Chopper pressers are the best pressers.  Departing the White House for a flight to Baltimore, Maryland, attending a republican conference dinner, the President pauses to hold an impromptu press conference with the media pool on a variety of topics.

[UPDATE – Video and Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] THE PRESIDENT: Thank you everybody. So, the stock market is up again, and we’re very close to a new high. It would be over 100 times, I believe. You’ll check it. But many, many times, we set the record. So we’re very honored by that. We’re having a tremendous couple of weeks. A lot of good things are happening.

I got a call from heads of China. The call was directed to my people, actually. And they asked whether or not it would be possible to delay the hit on the tariffs up to 30 percent from 25 percent — would it be possible to take it off of the October 1st date. We gave them a two-week — in honor of President Xi, we gave them a two-week reprieve. And so, we’ll be doing the tariffs on October 15th, instead of October 5th or 1st.

They were going to be set on October 1st; we’re moving it to October 15th because they’re having their 70th anniversary. And I will do that, again, in honor of President Xi.

And that’s it. Any questions.

Q Mr. President, are you considering Secretary Pompeo to also be the National Security Advisor?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I wouldn’t. I think he’s fantastic, but I actually spoke to Mike Pompeo about that, and he decided — and he and I — I get along with him so well. We have a lot of the same views, and a couple of a little different views. But he likes the idea of having somebody in there with him, and I do too.

I think that we’ll have an answer for you — we have — we have 15 candidates. Everybody wants it badly, as you can imagine. And we’ll probably next week sometime make that decision. And we look forward to that.

Q (Inaudible) 15 candidates. Yesterday, you said you had five candidates.

THE PRESIDENT: We had. We have at least 10 more. A lot of people want the job. And we — it’s a great job. It’s great because it’s a lot of fun to work with Donald Trump. And it’s very easy, actually, to work with me. You know why it’s easy? Because I make all the decisions. They don’t have to work.

Q Mr. President, you called Baltimore, at one point, “rodent-infested.” What’s your message to the people of Baltimore now, as you head to Baltimore?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I look forward — we’re going to Baltimore right now. I look forward to it. We’re going to be with the Republican congressmen, and I think it’s going to be a very successful evening.

We’re — we had a tremendous election on Tuesday, and you saw the results on Tuesday night. One gentleman was Dan Bishop. He was not doing so well three or four weeks ago. We got the message out and he won the election. He was losing substantially and he ended up winning fairly easily. That’s Dan Bishop. And Greg Murphy won by a lot more than it was expected. He won by many points. And a lot of people thought that was going to be a close race.

So we won two seats in Congress on Thursday, and I guess the press didn’t talk about it too much. They would have if they lost, but they won. The Republicans had a great night on Tuesday.

Q Are you considering any kind of interim deal with the Chinese, where they make a commitment on intellectual property and agriculture?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, it’s something that people talk about. I’d rather get the whole deal done. We’ve taken in many, many billions of dollars of tariffs. I’d rather get the entire Chinese done — look, if we’re going to do the deal, let’s get it done.

A lot of people are talking about it, and I see a lot of analysts are saying an interim deal, meaning we’ll do pieces of it — the easy ones first. But there’s no easy or hard. There’s a deal or there’s not a deal. But it’s something we would consider, I guess.

But we’re very — we’re doing very well. We’re doing very well. I did the little bit of a delay in honor of President Xi because it’s their 70th anniversary in China.

Q Mr. President, what do you expect out of the debate tonight?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, it’s too bad I’m going to miss it. I’m going to have to have it somehow taped. I didn’t even tell them about that, so maybe it’s not that important. But it is important.

Look, it’s going to be very interesting. I look forward to going home. I’m going to have to watch it as a rerun because many of you are coming to Baltimore with me.

I don’t expect too much difference. I mean, you have three people that are leading. I sort of think that those three people are going to take it to the end. It’s going to be one of those three, I think. But you never know in politics, do we? You know better than I. You never know in politics.

Q Out of those three, who do you think your strongest opponent is?

THE PRESIDENT: I think — you know, look, they all have their weaknesses and their strengths. I think that they’re very different. You certainly have a lot of different voices up there. But it would look to me like it would be Elizabeth Warren. And it looks like Joe, maybe, will be able to get there. Maybe not. I don’t know. And certainly Bernie is there. He’s number three.

But I think that — because they’re so far in the lead — the three of them. And if you remember, I’m sure you forget my Republican primaries, but I went to the lead at the very beginning and stayed there. It’s — you know, if you don’t make a really major mistake, he should be able to make it. I would imagine Biden would be able to make it if he doesn’t make any major mistakes. We’ll see what happens.

Q The man that you called “my African American” at your rally in 2016, he says he’s leaving the Republican Party because you’re pursuing a pro-White agenda. What’s your reaction to that?

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, go ahead. Go ahead. What?

Q What do you — what do you say to him? What do you say to — he used to be a supporter of yours?

THE PRESIDENT: Go ahead.

Q He’s — it’s a supporter of yours.

Q Do you have any answer for —

Q He’s a supporter of yours that used to be a supporter, and then he’s not anymore.

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t know who you’re talking about.

Q He’s the man that you pointed out at the rally and called “my African American.” He used to support you.

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t know. We have tremendous African American support. I would say I’m at my all-time high.

Q (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t think I’ve ever had the support that I have now. And I think I’m going to do very well with African American.

Q But do you think he’s wrong?

THE PRESIDENT: African American support is been the best we’ve had, and I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that, from an employment and unemployment — both — employment and unemployment —

Q But do you think he’s wrong? Do you think he’s wrong that you’re pursuing a pro-white agenda?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think this. I think this. It’s very simple: We have the best numbers we’ve ever had for African Americans, in terms of employment and unemployment. So I think we’re going to do very well.

Q Have you made any decisions on guns or ethanol today?

THE PRESIDENT: So, we had a big meeting on guns and we had a big meeting on ethanol. We had a great meeting with Chuck Grassley, Joni Ernst, Mike Rounds. We had a — Kim was there, Iowa. Kim was there. We had some terrific people. John Thune.

