Blue Bell, Pa. — President Bush arrived in this Philadelphia suburb yesterday afternoon, the latest stop in a seven-state campaign to win public support for his plan to overhaul Social Security. Based on the jubilant response he received, there weren’t many doubters among the 1,000 invited guests who crowded into a college gymnasium.
But in many ways, Bush was targeting his message not to the politicos arrayed on risers behind him or the well-dressed ticket-holders in folding chairs and bleachers, but to a handful of people at the far end of the room — people like Joe McDermott, Daniel Sernovitz, John Vettese and Bill Baldini. These were the local reporters sent to cover the town hall-style event and to carry the president’s plans to their readers and listeners.
Bush hopes to solidify grassroots support for his plans by sidestepping the national media, just as he did during his re-election campaign. Those outlets, with the staff and time to dig into the details, have reported a number of potential problems with the president’s plans.
But newspapers like the Allentown Morning Call, where Joe McDermott is a veteran suburban reporter, and The Reporter in Lansdale, where Daniel Sernovitz covers local government, staffed yesterday’s event with solid journalists who were expected to outline the basic details of the Bush proposal, get some good quotes from the president’s remarks and from local residents in attendance — and to file by deadline.
“I feel like a paratrooper coming into this,” said McDermott, as he waited for the president’s arrival. “If I can get the basics, I’m happy.” Looking at the large area of the press section reserved for the national media, he said, “I’m envious of them. They can pick up all the nuance.”
Poring over the press handout from the White House Office of Communications, McDermott turned to a colleague and asked, “What’s the difference between four percentage points of your payroll taxes [the amount that can be invested in personal accounts under the Bush plan] and four percent?” (Readers of CJR Daily know McDermott isn’t the only one confused.)
This morning, his story relied heavily on the White House’s fact sheet for details, with McDermott fleshing out his coverage by interviewing members of the audience.
For Sernovitz, this was the first Social Security story he’s written. But he wasn’t daunted. “All politics is local and this room is evidence of that,” he said, looking around at the crowd. “As a local reporter it is my job to let readers know what the president said and how the audience reacts.”
“AP, candidly, is more capable of dealing with the details,” said Sernovitz, adding that he may incorporate AP’s coverage of the event in his story. “My emphasis will be on the people who came out to hear this.”
Larry Eichel of the Philadelphia Inquirer came for something different. In addition to his daily story (registration required), Eichel, who covers the Social Security debate for the newspaper, was gathering string for a Sunday story. “I’m parsing the language being used,” he said. While the president is talking about “ownership” and “personal accounts,” in reality the accounts will be heavily regulated by government, said Eichel, who’s covered enough presidential appearances to bring along a novel to read while he’s waiting.
John Vettese writes for the Ambler Gazette, a suburban weekly. He planned to write a story that combined the town hall event with an event earlier yesterday sponsored by Democrats who oppose the president’s plans. “I find it kind of interesting that there was a rally against this even before this event happened,” said Vettese.
As the crowd patiently awaited the arrival of the president and listened to a tape of Stars and Stripes Forever for the millionth time (prompting McDermott to ask, “What would they do at these things if there wasn’t a John Philip Sousa?”), veteran local TV newscaster Bill Baldini, in crisp suit and neatly combed hair, stood in a halo of bright lights on the media riser to do a 4 p.m. stand-up for NBC10. He had a minute and a half, and previewed what Bush was expected to say.
A few minutes later, a side door opened, and two dozen reporters and technicians lugging cameras and equipment marched into the gym, swiftly taking up places on the special platform reserved for the national media, to the left of the stage where the president and a panel of five guests would sit. “Now, we’re ready,” said McDermott, of the Allentown paper. (Most of the national media had bowed out of the Pennsylvania event after covering an earlier town hall meeting yesterday in North Carolina.)
Sure enough, Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who hosted the event, was introduced along with the president, and the event got underway. For almost 45 minutes Bush explained the urgent need for action, heard the personal stories of his panel members (all of whom thought his plans for Social Security were on the money), and then stood to go, turning to the guests behind him for handshakes, autographs and photos.
At 5 p.m., as the audience was craning for a last glimpse of the president, Bill Baldini picked up his mic for a live feed to the early news. He’d get a minute and 15 seconds to do a wrap-up plus sound bites from Bush’s comments. For the 6 p.m. news, he’d have 90 seconds with a sound bite.
By the 11 p.m. news, Bush’s appearance warranted a 30-second film clip seven minutes into the show, minus Baldini.
–Susan Q. Stranahan
Susan Q. Stranahan wrote for CJR.