Journalists Say Their White House Advice Crossed No Line

Washington Post ^ | 01/29/05 | Howard Kurtz

[Pikamax]

Journalists Say Their White House Advice Crossed No Line

By Howard Kurtz Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, January 29, 2005; Page C01

Columnist Charles Krauthammer heaped praise on President Bush's inaugural address. But, he says, he had nothing to do with shaping the speech.

Weekly Standard Editor Bill Kristol also lauded the speech. He says he did not consult on the speech itself but discussed with two White House officials "themes for the second term and included in that, themes for the inaugural."

Both conservatives are unapologetic about having privately offered advice to top White House aides, saying that is perfectly proper for commentators.

Krauthammer, whose op-ed column runs in The Post and is syndicated by The Washington Post Writers Group, said of his participation in a Jan. 10 meeting at the White House that it was "an informal, off-the-record discussion of U.S. Middle East policy. . . . This meeting was not designed to be the exercise in speech preparation. Nor did I have that impression during the meeting itself that it was. If I had, I would have mentioned it when commenting on it."

Krauthammer was invited to the 90-minute session by Peter Wehner, director of the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives. Presidential speechwriter Michael Gerson was also there, along with counselor Dan Bartlett, senior adviser Karl Rove and more than a half-dozen other administration officials.

[wildwood]

omigosh! i can't beLIEVE they are even TALKING about this like it has ANY significance at ALL, after mary mopes and all the incest between the press and the democrat party! this really IS shocking, and another sign that the msm and the dem party are bent on their own destruction. GEEZ.

[JennysCool]

This is such an idiotic manufactured "controversy." In a truly united and forward-looking America, a President in search of advice would have at his disposal the counsel of the finest minds in EVERY field. Leave it to the Libs to make this a bad thing.

[Pikamax]

It seems that Democrats are okay to ask journalists for their advice.

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/news/news_2003_1210b.html

There are but a few weeks to go before the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary. Time has grown short. In an effort to galvanize the message Kerry wants to deliver in the time remaining, he convened a powerful roster of journalists and columnists in the New York City apartment of Al Franken last Thursday. The gathering could not properly be called a meeting or a luncheon. It was a trial. The journalists served as prosecuting attorneys, jury and judge. The crowd I joined in Franken's living room was comprised of:

Al Franken and his wife Franni;
Rick Hertzberg, senior editor for the New Yorker;
David Remnick, editor for the New Yorker;
Jim Kelly, managing editor for Time Magazine;
Howard Fineman, chief political correspondent for Newsweek;
Jeff Greenfield, senior correspondent and analyst for CNN;
Frank Rich, columnist for the New York Times;
Eric Alterman, author and columnist for MSNBC and the Nation;
Art Spiegelman, Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist/author of 'Maus';
Richard Cohen, columnist for the Washington Post;
Fred Kaplan, columnist for Slate;
Jacob Weisberg, editor of Slate and author;
Jonathan Alter, senior editor and columnist for Newsweek;
Philip Gourevitch, columnist for the New Yorker;
Calvin Trillin, freelance writer and author;
Edward Jay Epstein, investigative reporter and author;
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., who needs no introduction.

We sat in a circle around Kerry and grilled him for two long hours.

[Political Junkie Too]

But, that's "different!" ;-)

-PJ

[JCRoberts]

Where was the outrage a few months ago?

[oldbrowser]

We have a firsthand source who says it was crystal clear a primary purpose of the meeting was to seek advice on both Bush's inaugural and State of the Union speeches."

Crossed the line ? What line ? Who makes up these stupid rules ? How come I never heard about this stuff when Clinton was president ? I would expect the President to scour the earth looking for good ideas and good advice.

[DoughtyOne]

90% of the media had brown noses during the Clinton administration. It gripes them no end that some members of the media actually like the Bushes today.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...

[cyncooper]

Columnist Charles Krauthammer heaped praise on President Bush's inaugural address. But, he says, he had nothing to do with shaping the speech.

Weekly Standard Editor Bill Kristol also lauded the speech. He says he did not consult on the speech itself but discussed with two White House officials "themes for the second term and included in that, themes for the inaugural."

