike Allen's [WASH POST] Private Notes
Nov. 26 and 27 (Thanksgiving Day), 2003
The President left Waco secretly Wednesday at 8:25 p.m. Eastern (7:25 p.m.
Texan) with a small pool, stopped at Andrews to pick up a few staff and a few
more poolers, change planes and then head to Baghad. Both flights were what we
think of as the normal Air Force One, Boeing 747 with the normal marking.
The President landed in darkness at Baghdad International Airport at 9:31
a.m. Washington time (5:32 p.m. local) on Thursday, Nov. 27, Thanksgiving Day.
He took off at 12:03 p.m. Eastern time, so was in Baghdad roughly 2.5 hours.
The staff aimed to keep the trip secret until after he had taken off from
Baghdad
? no filing was permitted from the site, by the pool or by locals.
The President landed with barely a sliver of a moon. He was already in a
white Land Rover or Land Cruiser by the time the pool reached the Tarmac. The
staff said the motorcade was 12 vehicles plus a military ambulance. Short
motorcade of less than five minutes through a blacked out, rutty part of the
airport, which looks like a military base. Passed Humvees, dog teams. The
President pulled up to the back of the Bob Hope Dining Facility, a huge
soft-sided, white building that looks like the most expensive and sturdy type of
party tent. The soldiers, we were told about 60
The programs at each place said "Happy Harvest Thanksgiving 2003 Baghdad,
Iraq." On the front were the logos of the First Armored Division ("Old
Ironsides") and the logo of the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Iraqi
Freedom. Menu was boiled shrimp with cocktail sauce, roast turkey and cranberry
sauce, baked ham, prime rib of roast, glazed Cornish hen, sweet potatoes,
buttered mash potatoes, savory bread dressing and corn bread dressing, turkey
gravy, buttered corn on the cob, seasoned green beans; pumpkin, sweet potato,
pecan, apple and cherry pie; assorted candies and nuts; assorted salads;
assorted breads and rolls; sparkling grape wine; eggnog and assorted beverages.
On the table were non-alcoholic malt brew and sparking grape juice.
Soldiers were at long tables with paper tablecloths showing harvest scenes,
with soft drink with Arabic writing. The high-ceilinged hall was hung with
American flags and the tables had paper, pop-out turkeys.
The event had been set up with Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of U.S.
forces in Iraq, and Paul Bremer, the chief civilian administrator.
When the President arrived, the soldiers were still thinking those would be
the speakers. General Sanchez said, "God bless you for all of your sacrifices,"
and hurriedly introduced Ambassador Bremer. Bremer said he had Thanksgiving
greetings from the President. But then Bremer, hamming it up, looked toward
stage left and said, "Let's see if we've got anyone more senior here."
Then the President came out and the room erupted even before he reached the
stage, with soldiers standing on chairs, standing on tables to bark, hoot, yell
and "Hoo-ah!" their approval.
xxx
The President then plunged into the crowd to meet with the soldiers. He
served food and worked the entire length of the long building. The President
seemed to be into the serving thing. "What do you want?" At one point he said,
"How many do you want, one or two?" Secretary Card worked the crowd separately.
The President did not eat while the journalists were in.
Xxx
The President was wearing blue shirt, dark slacks and a PT (Physical
Training) jacket bearing the patch of the First Armored Division (Old
Ironsides).
Xxx
Following are quotes from three random soldiers:
Private Stephen Henderson, 19, of Inglewood, Calif., an Army infantryman,
part of 1st Armored Division, 1st Brigade, 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry (136
Spartans), Task Force 137 ? has been in Iraq 1.5 week and expects to be here
five or six more month.
"I've never been so surprised. I had no idea ? not a clue. I feel uplifted.
I almost forgot I was even here."
Xxx
PFC Mark Hansen, 29, of Hillsborough, N.J., an Army field artillery surveyor
(sorry no unit ?my bad), re the President, "I never thought he would be here.
I'm proud to have him as the commander-in-chief. You can't beat it." Re Iraq:
"It's frightening. Once you here the first shot, your adrenaline is pumping and
you're in the game."
