26 April 2006

Well, my friend Tony Snow is the new White House press secretary. Totally surreal seeing him in the briefing room this morning with President Bush. I had a few conversations with him while he was mulling all this over. He's really been in the "eye of the storm" as it were--and I wanted to see how he was doing. (The constant questions, phone calls, "have you made up your mind, Tony??" ten billion times a day.) I've known him since his "Fox News Sunday" days and his battle with cancer and the launching of his radio show. Last week, it seemed he really didn't know what he wanted to do. He was in the fact-gathering, opinion-getting phase. But yesterday, he was ready to go. He was just waiting on the final go-ahead from his doctors. All I said was, if he was going to take the job, that he get "inside the room." I worked with Clinton's first press secretary, Dee Dee Myers, back in the day at CNBC. She had NO access to Clinton, NO input on decisions, and was given NO information beyond the "talking points." I gather it was the same situation for McClellan (have you SEEN one of his briefings?). Tony doesn't need me to tell him this. He told me he had already negotiated "walk in" rights with Bush (he can go into the Oval Office whenever he wants) and will play a role in both message and policy. He gets the press can be USEFUL to your political aims--not just an obstacle. He gets that he has dual loyalties--the president AND the press--something that the folks now don't seem to get. Sounds like there will be some short-term turf battles with the current White House Communications Director, Dan Bartlett, which will be interesting. Can't wait for his first press briefing. Tony is blessed with a good sense of humor--he'll need it.