Diary Prequel Package — page 71

Jan. 31, 2003 - Spent most of day at DHHS and the WH. President gave absolutely wonderful speech at the WH to the PACHA (Presidential Advisory Committee of HIV/AIDS) and the African Ambassadors. He truly reflected his commitment and passion concerning our moral obligation to do something about HIV/AIDS internationally. He mentioned me specifically. Interesting that the activists who were completely trumped by the POTUS announcement, now can only complain that only $1 billion of the $10 million new money is going to the Global Fund. Feb. 1-2, 2003 - Much preparation for the President's visit to NIH and for the briefing of the President on Feb. 3 on BioShield. Many calls from WH I am asked by WH people to fact check things that he will say. Also, they want me to be responsible for arranging the details of his visit to the Vaccine Research Center. His advance people keep calling me and Kristen and others keep asking if everything is going OK. Feb. 3, 2003 - Another magical day! In the AM, I brief the POTUS on Project BioShield. Place = Roosevelt Room of the WW. Present are POTUS, VP Cheney, Tom Ridge, Tommy Thompson, Scooter Libby, Condi Rice, Karl Rove, Josh Bolten, Kristen Silverberg, Adm Abbott, Ari Fleischer, Dan Bartlett, Ken Bernard, Elias Zerhouni, Carol Kuntz, etc. I played major role in walking him through the Project. We rush back to NIH to greet him (Flying in on Marine One) at the VRC. We give him a tour and he is smash hit with the staff. We go over in motorcade to Natcher Building where he gives major address. He specifically mentions me as an old friend and someone who he thanks on the part of the country because I have been for many years THE general in war on AIDS. His speech drew applause every time he would mention me, Zerhouni, or AIDS in Africa Plan, but no applause when he spoke of the likely need to go to war with Iraq. He leaves and I spend rest of day and also Feb. 4 doing press calls to describe in detail Project BioShield. Feb. 4, 2003 - The world knows that the President's Plan came from me and I am briefing many people. The WH refers all questions about Project BioShield and The President's AIDS Plan to me Got a call from Richard Feachem, President of the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, congratulating me on the Plan, but expressing concern that since the USA only put $1 billion new money in the Fund over 5 years that now the other countries would be reluctant to contribute more to the fund than the USA. I told him emphatically, but in a nice way, that I disagreed. The original purpose of the Global Fund was not to replace bilateral agreements, but to complement them. Feachem is essentially saying that the other $9 billion in new money does not really count in a matching game since we did not put this in the Global Fund. Unbelievable. I have now told people. This is not about the Fund or about your particular choice of how you give money. It is about saying the lives of people in Africa and the Caribbean. Another looming problem is the Mexico City Agreement which states that Foreign NGO who counsels on abortions or who supports the performance (with funds) of abortions is not eligible for USG funding. This might make the implementation of the Plan through NGOs difficult. Also, I need to check with the US Trade Representative about the generics and breaking patents.