Today's press grilling of Bad Spot Scott
QUESTION: Scott, some Democrats are calling for the revocation of Karl Rove’s security clearance. Does the president see any need for that?
MCCLELLAN: I think there’s a lot of discussion that’s going on in the context of an ongoing investigation. This is based on some news reports that came out recently.
I think you heard me talk about the importance of helping this investigation move forward. I don’t think it’s helpful for me from this podium to get into discussing what is an ongoing investigation. I think it’s most helpful for me to not comment while that investigation continues.
Now, these questions are coming up in the context of an ongoing investigation. And I stated long ago, you all will remember, that the investigation is continuing. I want to be helpful the investigation. I don’t want to jeopardize anything in that investigation.
And that’s why I made a decision and the White House made a decision quite some time ago that we weren’t going to get into commenting on questions related to that investigation.
QUESTION: We know what the facts are. We know that Karl Rove spoke about Joseph Wilson’s wife, referring to the fact that she worked at the agency. You’ve heard Democrats to say today that alone was inappropriate conduct.
What was Karl Rove trying to accomplish by having the conversation he did? And does the president think that it was fair of him to do that? Was it fair game?
MCCLELLAN: That’s a question related to an ongoing investigation. The investigation continues.
MCCLELLAN: I think there’s a lot of discussion that’s going on in the context of an ongoing investigation. This is based on some news reports that came out recently.
I think you heard me talk about the importance of helping this investigation move forward. I don’t think it’s helpful for me from this podium to get into discussing what is an ongoing investigation. I think it’s most helpful for me to not comment while that investigation continues.
Now, these questions are coming up in the context of an ongoing investigation. And I stated long ago, you all will remember, that the investigation is continuing. I want to be helpful the investigation. I don’t want to jeopardize anything in that investigation.
And that’s why I made a decision and the White House made a decision quite some time ago that we weren’t going to get into commenting on questions related to that investigation.
QUESTION: We know what the facts are. We know that Karl Rove spoke about Joseph Wilson’s wife, referring to the fact that she worked at the agency. You’ve heard Democrats to say today that alone was inappropriate conduct.
What was Karl Rove trying to accomplish by having the conversation he did? And does the president think that it was fair of him to do that? Was it fair game?
MCCLELLAN: That’s a question related to an ongoing investigation. The investigation continues.
It's an advancing continuing current developing evolving extant growing heading marching ongoing progressing unfinished unfolding investigation.
QUESTION: But, Scott, there’s a difference between what’s legal and what’s right. Is what Karl Rove did right?
MCCLELLAN: Shit...
QUESTION: You say you won’t discuss it, but the Republican National Committee and others working obviously on behalf of the White House, they put out this Wilson-Rove research and talking points, distributed to Republican surrogates, which include things like: Karl Rove discouraged a reporter from writing a false story.
QUESTION: And then other Republican surrogates are getting information such as: Cooper, the Time reporter, called Rove on the pretense of discussing welfare reform. Bill Kristol on Fox News, a friendly news channel to you, said that the conversation lasted for two minutes and it was just at the end that Rove discussed this.
So someone is providing this information.
MCCLELLAN: And, again, you’re asking questions that are related to news reports about an ongoing, continuing investigation. And you’ve had my response on that…
QUESTION: And then other Republican surrogates are getting information such as: Cooper, the Time reporter, called Rove on the pretense of discussing welfare reform. Bill Kristol on Fox News, a friendly news channel to you, said that the conversation lasted for two minutes and it was just at the end that Rove discussed this.
So someone is providing this information.
MCCLELLAN: And, again, you’re asking questions that are related to news reports about an ongoing, continuing investigation. And you’ve had my response on that…
QUESTION: Can you explain why the president chose today to break with his usual practice of taking two questions from the American side at events with a foreign leader and only taking one? Were you guys scared that he was going to say something stupid?
QUESTION: Does the White House have a credibility problem?
MCCLELLAN: These are all questions that you’re bringing up in the context of an investigation that is…
QUESTION: I’m not asking about that.
MCCLELLAN: Well, it’s clear that this is coming up in the context of news…
QUESTION: We could talk about WMDs, the whole range of issues.
MCCLELLAN: You can keep jumping in, but I’m going to try to keep going to other people in this room as well. And we can have a constructive dialogue here I think, but that’s not the way to do it.
QUESTION: It’s not my job to have a constructive dialogue, Scott. Sorry.
QUESTION: Scott, the president has said that invading Iraq has made the world safer, but the government’s own terrorism statistics show a dramatic increase in the number of international terrorist attacks since the invasion.
QUESTION: And the London bombings have demonstrated that the flypaper theory was just a theory. Can you explain the disconnect between the administration’s rhetoric on this issue and the reality on the ground?
QUESTION: Back on the Rove question, {LOL - Ed.} you are continuously saying it’s an ongoing investigation. But it’s also an ongoing news story that has opened up what has been described as a credibility gap here.
Do you not sense — is there no sense here — that perhaps you, the president and/or Karl need to say something more about this situation to close that gap?
MCCLELLAN: I think that if I started getting into questions relating to this investigation, I might be harming that investigation from moving forward. I don’t want…
MCCLELLAN: These are all questions that you’re bringing up in the context of an investigation that is…
QUESTION: I’m not asking about that.
MCCLELLAN: Well, it’s clear that this is coming up in the context of news…
QUESTION: We could talk about WMDs, the whole range of issues.
MCCLELLAN: You can keep jumping in, but I’m going to try to keep going to other people in this room as well. And we can have a constructive dialogue here I think, but that’s not the way to do it.
QUESTION: It’s not my job to have a constructive dialogue, Scott. Sorry.
QUESTION: Scott, the president has said that invading Iraq has made the world safer, but the government’s own terrorism statistics show a dramatic increase in the number of international terrorist attacks since the invasion.
QUESTION: And the London bombings have demonstrated that the flypaper theory was just a theory. Can you explain the disconnect between the administration’s rhetoric on this issue and the reality on the ground?
QUESTION: Back on the Rove question, {LOL - Ed.} you are continuously saying it’s an ongoing investigation. But it’s also an ongoing news story that has opened up what has been described as a credibility gap here.
Do you not sense — is there no sense here — that perhaps you, the president and/or Karl need to say something more about this situation to close that gap?
MCCLELLAN: I think that if I started getting into questions relating to this investigation, I might be harming that investigation from moving forward. I don’t want…
LOLOL.
******
No comments:
Post a Comment