White House Slams Ex-Aide's Book

Press Secretary Says Predecessor Scott McClellan Is "Disgruntled," Former Colleagues Also Stunned

(CBS/AP)  Current and former White House officials fired back after it was revealed that former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan wrote in a new memoir that President Bush relied on an aggressive "political propaganda campaign" instead of the truth to sell the Iraq war.

White House aides seemed stunned by the scathing tone of the book, and Bush press secretary Dana Perino issued a statement that was highly critical of their former colleague.

"Scott, we now know, is disgruntled about his experience at the White House," she said. "For those of us who fully supported him, before, during and after he was press secretary, we are puzzled. It is sad - this is not the Scott we knew."

Perino said the reports on the book had been described to Mr. Bush, and that she did not expect him to comment. "He has more pressing matters than to spend time commenting on books by former staffers," she said.

"Scott himself repeatedly made the case for the war from the podium and even after he left the White House, I remember watching him on Bill Maher’s show - about one year ago - making the case for the war," former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer wrote in a statement. "If Scott had such deep misgivings, he should not have accepted the press secretary position as a matter of principle."

In the book, entitled "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception," McClellan wrote that the Bush White House made "a decision to turn away from candor and honesty when those qualities were most needed" - a time when the nation was on the brink of war.

The way Mr. Bush managed the Iraq issue "almost guaranteed that the use of force would become the only feasible option," the book contends, according to accounts Wednesday in The New York Times and Washington Post.

"In the permanent campaign era, it was all about manipulating sources of public opinion to the president's advantage," McClellan writes.

The book provoked strong reactions from former staffers as well.

"For him to do this now strikes me as self-serving, disingenuous and unprofessional," Fran Townsend, former head of the White House-based counterterrorism office, told CNN.

Said former top aide Karl Rove, in an interview with Fox News Channel: "If he had these moral qualms, he should have spoken up about them. And frankly I don't remember him speaking up about these things. I don't remember a single word."

Richard Clarke, another former counterterrorism adviser who also came out with a book critical of administration policy, said he could understand McClellan's thinking, however. Clarke told CNN that he, too, was harshly criticized, saying that "I can show you the tire tracks."

McClellan called the Iraq war a "serious strategic blunder," a surprisingly harsh assessment from the man who was at that time the loyal public voice of the White House.

"As press secretary, I spent countless hours defending the administration from the podium in the White House briefing room," McClellan writes. "Although the things I said then were sincere, I have since come to realize that some of them were badly misguided."

"The Iraq war was not necessary," he concludes.

McClellan's book is "nothing but bad news" for Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting John McCain, according to CBSNews.com senior political editor Vaughn Ververs.

"The GOP candidate can (and probably will) dismiss McClellan’s charges by pointing to the fact that, whatever came before, the war in Iraq continues and he’s the one who can bring it to a successful conclusion," Ververs wrote. "But that’s not going to make the war - or those who supported it initially - any more popular."

McClellan admits that some of his own words from the podium in the White House briefing room turned out to be "badly misguided." But he says he was sincere at the time.

"I fell far short of living up to the kind of public servant I wanted to be," McClellan writes. He also blames the media whose questions he fielded, calling them "complicit enablers" in the White House campaign to manipulate public opinion toward the need for war.

The book is scheduled to go on sale June 1. Quotes from the book were reported Tuesday night by the Web site Politico, which said it found McClellan's memoir on sale early at a bookstore.

McClellan draws a portrait of his former boss as smart, charming and politically skilled, but unwilling to admit mistakes and susceptible to his own spin. Mr. Bush "convinces himself to believe what suits his needs at the moment," McClellan writes.

He also faults Mr. Bush for a "lack of inquisitiveness."

"President Bush has always been an instinctive leader more than an intellectual leader," McClellan writes. "He is not one to delve deeply into all the possible policy options-including sitting around engaging in extended debate about them-before making a choice. Rather, he chooses based on his gut and his most deeply held convictions. Such was the case with Iraq."

[emmielou72]

I am so disappointed by Katie Couric''s interview and her appearance of feigning ignorance of the White House propaganda machine and the press'' complicity and cooperation in selling the war. Anyone whose head wasn''t buried in the sand absolutely knew that the Bush administration was using propaganda and deliberately maniupating intelligence to justify going to war with Iraq.

And if you were Bush''s press secretary, you tell America what you are told to tell America - or else. The Bush administration also ensured that government employees were stripped of their constitutional protection regarding speech by government workers via the Supreme Court case of Garcetti v. Ceballos - which was reheared when Bush''s conservative judge was appointed to the court - not to mention virtually dismantling the Whistleblower agency which was established to protect government whistleblowers.

