Hellooooo, McClellan is lying to youuuuuu.

Magorn over at dKos has some nice quotes of a testy exchange between Scott McClellan and some White House reporters.

My favorite portions:

Q: With respect, who made you the editor of Newsweek? Do you think it's appropriate for you, at that podium, speaking with the authority of the President of the United States, to tell an American magazine what they should print?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not telling them. I'm saying that we would encourage them to help --

Q You're pressuring them.

and it got better:

Q Back on Newsweek. Richard Myers, last Thursday -- I'm going to read you a quote from him. He said, "It's a judgment of our commander in Afghanistan, General Eichenberry, that in fact the violence that we saw in Jalalabad was not necessarily the result of the allegations about disrespect for the Koran."

He said it was "more tied up in the political process and reconciliation that President Karzai and his cabinet were conducting." And he said that that was from an after-action report he got that day.

So what has changed between last Thursday and today, five days later, to make you now think that those -- that that violence was a result of Newsweek?

and then:

MR. MCCLELLAN: Well, clearly, the report was used to incite violence by people who oppose the United States and want to mischaracterize the values and the views of the United States of America. The protests may have been pre-staged by those who oppose the United States and who may be opposed to moving forward on freedom and democracy in the region, but the images that we have seen across our television screens over the last few days clearly show that this report was used to incite violence. People lost their lives -

Not so fast, you lying bastard:

Q But may I just follow up, please? He didn't say "protest," he said -- he used the word very specifically, "violence." He said the violence, as far as they know from their people on the ground -- which is something that you always say you respect wholeheartedly -- it was not because of Newsweek.
MR. McCLELLAN: Dana, I guess I'm not looking at it the same way as you do

Exactly. In fact, no member of the Bush Administration EVER looks at ANYTHING the way anyone else does. This is a perfect example of a story used to deflect and defend the administration from ridiculous news.

Here you have proof that Bush and his Administration lied to take us to war, usurping the power to do so from the US Congress. Lo and behold, Newsweek publishes a story that happens to coincide with some violence in Afghanistan. Since no one ever pays attention to the bullshit Scottie spews until it impugns others, he uses Newsweek as his bitch. Michael Isikoff, a journalist that was calling for Bill Clinton's head, is now accused of hating America and supporting the terrorists and helping to incite a "riot", despite military commanders saying the violence was unrelated!

If only, if ONLY some reporters would ask some questions like this every day, perhaps they could gain some momentum against the iron curtain this administration lays down in front of dissenting reporting and difficult questions. Nothing makes them waffle more than unarguable facts, and there are MANY. Nothing makes them waffle more than having their own logic used against them (see Bill Frist on Filibusters, as one of many examples). For the facts are with the progressives more today than ever, in fact the facts are running scared from Bush for fear of further violation.

mcolley
I'm not liberal, I'm just paying attention