Digest of Other White House Announcements, Week Ending Friday, April 8, 2005

The following list includes the President’s public schedule and other items of general interest announced by the Office of the Press Secretary and not included elsewhere in this issue.

April 2

In the morning, the President had an intelligence briefing.

In the afternoon, in the Residence, the President had a telephone conversation with White House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card, Jr., who informed him of the death of Pope John Paul II.

April 3

In the afternoon, the President and Mrs. Bush went to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where they watched a performance of the play "Mister Roberts." Later, they went to the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle, where they attended a memorial mass for Pope John Paul II.

April 4

In the morning, the President had an intelligence briefing. He also had a telephone conversation with Speaker Hajim al-Hasani of the Iraqi Transitional National Assembly to congratulate him on his April 3 election.

In the afternoon, in the Red Room, the President and Mrs. Bush had lunch with President Viktor Yushchenko of Ukraine and his wife, Kateryna Yushchenko.

April 5

In the morning, the President had an intelligence briefing. Later, he traveled to Parkersburg, WV, where, upon arrival, he met with USA Freedom Corps volunteer June Roberts.

In the afternoon, the President returned to Washington, DC.

Later in the afternoon, in the Oval Office, the President met with Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad. Later, Secretary Rice announced the President’s intention to nominate Ambassador Khalilzad to be U.S. Ambassador to Iraq.

The President announced that the delegation accompanying him and Mrs. Bush to the funeral mass of Pope John Paul II on April 8 will include: former President George Bush; former President William J. Clinton; and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

April 6

In the morning, the President and his delegation to the funeral mass of Pope John Paul II traveled to Rome, Italy. While en route aboard Air Force One, the President had a telephone conversation with President Jalal Talabani of the Iraqi Transitional Government to congratulate him on his election earlier in the day and to discuss Iraq-U.S. relations. He then had a telephone conversation with Amir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani of Qatar to express his condolences on the recent terrorist attacks in Qatar.

Later in the morning, in the conference room aboard Air Force One, the President, former President Bush, and former President Clinton had an intelligence briefing. Later, the President had a telephone conversation with head coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson of Baylor University’s women’s basketball team to congratulate her on the team’s April 5 NCAA championship.

In the afternoon, upon arrival in Rome, the President and his delegation went to Vatican City, where they attended the public viewing for Pope John Paul II, who lay in state in Saint Peter’s Basilica.

During the day, the President received a briefing from National Security Adviser Stephen J. Hadley on the helicopter crash in Kabul, Afghanistan, that killed American troops earlier in the day.

The President announced his intention to nominate Maria Cino to be Deputy Secretary of Transportation.

April 7

In the morning, the President had an intelligence briefing.

In the afternoon, at the Quirinale Palace in Rome, the President and his delegation paid a courtesy call on President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi of Italy.

In the evening, at Villa Taverna, the U.S. Ambassador to Italy’s residence in Rome, the President and Mrs. Bush hosted a reception for American cardinals, archbishops, and bishops of the Catholic Church.

Later in the evening, the President and his delegation, with the exception of Mrs. Bush, had dinner with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy at the Prime Minister’s residence.

April 8

In the morning, the President had an intelligence briefing. Later, at Saint Peter’s Square in Vatican City, he and his delegation attended the funeral mass of Pope John Paul II.

In the afternoon, the President and Mrs. Bush traveled to the Bush Ranch in Crawford, TX.

The White House announced that the President will welcome President Paul Kagame of Rwanda to the White House on April 15.

The President announced his intention to nominate Emil M. Skodon to be Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam.

The President announced his intention to nominate Eduardo Aguirre to be Ambassador to Spain and to Andorra.

The President announced his intention to appoint Robert B. Stephan as Assistant Secretary for Infrastructure Protection and to designate him as Acting Under Secretary for Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection at the Department of Homeland Security.

The President announced his intention to appoint the following individuals as members of the Board of Trustees of the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation: E. Gordon Gee; Valentino F. DiGiorgio III; Kimberly A. Owens; and M. Joyce Van Schaack.

The President announced his intention to appoint George R. Nethercutt, Jr., as Chairman of the U.S. Section of the U.S. and Canada Permanent Joint Board on Defense.

The President announced his intention to appoint Ruth Sharp Altshuler as a member of the Library of Congress Trust Fund Board.

The President announced his intention to appoint Stephen Malcom Gillis and Con Gia Pham as members of the Board of Directors of the Vietnam Education Foundation.