I imagine that it is now hard now for the press to look the public in the eye now that a credible witness has come forward to document the White House/press'' relationship in justifying the Iraqi war - especially considering that thousands of men, women and children have been maimed and killed because the White House and the press were complicit in manufacturing the propaganda used to go to war.

Scott McLellan is a hero - I hope he makes a ton of money by telling the truth. It''s better than making a ton of money by running a corrupt, immoral administration and/or press.

[eddynewhope]

Wow - I guess I''m not surprised by this book at all. Imagine if your career hinged on your credibility as is the case with a press secretary, reporter, etc. Now imagine that your boss and his aides sent you out to the podium to tell flagrant lies to the entire world about a very important issue. Now visualize slowly coming to the realization that the same people that you are passing in the hall at work lied to you and in effect, ruined you credibility and career by making you a lying, laughing stock. Then, of all things, imagine your boss calling you and telling you that "because your credibility is shot, you are no longer effective - please resign". I would write a book too and I''m not sure I would have been as even handed as McClellan. LOL

[enriquecaliente]

So where are the WMD''s, again.?

[realpatriot1]

The White House gave this guy phony cover stories then sent him out to face the press and lie. Now they say they supported him and he''s just disgruntled. Sure.

It would''ve been nice if he had been disgruntled enough to do the right thing at the time and resign rather than lie. Too bad we don''t have real patriots in politics who will put the welfare of the country ahead of their own.

It''s a shame that so many truly patriotic Americans have given their lives selflessly with the expectation that our government would only send them into harm''s way out of real necessity and that those who were in a position to know better were more concerned with their jobs or their image.

[obama8years]

I HERE TO MAKE THE LIBS DAY! LOL

Breaking NEWS....new Polls out

Rasmussen Tracking 05/25 - 05/28 1600 LV 42 47 McCain +5.0
Gallup Tracking 05/22 - 05/27 4411 RV 45 46 McCain 1.0


From the Start Mccain was a long shot, and very far Behind Hillary and Obama. But now that Obama Radicalism are being Shown. And the real Obama is being discovered. America is disgusted with Obama. And it shows. It is not even the General Election yet, but Mccain is already starting to take the lead.

Rasmussen Tracking 05/25 - 05/28 1600 LV 42 47 McCain 5.0
Gallup Tracking 05/22 - 05/27 4411 RV 45 46 McCain 1.0

[obama8years]

Somebody ask Obama about his involvement with the International Solidarity Movement? Let him answer that, is he going to dodge it , like Ayers and Rev Wright?

If Barack Obama didn%u2019t know about Abunimah%u2019s writings (and Abunimah says he did), the same as his claims of being unaware of Reverend Wright%u2019s remarks after 20 years, then Obama is not competent to be our President. Abunimah likes to lie and claim Al Awda has nothing to do with the ISM or Electronic Intifada, though plenty of evidence exists on the website the homepage at www.StoptheISM.com showing the contrary.

But Obama%u2019s association with the ISM through his church and lobbying in Chicago goes even deeper than just his past links to Al Awda and Ali Abunimah. His pastor, Jeremiah Wright, and the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, are both equally involved with the ISM.

[obama8years]

Obama and Wrights Involvement with the ISM

Google - International Solidarity Movement and Obama.

Find out what the Media is not telling you about Obama.



The ISM%u2019s training manual says that international ISM volunteers in the West Bank should not tell people they are human shields for terrorist groups but %u201Cpeace activists%u201D because it deceives people from their real purpose of attacking Israel any way they can to the benefit of their Palestinian handlers. So, too, does Barack Obama talk about loving one another as taught to him by a pastor who then accuses America of murdering innocent people of color at Hiroshima and Nagasaki over 50 years ago.

[obama8years]

Here is the most important parsed line from Obama%u2019s speech (and it%u2019s no Gettysburg Address):

%u201CThe man I met more than twenty years ago is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the sick and lift up the poor.%u201D

So the man who %u201Cintroduced%u201D Barack Obama to his %u201CChristian faith%u201D also teaches that Jesus was not a Jew, and that the white Jews exploited the %u201Cblack Palestinians%u201D in the Bible, and who espouses ISM and Sabeel religious terminology among his fellow Christians, particularly blacks, even against the wishes of his own synod.

Jeremiah Wright certainly knows his market.

That is the Christianity of Jeremiah Wright and based on Obama%u2019s speech, the same Christianity that Wright introduced Obama to, and one the presidential candidate still believes and won%u2019t disavow no matter what it costs him.