Xxx
Staff Sgt. Gerrie (cq) Stokes Holloman, 34, of Baltimore, who is stationed
in Wiesbaden, Germany, with the 1st Armored Division, 141 Signal Battalion, a
multichannel communications specialist?her sons, Andrew, 10, and Marcus, 6, and
husband Michael Holloman are back in Germany. She left them 45 days ago and
expects to be here until April. "I think it's great. It shows that he cares
about us and is thinking about us. It's not easy being here. Every day you're
over here, you feel depressed anyway. But it's especially hard on a holiday and
this is the kickoff of the holidays. For the most part people are tired, and
want to go home. But the support and encouragement we get from our leadership
builds a bond with our soldiers."
Xxx
Sanchez told reporters he was out today talking to soldiers and the only
morale problem he found was that soldiers who were not U.S. citizens said they
were having trouble becoming citizens, and said that would be the best Christmas
present ever. "Not a single soldier had an issue," he said. "Absolutely, there
is no more problem here in this community."
***Sanchez on the security: Said he found out about the visit 72 hours ago
and arranged for the extra security by telling them: "Because we're expecting
some kind of threat." The workers didn't know it was the President coming. "You
have to get into your military decision and say, 'Do it.' "
Xxx
At about 10:55 a.m. Eastern, the pool was taken out and put in the vans. As
we passed a military police Humvee, a soldier helmeted soldier who was working
in the dark and mud while other dined inside, "You all know the Third ID is
still here, right?"
A huge cheer was heard from inside as the President left and the vehicles
rolled at 10:58 a.m. Eastern.
xxx
The President was to meet with four Iraq Governing Council members,
including Mr. Chalabi, according to a senior coalition official.
The President rode a very brief motorcade to an office building, where he
met with the Iraq Governing Council members upstairs.
Then he went downstairs and was to meet with Sanchez and Brig. Gen. Marty
Dempsey, commander of the First Armored Division.
xxx
Before Air Force One landed in Baghdad, Communications Director Dan Bartlett
stepped into the press cabin to brief under gaggle rules. He wore jeans, boots
and a University of Texas Longhorns T-shirt with the Nike swoosh.
Bartlett: "The basic program right now is for the President, upon arrival,
will go to a chow hall right there near the airport, where there'll be
approximately 600 troops, mostly made up of the First Armored Division, but
there will be others. {hellip} In and around Baghdad is essentially where these
troops are coming from."
Staying at the base/airport?chow hall is either on airport property or right
adjacent to it
Most people at the even "do not know he's coming. Bremer and General Sanchez
are right now the planned speakers. {hellip} They're supposed to be reading a
statement from the President, as they typically do on an occasion such as this.
The President's going to pinch-hit for them ? come in and do it in person."
"It is absolutely critical, when we land, that you do not open your windows.
Particularly as we land and when we're on the ground, we want no light emanating
from the plane. We will not be pulling up to a terminal. {hellip} We will be
stopping at the end of the runway. It's just important that we move quickly, do
not open up the windows to illuminate any light."
Asked whether plane was flying under other code than Air Force One: "I'm not
going to be able to go into all the security measures that are being taken and
how we are flying. But it's safe to say that is correct ? that people on the
ground do not know that this is Air Force One that's landing."
"The plan is for the President to speak to the troops. He will then go to
the chow line, grab some chow, sit down with some troops, eat Thanksgiving
supper with the troops. He will then work the room for a considerable period of
time, meeting and greeting with as many troops as possible. He will then go to a
different building. It'll probably be a short motorcade. He will meet with a few
members of the Governing Council. {hellip} Then the President will meet with the
command staff. This is basically General Sanchez and General Dempsey, the
commander in charge of Baghdad. {hellip} That will conclude the program and
he'll return to the plane and fly out."
Scheduled to be on ground from 5:30 to 8:05 p.m. local.
"Right now, the standard protocol of this is going to be no reporting while
we're on the ground. The local press there will not have the capability to
report until the President is wheels up. So this is an embargoed event until
then. Now, if that is compromised, we will make every effort we can to
accommodate you to make sure that you can match and work at the same time."
"The first conversation about this trip took place approximately five or six
weeks ago ? the concept of visiting the troops during the holidays. The
President instructed him to do some diligence on the logistics of this. Joe
Hagin, the deputy chief of staff, is the one who's been spearheading this trip.
