James S. Brady Press Briefing Room
ROBERT GIBBS: How are you all? Nice to be here.
[REPORTER]: How are you?
GIBBS: I'm great. Before I take a few of your questions, let me start out by letting you know something that we've added each day to the President's daily schedule. It's something that we're calling an Economic Daily Briefing that he'll receive most likely in the Oval Office each and every day. It will be treated and prepared with the same sort of renowned professionalism that the Daily Intelligence Briefing is done with. It is -- will be put together -- each night the President will receive a memo. It will be updated in the morning. The briefing will be led by NEC Director Larry Summers.
This morning's daily briefing was attended by the President, the Vice President, the White House Chief of Staff, OMB Director Peter Orszag, obviously Larry Summers, Domestic Policy Director Melody Barnes, and Jared Bernstein, the Vice President's Chief Economic Advisor. They walked through the day's economic news, the myriad of statistics that came out today on jobless claims and housing.
The President asked that this be added each day to his schedule, as the country is in the midst of an economic crisis and an economic emergency. And he felt it was important that each day he receive the most up-to-date information as it relates to the economy, as we put together an economic reinvestment and recovery plan, as well as future financial stability packages, to ensure that our economy gets moving again.
And with that, let me entertain a few questions.
Jennifer.
[REPORTER]: Thanks, Robert. I just want to try again to better understand how you guys are saying that you're not going to use any interrogation techniques that fall outside the Army Field Manual, or approve any of these techniques, and yet there's a task force that's going to look at whether those techniques provide an appropriate means of acquiring intelligence necessary. Just, I'm still not quite clear on how --
GIBBS: Well, some of the technical questions obviously we had Greg help you guys understand a little bit of that, and we'll be happy to do that. Let me step back from the process just a little bit, and describe in some detail what the President asked his team to do. The President believes that there's no more important job that he has than to keep the American people safe, that everybody that works in this building and in this administration knows of his strong belief and understands its importance.
The President believes that what he did today will enhance the security of the American people, that it lives up to our values as Americans, and that it will protect the men and women that we have in uniform. This was done through long consultations, as Greg talked about with folks in and out of government.
I don't want to get -- I don't want to prejudge the executive orders of the commission that's going to happen. I know that as it relates to going forward, that everybody is under the Army Field Manual. The commission has been tasked with studying any number of different scenarios relating to detainees and interrogation. And I think what's best is to let that happen and see what happens when they come back.
Obviously, what started today was a process that the President committed to during the campaign and reiterated throughout the transition to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay. That process started today with his signature. That process will go on until the issues that were outlined are appropriately determined.
[REPORTER]: It sounds like, though, what you all are saying is that the Army Field Manual is going to apply unless you decide maybe it shouldn't.
GIBBS: Well, again, I don't want to prejudge the -- I don't want to prejudge a commission that's going to look at any number of different issues. I think the President has been very clear on what he believes protects the American people and protects the values that we have as Americans.
Chip.
[REPORTER]: Some Republicans on Capitol Hill are already complaining about the Guantanamo decision, saying that what's going to happen is you're going to have a lot of people transferred to countries overseas, they're going to be released for one reason or another, and they're going to go right back to waging war against American troops. How can the President make certain that doesn't happen?
GIBBS: Well, before he signed the executive orders and the memoranda he met with -- and I think the list has been distributed -- generals and flag officers that have been involved in keeping our country safe for quite some time.