John King: Congress considers China sanctions and budget cuts

CNN Moderator: Good morning and welcome back to CNN.com newsroom, John King. Some members of Congress have already been talking about sanctions against China for the April 1 mid-air collision. What's being discussed on Capitol Hill?

John King: The administration is being quiet about any decisions - if any are made as yet. So Congress is driving the debate for now as the White House focuses on trying to get the plane back. But the options include opposing Beijing's request to host the 2008 Olympics and canceling a planned Bush visit to Beijing in the fall. And of course there will be a trade debate in the spring/early summer. But the president wants to take a little time to see how things play out.

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CNN Moderator: What role is President Bush taking in the meeting between the U.S. and China on Wednesday?

John King: The president has no direct role: the U.S. will send a delegation of eight people-- mostly from the State Department and the military to the meeting. But the president obviously is involved in the discussions about what to pursue at the meeting, and we are told they hope to get permission for a repair crew to go to Hainan and repair and retrieve the EP-3.

Question from chat room: Why has Bush allowed the orders to be given to deploy our troops over to Kosovo in July? I thought this would not happen on his watch.

John King: The president has reduced the number of U.S. troops in the Bosnia peacekeeping operation by a modest amount but for now is not changing the deployment to Kosovo. So as there are rotations or adjustments in the mission, there will be additional deployments, or at least replacements. There is no talk from the White House of any significant reductions in the U.S. commitment to Kosovo this year. The issue is likely to come up later in the year when Mr. Bush meets with the NATO allies.

CNN Moderator: How is President Bush responding to charges by many Congressional Democrats that his proposed budget cuts too much from needed programs?

John King: The president says the Democrats are projecting one or two year budget proposals out over 5 to 10 years. He says his later budgets would not reduce spending as his initial budget does. The White House also suggests some of the criticism is from Democrats who will always want to spend more than the president.

But make no mistake: Democrats are emboldened by the votes on tax cuts in the Senate and are more and more aggressive as the budget battle intensifies. So in response, the president is gearing up for more travel - there is a lot next week during the congressional recess - to sell his plan.

Question from chat room: It seems to me that President Bush doesn't have news conferences. Does the press have access to him?

John King: He is accessible for a few questions on average once a day. And once a month so far he has come to the briefing room for questions. There was a formal news conference with Prime Minister Blair; he has not had one of those yet here at the White House. But he is fairly accessible when compared to President Clinton -- more so than Mr. Clinton was for most of his second term.

CNN Moderator: What are some of the major items on President Bush's agenda this week, and what other stories are expected to be in the political spotlight this week?

John King: The budget and China will dominate the political discussions. And Mr. Bush meets today with the President of Chile to begin the work for this weekend's Summit of the Americas in Quebec. So more international focus this week, with trade the biggest issue from the president's perspective. Mr. Bush also is awaiting recommendations from the Pentagon about whether to have fighter jets escort future surveillance flights near China.

CNN Moderator: Thank you for joining us again today, John King. Talk to you again next week.

John King: My pleasure. Take care everyone.

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Members of Congress consider slapping sanctions on China
April 15, 2001
Democrats press attack on Bush's budget, tax cut
April 15, 2001