We had a meeting on ethanol. We had a meeting on guns. Separately, and different people. And I think we made some good progress on background checks and guns. I think we had a great meeting on ethanol, for the farmers. I think we had — our ethanol meeting was a great meeting. Let’s see what happens.

But there’s been nobody better to farmers than Donald Trump, that I can tell you. I think we made a lot of progress on ethanol, and I think we made a lot of progress on guns. Yes.

Q Will you meet with Kim Jong Un this year? You will meet Kim Jong Un sometime this year, Mr. President?

THE PRESIDENT: At some point, yes. He will — certainly they want to meet. They’d like to meet. I think it’s something that will happen. And we’ll see. But Kim Jong Un — I think something can happen. Yeah.

Q President Trump, on the military — on military construction funds: Senator Tim Kaine says you’re putting national security at risk, and Democrats are calling for a vote to overturn your national emergency. What’s your response to that and would you reconsider (inaudible) projects?

THE PRESIDENT: We need the wall for purposes of national security. The military is behind it all the way. Any project that they may delay a little bit, it’s only a delay. They’ll get built. But the wall is something that we need. We’re going to be building hundreds of miles of walls. We have, as you know, a Supreme Court decision, which was outstanding.

We also had a Supreme Court decision yesterday on asylum. And that was a very, very big decision. And it was a 7-2 decision. The asylum decision was very big, but we had a very good decision on the wall and wall funding.

And the wall is going up as we speak. We intend to have, approximately, you know, maybe something short of 500 miles of wall. That would be almost everything that we need. About 500 miles is what we need. And we’re going to be very close to that by the end of next year.

Q The House Judiciary Committee approved a resolution defining the panel’s investigation — the impeachment investigation. Are you concerned at all —

THE PRESIDENT: No, I’m not.

Q — that they’re moving forward, potentially, on this?

THE PRESIDENT: We’ve done the best job of any President in two and a half years of — in office. Our economy is incredible. Rules, regulations — everything that we’ve rolled back have really led to a resurgent economy. If you look at all of the things we’ve done for the military, if you look at what we’ve done for the vets, if you look at everything we’ve done from an economic standpoint to a national security standpoint, I think our country is in one of the best conditions that it’s ever been in. I think the economy may be the strongest it’s even been in the history of our country.

And people know we’re doing a great job. They do play politics, and they continue to play politics. And a lot of people think that’s the only way. But you know what? Most people think that helps me. It’s really an embarrassment to our country. We’ve done a great job.

Yes.

Q Thank you. Mr. President, Kim Jong Un wants new conditions for negotiation with the United States. Are you accept the new conditions for the negotiations?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’re going to see. I think that North Korea would like to meet. I think you probably have heard that. I can tell you that Iran wants to meet and China wants to make a deal. So we have a lot interesting things going on. Okay?

Q Mr. President, should Andrew McCabe be charged?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I haven’t seen the Andrew McCabe situation. I really don’t know about it yet. I heard it was big news before, but I have not been able to find out exactly what happened with Andrew McCabe. Something happened that was very big. It was just breaking as I was — walked out. But I haven’t seen it yet.

David.

Q Mr. President, what exactly have you and the First Lady told Barron about vaping?

THE PRESIDENT: We haven’t told him anything except, “Don’t vape. Don’t vape.” We don’t like vaping. I don’t like vaping.

Q Mr. President, do you think Nancy Pelosi is scared to impeach you?

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t think she’s scared of anything. I think she’s a smart woman and I think she knows exactly what she is doing.

We have the strongest economy in the history of our country. We’re about ready to break the record again on the stock market. We’ve broken the record on jobs. African American — we just broke the record again. You know that.

If you look at Hispanic American, Asian American, the best — the best employment and unemployment numbers in the history of our country. With women, we’re at 71 percent. Seventy-one years. Think of this, 71 years. The best numbers in 71 years.

No, I think we’ve done a great job. There are those that say the best job in the history of our country, for the first two and a half years. So, pretty much, that’s the story.

Q (Inaudible) deal on guns? And what will you do with the NRA?

THE PRESIDENT: So we had a big meeting today on guns. We had a big meeting today on ethanol. Both meetings went very well. A lot of progress was made, I believe, on the background checks and various things having to do with guns. We’re dealing with the Democrats. And we’re dealing — I think we’re dealing very well. It seems like they’d like to do something. And I think that I can speak for Republicans: They’d like to something.

We’ll see what can happen, but we’re always protecting our Second Amendment. I want to make it clear: Our Second Amendment will be protected fully.

Q Mr. President, how was John Bolton holding you back on Venezuela, sir?

THE PRESIDENT: Say it.

Q How was John Bolton holding you back on Venezuela? Do you want more in military —

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we’re dealing on Venezuela right now. It’s going to be a very interesting period of time. We’re also trying to help a lot of Venezuelans who are dying. They have no food. They have no water. And we are trying to help. A lot them have escaped, so to speak, into Colombia and different places. We’re trying to help those people that have been able to get out.

But we are dealing with a lot of things having to do with Venezuela. My attitude on Venezuela is a very tough one. And, frankly, my attitude on Cuba is a very tough one. And, in a way, they go hand in hand, because Cuba has always made it possible for Venezuela to do what they’re doing. And, frankly, that’s ending now. And, likewise, Venezuela, through the oil, took care of Cuba. A lot of that is ending right now.

Q Have you seen any evidence that the Israelis have been spying on you and the White House?

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t believe that. No, I don’t think the Israelis were spying on us. I really would find that hard to believe.

My relationship with Israel has been great. You look at Golan Heights. You look at Jerusalem — with moving the embassy to Jerusalem becoming the capital. You look at even the Iran deal — what’s happened with Iran. Iran is a much different country right now than it was two and a half years ago. It’s a much — it’s in a much different position.

No, I don’t believe that. I wouldn’t believe that story. It could — anything’s possible, but I don’t believe it.

Q Are there any Democrats debating tonight that you actually respect?

THE PRESIDENT: I respect all of them.