The President went to the next level of committing to do the trip during the
Asia trip. There are a certain amount of people you have to include in planning
something like this. So they went to the next level of due diligence. He made a
final call this morning. {hellip} He had two kind of final opportunities to make
a decision. One was while he was in Las Vegas, he gave the final approval, which
required another level of planning. And then made the final, final approval this
morning when he was on a CIVITS call this morning with the chief of staff, the
vice president and Dr. Rice." secure videoconference, where he gets his
intelligence briefing
"Secretary Rumsfeld knows, as do General Abizaid, General Sanchez and
Ambassador Bremer, but very few outside of those command structure know or knew
or about the logistics. All this, to this point now, is still called a
conditional trip. If this breaks while we're in the air, we're turning around.
That's why we've gone to the measures we have to ensure the safety and security
of the President and those traveling with him, and we also thought it would be a
neat opportunity to surprise the troops. The President generally believes that
this is a unique opportunity to thank the troops firsthand who are on the front
lines in this critical mission and to do so at a time when many Americans gather
around their tables and are joining family and friends to reflect on all the
things we cherish as a country. But they'll also be thinking about those who are
serving overseas and in harm's way, and the President is honored to be able to
bring the good wishes and prayers of the American pe
ople directly to the troops in the field. So he's excited about the trip,
he's looking forward to it. His parents don't know. They're going to arrive
there this morning. {hellip} The girls were told a few hours before he left.
Mrs. Bush has known longer than them. {hellip} The president encountered and
witnessed traffic for the first time in three years on the way to the airport in
an unmarked vehicle. That was a little amusing to those who were riding with
him."
Trip to took a typical 45 minutes; wouldn't have known it was Bush by
looking at the vehicle; was taken on back of plane; "If you were sitting outside
the ranch waiting for the President, you would not have known the President just
left."
Impression was left based on question that the ground staff thought it was a
maintenance flight: "I think most people are used to the fact that Air Force One
takes off and lands occasionally while the President's here. Precautions were
taken necessary to ensure that the President was not known to be on the plane."
When boarding plane the President was wearing work coat, baseball cap,
jeans, boots, button-down shirt.
Any precedent for this? "We were talking about it. We don't have any
recollection. But we haven't done any research to verify that."
Asked if it is appropriate for the President to be spirited half a world
away with few people knowing: "It is appropriate for the president to visit
troops, particularly troops who are on the front lines of such a critical
mission for the safety of the American people and in a troubled part of the
region. It is also appropriate that the President travel in a way which in which
his security and safety is not compromised. We recognize the role of the
public's right to know of the travels of the President, and that's why members
of the media are on the trip and are here to document and report what takes
place."
Asked about air space that might not be friendly if not traveling as Air
Force One: "I can assure you that those type of contingencies have all been
considered."
Didn't know whether the Vice President was anyplace special: "Typically on a
trip, when the President's oversea, as long as he's in the continental United
States, it's fine."
Senior staff on the plane consists of Mr. Hagin, Secretary Card, Dr. Rice
and Mr. Bartlett. Dr. Tubbs onboard. 13 in press cabin
Xxx
A senior administration official, to the press cabin: "This has been in the
planning for several weeks for a reason, and that's because of the security
climate which we're operating in. The assessment is the President's confident
that enough measures have been taken to ensure his safety as well as the safety
of the people traveling and those he's meeting with on the ground."
xxx
The Journey?Please note especially 10:45 p.m., a sighting of the
President?Summary: Pool activated in extraordinary swiftness and secrecy, Air
Force One ran without some of its usual lights and faster than usual. Officials
hoped to get the President into Baghdad, and perhaps out, before the trip was
reported.
4:40 p.m. Eastern (3:40 p.m. Texan) Wednesday?Your pooler was standing on
the lawn in front of the Crawford filing center, talking on his cell phone, when
Steve Atkiss, 26, Deputy Director of Presidential Advance, beckoned for him to
climb into his mammoth white rented Dodge pickup. He drove your pooler a few
blocks to a concealed parking lot and told him to step out, that someone wanted
to talk to him. Communications Director Dan Bartlett was there, along with
Deputy Press Secretary Claire Buchan. Bartlett smiled mischievously at the
surprise meeting. "I have news," he said. "The President is going to Baghdad."
