Interview with Former President George H.W. Bush
LARRY KING, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight the 41st President of the United States George H.W. Bush on his urgent mission to save millions left homeless and starving by Pakistan's earthquake and more. And then exclusive Dr. Robert Schuller, a giant among American evangelists and his son, Robert A. Schuller. Their first interview since the father passed leadership over his ministry to his son. It's all next on LARRY KING LIVE. On December 15th, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan appointed former President Bush as United States special envoy to review relief and reconstruction efforts in earthquake-ravaged region of Pakistan. The president is back from Pakistan. He joins from us College Station, Texas. I must say you look marvelous. Do you feel as good as you look?</s>GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No, I don't, Larry, to be very frank with you. I kind of jet-lagged out. It was a 21 and a half hour flight back from that region, but I feel good because I have a nice feeling inside that we're trying to help people. And I hope I can be successful in that.</s>KING: What's your role?</s>BUSH: My role, I am the special envoy for Kofi Annan. He called me out of a clear blue sky, and he said I'd like you to come to New York and talk to you about something. He sent somebody down to talk to me about it here in Texas. And my role is really narrowly defined, and it is to help Pakistan collect on the pledges of $6.2 billion already made to them. Now, some of them are loans and some are in-kind donations, but the role is really to help bring relief. But do it mainly through collecting the pledges that have already been made. I'm also trying to support the CEOS. There's five USA CEOS who are raising another $100 million. So in the final analysis is going to be helping Pakistan collect the money that they have coming.</s>KING: Why do you have to go there if the goal is to make sure the collections come in here?</s>BUSH: Well, it's a good question, and the answer is I wanted to see for myself the devastation. When you see something and you kind of get the tire swipe, you can be a better advocate for getting that money. And I'll tell you, I'm glad I went. The big problem we had, Larry, the weather was so bad on the two days I was there, that we could not fly into the Kashmir area. But we did see one devastated, devastating site, and that was a camp right on the outskirts of Islamabad. And they told me these tents, this camp is very much like the ones that are up in the mountains. So my mission was only half accomplished in terms of watching and seeing and feeling the pulse of the people. But it is tragedy, tragedy galore, and I feel good trying to help.</s>KING: This is one of the worst ever, right?</s>BUSH: Yes, I think it is, as far as Pakistan. They've had earthquakes before. But this one killed 73,500 people, just dead. And many, many other disabled. The tragedy, and I think we talked about this with President Clinton, you and I, and that was the young people, the children. You look in these tents and they are sitting there. They are looking after them. They're getting fed. But I mean it is devastating to think here they're miles away from their homes. Their homes are just collapsed like this on top of some of them. And the relief agencies, the U.N. organization and then the big NGOS are doing a pretty good job, but it's never enough. And I think Pakistan really needs help.</s>KING: Now your son, the president, has asked five top business leaders to encourage private sector donations for earthquake relief and reconstruction. They include the CEO of GE, Pfizer, of Xerox. The web site for that group is www.safewinter.org, one word. Now what do these leaders, what do they have to do?</s>BUSH: Well, what they're out to do is raise new money. New money is needed. And they're going to raise it, and I don't know whether they're going to distribute it through the NGOS. I think they are, but they're just selflessly raising money. They're doing pretty much what Bill Clinton and I tried to do and did do in the Katrina effort, and I think they're having a pretty good success. But these are busy people, giving of these times, they are what I recall being one of 1,000 points of light out there trying to help other people. So it's a clear mercy mission. It's relief, and then eventually it's reconstruction. Right now, Pakistan's focusing on the relief effort, being sure they got warm tents, being sure they got enough food, being sure health care is there. In the long run it's going to be a huge reconstruction job. And I think their money is probably going to go to both.</s>KING: And is reliefweb.inc., is that a associated with that or is that a separate concept?</s>BUSH: Larry, you know me. I'm computer ignorant. I don't know what the hell that--I mean, I don't know what the heck that is.</s>KING: I don't know what it is either. They just wrote it down. Or if you don't go to safewinter.org, you can reliefweb.inc. Do you work a computer?</s>BUSH: I think that may--oh, of course I can do that. I'm a big email man, but I think that's the U.N.'s site for U.N. relief director. That's probably an organization.</s>KING: Now have you reported to Kofi Annan yet?</s>BUSH: I'm sorry I used a bad word on your program.</s>KING: Oh.</s>BUSH: Yes, I talked to him. When I got back he called me up and I had a good conversation. We have a very able member. His staff is helping me, Colonel Kennedy, Kevin Kennedy, very well-seasoned man on international relief efforts. He's devoted much of his life to that, and I feel very comfortable with that arrangement we have with Kofi Annan's staff. But he called up and gentleman that he is, expressed his gratitude. And I said Kofi, I don't think we've done anything for you. Don't worry, just your taking on this mission is helping. Well, I hope he's right.</s>KING: On January 13th there was a U.S. airstrike on alleged terrorists in Pakistan, killed a lot of innocent people, did it undercut goodwill there? What did you discover, or what are the feelings of the Pakistani leaders?</s>BUSH: Well, the leaders, you know, any time an innocent loses his life, why, they are obviously concerned, but the leaders are strong anti-terrorist people. Shaukat Aziz is the prime minister. He's in Washington right now, a very good man. General Musharraf, I was so impressed with him, and I had long visits with both of them on the trip. And of course they'd be concerned if something goes awry, but on the other hand, I've heard them say or had their spokesman say they felt some bad guys were taken out in this mission. And it's tough over there. Along that border, Larry, it is very difficult. But that again, that wasn't my mission and I'm not up-to-date on all of the details of something like that anymore.</s>KING: You are the former head of the CIA. What's your own read, just your read on this bin Laden tape?</s>BUSH: Right. On the tape?</s>KING: Yes, the recent released tape.</s>BUSH: Well, I don't really have a feeling. Again, I hate to deal from ignorance on something. I've inquired as to whether the people think it's authentic, and I think they do. I think he's, I think, he's concerned. I'll tell you what I did do when I was over there. I stopped by Qatar, and there I was briefed by our marvelous commanding general in the area, Commander General Abizaid. And I'll tell you something, Larry. He feels things are going much better against these terrorists. Some call them insurgents. I call them terrorists, than the impressions we get at home. He's a very intelligent Arab speaking guy, good man, and that was very reassuring to me.</s>KING: Do you think the media reports are wrong or they're emphasized in the wrong way?</s>BUSH: Well, I think some clearly are. Look, hey, I didn't come in here on a watermelon truck. I think some are, but some are not. There are some very good reporters, objectively reporting, but on the other hand I've talked to a lot of people that have come back, and they say things are a heck of a lot better than the impression they get once they've gotten back from some in the media. So there's some media, and no question about that. But our president's strong, and he's going to stay the course. And I think's he's going to prevail. I think we are going to prevail as a nation. I think our soldiers are going to prevail.</s>KING: Our guest is the former president of the United States, George Herbert Walker Bush, on his trip to Pakistan and on www.safewinter.org, where you can help, so many people, destroyed homes, destroyed lives lost in that region. We'll be back with more. Then the Schullers will join us at the bottom of the hour. Don't go away.