Q All of them?

THE PRESIDENT: I respect every one. Let me tell you: It takes a lot of courage to run for office. I respect all of them.

See that? I’m getting to be much better as a politician. You never thought you’d hear that answer.

Q You said you had this big meeting on guns today. Are you going to support strengthening background checks? Yes or no?

THE PRESIDENT: I think so. It depends, really, on the Democrats. It depends on whether or not the Democrats want to take your guns away — because there’s a possibility that this is just a ploy to take your guns away — or whether or not it’s meaningful. If it’s meaningful, we’ll make a deal.

If this is a movement by the Democrats to take your guns away, then it’s never going to happen because we’re never going to let that happen. We will always be there for our Second Amendment.

So, we’re going to see. If the Democrats want to make a deal, we could make a deal.

Q Mr. President, how important are the Israeli elections next week?

THE PRESIDENT: Very important.

END 6:03 P.M. EDT

During an interview with Fox Business Maria Bartiromo White House Trade and Manufacturing Advisor Peter Navarro outliness how the USPS, the postal system, has been heavily subsidizing “incoming mail of a number of countries to the tune of hundreds of million dollars a year.”  Navarro notes he is meeting with foreign ambassadors and representatives of the State Department at the Blair House in Washington, D.C., to work on changes to the current mail system.

Additionally, Navarro explained that he will be traveling to Geneva, Switzerland, on Sept. 23 for a third “Extraordinary Congress” and there will be two issues/options on the ballot: (1) allows all countries in the postal union to self-declare rates, ending a terminal dues system that costs countries to subsidize incoming mail. (2) A “multispeed approach,” allowing the U.S. to self-declare rates immediately.

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced Thursday an indefinite supply of fresh asset purchases and deeper cuts to interest rates, into negative territory, as it tries to prop up the ailing euro zone economy.  These are EU financial counter-measures to the geopolitical trade realignment triggered by U.S. President Trump.

The EU is driving down the value of their currency in an effort to help prop-up the French and German economies that are dependent on exports.  In essence, the financial and economic positions of the EU and China are connected.  The more pressure the U.S. (Trump administration) puts on China, the less China can purchase from the EU.

With that as the backdrop, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin holds an impromptu press conference outside the White House on China trade, Huawei and the bond market.

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Fox News host Neil Cavuto is well known for broadcasting an hour long infomercial for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Wall Street daily.  White House manufacturing and trade advisor Peter Navarro interrupts Cavuto’s multinational talking points to explain a Pro-U.S. trade initiative that will help level the playing field.  Things go downhill….

The supreme court has upheld President Trump’s immigration enforcement policy that denies asylum claims to migrants who travel through safe nations to reach the U.S.

(Via AP) […] The justices’ order late Wednesday undoes a lower-court ruling that had blocked the new asylum policy in some states along the southern border. The policy is meant to deny asylum to anyone who passes through another country on the way to the U.S. without seeking protection there. (more)

Amid new reports of U.S. companies initiating a rapid exodus from China, President Trump has announced the delay of the next round of tariff increases on Chinese goods from October 1st to October 15th.

U.S. Company Survey – More than a quarter of the respondents – or 26.5% – said that in the past year, they have redirected investments originally planned for China to other regions. That’s an increase of 6.9 percentage points from last year, the AmCham report said, noting that technology, hardware, software and services industries had the highest level of changes in investment destination (read more)

President Trump apparently senses the diminishing position of Chairman Xi.  The status quo, U.S. disinvestment, has put Beijing into a weakening position.  As the president noted today during remarks from the oval office, Xi’s belt-and-road (aka ‘bribe and loan’) supply chain program is collapsing.

President Trump: “We’re doing very well with China. And you probably saw the numbers that have come out and come out — some of them coming out just today. But China is — their supply chain is breaking up. The supply chain of China, which was this unbreakable, powerful tool that they had, is breaking up like a toy because companies are moving out. And China wants to make a deal.”

We’ll see what happens. We have to make the right deal for this country. China has been taking out hundreds of billions of dollars a year out of our country.

And, you know, I read — I read papers like the Wall Street Journal. They don’t have a clue. They haven’t got a clue. They don’t make any excuses for the fact that China has been literally ripping off the United States in the worst manner for so many years.

Five hundred billion dollars pouring out of the United States. And I hear people — I don’t even know. Do these people have any education on anything? It’s common sense maybe more than anything else.

[…] By the way, China is having the worst year they’ve had now in 57 years, okay? Fifty-seven. It was 27. It was 22 and then 27. It’s 57 years. This is the worst year they’ve had. And it’s only going to get worse. So I think they want to make a deal too. We’re dealing with them, but I think they want to make a deal.

As you know, they’re coming in sometime in early October. And we’re speaking to them constantly. And they also — they made a couple of moves last night that were pretty good. You saw that, right? They were pretty good.

Q Which moves do you mean, sir?

THE PRESIDENT: They were pretty respectful to our people. You’re going to see it, because you were one of the people that reported it. You — your group.

But China is — China is — about to having to do with tariffs, Jeff. Having to do — you saw what they did.

Q With purchases?

THE PRESIDENT: They took tariffs off certain things. A lot of things.

Q And you’re happy about that?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think they did the right thing. I think it was good for them. But they took them off. Yeah, I think it was a gesture, okay? But it was a big move. People were shocked. I wasn’t shocked. But I deal with them, and I know them and I like them. And I hope we can do something. (link to comments)

Earlier today President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump held a press availability in the Oval Office to outline concerns discovered with E-cigarettes and ‘vaping’.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and FDA Acting Commissioner Dr. Sharpless were in attendance for explanations.  Additionally, the President took questions from the press pool.  [Video and Transcript]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much. I just want to say that the First Lady and myself, we just came back from an incredible experience at the Pentagon. It was an incredible — really, a beautiful ceremony.

I was very honored, and I think I can definitely speak for the First Lady, to have partaken in a ceremony that was just so, so lovely, representing September 11th. Three thousand lives. And, if you think about it, that number really got, as you know, Alex, it got a lot higher than that, indirectly. Directly and indirectly, a lot of people. A lot of great people.