He said this writer would be the newspaper pooler, and said we would be stopping
in Washington to refuel and pick up a few other journalists. He said the staff
had only discussed the trip on secure lines and that they hoped no word of it
would get out until the President was on the ground or even had left. Like most
other members of the pool, this writer was forbidden
to tell his employer or family what was up. Your pooler climbed back in the
truck and Atkiss said that at 5:30 Texas time, he was to be in the parking lot
of the Baylor field where we play softball.
6:30 p.m. Eastern (5:30 p.m. Texan) ? Arriving at the parking lot, several
of the photogs still thought it was an elaborate practical joke. 6:45 p.m.
Eastern (5:45 p.m. Texan) -- A Bloomberg reporter, four still photographers,
your pooler and White House photographer Tina Hager piled into Atkiss's truck
and a photographer's car and pulled around to the back of the Marriott Residence
Inn, where we went to look for one other photog who had been unreachable, and
luckily was located in time. He had been asleep, behind two closed doors, so he
hadn't heard when Atkiss came knocking earlier. The photog's cell phone was in
his car, but he was wakened by his pager, about the time Atkiss beat on the door
again. The photog, gently accusing Atkiss of an elaborate joke and naming the
photographer he thought was behind it, had five minutes to get ready. The
two-vehicle motorcade from the softball field was joined by a white Jeep Grand
Cherokee driven by Blake Gottesman, the President's per
sonal aide, with Deputy Chief of Staff Joseph Hagin riding shotgun and Dan
Bartlett in the back seat. Everything around the White House has a huge
infrastructure, but these three vehicles were what it could be at its most
stripped down. With no security, Atkiss led the way to TSTC Airport in Waco,
enduring rush-hour traffic, an experience rare in the bubble.
7:15 p.m. Eastern (6:15 p.m. Texan) ? The press boarded Air Force One
through the customary rear stairs. It was odd to be on the plane with little
White House staff around and fewer Air Force One staff. The window shades were
all pulled down. Mr. Hagin came back to greet us and asked us to take the
batteries out of our cell phones, so the movement could not be tracked, and
asked us not to turn them on in D.C. Some of the reporters had been told
separately that they would be handed new phones when they hit the ground in
Baghdad. A photographer said to one of his colleagues, "Do you believe it NOW?"
7:35 p.m. Eastern (6:35 p.m. Texan) ? Steve Atkiss told us that Baghdad time
was nine hours ahead of Central time, 8 hours ahead of Eastern time, and that we
would be returning to Waco around 5 a.m. Texas time on Friday. The journalists
kibitzed about whether any President had flown out of the country unannounced,
since perhaps FDR going to Yalta. Attendants passed out mini-pillows that said
USAF on them, with the Presidential seal in blue on the white case, along with
head sets and plastic-wrapped, navy-blue blankets that said "Air Force One" in
embroidered script.
7:51 p.m. Eastern (6:51 p.m. Texan) ? In a very unusual move, a flight
attendant closed the front door of the press cabin and the door to the Secret
Service cabin, so we could not see the arrival of the President or the agents.
We didn't know if he was coming by Suburban or Black Hawk or white top or what.
8:22 p.m. (7:22 p.m. Texan) ? Still blacked out from the rest of the plane,
we heard Air Force One's engines rev. We heard gear being piled against the door
of the Secret Service cabin.
8:25 p.m. (7:25 p.m. Texan) ? Air Force One was rolling.
8:27 p.m. (7:27 p.m. Texan) ? Air Force One was airborne. Journalists peeked
out the shades and saw that the plane had on none of the running lights that are
customarily visible, including the red or green ones on the wings. The movie
"Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" had begun playing in the press cabin.
8:45 p.m. ? The plane seemed to be going unusually fast, and please note
below that the average speed was given to us as 665 mph. The door opened to the
Secret Service cabin. The attendants began taking food trays up to the front of
the plane, and asked the journalists if they wanted to eat. The trays had liners
that said, "Welcome Aboard Air Force One." The tray contained a little glass
pepper shaker and matching salt shaker; a crimson cloth napkin with a paper
napkin ring with the Presidential seal in gold; a butter pat in a Land O Lakes
wrapper; a china plate with two pieces of fried chicken, a scoop of potato
salad, a small corn cob; a roll; a china plate with apple pie; and a glass,
embossed with the Presidential seal, of lemonade. It is often noted that Air
Force One is one of the few planes where you get a real knife. The beverage
napkins are white with a light-blue Presidential seal and the words, with quotes
around them on the napkin, "Aboard the Presidential Aircraf
t." The movie "Open Range" played in the Secret Service cabin.
