Ari Fleischer Joins Criticism Of Cheney's Response to Shooting

E&P ^ | Febuary 14 2006 | Joe Strupp

[muawiyah]

So Fleischer says it should have been reported to the "newsies" on Sunday morning at the latest.

According to the local "infobabe" down there in Souf' Texas, it was reported Sunday morning.

[onyx]

VP will speak on his own time schudule. Not yours.

Think for a moment that he is still devastated and likely wishes to see Mr. Whittington out of danger first.

[Heyworth]

This is just Public Relations 101. Anyone who's ever been in the business can tell you: Get ahead of the story from the beginning and you can control it. Miss the opportunity and you're playing defense

[Stellar Dendrite]

the press already has all the facts. cheney doesnt need to hold a press conference. it will just give these bolsheviks another news cycle to push this non-story (and ignore al "qaeda" gore's treason)

[Mo1]

Could the VP's office had the news release Sat night instead of Sun morning? What was the real impact? Is this story more important than Iraq, Iran, Korea, cartoon rioters????

No to all of the above

The press/media is throwing a temper tantrum because they think Cheney should have called them and held a presser ... instead of going to the hospital to be with his friend

This thing happened at 5:30 PM .. he didn't go to the hospital till 6:30 pm

I'm guessing from experience at hospitals ... it takes a couple hours to run tests and for doctors to evaluate the situation

Which now puts the time line after midnight

IS the press now saying that Cheney should have dragged the press/media out of bed to report this???

The press was notified at 8am the next morning

[Mo1]

The media is making themselves the victim of something Cheney did. It is appalling.

EXACTLY!!!

It's ALL about them

[paul51]

I think people are underestimating just how little Dick Cheney thinks of the press. He went through two presidential elections not meeting with them. I say way to go DC.

That's all well in good for DC but the result is the Pres is taking more heat for it than he should. Ari right. DC should be dealing with it. It was his screw up.

[nopardons]

bttt

[Another Thought]

If these people think the American people actually care about this, they are SO out of touch with reality! No one cares that it took 24 hours before the White House press corp found out and they think of this as a tragic accident. The Dems and the MSM are, once again, going down a dead end road that makes them look ridiculous!

[sinkspur]

I think Fleischer should keep quiet. He comes off as being another sell-out.

Oh, come on. Fleischer's right; I don't even know who Cheney's friggin' press secretary is.

McClellan shouldn't have to take the heat for this. It's beginning to look as if Cheney doesn't give a damn about how this is reflecting on Bush.

Not good.

[Carling]

I agree with you on this 100%, but let's wait and see how the victim recovers first.

[Raycpa]

Almost seems as if the Administration wants the press to keep attacking.

[andy58-in-nh]

I think the White House probably could have handled the incident a little better, too. They could have made the annoucement sooner than they did, and with less defensiveness. OK - there: I said it. Now, can we get back to dealing with the slightly-more-urgent reality of a world-wide enemy that wants to kill or enslave all of us?

The MSM is so insanely angry at and obsessed with Bush and the Republicans that they can't view the world through any other prism than that which validates their prejudices.

[A Citizen Reporter]

"Get ahead of the story from the beginning and you can control it.

IIRC, this was not Public Relations 101, this was Lanny Davis media advice 101.

And all of the "concerned posters" about how the media have the advantage in this, are really making me laugh.

They obviously haven't talked to the average voter out here in "flyover country".

[Richard Kimball]

Yeah, the story should have gone out sooner. Okay. The next question is, so what? One of the things the press hasn't figured out is that their constant screaming about every story actually provides a significant amount of inoculation to the administration. They're absurd. I knew they'd do this. Democrats come, stone-faced, announcing that this is the worst thing ever to happen in the history of the Republic. The speculate about impeachment. The press speculates and complains about the administration. The thing is, no matter what happens, they pull out one of their three templates: Vietnam, Watergate, and the civil rights movement. It's almost like watching bad summer theater. College sophomores doing "Same Time Next Year" over and over and over.

[On the Road to Serfdom]

Why? I say give the press enough rope to hang themselves. This could not be going any better. The media are looking like fools to the middle undecided type voters and even to the non-moonbat-Democrats. The longer the media drags this out the better for Republicans.

[Hoodat]

Fleischer, who was Bush's first press secretary - from 2001 to 2003 - told E&P that Cheney's accidental shooting of Texas attorney Harry Whittington on Saturday during a hunting trip should not have taken nearly a day to be reported.

Hey, it's not Cheney's fault that the MSM is incompetent. The art of investigative journalism is dead. Today's press corps is just plain lazy.

[Mo1]

We'll need to break the rules and spam it...lol.

Shove it down the liberal media's throats if needed

This is BS and so is the reaction from the press

They are acting like 5 year old spoiled brats throwing a hissy fit because they didn't get what they wanted

Cheney's head on a platter

[jecIIny]

"It was just damn stupid to hold out on this story."

I concur. We need to stop blaming the press for our mistakes. The White House screwed up. Admit it get the VP out in front of the press and answer whatever questions they have and lets put this behind us.

[oceanview]

and we are too often on defense. why? the press is going to run with this story anyway, we've got nothing to hide, what's wrong with sending Cheney out there to take them on?

when we do go on offense, as Bush did personally on the "domestic wiretap" story, what happens? we are doing very well on that story. in politics, either you are on offense, or you are losing.

Cheney can be very effective with this - give some facts, express remorse, and slap the press down regarding their crowding of the victim and his family's space, the assault on the hospital physicians at the presser, etc.