Reason Foundation Policy analyst Shikha Dalmia interviewed former White House press secretary Tony Snow just before he stepped down in late September. Read Snow's thoughts on President Bush, declining party loyalty, liberal media bias, and more here.
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Nutter | December 23, 2007, 10:01am | #
Link please!Nutter | December 23, 2007, 10:01am | #
Wow! That was fast.Hah, I was going to make a smartass comment about how Nick goofed the link, but it seems he fixed it in record time. TEH POWER OF TEH INTERWEBS
zig zag man | December 23, 2007, 2:40pm | #
reason: Is it true that the president really only likes to hear from people who agree with him?Snow: This is wrong. That's just wrong.
reason: Especially when it came to the Iraq War, Draper says George W. Bush didn't even consult his father, the former president, because he knew his father wasn't going to agree.
Ouch, that made my brain hurt.
Lil Bush wanted to show up his Daddy and knew Bush the Elder would've told Lil Bush to STFU and sit down because he didn't know WTF he was doing.
Alan Vanneman | December 23, 2007, 4:53pm | #
While Tony Snow was press secretary, I thought he was a smooth, manipulative, souless son of a bitch. Reading this interview went a long way to confirming every one of my conclusions. The media liked Tony because he looked like JFK. The fact that Snow was popular with the media tells you a lot about what is wrong with the media. They prefer "class" to honesty.BakedPenguin | December 23, 2007, 6:12pm | #
Snow: ...The fact is [the president] is one of the most aggressively curious people I've ever known.Yeah, a lot of people think of him as Curious George.
zig zag man | December 23, 2007, 8:52pm | #
Snow: ...The fact is [the president] is one of the most aggressively curious people I've ever known.Obviously Snow has never encountered a TSA screener who has had a bad day and is taking it out on the passengers, because they can.
Mo | December 23, 2007, 11:54pm | #
reason: Run through how the messaging works in this White House. If a particular story or disaster breaks, how does the White House decide what it is going to say about it?Snow: This is not like some previous administrations where people are running around with talking points. You're not going to find—I guarantee you—people using exactly the same phrase because that's not a very convincing way to do public diplomacy.
I can't believe Snow was able to say this with a straight face. I can't count the number of times I heard the President, Condi, Snow, etc. all say the exact same thing. I guess it's true what they say, if you repeat a lie enough times, you start to believe it.
JohnD | December 24, 2007, 7:27am | #
You people trashing Tonny Snow don't have a freaking clue.The man has more integrity then the entire reason staff combined. You people do nothing but bitch and moan. I have yet to hear a worthwhile positive suggestion from any of you. The fact is that you are all irrelavant.
CLL | December 24, 2007, 8:39am | #
How can anyone criticize the graceful, sound and polished Tony Snow.He is the bravest man I know.
When one considers what he has been through since the beginning of his illness,it is mind boggling.
What a lesson in courage he has brought to all of us.
whit | December 24, 2007, 11:19am | #
"They prefer "class" to honesty."the premise (and one i agree with) is that the corps respects snow because of his honesty.
this is a man who is honest enough to admit he left the job FOR THE MONEY
for pete's sake, even alex rodriguez can't admit he left the mariners (and etc. etc.) for the money, but tony snow can (not that he left the mariners, but you get the point... ) :)
snow is blunt as hell, and clearly an honest guy.
Guy Montag | December 24, 2007, 11:33am | #
While Tony Snow was press secretary, I thought he was a smooth, manipulative, souless son of a bitch.You mean like the way he shut down Helen Thomas as mentioned in the piece, or like when David Gregory would try to ask some long, rambling, manipulitive question full of false premises and Snow would verbally bitch slap that guy back to pre-puberty?
EK | December 24, 2007, 8:31pm | #
Reason: Blah blah blah...?Tony Snow: Lies lies lies...
Whit: "this is a man who is honest enough to admit he left the job FOR THE MONEY"
He MUST have been truthful about EVERYTHING!
Tony is a liar. That was his job. He convinced 36% of the country that up is still down and black was always white.
CLL:
When bad people get sick they are magically transformed into "the bravest" people.
JohnD:
Please tell me you are joking. Please.
How anyone can defend this administration or it's supporters is baffling.
Remember kids: Lying about a blowjob is an impeachable offense!