True, Obama mentioned how Wright taught him to be kind unto others. But according to Wright%u2019s interpretation, that %u201Ckindness%u201D has more to do with fighting %u201Cwhite oppression%u201D than urging nonviolence and brotherly love among all races. Wright%u2019s church even praised Hamas in the past, and has always touted it as an Islamic charity organization showing such social kindness despite its charter calling for unyielding murder and expulsion of Jews in the Middle East.

[obama8years]

You want scandal - Google "International Solidarity Movement and Obama and Wright"

Sabeel has been actively working in cooperation with Chicago%u2019s Trinity UCC among certain other politically active churches in America to promote anti-Israel and even anti-Semitic beliefs that can erode American Christian support for Israel and hasten Israel%u2019s destruction. And Pastor Jeremiah Wright, pandering to his majority black congregation, has been teaching his own replacement theology, only this time its called %u201Cblack replacement theology.%u201D Jesus was not a Jew, says Wright, but a %u201Cblack man.%u201D Trinity UCC%u2019s relationship with the anti-Semitic Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam (funded by anti-Israel Libya) fits in nicely with this formula also. The Christian religious icon is no longer a Jew, but a black man and to accept this interpretation is the way to salvation for the black man. This not only deconstructs American church views of the legitimacy of Israel, but has a nice foothold with the likes of the Nation of Islam in the US black community.

In his speech, Obama actually tried to give some credibility to Wright%u2019s speech claiming it portrays the real experience for black Americans without saying what specific parts of Wright%u2019s diatribes he was referring to. By accusing the US of bombing innocent people of color at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, of America infecting black American with AIDS, or of %u201Cchickens coming home to roost%u201D

[obama8years]

People on this board are so anti-american, and just waiting to tear down the white house. There are 2 sides to every story. And the person making a boat load of money from a publisher has alot to gain on stretching the truth or outright lieing.

The question is if we want a man in the White House who will regularly give his ear to the likes of a Reverend Wright, his and Sabeel%u2019s replacement theologies, and pro-terrorist propagandists like Ali Abunimah on a regular basis? In one sense, Obama could be considered the ISM%u2019s Manchurian candidate given his wide connections to ISM activists and campaign movements such as the Wheels of Justice Tour, Joseph Carr a.k.a. Joseph Smith, Hannah Mermelstein, Anna Baltzer and others.

[colonieny]

THE REAL STORIES OF THE WORLD ARE IGNORED DON"T FORGET ABOUT OUR ENEMIES !
BUSH HAS KEPT US SAFE
OUR TROOPS ARE KILLING BAD EVIL PEoPLE ! YeT THE LEFT AND THE PRESS IGNORE THE BIGGER PI"CT"URe.

BAPTISTS TORTURED BY HAMMAS - CARTER- WHO TAKES MONEY FROM OIL RICH ARABS, IGNORES.

"The Islamic Outreach" (NICE NAME) head- Sheik Abu Saquer on 8 26 07 proclaimed that there was no need to have Christians in GAZA. There were only about 3,000 living there before Israel left.
Now that HAMAS is in control, what has happened to them ?
All Christian Women must wear Muslim dress in public. No Church Services allowed. The YMCAS were burned down, and he directors killed. Beatings and rapes, as expected. for example:
Mr. Rami Ayyad one local leader of the Christians, and Christian book store owner - only one, brave soul, was tortured and murdered by HAMAS police, 10 11 07. His family given refuge in Israel, his book store destroyed. A blazing book burning of Christian Books followed - sounds like NAZIS ?) By the way - to CARTER- Ayyad was a practicing BAPTIST ! Will you ask about what happened to your fellow BAPTIST ? and why ? be strong Pres. Carter. coward.
So said Islamic Outreach . " All Christians engaging in missionary activity in GAZA will be dealt with HARSHLY."
CARTER takes millions of dollars each year from rich ARAB OIL, just to be a traitor to his own people. Why ??

[sanfelz]

The book should have been titled "Well, duh".

[bobnjersey]

[bobnjersey, so instead, let''''s use the rest of this campaign to talk about Rev. Wright, or mistaken concentration camps, or Hillary''''s RFK reference. I''''m sure the colutry will be a much better place because of all this. Again, the focus is on the side issues. When will the real issues be discussed?]
[Posted by o_nolan1 at 01:25 AM : May 29, 2008]

if it was about what was good for the electorate they''d talk about what''s important ... but it isn''t.

they''re controlling the discussion to control you ... and they do it with some sophisticated techniques of influence and persuasion ... and carefully constructed linguistics. they know how ''right thinkers'' think and what''s important to them. they know how ''left thinkers'' think and what''s important to them. they craft the message for purposes of ''pushing the right buttons'' to motivate their like minded followers.

c''mon ... who doesn''t have family values and immigration on the top of their lists? who do you suppose they put these types of ''points of focus'' out there for all to focus on? and who do you suppose they want to be focused on them?

