Last night's press conference generated enormous press attention -- of course. But, the fact that Sam Stein from the Huffington Post got to ask one of the coveted questions also captured the attention of the traditional media. The Washington Post and the New York Times both reported on it. The Times noted:
It was not the answer but the very fact that he took a question from Mr. Stein that created a buzz and signaled yet another shift in the ever-evolving news media landscape.Lots of big egos in that East Room last night. And, I'm not talking about the Obama staff. Apparently, some of those big egos were bruised. Anna Marie Cox twittered:
The White House decided in advance which reporters would be selected. And on Monday night, correspondents for The Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, Time and Newsweek were not on the list.
LOTS of grumbling post-press conf about HuffPo getting a q; but accusing O of "filibustering" seems to ignore HuffPo q was smart and tough.Sam's question was smart and tough. Via an emailed transcript from the White House, here's Sam's question and the President's response:
THE PRESIDENT: Sam Stein, Huffington Post -- where's Sam? Here.I was sitting in the East Room last night and thought it was a big moment when Obama treated a new media journalist the same way he treated the old guys. So, after the press conference ended, I asked him if we could do an interview about the press conference. Besides being a smart and tough reporter, Sam is also a great guy so he agreed. We talked today:
Q Thank you, Mr. President. Today Senator Patrick Leahy announced that he wants to set up a truth and reconciliation committee to investigate the misdeeds of the Bush administration. He said that before you turn the page, you have to read the page first. Do you agree with such a proposal, and are you willing to rule out right here and now any prosecution of Bush administration officials?
THE PRESIDENT: I haven't seen the proposal, so I don't want to express an opinion on something that I haven't seen.
What I have said is that my administration is going to operate in a way that leaves no doubt that we do not torture, and that we abide by the Geneva Conventions, and that we observe our traditions of rule of law and due process, as we are vigorously going after terrorists that can do us harm. And I don't think those are contradictory; I think they are potentially complementary.
My view is also that nobody is above the law, and if there are clear instances of wrongdoing, that people should be prosecuted just like any ordinary citizen; but that generally speaking, I'm more interested in looking forward than I am in looking backwards. I want to pull everybody together, including, by the way, the -- all the members of the intelligence community who have done things the right way and have been working hard to protect America, and I think sometimes are painted with a broad brush without adequate information.
So I will take a look at Senator Leahy's proposal, but my general orientation is to say, let's get it right moving forward.
