March 30, 2006
Robert Ford, Counselor for Political Affairs, United States Embassy Baghdad, Iraq

Hello everyone - I'm the head of the American Embassy's Political Affairs Office where we have 17 State Department diplomatic staff working on democracy and human rights issues as well as US-Iraqi political relations.

March 24, 2006
Gale Norton, Secretary of the Interior

Good afternoon. Today’s topic is avian influenza, which is a virus that is found naturally in wild birds, particularly certain species of waterfowl and shorebirds. These wild birds are considered to be natural reservoirs for the virus.

March 21, 2006
Julie Myers, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

It's great to be here today. This issue can be very difficult to discuss, but I'm happy to have the opportunity to tell you about what investigators at ICE and other law enforcement officers around the world are doing to help keep children safe. I look forward to taking your questions.

March 20, 2006
Kevin Bergner, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Iraq

My name is Kevin Bergner, and I am a Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Iraq. I am pleased to join you today to discuss the progress of the past three years in Iraq and the way ahead.

March 17, 2006
James Kenny, U.S. Ambassador to Ireland

It's great to be here today. It's a very special day for Ireland, and a very special day for Irish-Americans. I am in the White House where we had our bilateral meeting between Ireland and the United States this morning.

March 15, 2006
Dr. Mark McClellan, Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Thank you for joining us on Ask the White House this afternoon. I appreciate the opportunity to talk about the steps we are taking to continue educating people with Medicare about the new prescription drug coverage that is available today...

March 13, 2006
Ambassador James Jeffrey, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State and Coordinator for Iraq

Good afternoon. I am Jim Jeffrey, senior advisor to Secretary of State Rice on Iraq and the State Department’s coordinator for Iraq policy. I served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad from June 2004 to March 2005, and as U.S. Charge d’Affaires to Iraq from March to June 2005. I’m looking forward to your questions and to helping you better understand our policies in Iraq.

March 10, 2006
Dr. Edward Lazear, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers

Hi everybody. Glad to join you in this "Ask the White House" forum about the U.S. economy and today's jobs report. The Labor Department reported today that 243,000 payroll jobs were added in February of this year. About 5 million jobs have now been added in the past two and a half years. I welcome your questions about today's report and other economic issues. Thanks, Ed.

March 9, 2006
Rachel Brand, Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice

I appreciate the opportunity to talk about the USA PATRIOT Act and its reauthorization. The Department of Justice’s first priority is to protect Americans from terrorism, and the USA PATRIOT Act has been critical to our efforts. The President and the Department have made reauthorization of the expiring USA PATRIOT Act provisions a top legislative priority, and it has been a privilege for me to work on those efforts.

March 8, 2006
Jim Towey, Director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives

It is great to be back with you and I look forward to answering as many questions as I can. Tomorrow the President will address the National Conference on the Faith-based and Community Initiative, and we will have a packed ballroom - over 1500 registered, and we had to cut it off so that every one could get a chair! It will be a great day and the President will share his thoughts on what has been accomplished to date and what challenges remain.

March 3, 2006
Rear Admiral Craig Bone, Director of Inspection & Compliance for the U.S. Coast Guard

Good afternoon. I'm pleased to be here today to entertain your questions. The purpose of the Coast Guard is to protect the public, both with regard to waterways as well as maritime safety, and serve the citizens of the United States. Often in the Coast Guard we say our job is to protect people from the sea in search and rescue operations and the sea from people, in regard to the environment. And so today, I know port security is on the minds of many of the people. I'm happy to answer any of the questions you might have.