Gee, a fairly decent gaggle today.

Pony Blow Opens

MR. SNOW: Good afternoon. One thing to add to this morning’s gaggle — the President this morning had a 52-minute secure video teleconference with the members of the presidential council in Iraq — the Prime Minister, the President and the two Vice Presidents.

And So?

Q During the video teleconference did the President very directly express his impatience about the lack of political movement?

MR. SNOW: No, what he did is he once again reaffirmed the importance of political movement, but it’s something that they’ve shared — one of the things that is happening is that this presidential council is becoming, as they expressed, more effective and coherent as an organization, so that you have not only much closer personal, but professional dealings between the foreign members — at one point calling themselves the gang of four.

So I think it’s — the President was impressed and reassured by the sense of seriousness that he heard in the meeting.

So The President Is Reassured, What About Those Of Us Who Reside In The Reality-Based Universe?

Q Can you tell us anything specific about what that reassurance — why he felt reassured, and also address whether or not they’re taking a vacation and whether you know how long that vacation will be?

MR. SNOW: On the second, I don’t believe so; and on the first, no, I can’t give you any specifics.

Q You don’t believe they’re taking a vacation now?

MR. SNOW: I’m not sure; I don’t think so. Again, I’ll refer it back to —

Q But, Tony, can you give us some sense of why he felt reassured, given that we’ve heard reassurances before?

MR. SNOW: Well, again, it is clear that you’ve got an environment now where the key leaders are working together on these issues. And, yes, we have heard a lot of these things before, but without — and I’m not in a position to go into the details and what they were saying, but there are reasons we think they’re very serious in moving forward on the key items.

Q But, Tony, we’ve heard that before, many times.

MR. SNOW: I understand. I understand.

Q I mean, why is there any more reason now to believe that they’re serious about moving forward than there was the last time you said that? Or the time before?

MR. SNOW: I understand. But, again, I think — let me put it this way, that you see that there are tangible efforts going on and I’m just not going to go into any greater detail, I’m going to let the — that is a sovereign government and I will permit them to make the announcements about how they’re doing and where they’re going.

Q You think there will be announcements on something about where they’re going?

MR. SNOW: No, I think, again, I’m just going to leave it at that.

Continue reading “Today On Holden’s Obsession With The Gaggle”

Chimpy’s on the road, first to Wichita, Kansas, and then on to the frontlines of the War In Iraq (Crawford). Pony Blow, Dana Peroxide, and Tony Farto apparently did not want to visit either of those garden spots, we are stuck with fourth-stringer Snott Stanzel. Snott May Have AMySpaces Page, But He has No Idea How Many People Live In The Gaza Strip Q How concerned is the President about the prospect of a terrorist state in the middle of the Middle East? That’s obviously been a focus of his foreign policy, trying to prevent that. MR. STANZEL: No one … Continue reading Today On Holden’s Obsession With The Gaggle

Helen Thomas Nails The Chimp-In-Chief Once AgainToday

Q The President said in his speech that — to expect many more casualties. How many more Americans is he willing to sacrifice to keep this war going?

MR. SNOW: You know, what’s interesting, Helen, is if you ask the people who are — if you take a look at what’s going on in recruitment right now, the people who are most likely to sign up are the people who are involved in combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. And if you talk to a number of them, they feel that they are part of something very special, which is something that is certainly a difficult mission, but it also reflects the finest traditions of the United States of America, which is what people are fighting for — to liberate others and to extend the boundaries of liberty, and to create the possibility for allies who are going to be not only allies in the war on terror, but examples of exactly the power of freedom.

The President wishes that nobody had to die. This is something that is deeply personal. He quite often meets with families of those who have been wounded and killed. On the other hand, the real question is, what happens if the United States walks away? And the answer is that many, many more people will be washed away in needless bloodshed as forces of terror draw confidence and encouragement from the fact that we will not have finished the job.

And Then Helen Asked The Question of the Day

Q I have one follow-up. Are there any members of the Bush family or this administration in this war?

MR. SNOW: Yes, the President. The President is in the war every day.

Q Come on. That isn’t my question.

MR. SNOW: If you ask any President who is a Commander-in-Chief —

Q On the front lines —

MR. SNOW: The President.

More Progress

Q Thank you. A Pentagon report says violence has increased in Iraq in spite of the surge. Does the President intend to send more U.S. troops to Iraq?

MR. SNOW: Actually, the 90-10 report says that the overall levels have been high, but if you take a look at some of the metrics which have been taking place in Baghdad, you have a seen a decrease in sectarian violence, and you’ve also seen a number of other metrics, for instance, 34 percent decrease in violence in Anbar. Nevertheless, we’ve seen al Qaeda moving to other places and also using more deadly means, such as explosively formed projectiles.

Continue reading “Today On Holden’s Obsession With The Gaggle”