White House Correspondents Criticize Alleged 'Softball Thrower' -- and Jeff Gannon Fires Back

Editor and Publisher ^ | 02/02/05 | Joe Strupp

[Willie Green]

Here's some help for you.

[frannie]

They were good questions, but his lead up was just statements from Dimwits and they were in opposition . I can't remember how he stated it but it went something like this.

The economy was in the dumps, I believe it was Reed who said we would soon have soup lines, then they try to tell us the Social Security is secure for 50 years. One was a quote from Hillary, there is no way the economy can be as bad as they say and tell us Social Security is fine.

That is about how it came down. They didn't question his statement but why would this be a soft ball question. How can the truth be soft ball?

[MississippiMan]

Lemme get this straight: They single him out for "incorporating his beliefs into a question" but they see no similar problem with Helen Thomas?

Please excuse me while I go hurl.

MM (vomiting edition)

[trustandobey]

Thanks for filling me in, we don't have television, so I missed out on a lot of what happened, other than catching a little of Rush.

[gaspar]

Note the people interviewed: Edwin Chen, Terence Hunt, Julie Davis, Ron Hutcheson, David Brock. Every one a left wing Republican-hater. Now there's real balance.

[sauropod]

I've had the occasion to meet Gannon personally at one of our WHCA FReeps. He seems like a straight-up guy.

[sauropod]

yes.

[trustandobey]

Some veteran White House reporters said Gannon's questions at press conferences show he is trying to make Bush look good -- or providing a "life line" -- instead of demanding answers

Brings to mind Carole Simpson's suck up interview of the impeached one or the real hard hitting, "boxers or shorts, Mr. President?"

[nopardons]

bttt

[Fido969]

I like Talon news. Sure, I know that they are to the right, but they also give us stories that need to be told that the lefties at the MSM just won't run.

[Tribune7]

"Would they let Joe Lockhart or someone who works for the DNC [Democratic National Committee] come in and do that? I don't think so,"

Why not? Dan Rather could.

[RJL]

I do have some questions about whether he is a legitimate journalist

As much as they'd like to ignore it or pretend it's not true, journalism is a trade, not a profession. Anyone who calls themselves a journalist is a journalist.

[appeal2]

This happened to have been a great question. It totally revealed the hypocrisy of the dems. You know Anne Coulter used to say that the Dems were just stupid. I always thought that was just a put down and didn't really mean much. In the past couple of years I have come to agree with completely. They have no ideas, no plan for the country or dealing with its problems and have completely dishonest anti-intellectual arguments that site no facts or just plain out and out lie. Liberals are stupid, period.

[Fido969]

Remember in the "town hall" debate when the old hippy chick asked dubya if he would admit to making mistakes? Well, that sure looked like a dem questioned planted to me. Or the coached soldier that asked Rummy the question about the vehicle armor. No outrage from the MSM about that.

Listening to dubya on NPR. I wish those nit-wit NPR commentators could think of something intelligent to say... Now here's Ried saying that the government should take a lesson from the 'American Family". Quite a suggestion coming from the leader of the party that has been systematically dismantling the American Family over the last 30 years.

[leprechaun9]

Let's see now:

Former Democrap employees:
Mr. Potatoe Head = Tim Russert
Moderator of Whiffleball = Chris Matthews
Clintoooooooon strategist = George Step-on-the-populace

No problems with the questions from these fair minded Geobelites!

[Texas_Jarhead]

""I think Jeff's questions suggest he has a pretty strong partisan bent that is at odds with the mission of White House correspondents who go to those meetings on behalf of the public," said Bob Deans..."

Give me a stinkin break, "White House correspondents" abdicated this supposed role long ago.

[Brimack34]

Don't rip Laura Ingraham's buddy she will not like it.

[Southack]

"Oh yeah, right. Like Helen Thomas ever threw Klintoon a hardball question."

She threw him *one* hardball question after the Davidian compound was burned to the ground; asking if every church had to be "state approved" to insure that the feds didn't raid it.

...then silence. No more hardball questions from her to President Clinton...nothing but softballs, in fact, until President Bush held his first press conference.