9:15 p.m. -- In a customary gesture on Air Force One flights, an attendant
passed the press cabin one copy of a card, printed in-flight, detailing the
trip. On one side of the white card, in blue, is the Presidential seal and the
words "Welcome Aboard Air Force One." On the other side, in black, it said:
"November 26, 2003. Our Destination Is: Andrews AFB, MD. Expected Arrival Time
Is: 10:35 p.m. Time Change On This
Leg: Lose 1 Hour. Flight Altitude Will Be: 29,000 Feet. Our Speed Will
Average: 665 MPH. We Will Fly Over: Texarkana, TX Charleston, WV. DESTINATION
WEATHER FORECAST Conditions: Cloudy. Current Temperature: 42 Degrees."
9:21 p.m. ? Richard Keil of Bloomberg News leaned across the aisle, shoved
aside his I-Pod headset and grinned as he said: "The President of the United
States is AWOL, and we're with him. The ultimate road trip."
10:08 p.m. ? We could feel ourselves starting to descend. We were told that
at Andrews, we would be switching to the other Air Force One, which was fueled
and catered and ready to go.
10:31 p.m. ? Touched down.
10:35 p.m. ? Stopped taxiing. The front door of the press cabin was closed,
perhaps so we could not see some of the gear or personnel descending. Shortly
thereafter, we stepped off the plane and were inside the super-secret Air Force
One hangar at Andrews, with the other Air Force One at an angle abreast of the
one we had flown in on. The floor is painted white, and the superstructure,
which has girders that give it an industrial, hangarry look, is off-white. Red
tape marked lines on the floor and a bright blue, low-slung tug was hooked to
the plane. Air Force One rugs were at the bottom of the stairs.
***10:45 p.m. -- We walked the short distance between the planes in the
noisy, brilliantly lit hangar and saw the President walking up the stairs that
descend out of the belly of Air Force One, followed by Secretary Card, Dr. Rice
and other aides. Some of the staff was in jeans. The President, wearing a work
coat and baseball cap, paused at the top of the stairs when he spotted the
reporters. The sound in the hangar was so loud that he couldn't be heard, but he
held his thumb and pinkie apart, and raised them to his ear, in the symbol of
someone using a phone, and mouthed, "No calls, got it?'' He emphasized the point
by crossing his arms back and forth in front of him. He made the "cut" sign to
his throat and mouthed again, No calls.'' The President's manner was that of a
stern father reprimanding his children, but in good humor.
10:50 p.m. -- When the seven journalists from the first flight walked into
the cabin, they saw the six who were joining in Washington. Everyone was
surprised by the cast of characters ? we all had gotten a slightly different
version of who was to be along. When the plane took off, 13 of the 14 seats in
the press cabin were filled: writers from The Associated Press, Reuters and
Bloomberg, plus the newspaper pooler; photographers from AP, Reuters, AFP, Time
and Newsweek; and a correspondent, producer and two-person crew from Fox.
[Flackback: The journalists who boarded in Washington had been told at
various times, going back to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, when Terence Hunt of the AP was
told by a top White House official. Jim Angle, the Fox correspondent, found out
around 11 a.m. Wednesday. Those journalists were told to meet at 8:30 p.m. at
the Holiday Inn Express across from the main gate of Andrews Air Force Base.
They were picked up in a black, unmarked van like those used to ferry the pool
to Camp David. The van left about 8:40 p.m. and they went through the main gate
and were driven to the hangar. Before they went into the hangar, they received a
security sweep and relinquished control of their personal belongings. They put
their cell phones, pagers and other small electronic devices in brown, clasp
envelopes. Bags, cameras, etc. were held in the belly of the plane until after
wheels-up. They walked up the back steps as usual, getting on a little after 9
p.m. A senior administration official said: The t
rip had been in the works about 10 days. Secretary Rumsfeld knew about a
week ago. Vice President Cheney, Secretary Powell and the First Lady know now.
Dr. Rice told Mr. Hadley today. There was no official motorcade as the President
was driven from the ranch. Some members of the detail think he is still at the
ranch, according to this official.]
