Schwarzenegger transcript from Qualcomm Stadium press conference

Transcript of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Visiting Fire Evacuees at Qualcomm Stadium

Time: 7:30 p.m.

Date: Monday, October 22, 2007

Event: Visit Fire Evacuees, Gate A, Qualcomm Stadium, 9449 Friars Road, San Diego, CA

GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER:

First of all, let me just say that I am very happy when I walk around here in this stadium, and I see how well things are organized, because we only got the most positive reaction from all the people that are here today, they're very happy. And of course, when I was here today at lunchtime and we had a press conference, and we looked at the fires and got a briefing here, we were concerned about making sure that all the people have everything that they need. We were concerned, do we have enough cots down here, do we have enough blankets, do we have enough food, do we have water, do we have the baby formulas, do we have the diapers, do we have enough toilet paper, do we have enough toilets? Do we have everything that we need for the people here so they can stay overnight here? Because almost 300,000 people have been evacuated.

So we worked together continuously, we were on the phone, Mayor Sanders and I, every hour throughout the whole afternoon, and coordinated. And I told him how concerned I was, to make sure that everything goes smoothly, and that it is a great partnership between the city and the state and the federal government. And we all worked together, and because of that the result is tremendous. The people are happy, they have everything here.

And so I want to congratulate Mayor Sanders for the great work that he has done, and also from OES, Mr. Sellers, who has done a great job. Where is he? Right here. Thank you very much for the great work. And I want to thank also General Wade, who is here from the National Guard, who has worked very hard this whole afternoon and made sure that we have the National Guard troops that are here to assist for anything that the people need here in this stadium. We have a lot, a lot of people here that need to be taken care of, so I think it was a great working relationship.

And we have, of course, gotten a great response from President Bush, who has mobilized everything that we need, the resources we need. Also from the Marines and from the military in general; we needed resources and they came through, and they will come through with more, with air tankers and so on, so it really was terrific.

So if you have any questions about this, I am happy --

QUESTIONS/ANSWERS:

Q: Governor, the Mayor says that San Diego right now is an example for America to watch in a situation like this. Has California learned from the mistakes of Katrina and the federal government?

GOVERNOR: I think that American cities and states have learned from the mistakes that were made in the past. And I think that we all have, because of that, had many meetings, and especially with OES, they have studied those cases very carefully. I think mayors have studied those cases carefully, governors have -- I know I have -- and I think we have learned from that.

And we wanted to make sure that we really are partners in this, because it's not just San Diego that is suffering, it is California that is suffering. And so the Mayor should know that I am there every step of the way, and the people of San Diego should know that we, the State, is there every step of the way. And I will be relentless. No matter what, all the way through the end, we want to make sure that people are happy, that we are helping in every step of the way.

MAYOR SANDERS: And I want to say -- just a second. I want to thank the Governor and OES for all of their help. They've been on site since this morning; OES has been here every second of the time, when General Wade was ready to step in after the Governor's direction. They've been wonderful. And I have listened to the Governor talk to the President, to Secretary Chertoff; we've gotten calls from federal government. And I don't think there could be a better partnership or more support than we've gotten from the State on this whole issue, so we're very excited.

Q: Governor, are you preparing a federal disaster request declaration?

GOVERNOR: Absolutely. We've requested that, and --

Q: You have requested it already?

GOVERNOR: Yes, absolutely. And I think, again, it's very clear that the federal government, the President, is very interested in helping this city and helping California. Because it's not only San Diego that has fires; we have now fires all over the State of California, there are many fires. I also want to say that I want to congratulate the firefighters, because we have talked about it this afternoon, right?

MAYOR SANDERS: Right.

GOVERNOR: Our firefighters are, without any doubt, the best firefighters in the world, and they really create quick action, and they're really battling those fires 24 hours a day. They're very courageous, and we want to compliment them and thank them for their great service.

Q: What exactly do you want from the federal government?

GOVERNOR: We want them to provide us anything that we need. And I think they have left the door open. Every agency has made it very clear that anything we need, they will provide resources or anything. So this has really been terrific. They have responded much quicker than what we have heard in the past. And, you know, it's great when you call them that you get an immediate response, and with great optimism and a positive attitude, not giving you the run around. When I talked to the President today he just said, "Look, I'll give you direct contact with my Chief of Staff. Anything you need, directly." And I called him back within minutes, and he answered the phone himself, and again was, you know, responding very quickly to my requests.

So, you know, it's like I said; everything has gone very well so far. But that doesn't mean that there will not be obstacles coming up in the future. But as long as we work together, I think that we will overcome all the obstacles and really make it -- even though it's a tragedy, and it's saddening of what is happening to people's properties, and how it disrupts people's lives, those kind of big fires -- but we're going to help the people.

Q: How do you see this unfolding in the next few days?

GOVERNOR: No one knows, because we are relying very much on the weather. We hope that the winds die down we hope that the firefighters get control of the fire and eventually put it out. So we hope for that, and in the meantime we want to make it as comfortable for the people as possible.

Q: How much FEMA resources are available now?

GOVERNOR: In regards to -- well, we have everything available that we need.

Q: How much money, how much (Inaudible)

GOVERNOR: Well, we don't know how much it will take, financially. But we will make everything available that needs to be made available.

MAYOR SANDERS: FEMA will be here tomorrow, that's how quickly they're responding. The Governor, through his state of emergency, has made it possible for us to get immediate federal disaster aid. And with FEMA coming tomorrow and opening an office, we'll have help to homeowners as quickly as we can possibly do that, and that's because of the state of emergency the Governor declared today.

GOVERNOR: Thank you very much.

Q: Governor, do you think this is a completely natural occurrence, or do you see any pattern to the way that development has taken place in this area? Has that had anything to do with the reason that the fire is so large now?

GOVERNOR: No. I think that we in California, unlike anyplace else, we have unique conditions. It's the most beautiful state in the world, beautiful place in the world, the place where everyone wants to come to. But we do have odd weather conditions, you know, that we have the end of October, it's very dry, we have 90 degree heat, and we have winds, really strong winds. So this is a perfect storm for fire, so that's the problem that we have. So we have to be always ready for that, and that's why we have a really well trained, the best trained fire department.

Q: Does one story stick out, Governor? Any one story as you met these people tonight?

GOVERNOR: I think that it was really nice -- there was one person that I met that was in a wheelchair, that had almost tears coming down, saying how well he was taken care of, that never outside of this stadium he gets taken care of that well, that everyone responded well, everyone was helpful with his wheelchair and with his physical needs. So it was very touching to hear that. Or to have women come up and just say their babies are taken care of, they get the baby food, they didn't expect that there would be diapers here and all of those things, how well thought through the whole thing is. So to me that was very touching, to see those kind of comments.