So, that was a tremendous job everybody did this morning, letting the world know that we’re ready for anything if we have to be. We’re ready for anything.

So, thank you. And I know a lot of you were there, and I appreciate you being there very much.

We have a problem in our country. It’s a new problem. It’s a problem nobody really thought about too much a few years ago, and it’s called “vaping” — especially vaping as it pertains to innocent children. And they’re coming home and they’re saying, “Mom, I want to vape.” And the parents don’t know too much about it. And nobody knows too much about it, but they do know it’s causing a lot of problems. And we’re going to have to do something about it.

One of the words and one of the reasons we’re meeting today is to let you know that it’s out there. And we want to have parents understand that we’re studying it very carefully. It’s, again, very new and potentially very bad. There have been deaths and there have been a lot of other problems. People think it’s an easy solution to cigarettes, but it’s turned out that it has its own difficulties.

So, I’m going to ask Secretary Azar to say a few words. And then, if I could, Acting Director of the FDA Sharpless. And you’ve been doing a fantastic job. I want to thank you.

And we want to discuss the situation because not only is it a problem overall but, really, specifically, with respect to children, we’re getting some stories that we don’t want to hear. And we may very well have to do something very, very strong about it.

So, if I could ask you, Mr. Secretary, to say a few words.

SECRETARY AZAR: Thank you, Mr. President. So we briefed the President and First Lady today on as yet undisclosed, new data that we have from the National Youth Tobacco survey.

This information shows a continued surging in adolescent usage of e-cigarettes. It also shows that the youth are drawn to flavored e-cigarettes, including mint and menthol.

Currently, about 8 million adults use e-cigarettes, but 5 million children are using e-cigarettes. This is exceptionally harmful to our children. An entire generation of children risk becoming addicted to nicotine because of the attractiveness, appeal-ability, and availability of these vaping products.

So, with the President’s support, the Food and Drug Administration intends to finalize a guidance document that would commence enforcement to require that all flavors, other than tobacco flavor, would be removed from the market.

This would include mint and menthol flavoring, as well as candy flavors, bubblegum flavor, fruit flavor, alcohol flavor. You get the drift.

So, once the FDA would finalize this guidance, we would begin enforcement actions to remove all such products from the marketplace.

We would allow tobacco flavoring to remain, subject to their filing — the manufacturers of the tobacco-flavored e-cigarette products — filing for pre-market tobacco approval with the Food and Drug Administration to assure that the availability of their product is consistent with the public health under the standards set by the Tobacco Control Act.

Any of the other products, which would be removed from the market, would be able to apply under the similar regulatory pathway for approval but have to meet that standard.

But I want to caution that with the President’s support, while we would allow the tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes to remain on the market to be available for adults who are seeking to stop the use of combustible tobacco, if we find that children are being attracted to tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes, if we find that manufacturers are marketing the tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes to children, or placing them in settings where they get them, we will take enforcement action there also.

Let me turn it over to Dr. Ned Sharpless, the Acting Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, for any additional details and comments that he would have.

ACTING COMMISSIONER SHARPLESS: Thank you, Secretary. The data gathered by the CDC and the FDA, as the Secretary described, it shows a very concerning, alarming trend of use by children of flavored e-cigarette products.

The President is directing the FDA to take decisive action against this problem and to finalize our plans that we have been working on. This would have the effect, as the Secretary mentioned, of severely curtailing access to flavored e-cigarette products, which we believe drive childhood use, and will help use get a handle on this alarming and concerning trend.

THE PRESIDENT: And I will say that Commissioner Sharpless has been working on this very hard. But he’s now going to double and triple up. We’re looking at very strong rules and regulations. We already have laws as we need them. But we want to get to the bottom of a very unusual situation. It’s so new, and it’s become so big, so fast. And it could be a potential very severe problem.

So, Commissioner, you know what to do.

ACTING COMMISSIONER SHARPLESS: Yes, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: You know what to do. And it’s something that, frankly, should have been looked into a few years ago in a much more advanced way. It wasn’t. And we have something that will be very interesting to see what turns up. But you’ll be able to report back in the fairly near future because you’ve done a lot of work on this. And we’ll see what happens. Okay?

ACTING COMMISSIONER SHARPLESS: Yes, sir. The FDA is on it.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much.

Any questions on this, please?

Q Mr. President, is the Taliban — excuse me. Is the Taliban talks completely dead still? Or is there still a possibility —

THE PRESIDENT: The talks with the Taliban are dead.

Jeff.

Q A follow-up on your decision yesterday with regard to Mr. Bolton. What led you to decide to part ways?

THE PRESIDENT: So, John is somebody that I actually got along with very well. He made some very big mistakes. When he talked about the Libyan model for Kim Jong Un, that was not a good statement to make. You just take a look at what happened with Qaddafi. That was not a good statement to make, and it set us back.

And, frankly, he wanted to do things — not necessarily tougher than me. You know, John is known as a tough guy. He’s so tough, he got us into Iraq. That’s tough. And — but he’s somebody that I actually had a very good relationship with, but he wasn’t getting along with people in the administration that I consider very important. And I hope we — we’ve left in good stead, but maybe we have and maybe we haven’t.

I have to run the country the way we’re running the country. We’re doing very well. We’re respected all over the world again; respected like we haven’t been respected in many, many years. You look at Iran and you look at so many of the things that are happening. Iran wants to talk. They all want to talk.

We’re doing very well with China. And you probably saw the numbers that have come out and come out — some of them coming out just today. But China is — their supply chain is breaking up. The supply chain of China, which was this unbreakable, powerful tool that they had, is breaking up like a toy because companies are moving out. And China wants to make a deal. We’ll see what happens. We have to make the right deal for this country. China has been taking out hundreds of billions of dollars a year out of our country.

