Posted on 05/12/2006 8:37:54 AM PDT by dinasour
New White House press secretary Tony Snow suffered a couple missteps in his first question-and-answer session with the White House press corps Friday.
Snow danced around several queries by saying he did not know enough to answer. And although he had at times been harshly critical of President Bush as a Fox News commentator and conservative radio host, Snow clearly was being careful not to step on the wrong toes now that he speaks on behalf of Bush.
For instance, one reporter asked about the government's abrupt end this week to an inquiry into a warrantless eavesdropping program because the National Security Agency refused to grant Justice Department lawyers the necessary security clearance.
Snow deferred that one to deputy press secretary Dana Perino. "There's a very limited number of people who are briefed on that program," she said.
As the discussion continued, reporters complained that they couldn't hear the soft-spoken Perino. Snow took over, read a few talking points from a sheet of paper and then ended that line of questioning. "As the new kid on the block, I'm not fully briefed on the issue," he said.
All of this created an atmosphere of contention among the elbow-to-elbow press corps.
Snow, a telegenic man who has built a reputation as a bright, unflappable presence on radio and television, seemed to take it in stride. "This is just a mess," he acknowledged good-naturedly.
Snow has been on the job since Monday, but was waiting to hold his first televised briefing _ taking advantage of a week when Bush was on the road most days _ to practice and begin educating himself on a dizzying array of policy positions.
On Friday, he scheduled his first informal back-and-forth with the press, an informal, off-camera session called the "gaggle" which White House press secretaries typically hold in the mornings as a sort of warmup for The Big Dance _ the formal White House daily news briefing.
Snow had announced that he was moving the gaggle to his West Wing office from the theater-like White House briefing room, in hopes of making it more of a casual, intimate conversation.
But it got under way several minutes early. And though the press secretary's quarters are among the more spacious in the West Wing, the room quickly filled to overflowing _ so that many reporters were stranded, unable to hear or ask questions, in the hallway outside.
Asked what he plans to change now that he has taken over as Bush's chief spokesman, Snow laughed: "Apparently the gaggle." He promised to move the session back to the more orderly venue of the briefing room, and look into the requests for information that he hadn't been able to supply.
One of his first announcements was to further postpone his first on-camera briefing. Expected to be on Monday, Snow said it has been moved back to Tuesday.
And why not?
His boss is giving a speech to the nation Monday night.
Thank you - glad it is being taken care of. I like Tony Snow - have enjoyed him for years and rarely see him having
personality differences.
I think the press like and respect him regardless of his new job, but he must set the line at the beginning and keep them from crowding over it.
It's his conference - I hope he makes his necessaries known so they don't upstage him with their hysterical nonsense.
Same article for the most part, unattributed and it leads with:
"WASHINGTON -- Welcome to the waltz, Tony."
thankee for the ping
So far I like T.Snow's approach, act congenial in public("I look forward to working with you all") and then b#tch slap them hard at every turn - all with a smile.
Sigh...
New Press Secretary Has Ragged Debut
WHITE HOUSE -- It was a ragged debut for President George W. Bush's new spokesman, Tony Snow.
At his first briefing for reporters, he pleaded ignorance on seven questions, offered a half-dozen apologies and invited more reporters into his office than would fit.
Surveying the line stretching out into the West Wing hallway, Snow sheepishly called it "just a mess."
The former talk show host and new White House press secretary referred to himself as "the new kid on the block."
Snow's first formal, televised White House briefing is planned for next Tuesday. Administration officials have suggested they might seek to curtail TV coverage of the daily briefing. But Snow sounded doubtful, saying his "feeling" is that's "not something you can undo."
I don't think it was a mistake. I think Tony was making a point.
Maybe something like: This is my office, and we can do this the easy way or the hard way.
Becki
Who is this Jennifer Maven chick? She is due a blizzard!
LOL, Maven =Loven. Long day! Oy!
>Who is this Jennifer Maven chick? She is due a blizzard!
Time to put rocks in the snowballs
Thanks for the ping, dinasour!! :o)
You're welcome
If Tony were still there, he'd send Griff over to find out what really happened
Do y'all read "Day by Day" by Chris Muir?
Take a look at May 9th and 10th
http://www.daybydaycartoon.com/Default.aspx
Tony Snow blinks after first look at press corps
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New White House spokesman Tony Snow got his first eyeball-to-eyeball look at the beast known as the White House press corps on Friday -- and it was Snow who blinked.
...
Some 16 reporters were unable to even get into the office, prompting those way in the back to shout for him to speak up.
Do you think I really care how much you poor, poor reporters were inconvenienced.
That's great, thanks for the link!!
I also like the one for May 12 (today) very much.
I guess they have more reporters than AP, Reuters, etc.
They just couldn't resist a snow pun however:
War Room by Tim Grieve: The Snow job, Day 1
They let me see the whole thing after a click through add
I will have to look it up, but I am very sure that Ari held the gaggle in his office!
Love to catch her alone! :)
No matter what he did, it would have been declared a failure.
If Tony flew in like Superman, they would have reported on his failure to optain an FAA permit.
That's why I want transcripts, I don't believe AP/Reuters as far as I can spit.
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