US President Barack Obama denounced waterboarding, offered cautious hope on the economy and looked to calm fears about swine flu as he held a major White House news conference to mark his 100th day in the White House.
Obama said he had no second thoughts.
“I do believe that it is torture,” he said flatly of waterboarding, which simulates drowning.
He appeared to acknowledge that useful information had been obtained in interrogations in which it was used, an assessment made in a memo by his administration’s top intelligence official.
Obama also gave assurance that one way or another, Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal would not fall into the hands of Islamic extremists.
He said he was confident “primarily, initially” because he believes Pakistan would handle the issue on its own. But he left the door open to eventual US action to secure the weapons if needed.
Obama said he was “gravely concerned” about Pakistan. He said he does not fear an immediate takeover of Pakistan by the Taliban, but said the Pakistani government seems unable to deliver basic services and thus gain the kind of public loyalty necessary to survive against challenges over the long term.
The wide range of issues raised at Wednesday’s news conference captured the whirlwind of Obama’s first 100 days. Obama has had to deal with two wars, the deepest recession in decades and, most recently, the swine flu outbreak, even as he pushes to overhaul healthcare, energy and education policies.
Obama said he did not want to meddle with private business, even though the government was moving toward ownership stakes in banks and auto companies.
He said he would be glad if someone could tell him that the banks and auto industry were healthy “and that all you had to worry about was Iraq, Afghanistan, North Korea, getting healthcare passed, figuring out how to deal with energy independence, deal with Iran, and a pandemic flu.”
“I would take that deal,” he said.
Obama took office on Jan. 20 amid high expectations. The first black US president, Obama, 47, won over Americans with his youth, intellect and commitment to change the nation after the unpopular presidency of former US president George W. Bush.
PATROL PARTNERS: The ‘Chiayi’ and the ‘Penghu’ departed for a two-day joint patrol of Palau’s exclusive economic zone, the CGA’s second diplomatic visit to the country The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) set a record for its southernmost deployment of a coast guard vessel as the vessels Chiayi and the Penghu reached Palau’s Pulo Anna Island on Saturday in a cooperative exercise between the two countries. The island, about 217 nautical miles (401km) southwest of Koror in the Palauan state of Sonsorol and 1,220 nautical miles from Taiwan’s southernmost point, Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), is the furthest south a CGA vessel has sailed. The two vessels are in Palau for the coast guard’s second diplomatic visit to the country. They docked at Malakal Harbor on Tuesday last week. The coast guard
The government is monitoring online rumors that a pneumonic plague outbreak has spread from Russia into China, and it might enhance quarantine measures, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During a legislative meeting, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said that rumors had circulated that the disease had spread across several Chinese provinces. He asked Cho whether the government was prepared to prevent the disease spreading to Taiwan, given the volume of traffic between the two sides, and how concerned the government was about the alleged outbreak. The Ministry of Health and Welfare had implemented border quarantine measures after briefing the Executive
EAST OF GUAM: Tropical Storm Champi is forecast to strengthen into a typhoon, but its effect on Taiwan is uncertain due to the presence of a high-pressure system Tropical Storm Champi formed yesterday and has the potential to increase in strength, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Forecasters are closely monitoring a Pacific high-pressure system that would dictate whether the storm turns north or moves toward Taiwan next week, the CWA said. The most likely scenario is that it turns northward after passing the Ryukyu Islands, CWA forecaster Cheng Chieh-jen (鄭傑仁) said. As of 8pm yesterday, Champi was east of Guam moving west-northwest at 20kph, CWA data showed. It had maximum sustained winds near the center of 72kph and gusts of up to 101kph, the data showed. If the Pacific high-pressure system
BATCH 1: The military has plans to assign the weapons to the army to defend Taiwan proper, as well as outlying islands and the navy for the Marine Corps, the official said Taiwan is to receive 500 Stinger missiles and 178 launchers from the US by the end of the year, the first batch under a planned two-stage acquisition totaling 2,621 missiles and 763 launchers, a defense official said yesterday on condition of anonymity. The portable missiles would play a vital role in the nation’s air defense capabilities, the source said. The army plans to deploy 2,235 missiles and 657 launchers to defend Taiwan proper and outlying islands, they said, citing military documents. The navy is allotted 295 missiles and 85 launchers to arm the Marine Corps and some surface vessels that lack air defense
RSS