When it comes to handing the news media, the president’s staff has a pernicious habit of punching below their weight class. Back in 2009, it was Fox News. Now the same folks who promised the most open and transparent administration in history are picking on a San Francisco Chronicle reporter who had the temerity to video some progressive protesters at a DNC fundraiser last week.
Citing a technical breach of so-called pen and pad pool reporting, the White House kicked Chronicle reporter Carla Marinucci off its pool access list and threatened to exclude other Hearst reporters from the pool, before well: Lying about it -
Sadly, we expected the White House to respond in this manner based on our experiences yesterday. It is not a truthful response. It follows a day of off-the-record exchanges with key people in the White House communications office who told us they would remove our reporter, then threatened retaliation to Chronicle and Hearst reporters if we reported on the ban, and then recanted to say our reporter might not be removed after all.
The Chronicle’s report is accurate.
If the White House has indeed decided not to ban our reporter, we would like an on-the-record notice that she will remain the San Francisco print pool reporter.
Openness and transparency. And change!
P.Bo’s Press Corps.
So.Frickin.High School.
High school is better than the Chicago way, all around, as a description. The fact that someone would have $76,000 to spend to get in to a fundraiser only to chant a song a kid could’ve written and all to “free” PFC Manning plumbs a depth of “grown” human childness and bizarro-world insanity that surprises even me. How the girl who “arranged” all that and then ends with “I’m leeavving” (good one girly, *you* really showed them!) even gets access to $76K (if actually true) boggles my mind as much as her simply incredible decision to spend that much money to stage a kindergarten production supporting a traitor who’s lucky he didn’t die a slow, painful death.
Of all the problems in the world the fact that PFC Manning is in jail and being treated . . . well, gee, he’s in isolation getting three meals a day (no arrugula probably and not something you’d normally prefer out of jail surely, but warm and almost assuredly with most food groups) a place to sleep, a place to go that flushes, etc. THAT’s your big one? BTW, has she ever considered that as an openly gay traitor if he wasn’t in isolation he might have two strikes against him from the gen pop, which doesn’t seem to take too kindly to at least one if not both of those things???
The tactics haven’t changed since Rahm left; the administration has just became more ham-handed in their (attempted) execution.
“You mean, they lied to US?!”
Welcome to our world, liberal media.
The interesting thing is that she may not have stepped beyond the guidelines:
I guess nothing that might show any cracks in the polished brass is allowed to be made public.
I should also say that when even the SF Chron pulls its tongue out of Barry Steve’s backside as starts to badmouth him you KNOW he is in trouble.
Imagine if these people had unbridled power…
Problem is they try to act as if they do. Rule by presidential or DOJ fiat.
Yeah….change you can believe in. He just didn’t tell us that he meant changing his story back and forth depending on who he was speaking to.
Obama White House and officials = thugs.
WH Press Secretary = Immature, incompetent liar.
WH Press Corps = enabling fools.
The Impotence of Being Snakebit at Big Lizards from July of last year.
“No, he’s not there yet. But he’s trending in that direction… and he knows it. It’s already starting to affect his responses — he’s drifting, drifting into Nixonian levels of paranoia and Johnsonian levels of ennui….”
“It could happen that way; generally, the American economy automatically recovers from most recessions. But history tells us that if the federal response to an economic downturn is stupid enough, recovery can be delayed indefinitely — as Franklin Roosevelt’s disastrous handling of the Great Depression conclusively proved.”
Read the whole thing, as Instapundit would say. It’s remarkably prescient.
I’ve read enough for today. Los eyeballes doan taken much more.
Howz bout you render a Cliff Notes version?
So it’s the Bully Pulpit vs. the folks who buy ink by the barrel. I think I’ve heard a bit of advice on who is likely to win this fight. Add in anybody capable of uploading a video to YouTube and the Bully Pulpit really isn’t all that and a box of Cracker Jacks, is it?
Welcome to the New Media, Mr. President. While you’re here you might also wish to explore the extensive expert opinion available on blogs, to accentuate the distilled information you’re given in your briefings between golf games and family vacations. If you want the gouge on a subject don’t look to the people you’re paying to feed it to you — they have no incentive to counter your inclinations.
Unrelated: San Francisco picks a fight with Obama? Isn’t that like opening the 6th seal or something?
– Max
…As the Professer might say, “They told me that if I voted for John McCain, we’d see censorship of the media….and they were right!!”
Mike
Operation Enduring Hope-n-Change, now entering its 3rd year is still losing hearts and minds.
Being a bully is all about punching down, as has been oft mentioned.