And, you know, I read — I read papers like the Wall Street Journal. They don’t have a clue. They haven’t got a clue. They don’t make any excuses for the fact that China has been literally ripping off the United States in the worst manner for so many years. Five hundred billion dollars pouring out of the United States. And I hear people — I don’t even know. Do these people have any education on anything? It’s common sense maybe more than anything else.

But I look at some statements that are made from so many different people. And, you know, John wasn’t in line with what we were doing. And actually, in some cases, he thought it was too tough, what we were doing. Mr. Tough Guy. You know, you have to go into Iraq. Going into Iraq was something that he felt very strongly about. So we’re right now in for over $7 trillion into the Middle East. And I don’t say it was his decision. You had a President and you had other people also. But he was very out there, I can tell you, and wanting to have them do it.

And I disagreed with that decision from the beginning, even though I was a civilian, so nobody cared. But I was out there. I was outspoken about it. I thought it was a terrible mistake. Here we are, many, many years later — decades later — and we’re still there. And we’ve been acting as policemen.

And I’ll tell you one thing: We are hitting the Taliban right now harder than they’ve ever been hit. And what they did was horrible. When they killed a great American soldier, when they killed 12 people — innocent people — essentially, innocent people. Because, if you look, I mean, many of these people were civilians. You also had a NATO soldier, in addition to our great soldier.

But when they did what they did, in order to create what they thought was a better negotiating stance, I said, “That’s the end of them. Get them out. I don’t want anything to do with them.” And they’ve been hit very hard. And I know for a fact they said that was a big mistake that they made, and it was. But that was my decision. And what we’re doing now is my decision.

So we have a lot of great people that want that position. A lot of great people want a lot of positions. They want to be a part of this administration. We’ve done more in this administration, in less than three years, than I believe any President. You look at the accomplishments; even today what we’re doing. You look at what we’re doing today — these are big things. Nobody else would be doing this. They’re big things.

But we’ve done more than any administration probably in the history of the country. You just look at one point after another point, whether it’s regulation cuts, whether it’s tax cuts. You look at Right to Try, with these two gentlemen. So important. Right to Try — where people are able to use some of the incredible innovations that we’ve developed with the greatest labs and the greatest doctors in the world. And they can use them, instead of being forced to move to — and leave — to other countries that don’t have a clue, compared to us. And now they have Right to Try.

And, by the way, a lot of people are being saved. A lot of great things are happening with Right to Try.

But what we’ve done for the vets, what we’ve done for our great military — we’re spending 700 this year — $718 billion. And, by the way, that’s also jobs, secondarily. But it’s also jobs. Nobody has done what we’ve done. And we’re very honored to have done it. We’re in a very good footing. Our country is respected again.

Q Who are your top picks to replace Bolton?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I have five people that want it very much. I mean, a lot more than that would like to have it. But there are five people that I consider very highly qualified. Good people I’ve gotten to know over the last three years. And we’ll be announcing somebody next week, but we have some very highly qualified people.

But we were set back very badly when John Bolton talked about the Libyan model. And he made a mistake. And as soon as he mentioned that, the “Libyan model,” what a disaster. Take a look at what happened to Qaddafi, with the Libyan model. And he’s using that to make a deal with North Korea? And I don’t blame Kim Jong Un for what he said after that. And he wanted nothing to do with John Bolton. And that’s not a question of being tough; that’s a question of being not smart, to say something like that.

So I wish John the best. We actually got along very well. I’m sure he’ll, you know, do whatever he can do to, you know, spin it his way. John came to see me the night before. In fact, I think a lot of you people were out there waiting for me to get on the helicopter. I’m sure you have a shot somewhere along the line. And he sat right in that chair.

And I told him, “John, you have too many people, and you’re not getting along with people. And a lot of us, including me, disagree with some of your tactics and some of your ideas. And I wish you well, but I’d like you to submit your resignation.” And he did that. And I really — I know he’s going to do well. I hope he’s going to do well. And I wish him well.

Q Mr. President, what are you prepared to do on guns, on background checks? What are you prepared to announce?

THE PRESIDENT: So I just spoke with Senator Toomey and Senator Murphy and Joe Manchin, Senator Joe Manchin. Just had a long talk with them, just before this meeting. Just hung up. And we are working very, very hard together, all of us, and we’re seeing if we can come up with something that’s acceptable to everybody. It’s a subject that’s been going on for decades. Decades they’ve been talking about it.

So we’re looking at background checks, and we’re looking at putting everything together in a unified way so that we can have something that’s meaningful. At the same time, all of us want to protect our great Second Amendment. It’s very important to all of us.

So we are now in meetings. The meetings are going to go on tonight. I’m going to speak with them again tomorrow. And I think progress is being made. I hope so.

Q Are you willing to put background checks on all private gun sales?

THE PRESIDENT: We’re going to take a look at a lot of different things. And we’ll be reporting back in a fairly short period of time. There are a lot of things under discussion. Some things will never happen, and some things can, really, very much — some very meaningful things can happen.

It’s really “gun sense,” if you think about it. What we’re looking at is — and maybe that’s what we should call it, “The Gun Sense Bill.” But we will have some — we’re having great dialogue. We’ll see what happens.

Q And did you tell your Chief of Staff to have NOAA disavow those forecasters who said that Alabama was not in the path of the storm?

THE PRESIDENT: No, I never did that. I never did that. That’s a whole hoax by the fake-news media, when they talk about the hurricane and when they talk about Florida, and they talk about Alabama. That’s just fake news. It was, right from the beginning, it was a fake story.

And while we’re here and while we’re talking about that, I want to congratulate Dan Bishop last night on an incredible win. He was — Dan was 17 points behind, three weeks ago. The media thought he was going to lose. They were all set to have a big celebration with their partners from the Democrat Party.

And Dan Bishop worked really hard. And I worked very hard with him. And he made up a 17-point lead in a few weeks. And he won a great election last night. And also, Greg Murphy — which nobody is even reporting — but Greg Murphy won a great congressional election in North Carolina last night.

