White House defends decision on Vieques exercises

By Kelly Wallace
CNN Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON -- The White House argued Thursday that its decision to halt military bombing exercises on the Puerto Rican island of Vieques by 2003 was made by Navy Secretary Gordon England, not the president's political advisers.

The decision was not a "politically mandated solution," a senior administration official told CNN.

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The official said England made the decision and presented it to the administration during a meeting Wednesday with Karl Rove, the president's senior political adviser, Stephen Hadley, deputy national Security adviser, and Paul Wolfowitz, deputy defense secretary.

Still, in reality, England had little choice, since senior advisers say President Bush directed the Navy to come up with a plan that would meet the concerns of the people of Puerto Rico -- the majority of whom want to see the bombing exercises ended.

"My attitude is that the Navy ought to find somewhere else to conduct its exercises," Bush told reporters during a news conference following the U.S.-European Union Summit meeting in Sweden.

"We think this is a workable solution," a senior Bush adviser said, noting the military will have two years to find an alternative site to carry out live-fire exercises. The White House, though, conceded there was "disagreement within the Navy" about the issue.

During the meeting Wednesday, Rove, England, Wolfowitz and Hadley discussed how best to communicate the decision to lawmakers and officials in Puerto Rico, with briefings scheduled for Wednesday evening and Thursday, the senior official said.

Members of Congress complained, however, they learned about the decision from reporters instead of the administration. White House officials blamed that on news leaks. In an attempt at some damage control, England and Wolfowitz met Thursday on Capitol Hill with lawmakers, the senior official said.

The administration hoped news the bombing practices would not go beyond 2003 would "allay ... the concerns of protesters," possibly preventing some demonstrators from being "in harm's way when the training exercises resume" Monday, according to the senior administration official.

White House officials said they did not expect any changes in the administration's decision, despite objections by some Democratic lawmakers that the bombing should end immediately and from members of the president's own party, who say the training is vital for military readiness.

Still, senior administration officials predict the new plan may require legislation to "undo" what was created legislatively. The current law calls for a November referendum to allow the residents of Vieques decide if they want to receive economic benefits in exchange for letting the exercises to continue beyond 2003.

Since the administration wants to end the bombing practices in 2003, no referendum is needed, senior officials said.