Now Tell Us What You REALLY Think
Jay Rosen is a smart fellow, to be sure, but isn’t this a little harsh?
[Scott] McClellan’s specialty was non-communication; what’s remarkable about him as a choice for press secretary is that he had no special talent for explaining Bush’s policies to the world. In fact, he usually made things less clear by talking about them. We have to assume that this is the way the President wanted it; and if we do assume that it forces us to ask: why use a bad explainer and a rotten communicator as your spokesman before the entire world? Isn’t that just dumb— and bad politics? Wouldn’t it be suicidal in a media-driven age with its 24-hour news cycle?
You would think so, but if the goal is to skate through unquestioned—because the gaps in your explanations are so large to start with—then to refuse to explain is a demonstration of raw presidential power.
Has the press secretary really been that helpful under any president? At least any of recent vintage?…
I don’t, by the way, think McClellan was a very good press secretary. I much preferred Ari Fleischer…but I don’t think he was as bad as all that, either. In any event, there seem to few tears (besides his own) shed over his departure, and I don’t think, contra Rosen, that Bush intentionally looks for poor communicators…it will be interesting to see who gets the job now. I hope it isn’t Tony Snow – nothing against Snow, but I don’t think picking a Fox newsman will be particularly helpful…
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