10:55 p.m. -- Dan Bartlett stopped back with a few details. "Nobody on the
ground knows, but a handful of people," he said. An event was already planned
with Ambassador Bremer and General Sanchez, and so that's what most people there
thought they would be attending or covering. Some local reporters would be
covering the Bremer-Sanchez event, but the staff was not sure how many. The
President will speak to about 600 troops and eat a Thanksgiving meal with some
of them. Bartlett said "they're going to great lengths" to keep the arrival a
secret. He said it would be "a quick landing, a dark landing," and said the
plane will not be lit up like it typically is. "The phones are down, the comms
are down," he said, meaning that some of Air Force One's phones and
communications equipment had been turned off to try to preserve the stealth
mission. Sources said General Abizaid hoped to keep the trip secret until after
the President had taken off to return. Steve Atkiss told the journali
sts that he didn't want to alarm them, but they would be fitted for
"ballistic vests."
11 p.m. ? The engines fired.
11:02 p.m. ? The plane rolled.
11:06 p.m. ? Takeoff. The digital clock under the television in the press
cabin said WASHINGTON PM 1106, LOCAL PM 11:06, DESTINATION AM 7:06." The ride
right after takeoff was rough, choppy. On Air Force One, little magazine racks
are stocked with current issues with "Air Force One" bindings around them. In
addition to the usuals like Time and Newsweek, the offerings include Bassmaster.
By 11:19 p.m. ? The President was asleep.
11:30 Secretary Card, wearing sweat clothes and running shoes, poked his
head into the press cabin, where everyone was jabbering. "Sleep! Sleep! Sleep!"
he kidded. Asked about the number of flying hours, he said, "You'll have plenty
of time to sleep."
12:01 a.m. Thursday ? Happy Thanksgiving. A flight attendant offered cake.
There were few takers. The movie "Open Range" was playing as some journalists
dozed or prepared to.
12:05 a.m. ? The Secret Service press agent came by with press passes to be
worn on a neck chain. The agent asked the journalists to take off their old
passes because officials would be checking extra carefully today.
12:15 a.m. ? Lights darkened in press cabin. The Service cabin was also
dark.
7:55 a.m. ? After Bartlett briefing above, breakfast served ? cheese omelet,
two Texas-sized sausages, little cup of oats, plain yogurt, blueberry muffin and
orange juice.
8:28 a.m. ? Reporters try on camouflage, Velcro-front "ballistic vests."
Keil, adjusting his, asked: "Anyone have a tailor?" Much of the staff changed
into camouflage tops and bottoms, for security and to blend in and not spoil the
pictures.
9:09 a.m. Washington time (5:09 p.m. Destination) ? Cabin lights are turned
out and all the shades remain down.
9:22 a.m. Washington time ? We were told eight minutes out and could feel
the descent. Shut down laptops. Cabin is dark except for blue3 light of clocks
and light from agents' cabin. About half the journalists were already wearing
their vests, which are Point Blank Body Armor.
9:31 a.m. Washington time (5:32 p.m. local) ? Touched down in swift abrupt
landing, but not the emergency spiral that had been prepared for. Press walked
down dark stairs onto Tarmac.
10:50 a.m. ? I had taken off my body armor to type, then saw a soldier I
wanted to interview. I came back and my vest is gone. The laptop is still there.
11:56 a.m. Washington time ? We reboarded on a dark stretch of runway. A
soldier or agent with a huge gun stood at the foot of the stairs as press Ids
were checked.
11:59 a.m. ? Dan Bartlett stuck his head into the press cabin and said he
believes the secret held. He said we would be allowed to file when we got above
10,000 feet.
Noon Eastern ? 8 p.m. local ? Rolling -- "Short taxi!" the attendant says.
12:03 p.m. Eastern ? Airborne. No one needed their vests. Shortly after
takeoff, the bulletin could be heard on CNN on Channel 7 on the Air Force One
audio system.
The President plans to speak to the pool onboard and I'll file Pool Report
#2 on that.
The staff says we are expected to stop and refuel at Andrews and land at
TSTC in Waco on Friday at 5 a.m. Texas time, 6 a.m. Eastern time. Thanks to
White House staff I hopefully will have access to a phone line later. If you're
a newspaper reporter in Waco, I want to answer your questions. Probably the only
way to get a question to me is to send an e-mail with the question in the
subject line. I'll try to log on but that will depend on access to phone line.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Filed By Matt Drudge
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