In yesterday’s New York Times, White House reporter Sheryl Gay Stolberg reported on the newest development in Tony Snow’s evolving duties as White House Press Secretary. Noting the “conspiratorial gleam in his eye,” Stolberg launched into an embellished depiction of Snow’s center stage performance at a GOP fundraising event last weekend near Chicago, replete with phonetic elongations of vowel sounds.
“Yesterday,” Mr. Snow declared, “I was in the Oval Office with the president —-” He cut himself off, took a perfectly calibrated three-second pause and switched into an aw-shucks voice for dramatic effect: “I just looove saying that! Yeaaah, I was in the Oval Office. Just meeee and the president. Nooooobody else.” The crowd lapped it up. Live from the suburbs of Chicago — It’s the Tony Snow Outside-the-Beltway Hour! Memo to White House press corps: you can’t catch this show in the briefing room.”
Later in the evening, the conservative blog Redstate announced Snow’s entrance to the blogosphere with an interview hosted by Redstate’s Erick Erickson. Erickson’s write-up represents a near perfect antithesis to that of Stolberg, and even addresses the challenges presented by the Times.
“During our conversation, I asked Tony why the New York Times and other media organizations, that helped undermine our national security through leaks, still have access to the White House,” writes Erickson. “His response makes good sense. First, he pointed out that the reporters from the New York Times who cover the White House did not write the damaging stories. Then he said, “We think a couple of those stories on the terrorist surveillance program . . . were not helpful in fighting the war . . . and frankly went against what newspapers have done in times of war, which is to try to defend national security.”
Other parts of Erickson’s report reflected the sense of triumph with which Snow met the fundraisers. “In the world of politics, Tony Snow is both a humble, genuine person, and a rock star. In fact, so popular is Tony Snow, he headed out this weekend onto the campaign trail to help Republicans — something no other press secretary has done.”
Some bloggers greeted the Redstate podcast with open arms.
“Snow’s Podcast on Redstate is a first for the White House, and it marks a new way of thinking for the Bush Administration,” notes Robert B. Bluey of Human Events. “Snow has already made the press room a fun experience for reporters. By talking to RedState — which has snagged interviews with prominent conservatives since its relaunch this summer — Snow is bypassing the liberal media filter. It’s a wise move. With Election Day just three weeks away, Republicans cannot afford to rely on the anti-Bush press.”
Not everyone was so enthusiastic though.
RadioFreeEarth at the Spigot offers this: “So, while your kids and Iraqi civilians are dying by the thousands in Iraq and NK is ready to test their SECOND ‘nukular’ weapon … all is good, cuz, YIPPEE, I made the ‘big time’!!!! And, better yet, these suckers paid $175 a plate to see me!!!!”
“I know there’s a perfectly good reason George Bush hired Tony Snow, but forgive me for not being able to think of one,” writes Richard Silverstein of Tikun Olam. “Unless it’s that Snow is the soul of wit. Here’s how today’s NY Times characterized one of his witticisms at a fundraising speech Snow delivered yesterday:
On the intellectual acumen of his boss: “He reminds me of one of those guys at the gym who plays about 40 chessboards at once.
Huh? What gym was that? Gold’s Gym for Chess? And besides, the idea that George Bush could play even one game of chess, let alone forty simultaneously, is too feeble for words.”
Attaturk, guest blogging at Eschaton also enjoys the image: “Bush the chess player…40 boards where he constantly has to be reminded the “horsey” moves in an “L” shape.”
Mark Boyer was a CJR intern.