Scotty's Stuck on "Default" Again
Highlights from Scotty's latest press gaggle, which goes over a certain debated photo op:
Q So you're saying this was not a staged conversation for PR purposes?
MR. McCLELLAN: This is an event where there's coordination that goes on and we work closely with the Department of Defense. They worked to pull together some troops for the President to visit with and highlight important topics that are going on right now on the ground in Iraq. The President is going to continue speaking out about what we're working to achieve in Iraq and he's going to continue talking about the vital mission that we're working to achieve there.
The stakes are high in Iraq. This is right up there at the top of our list of priorities. As the President said in the remarks, his most solemn duty and the most solemn duty of our men and women in uniform, like those he was talking to, is the safety and security of the American people.
I just don't know if some are suggesting that what our troops were saying was not their own thoughts, because it clearly was.
Q Now, we all saw the event, so without getting into what the President said and what the troops said, can you just talk specifically to the choreography? Did the soldiers know what questions they would be asking? Did they --
MR. McCLELLAN: No, I really can't, because we coordinate this with the Department of Defense, and you might want to direct questions to the Department of Defense, because when we do these events -- we appreciate all the help that they provide -- the Department of Defense takes the lead in terms of pulling some troops together so that we can do events like this.
Q So you, personally, do not know if those soldiers rehearsed their answers before they were on air, live?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, my understanding is that someone from the Department of Defense was talking to them ahead of time. But I don't know -- I was with the President, so --
Q Can you find out what the answer is?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, I think you might want to talk to the Department of Defense. Like I said, they're kind of the point person in terms of coordinating this with our troops. And we appreciate all that they do to help coordinate an event like this. But I think what the American people heard was some very important information from our men and women in uniform. These are men and women who are on the ground in Iraq, and I think we can get caught up in some of these side issues -- because that's all this is -- but let's talk about what was most important. What's important is that the Iraqi people are going to the polls this weekend, and they're going to vote on a constitution in a free Iraq. Just three years ago, the Iraqi people were under a brutal, oppressive dictator, a dictator that killed thousands and thousands of people.
Got that? If this was a rehearsed event, it's the Department of Defense's fault.
Q So you're saying this was not a staged conversation for PR purposes?
MR. McCLELLAN: This is an event where there's coordination that goes on and we work closely with the Department of Defense. They worked to pull together some troops for the President to visit with and highlight important topics that are going on right now on the ground in Iraq. The President is going to continue speaking out about what we're working to achieve in Iraq and he's going to continue talking about the vital mission that we're working to achieve there.
The stakes are high in Iraq. This is right up there at the top of our list of priorities. As the President said in the remarks, his most solemn duty and the most solemn duty of our men and women in uniform, like those he was talking to, is the safety and security of the American people.
I just don't know if some are suggesting that what our troops were saying was not their own thoughts, because it clearly was.
Q Now, we all saw the event, so without getting into what the President said and what the troops said, can you just talk specifically to the choreography? Did the soldiers know what questions they would be asking? Did they --
MR. McCLELLAN: No, I really can't, because we coordinate this with the Department of Defense, and you might want to direct questions to the Department of Defense, because when we do these events -- we appreciate all the help that they provide -- the Department of Defense takes the lead in terms of pulling some troops together so that we can do events like this.
Q So you, personally, do not know if those soldiers rehearsed their answers before they were on air, live?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, my understanding is that someone from the Department of Defense was talking to them ahead of time. But I don't know -- I was with the President, so --
Q Can you find out what the answer is?
MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, I think you might want to talk to the Department of Defense. Like I said, they're kind of the point person in terms of coordinating this with our troops. And we appreciate all that they do to help coordinate an event like this. But I think what the American people heard was some very important information from our men and women in uniform. These are men and women who are on the ground in Iraq, and I think we can get caught up in some of these side issues -- because that's all this is -- but let's talk about what was most important. What's important is that the Iraqi people are going to the polls this weekend, and they're going to vote on a constitution in a free Iraq. Just three years ago, the Iraqi people were under a brutal, oppressive dictator, a dictator that killed thousands and thousands of people.
Got that? If this was a rehearsed event, it's the Department of Defense's fault.
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