If only Clinton had lied about EVERYTHING, broken laws, then politicized the military and justice dept. the Republicans would have loved him. Right?
I hated Clinton and his crew but compared to what we have had since, he was an angel.
You don't know shit about the politicization of the government bureaucracy.
whit | December 24, 2007, 9:46pm | #
oh here we go with the "lying about a blowjob" meme.the issue was NOT *what* he was lying about.
it was where. he did it under oath pursuant to a court proceeding. and it was material (it was in a frigging sex harassment trial, so yes blowjobs by an intern in the frigging workplace are definitely material).
perjury is perjury. he may not have had to take a conviction (he got contempt of court and a disbarment iirc). those less politically fortunate (think mark furhman) routinely have to take perjury pleas for such activities.
nice spin though.
Guy Montag | December 25, 2007, 2:07am | #
Tony is a liar. That was his job. He convinced 36% of the country that up is still down and black was always white.Any examples of that? Not your imagination translating what was said into what you mean, but some real examples?
Kurmudge | December 25, 2007, 12:01pm | #
"Snow: There were a number of occasions when we brought in scholars and outsiders to discuss Iraq policy and the president participated fully. I guarantee you on that: Draper is just flat-out wrong. People like to draw a caricature of the president as lacking curiosity. The fact is he's one of the most aggressively curious people I've ever known."I can verify this comment. I know someone who, a PhD, academic, liberal Democrat, a specialist at a big moderate-lefty foreign policy think-tank in Washington, who was asked to one of these sessions. It was a group of a half dozen to ten outside-the-government experts in a policy area. They met in the conference room with Bush for better than an hour, there were no press announcements, no publicity (this wasn't one of Clinton's photo-op "listening sessions", it was substantive debate).
Bush brought up the topic points, and asked the experts their views and recommendations, based on all of the different considerations. The expert I know of came back essentially shocked, because the president was nothing like the media image- knowledgeable, engaged, thoughtful, getting to specific details in areas where you had to work to understand the subject. "He ran the meeting himself, and asked all the follow-up questions, where you had to know the topic in order to respond; Cheney only sat in the back and took notes." This person has a completely new view of Bush- doesn't necessarily agree, based on a different world-view and philosophy, but respects his intellect and intentions.
Those who have gone by direct fact and information, rather than their own pre-ordained biases, have a different impression of Bush than those whose philosophy of life can be summarized by a bumper sticker. I specifically and consciously refer to some of the above comments based on no knowledge at all.
anonymous | December 25, 2007, 1:10pm | #
Tony Snow on the Daily Show, with the dickish Jon Stewart.Part 1: http://tinyurl.com/3xbpf7
Part 2: http://tinyurl.com/324479
From the start of Part 2:
Jon Stewart: Remember 2006? The Democrats take it. The president is going to make a speech, sort of an olive branch speech. In it, he uses the phrase "the Democrat controlled congress." It's a real poke in the side. That seems unnecessary, and would only be used if you were exhibiting... What was the word I used earlier?If Tony Snow was more savvy, he would have said something like, "WTF? You make a career out of making fun of the president's inability to speak clearly, portraying him as a retarded ape. And the best example you can think of him being a partisan bully is using the word 'democrat' instead of 'democratic.' Jon Stewart, you're pathetic."
Tony Snow: blah blah blah
Jon Stewart: This is fascinating, what you're doing right now.What I said is, "Why did he use that phrase?" That word is an emotionally loaded word, that he is aware of. These guys are -- everything is a focus group within an inch of their lives. The phrasing that they use is repetitive and rigid.
Tony Snow: blah blah blah
LarryA | December 25, 2007, 5:34pm | #
And the best example you can think of him being a partisan bully is using the word 'democrat' instead of 'democratic.'Particularly given the wide difference between "democrat" and "democratic."
anonymous | December 26, 2007, 8:25am | #
Remember kids: Lying about a blowjob is an impeachable offense!www.reason.com/news/show/30591.html
TrickyVic | December 26, 2007, 3:29pm | #
"""this is a man who is honest enough to admit he left the job FOR THE MONEY"""He's not honest about it. He didn't mind the pay when the took the job. Why was it a problem later?
Tricky Dick | January 3, 2008, 9:28pm | #
John Stewart refers to using the phrase "Democrat Party" as an example of "dickish" politicization.Joe refers to it as "being a dick."
Coincidence, or talking point?