And I want to congratulate, between Dan and Greg, what a job they did. We picked up two seats, and Greg was, you know, anticipated to win by two or three points, maybe less, but two or three points. And he won by many, many points. I don’t know what the final tab is, but he won by a lot. And he campaigned brilliantly, and Dan campaigned brilliantly. And so we’re very happy about that. That’s a tremendous win for the Republican Party. Okay?

Yeah, go ahead.

Q Now that John Bolton is gone, is your policy on Venezuela going to change? Are you open to meeting with Maduro?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we have a policy on Venezuela that’s a firm policy. But Venezuela is really hurting. And we’re trying to help people in a humanitarian way. That’s probably not good in terms of crushing a terrible regime. But you have people dying. This is a country that, 15 years ago, was one of the wealthiest countries, and now it’s dying. They don’t have water, they don’t have food, they don’t have medical. They have nothing. So we’re trying to help as much as we can.

We’re also working with Colombia, and he’s — their leader of Colombia is a friend of mine and he’s doing a really good job, I can tell you that. We’re working with Colombia. We’re working with Brazil. We’re working with other countries on a humanitarian basis. Venezuela is in very sad shape. That shows you about socialism. I mean, that shows you what happens. You take a country that was so wealthy 15 years ago, and today they don’t have water, and they don’t have basic food.

So, we’ll see what happens. No, I disagreed with John Bolton on his attitudes on Venezuela. I thought he was way out of line. And I think I’ve proven to be right. But we are always watching Venezuela very, very closely.

Q And would you be open to meeting with Maduro?

THE PRESIDENT: I don’t want to comment. I don’t want to talk about that.

Q Mr. President, about your announcement today, are you concerned that the companies that were making these products will be treated unfairly by taking more of these products off the market?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, they’ve become very rich companies very fast. And the whole thing with vaping is a — it’s been very profitable. And I want companies; look, you know that. I fight for our companies very hard. I fight — that’s why I’m fighting with China. That’s why I’m fighting other countries. If you look at European Union, and if you look at Japan, and if you look at so many others, including South Korea and many others, we’re constantly dealing with them to make it good for our companies because I view it as jobs. I view it as income for our country and jobs.

Vaping has become a very big business, as I understand it. Like a giant business in a very short period of time. But we can’t allow people to get sick, and we can’t have our youth be so affected. And I’m hearing it. And that’s how the First Lady got involved. I mean, she’s got a son — together — that is a beautiful, young man, and she feels very, very strongly about it. She’s seen it. We’re both reading it. A lot of people are reading it. But people are dying with vaping.

So we’re looking at it very closely. And, you know, if nothing else, this is a conference that’s going to let people know about it, because people are going to watch what we’re saying. And parents are going to be a lot tougher with respect to their children.

A lot of people think vaping is wonderful, it’s great. It’s really not wonderful. That’s one thing, I think, we can say definitely, Commissioner. It’s not a wonderful thing. It’s got big problems. We have to find out the extent of the problem. It’s so new. It’s so new. But we’re going to find out.

And I hope that parents that — you know, they have children, and the children are a certain age — I hope they’re going to be able to make wise decisions, maybe based on what we’re saying today. But the Commissioner and Alex Azar, they’re going to be coming back over the next pretty short period of time, couple of weeks, with some very strong recommendations.

Q Can you tell us what the timeline is for taking those flavors off the market?

THE PRESIDENT: Alex?

SECRETARY AZAR: Yeah. So, it’ll take several weeks for us to put out the final guidance that would announce all the parameters around the enforcement policy. And then there will likely be about a 30-day delayed effective date, as is customary with FDA’s good guidance practices. And, at that point, all flavored e-cigarettes, other than tobacco flavor, would have to be removed from the market. Tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes — their manufacturers would, by May 2020, have to file for approval for FDA of their products. The other flavored product manufacturers can, at any time, also file, but they would be off the market until approved by FDA.

The Obama administration had allowed these products to go onto the market in an unregulated way by delaying any enforcement in the hopes that people who are using combustible tobacco would transition to a less harmful form of nicotine delivery through e-cigarettes.

But what we’ve seen is the data just shows the kids are getting access to these products in spite of our best efforts at enforcement, at retail enforcement, at controlling locations, at over 8,000 warning letters to retailers and others, in spite of moving products off shelves. They’ve been going at it, so we simply have to remove these attractive flavored products from the marketplace until they secure FDA approval, if they can.

Q Mr. President, are you looking at arranging a meeting with Iranian President Rouhani at UNGA?

THE PRESIDENT: I’m not looking at anything. Iran is a different country than it was two and a half years ago. Two and half years ago, they were given a lot of money by President Obama. Previous to that, $150 billion; $1.8 billion in cash — in actual cash. It’s very impressive.

But they are a much different country right now than they were two and a half years ago when I came into office. And I do believe they’d like to make a deal. If they do, that’s great. And if they don’t, that’s great too. But they have tremendous financial difficulty, and the sanctions are getting tougher and tougher.

We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon, and they never will have a nuclear weapon. And if they’re thinking about enrichment, they can forget about it, because it’s going to be very — it’s going to be very dangerous for them to enrich. Very, very dangerous, okay?

So you can — you can —

Q So do you want to meet with him, or no?

THE PRESIDENT: — you can spread the word to Iran.

Q Would you consider easing sanctions to let them — to make a meeting happen?

THE PRESIDENT: We’ll see what happens. We’ll see what happens. I think Iran has potential, and I think North Korea. Those are two countries we’re dealing with right now at a very high level. And I think Iran has a tremendous, tremendous potential. They’re incredible people. They have — we’re not looking for regime change. We hope that we can make a deal, and if we can’t make a deal, that’s fine too, okay? That’s fine too. But I think they have to make a deal. They’ve never been in this condition.

By the way, China is having the worst year they’ve had now in 57 years, okay? Fifty-seven. It was 27. It was 22 and then 27. It’s 57 years. This is the worst year they’ve had. And it’s only going to get worse. So I think they want to make a deal too. We’re dealing with them, but I think they want to make a deal.

As you know, they’re coming in sometime in early October. And we’re speaking to them constantly. And they also — they made a couple of moves last night that were pretty good. You saw that, right? They were pretty good.