[dgwooster]

The guy simply changed his opinion of Bush after stepping back and taking a better look. It''s the same with millions of Americans......how else does a president go from 90% to 28% approval?

[brianbwb-2009]

"These are actions we used to criticise the rest of the world for and it''''s happening right under our noses? What has happened to America that makes people believe they can even attempt to do such things? Has the executive branch of government become too powerful?"
Posted by o_nolan1

Your heart and mind is in the right place, but there are many of us who survived the civil rights struggles of the 60s who have known that for generations, the things which we criticize other countries about were also charges for which our own government was guilty.

Apartheid, assassination, terrorism, lying, slander, libel, military misadventure, even burglary, have happened since before we were born.

Now that the bitter taste of government corruption is also being tasted by the middle class "White" population, hopefully some of them will realize that our struggle wasn''t just for "Black" people, it was for all victims of the arrogance of the "elite" class. What we were fighting for was also to the benefit of society as a whole.

Of course, many will not realize it, and will even fight against the concept of cleaning up out government, of returning them to the status of "public servant".

[o_nolan1]

...the war profiteers must return the money, or have their assets confiscated.

Posted by brianbwb

What ever happened to the good guys? Is this the kind of behaviour our veterans fought for in WWII? Is this what happens when we have men who have never fought for their country running the show? I feel sick to my stomach about this profiteering and even sicker the way the administration rubs it in peoples faces like they know there will be no consequences. Take a look at the men and women who have died thinking they were doing the right thing, however misguided. These are actions we used to criticise the rest of the world for and it''s happening right under our noses? What has happened to America that makes people believe they can even attempt to do such things? Has the executive branch of government become too powerful?

[drinuk]

Of course the guy has written the truth, in a time of litigation mania, neither he or his publishers would take the risk.

Anyone with a brain already understands that the whole Bush Empire is rotten to the core and that they should all be facing the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands for Genocide. Never mind impeachment, these people are Criminals and Murderers.

And what does Dr Strangelove Bush want to talk about ? the Ball Game of course !

[nonayabiness]

Is CBS, a republican outfit? They cut off my post mid-steam before I could post it.

Do not buy Scott McClellans'' book. He''s only telling us what we already know. He''s trying to profit from quitting his job, as an ''insider.'' We do not need encouragement like this to get people to work in important positions at the White House. What we need is someone who will work for the people in general in the first place, not someone wanting to profit on the outside from the job they were paid to do from the get go.

[brianbwb-2009]

Robert Wexler sends this in an e-mail,

"...%u2022 the serious allegations of wrongdoing and the clear-cut rationale for impeachment hearings;and
%u2022 the fact that the public will support our efforts when Congress boldly acts on the side of justice and accountability.

Unfortunately, to date, these arguments have not been enough to convince even a majority of the liberal and progressive Members of Congress to support impeachment hearings. In addition, the leadership of the Democratic Party in Congress genuinely feels that pursuing impeachment will jeopardize our congressional agenda and threaten gains in the November elections. Although I genuinely disagree with this view, to date I have been unable to convince them to change this policy."

So it seems that a flood of calls, e-mails, and snail mails to our various representatives is the only way to get them off their halfasses.

Get everyone who says to you "we are on the wrong course in Iraq" to at least e-mail their rep, and have them pyramid this into a flood. I have gotten more than one hundred of my friends to do so, and I ask anyone reading this who agrees with holding Bush responsible for his crimes, to contact their friends, and flood our reps with proof that we still expect them to protect us from such criminals, and just leaving office is not enough, the war profiteers must return the money, or have their assets confiscated.

[brianbwb-2009]

"You have doubts about impeachment.I wouldn''''t get too enthused about war crimes trials,Brian.Call me paranoid,but I think Bushes actions go deeper than any agenda of his own.Outside influences have been trying to get rid of the constitution from it''''s inception.Daddy was a oneworlder,no reason to believe that Sonnyboy isn''''t too." Posted by jesterbelle

I agree totally, but that doesn''t mean that we should remain silent. To not call for war crimes trials is not only a surrender of our belief in the rule of law, but in real terms we, by our inaction, passively tell the war profiteers "you can have all the money you stole from us and our children, and we won''t come after you for destroying our economy.

Even if I am the only one, then let everyone else think me mad, but I will continue to call for their arrest and responsibility for all the damage done because of their lies.