THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary _ For Immediate Release April 22, 1993 PRESS
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_____________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 22, 1993
PRESS BRIEFING
BY DEE DEE MYERS
The Briefing Room
9:45 A.M. EDT
Q One of them has to do with Waco. Why did we use a
chemical that's banned by the International Prevention of Use of
Warfare on a compound with a bunch of children in it?
MS. MYERS: I don't know that it's banned. That's the
first I've heard of that.
Q It was banned in January.
MS. MYERS: But it was -- it is safe and nonlethal for
both adults and children, which is one of the reasons that it was
chosen. But I would refer you to the FBI for specifics about
chemical compounds.
Q Why would the U.S. sign a treaty, then, agreeing to
ban its use in warfare if it's safe?
MS. MYERS: All I can tell you at this point is that it
was chosen because it was nonlethal for both children and adults. I
don't know about the treaty, but I will take that question and get
back to you.
Q Were three of the persons' bodies with new bullet
wounds?
MS. MYERS: They're still analyzing the results, but
that was their preliminary finding yesterday, that three of the
bodies did have bullet wounds, indicating that they had -- and the
way one of them was found led the authorities to believe that the
person was trying to escape the compound and may have been on fire at
the time. I think further evidence that there were people in there
trying to keep other people from leaving voluntarily.
Q Some of the partisans of the people in the compound
are now saying that the fire was caused by a rupture of a propane
tank.
MS. MYERS: This is the, I think now, the third
formulation. The FBI, who was there on the ground, saw individuals
engaging what they believe were fire-setting activities; and the fact
that the fire erupted in several different parts of the compound
roughly simultaneously I think dispute that. I think there is ample
evidence to conclude that the fire was set from within.
Q Has the President received any new information on
this?
MS. MYERS: He's continuing to receive reports about it,
and I don't know how much specific information he has, other than --I
don't know if anybody has gone through the details with him, but I
think everybody there believes, the authorities on site believe that
there is no question about the fact that that fire was set from
within deliberately.
Q Can you provide any more specifics on this person
who was found that you say leads to more evidence --
MS. MYERS: There were several news accounts about it.
I don't have anything beyond that. And I, again, would refer you to
the FBI or the Justice Department to see where they are in that
investigation.
Q Did the President review the Attorney General's
testimony that she's supposed to deliver this morning?
MS. MYERS: I don't believe so.
THE PRESS: Thank you.
END10:14 A.M. EDT
---------------------------------------------------------------------
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
____________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 22, 1993
PRESS BRIEFING
BY GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS
The Briefing Room
1:43 P.M. EDT
[ All but Waco stuff deleted ]
[ Pay special attention to part marked "*****"]
[...]
Q George, why would the President have authorized a
plan to use an irritant CS gas against women and children that he had
favored banning in wartime? What's the rationale for that?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: Under the chemical weapons treaty
that you cited there is a specific exemption for law enforcement
activities. I mean, this is, in fact, that this kind of use of this
gas is contemplated under the very treaty that bans it for wartime.
This is a specific prohibition.
Q law enforcement if it was for some reason
unacceptable in war? What's the rationale for having it in one and
not the other?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: It's just that there are certain
kinds of gases that are appropriate for law enforcement. This was
just a general treaty that bans it for international incidents, but
it is fully permitted under the treaty.
Q Has any the evidence come out from the
investigation in Waco that some of the people may have died from
other causes unrelated to the fire?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: I think we've all seen some
evidence that many people inside the compound may have been shot on
their way out, or at least some evidence pointing in that direction.
I can't get into the details of the investigation or what is coming
out. I think that that is something you should -- it would be better
to go to Justice. But obviously, we've read those same reports.
Q Do you mean to say many people had been shot?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: I think there was three, at least
three and they're looking for more.
Q Can I get back to this, please? Does the President
favor that exemption?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: The exemption is part of the treaty
and we have no plans to change the treaty at this time.
Q George, was the President aware of that limitation
at the time the Attorney General spoke to him about using it? Or did
she discuss using that chemical at Waco?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: She discussed using tear gas. The
President did say that she discussed that. And I would just point
out that this gas is safe and is relatively harmless. There is an
exemption within the treaty for the use of this kind of gas.
[*******]
Q How is it that a civilian agency like the FBI could
be allowed to have the authority to use a chemical that the military
themselves would not use? And is the President aware that this is
not tear gas, but is an irritant that completely incapacitates the
individual, whether it be children or women or men, and they wouldn't
know which door to go out of because they would have their eyes
completely shut and be in trauma at the time it was being used? Is
the President aware that this would be the effect of that gas?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: The President was told that the gas
would be used. I don't know if he was told the specific type, but he
was assured by the relevant law enforcement agencies that this was
safe and that it would have its intended effect. I am not an expert
on the gas, but I think I would refer you to the FBI and the Defense
Department for specific questions.
Q Why would an agency of the government that works
with civilians of our country and not against an enemy of our country
be allowed to use a gas that the military will not use? A chemical,
I should say, not a gas.
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: There are general global
international prohibitions on the use of chemicals in warfare, though
all of those treaties contain exemptions for law enforcement. They
are not intended to reach towards law enforcement. That is not a
judgment of any kind on the safety of the gases used; it is a
judgment on the use of chemicals in warfare. That's what the treaty
is designed to prohibit.
[ ... ]
Q Can I take you back to Waco for a second? Tuesday
in the Rose Garden the President said there was only one minor
tactical difference between the military's recommendations to the FBI
in the plan. He said both the military and the FBI regarded this as
minor. Can you tell us what that difference was and did it relate to
the tear gas?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: I'd have to take the question. I'm
just not sure.
Q I just wanted to be clear on that. How much about
that did the President know in advance of the event? Just to be
clear, I mean, was he told that they would use some type of gas, was
assured it was safe, or did they not get that much into that detail?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: I don't know they got into that
much detail. I think the President answered that question on
Tuesday. He said he was told they would use tear gas, and think that
that was generally the nature of the discussion. If there's more,
we'll let you know. But I don't know that there was any great detail
on that.
Q Was he given assurances at that time that it would
not be lethal or not be harmful to these people?
MR. STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, I would assume -- I certainly
would assume, yes. I mean, the intention, as the Attorney General
has stated, was to try and increase the pressure so everybody could
leave. So clearly that was all contemplated.
[...]
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