Q Which moves do you mean, sir?

THE PRESIDENT: They were pretty respectful to our people. You’re going to see it, because you were one of the people that reported it. You — your group.

But China is — China is — about to having to do with tariffs, Jeff. Having to do — you saw what they did.

Q With purchases?

THE PRESIDENT: They took tariffs off certain things. A lot of things.

Q And you’re happy about that?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think they did the right thing. I think it was good for them. But they took them off. Yeah, I think it was a gesture, okay? But it was a big move. People were shocked. I wasn’t shocked. But I deal with them, and I know them and I like them. And I hope we can do something.

And with respect to Iran, I think they have to do something, because they have the potential to have an unbelievably great country. But the way it’s going right now, it’s disintegrating, and I don’t think — I don’t think they should allow that to happen.

North Korea has tremendous potential. North Korea is in between Russia, China, and South Korea. It’s an incredible — incredible people. I think that they really will — they have this truly unbelievable potential, and I think they want to get to it. We’ll see what happens. I mean, maybe they do and maybe they don’t — won’t. I mean, you’re just going to just see. But I really believe that North Korea would like to see something tremendous happen.

This could be one of the most unbelievable — if you look at a country, in terms of upside, this could be one of the most unbelievable experiments ever: North Korea.

And I also say the same with Iran. Iran can get back to business. They can do unbelievably well with all of the natural things that they have.

So on vaping, just to finish, this is all about vaping. This is a meeting that gets off a little track because you ask us questions about other things. And I think we’re better off answering them than not.

But we are looking at vaping very strongly. It’s very dangerous. Children have died. People have died. And the Acting Commissioner is somebody that’s a true expert on it, as much as you can be an expert on a brand-new subject.

And we’re going to have some very strong rules, regulations. And more importantly, I think we’re going to have some very important information come out very shortly, okay? And we’ll be reporting that over the next couple of weeks.

And I want to thank you. And, Commissioner, I want to thank you very much. Okay? Thank you very much.

ACTING COMMISSIONER SHARPLESS: Thank you, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Thank you.

Q Mr. President, your reaction to Netanyahu’s promise to annex more of the West Bank?

THE PRESIDENT: What?

Q The West Bank — Netanyahu and the West Bank. Do you have any reaction to what —

THE PRESIDENT: No. No reaction.

END 12:58 P.M. EDT

Earlier today President Trump delivered remarks during a Pentagon 911 observance ceremony. [Video and Transcript]

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[Transcript] THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much, Secretary Esper. Today, our nation honors and mourns the nearly 3,000 lives that were stolen from us on September 11th, 2001. On these grounds, 184 people were murdered when al Qaeda terrorists overtook American Airlines Flight 77 and crashed it into the Pentagon.

For every American who lived through that day, the September 11th attack is seared into our soul. It was a day filled with shock, horror, sorrow, and righteous fury.

I vividly remember when I first heard the news. I was sitting at home watching a major business television show early that morning. Jack Welch, the legendary head of General Electric, was about to be interviewed when all of a sudden they cut away. At first, there were different reports: It was a boiler fire, but I knew that boilers aren’t at the top of a building. It was a kitchen explosion in Windows on the World. Nobody really knew what happened. There was great confusion.

I was looking out of a window from a building in Midtown Manhattan, directly at the World Trade Center, when I saw a second plane, at a tremendous speed, go into the second tower. It was then that I realized the world was going to change. I was no longer going to be — and it could never, ever be — that innocent place that I thought it was.

Soon after, I went down to Ground Zero with men who worked for me to try to help in any little way that we could. We were not alone. So many others were scattered around trying to do the same. They were all trying to help.

But for the families who join us, this is your anniversary of personal and permanent loss. It’s the day that has replayed in your memory a thousand times over. The last kiss. The last phone call. The last time hearing those precious words, “I love you.” Then the attack. The anguish of knowing your family member had boarded one of these flights or was working in the World Trade Center or serving right here at the Pentagon.

You waited, you prayed, you answered that most dreaded call, and your life changed forever. To each of you: The First Lady and I are united with you in grief, we come here in the knowledge that we cannot erase the pain or reverse the evil of that dark and wretched day, but we offer you all that we have: our unwavering loyalty, our undying devotion, and our eternal pledge that your loved ones will never, ever be forgotten.

Eighteen years ago, the terrorists struck this citadel of power and American strength. But the enemy soon learned that they could not weaken the spirit of our people. In times of distress, the heart of the American patriot only grows stronger and more determined.

Even in the midst of the attack, the world witnessed the awesome power of American defiance. Forty passengers and crew on Flight 93 rose up, fought back, and thwarted the enemy’s wicked plans. In their final moments, these American heroes thunderously declared that we alone decide our fate.

We saw American perseverance in the valiant New York firefighters, police officers, first responders, military, and everyday citizens who raced into the crashing towers to rescue innocent people.

One such American was retired Army Colonel Rick Rescorla, who gave his life on 9/11. Rick earned the Silver Star and the Purple Heart for his service in Vietnam. He later became the Vice President for Security at Morgan Stanley in the World Trade Center. On the day of the attack, Rick died while leading countless others to safety. His selfless actions saved approximately 2,700 lives.

Today, I am honored to announce that I will soon be awarding the late Rick Rescorla the Presidential Citizens Medal for his extraordinary sacrifice. Though Rick has left this Earth, we will ensure that the memory of his deeds will never, ever be forgotten. His memory will forever endure. Thank you. Thank you, Rick. (Applause.) Thank you, Rick. Thank you, Rick.

Here on the western side of the Pentagon, we saw brave men and women rush into the fire and race into the scorching flames to rescue their colleagues. When evil seeks to do us harm, the incredible men and women of the United States military answer with unyielding valor and unstoppable resolve.

Navy Admiral David Thomas crawled through live wires and helped lift a wall of debris to save the life of a colleague. As Admiral Thomas remembers, “It was the worst day of my life, but the heroism and selfless disregard I saw that [horrible] morning is forever burned in my heart.” Admiral Thomas, America salutes you and every patriot who defied evil that day. Thank you very much, Admiral. Thank you. Thank you very much. (Applause.) Thank you very much.