Both conservatives are unapologetic about having privately offered advice to top White House aides, saying that is perfectly proper for commentators.

Exactly. Their meetings were not about the speech but about policy and history, etc. The dems and lefties are upset when Republicans and/or conservatives (for those here who wish to differentiate) participate at all, whether it be discussing (via speech or in print) or even voting (notice "let every vote count" is always and only used about imaginary votes the dem candidate shoulda coulda had).

They want to (cue up favorite lib word of the moment) "disenfranchise" us all while they yammer about being disenfranchised.

Enough of their pretzel logic and enough of being upset that we dare to voice our thoughts and ideas.

[marajade]

Don't we live in a free Country?

[Bahbah]

Howie sounds jealous.

[SandRat]

I would pay to hear Krauthammer call the whole lot a bunch of SCHMUCKS on air.

[cyncooper]

O'Reilly Factor - Left-wing "reporters" met with John Kerry in Al Franken's apartment

The Trial of John Kerry By William Rivers Pitt

In an effort to galvanize the message Kerry wants to deliver in the time remaining, he convened a powerful roster of journalists and columnists in the New York City apartment of Al Franken last Thursday. The gathering could not properly be called a meeting or a luncheon. It was a trial. The journalists served as prosecuting attorneys, jury and judge. The crowd I joined in Franken’s living room was comprised of:

Al Franken and his wife Franni;
Rick Hertzberg, senior editor for the New Yorker;
David Remnick, editor for the New Yorker;
Jim Kelly, managing editor for Time Magazine;
Howard Fineman, chief political correspondent for Newsweek;
Jeff Greenfield, senior correspondent and analyst for CNN;
Frank Rich, columnist for the New York Times;
Eric Alterman, author and columnist for MSNBC and the Nation;
Art Spiegelman, Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist/author of ‘Maus’;
Richard Cohen, columnist for the Washington Post;
Fred Kaplan, columnist for Slate;
Jacob Weisberg, editor of Slate and author;
Jonathan Alter, senior editor and columnist for Newsweek;
Philip Gourevitch, columnist for the New Yorker;
Calvin Trillin, freelance writer and author;
Edward Jay Epstein, investigative reporter and author;
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., who needs no introduction.

We sat in a circle around Kerry and grilled him for two long hours. In an age of retail politicians who avoid substance the way vampires avoid sunlight, in an age when the sitting President flounders like a gaffed fish whenever he must speak to reporters without a script, Kerry’s decision to open himself to the slings and arrows of this group was bold and impressive. He was fresh from two remarkable speeches – one lambasting the PATRIOT Act, another outlining his foreign policy ideals while eviscerating the Bush record – and had his game face on. He needed it, because Eric Alterman lit into him immediately on the all-important issue of his vote for the Iraq War Resolution. The prosecution had begun.

[kcar]

Crossed the line ? What line ?

Kind of like a $5 whore pretending to take offense at something.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Crossed the line ? What line ? Who makes up these stupid rules ?

In the warped and demented minds of those who script the DNC talking points (and by association, those in the MSM who march to that drumbeat) this non-issue is the same thing as an athlete like Ben Johnson or Barry Bonds testing positive for steroids in their bloodstream.

[dirtboy]

Meanwhile, liberal reporters and commentators (what's the difference) got their talking points emailed directly from the DNC and the Kerry campaign.

[Cicero]

Not only do MSM persons meet with Democrat politicians all the time, but they shamelessly offer them free advice on their front pages virtually every day. In fact, they seem to think that's their main job.

How many articles have we read these past few years on "Why the Democrats lost the last election, or, What should Democrats do to regain power?"

[plangent]

Katherine Graham sent advice to Lyndon Johnson and
Jimmy Carter everyday of the week and twice on Sundays.

Wake up Howie. It was your Boss that set the standard.

[t2buckeye]

You should send this to Kurtz...but I'm sure he would not have the guts to print it!! !

[alnick]

Krauthammer advising the White House? Great news! He's a brilliant man. I'm sure any advice offered by Krauthammer is top quality.