Drudge is running a report about an exchange between the only White House correspondent who matters – Helen Thomas – and White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. It goes like this;
Q The other day — in fact, this week, you said that we, the United States, is in Afghanistan and Iraq by invitation. Would you like to correct that incredible distortion of American history —
MR. McCLELLAN: No, we are — that’s where we currently —
Q — in view of your credibility is already mired? How can you say that?
MR. McCLELLAN: Helen, I think everyone in this room knows that you’re taking that comment out of context. There are two democratically-elected governments in Iraq and —
Q Were we invited into Iraq?
MR. McCLELLAN: There are two democratically-elected governments now in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments, and we are there today —
Q You mean if they had asked us out, that we would have left?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, Helen, I’m talking about today. We are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments — Q I’m talking about today, too.
MR. McCLELLAN: — and we are doing all we can to train and equip their security forces so that they can provide for their own security as they move forward on a free and democratic future. Q Did we invade those countries?
MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead, Steve. (Emphasis gleefully added by me)
Yes, Steve, go ahead. Please bail me out of this disaster. I shouldn’t have to answer unpleasant questions like this.
Anyone who has to resort to using a phrase like “I think everyone in this room knows” is full of crap. Imagine if the entire press corps weren’t a passel of gutless power worshippers — imagine they all had the sack to tell the Emperor that he was buck naked — now that would be fun, unless your name is Scott McClellan.
PS. Somebody tell Drudge that his title tags on that page contain erroneous information, in that it is no longer 2004…