Army Ranger Chris Braman repeatedly went back inside the burning building, rescuing one injured person after another. Before he entered, he said a prayer and asked God to give him strength, and then he dove into the suffocating smoke and fumes and flames. At the same time, Sheila Moody had just prayed that someone would find her. Then, she heard Chris’s voice. As Sheila says, God sent Chris as her guardian angel.

To Sheila and Chris, America is strengthened by your goodness and your grace and your bravery. Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much.

To fulfill our unbreakable promise to every survivor and family of 9/11, earlier this year, we fully reauthorized the Victims Compensation Fund to the tune of billions and billions of dollars.

Since September 11th, nearly 6 million young men and women have joined the United States Armed Forces. They have crossed seas, climbed mountains, trekked through deserts, and rushed into enemy compounds to face down the threat of radical Islamic terrorism.

Nearly 7,000 service members have laid down their lives to protect our home, our flag, and our American way of life. American freedom survives only because there are patriots willing to sacrifice everything in its defense. No tribute is sufficient to convey the infinite depth of our nation’s gratitude.

On this solemn day of remembrance, our thoughts also turn to the 200,000 valiant soldiers, sailors, airmen, Coast Guardsmen, and Marines who are now, at this very moment, stationed overseas.

We do not seek conflict, but if anyone dares to strike our land, we will respond with the full measure of American power and the iron will of the American spirit. And that spirit is unbreakable.

We had peace talks scheduled a few days ago. I called them off when I learned that they had killed a great American soldier from Puerto Rico and 11 other innocent people. They thought they would use this attack to show strength. But actually, what they showed is unrelenting weakness. The last four days, we have hit our enemy harder than they have ever been hit before, and that will continue. (Applause.)

And if, for any reason, they come back to our country, we will go wherever they are and use power the likes of which the United States has never used before. And I’m not even talking about nuclear power. They will have never seen anything like what will happen to them.

No enemy on Earth can match the overwhelming strength, skill, and might of the American Armed Forces. And we have rebuilt and strengthened the last two and a half years, spending $700 billion, $716 billion, and now, just approved, $738 billion — more money, by far, than ever spent on our armed forces. You are the fearless sentinels who stand watch over all that we cherish and everything we hold sacred, priceless, and dear.

This morning, we also give thanks to the dedicated men and women at the Department of Homeland Security. Their Department was created after 9/11 to help secure our immigration system and ensure that those who threaten our people are denied entry to our shores. We’re indebted to every law enforcement official — state, local, and federal — who devotes their life to keeping America safe.

As we gather at this moment, and at this incredible memorial, we are reminded that there is no greater testament to our fallen heroes than the presence of their families who knew and loved them so much.

Among the family members here today is Stephanie Dunn. Her husband, Navy Commander Patrick Dunn, was one of the patriots who gave his life, right here, 18 years ago. Before he left that morning, Patrick gave Stephanie a big, beautiful kiss. Then, for the first time, he leaned down and kissed her pregnant stomach. Stephanie was just two months along with their first child. Earlier this year, their daughter Allie celebrated her 17th birthday.

Allie grew up into a strong, truly remarkable young woman. She mentors the children of our nation’s wounded warriors, and recently, I was honored to give Allie the President’s Volunteer Service Award for her hundreds of hours of community service. We are blessed to have Allie here with us at today’s ceremony. Thank you, Allie. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you.

And, Allie, I know your dad is watching over you. He’s right up there. He’s watching from Heaven, looking down right now with love and pride. He is so proud of you. Thank you very much. Incredible. (Applause.)

Also joining us is the Vigiano family. For generations, the Vigiano family has served in our military and in the New York City Fire and Police Departments. These are two great departments. I grew up with them. I know. On September 11th, NYPD Detective Joseph Vigiano rushed into the World Trade Center, and died rescuing his fellow citizens. His brother, John, was a New York firefighter. He also gave his life that day at Ground Zero.

At the time, Joseph’s three sons were just young boys, ages eight, six, and three months old. This morning, they are with us. The youngest, John, just started his freshman year of college at SUNY Maritime College, and he plans to join the military. Joseph, Jr. is a Marine reservist and, just like his father, he is a proud member of the NYPD. And James is a corporal in the Marines. On his last deployment, James was stationed on the USS New York, a ship made using 24 tons of steel from the World Trade Center. Every time he left the mess hall on his way to his bunk, he passed a picture of his dad.

To John, Joseph, and James, and to the Vigiano family, you have sacrificed beyond measure, and you will never, ever stop giving back to this country. And thank you very much for being here. Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you. Very proud of you. Thank you. Thank you very much.

The heroes present today remind us of an immortal truth. The future of our nation is secured through the vigilance of our people: The brave men and women who tore through the gates of hell to save the hurt and the wounded. The service members who honor the friends who perished by continuing their exceptional life of service. The moms and dads who endure the loss of their soulmates, and fill their children’s lives with all of the adoration in the world. The sons and daughters who suffered grave loss, and yet through it all, persevere to care for our neighbors, defend our homeland, and safeguard our nation. Each of your lives tells the story of courage and character, virtue and valor, resilience and resolve, loyalty and love.

This morning, we make a sacred vow to carry on this noble legacy. Today and every day, we pledge to honor our history, to treasure our liberty, to uplift our communities, to live up to our values, to prove worthy of our heroes, and above all, stronger than ever, to never, ever forget.

We are now, and will forever be, one American family united by patriotism, bound by destiny, and sustained by the faith of Almighty God.

Thank you. God bless you. God bless our military. And God bless the United States of America.

Thank you all. Thank you very much. (Applause.)

END 10:14 A.M. EDT

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were greeted at the Pentagon by Defense Secretary Mark Esper and his wife and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dunford and his wife.  The Defense Secretary of Joint Chief Chairman joined with the President and First Lady as they placed a wreath to remember the fallen. The wreath is red, white and blue.