Scottie & Me - White House Briefing

Scottie & Me

latest Scottie & Me...

Published on Thursday, September 25, 2003 by CommonDreams.org

	02/01/05: Scott, does the President believe in Commandment Number Six - thou shalt not kill - as it applies to the U.S. invasion of Iraq?...
	12/06/04: Scott, on the Middle East - many evangelical Christians in the United States are supporting right-wing Jews in Israel who want to rebuild the temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem...
	12/03/04: Scott, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday that the Pentagon deliberately misled CNN about the invasion of Fallujah...
	11/17/04: Scott,has the White House counsel looked at the President’s legal exposure to a war crimes prosecution?...
	11/15/04: Scott,you opened the briefing on Wednesday by offering the President’s best wishes to the U.S. Marine Corps on its 229th birthday. Are you familiar with the life of Major General Smedley Butler?...
	11/09/04: Scott, the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health last month estimated that the war in Iraq has resulted in 100,000 Iraqi deaths...
	03/09/04: Scott, there's a report in Roll Call this week saying that Ari Fleischer has set up a consulting firm on K Street to help corporations navigate the political channels in Washington...
	03/02/04: Scott, Justice Scalia apparently is in the habit of going on hunting trips with people who have cases before the Supreme Court...
	02/11/04: Scott, you've spoken today about the threat that this country faces. Last month, in referring to the threat posed by Iraq, you said, "I think some in the media have chosen to use the word imminent. Those were not words we used."...
	02/10/04: Scott, The Vice President took Supreme Court Justice Scalia on a duck hunting trip to Louisiana while the Vice President had a case pending before the Supreme Court. Does the President see this as appropriate behavior?...
	01/27/04: Scott, the constitutional law advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority, Noah Feldman, is quoted in today's New York Times as saying "If you move too fast, the wrong people could get elected."..Does the President agree - if you move too fast, the wrong people could get elected??...
	01/23/04: Scott, the AP is reporting today that a French judge is investigating a bribery scandal involving Halliburton when the Vice President, Dick Cheney, was the CEO of that company...So, the question is - if the French want to extradite the Vice President to stand trial in France, will the President allow for that extradition?...
	01/07/04: Scott, What was Karl Rove's involvement in developing (Bush's new immigration policy)?...
	11/17/03: Scott, Ambassador (Paul) Bremer said yesterday that US troops will remain on the ground in Iraq even after the government is elected there. What if the (Iraqi) government asks the U.S. to get out. Would we get out?...
	11/05/03: Scott, Are you familiar with Israel's 1967 attack on the USS Liberty?...
	10/29/03: Scott, earlier this year, General (William) Boykin said the following: "George Bush was not elected by a majority of voters in the United States. He was appointed by God." Does the President believe that God played any role in getting him to the White House?...
	10/14/03: Scott, Pat Robertson said this weekend that he wanted to nuke the State Department. The direct quote is, "If I could just get a nuclear device inside Foggy Bottom, I think that's the answer. You've got to blow that thing up." Does the President have any reaction to that?...
	10/8/03: Scott, why do you refuse to answer the question whether Karl Rove said that Joseph Wilson's wife was "fair game"?...
	10/6/03: Scott, Newsweek is reporting this week that Karl Rove told "Hardball" host Chris Matthews that Wilson's wife was, "fair game. Did he say that?...
	10/2/03: Scott, have any members of the White House staff hired outside counsel to represent them in connection with the criminal investigation?...
	9/25/03: Scott, Attorney General Ashcroft is not speaking with print reporters. Does the President agree with that policy?...
	9/16/03: Scott, on the Robert Novak-Joseph Wilson situation, Novak reported earlier this year -- quoting -- "anonymous government sources" telling him that Wilson's wife was a CIA operative. Now, this is apparently a federal offense, to burn the cover a CIA operative. Wilson now believes that the person who did this was Karl Rove...
	9/10/03: Scott, your father, Barr McClellan, has written a book that's coming out next month. It's called "Blood, Money and Power: How LBJ Killed JFK." And I'm wondering if you agree with your father that President Johnson was behind the assassination of President Kennedy?...
	9/2/03: Scott, does the President know how many people have been killed and wounded in Iraq since the beginning of the war?...
	7/29/03: Scott, Paul Wolfowitz, the Deputy Defense Secretary, said last week this: “I think all foreigners should stop interfering in the internal affairs of Iraq.” And I was wondering if the President agrees with that?...
	7/25/03: Scott, earlier this year, General (William) Boykin said the following: "George Bush was not elected by a majority of voters in the United States. He was appointed by God." Does the President believe that God played any role in getting him to the White House?...
Ari& I...
	7/14/03: Ari, in the 2002 election campaign, the Republican Party took in $7.2 million from convicted criminals. Is the President okay with his party taking millions of dollars from convicted criminals?...
	more Ari & I...
	Ari the Evader by Russell Mokhiber...
	Official Transcripts of the Daily White House Briefings...

Scottie & Me
(formerly known as Ari & I)
White House Press Briefing with Scott McClellan

Thursday, September 25, 2003 - 12:45 PM

by Russell Mokhiber

Mokhiber: On the issue of freedom of the press, you've spoken often to today of a free Iraq. On September 10th, Secretary Rumsfeld said there is a free press in Iraq where people are able to say whatever they wish. Yesterday, the interim council said they would close down any news outlet that advocated the return of the Baath Party. So, obviously, they can't say whatever they wish.

Scott McClellan: You might want to talk to the Governing Council about the decisions that they make.

Mokhiber: They consulted with Paul Bremer before they came down with the rules.

Scott McClellan: Yes, previously under the former regime, it shows how brutal they were, you'd have your tongue cut out if you spoke out against the regime. There is freedom of press in Iraq, and there are a lot of newspapers and there are a lot of media outlets now that previously -- where it wasn't. That's part of all moving towards a better future for the Iraqi people.

Mokhiber: Second question, Attorney General Ashcroft is not speaking with print reporters. Does the President agree with that policy?

Scott McClellan: I don't know what his individual policy is. The Attorney General --

Mokhiber: He's not speaking with print reporters.

Scott McClellan: The Attorney General has been out --

Mokhiber: -- he's just talking with TV --

Scott McClellan: The Attorney General has been out talking about some important priorities of this administration and he will continue to do that. I haven't heard --

Mokhiber: He's not talking to print reporters.

Scott McClellan: Talk to the Attorney General.

Mokhiber: He won't talk to a print reporter. (Laughter.)

Scott McClellan: Talk to the Department of Justice.

I don't know what individual policies are. I haven't heared that.

###

-Thanks to Russell Mokhiber

White House reporter Russell Mokhiber is the editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime Reporter - www.corporatecrimereporter.com. He co-authors the weekly Focus on the Corporation column with Robert Weissman which Common Dreams publishes. He can be reached at: russell@nationalpress.com

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