Is Obama Afraid Of The White House Press Corps?
Apparently, the surprise daytime visit President Obama paid to the White House briefing room last week was not nearly enough to quell complaints that by not giving a full presser to the White House press corps. Obama is trying to do an end run around the 4th Estate. Howie Kurtz, whose column last week about the President’s seven month presser dry spell may have motivated his appearance on Tuesday, redressed the matter on Reliable Sources Sunday (because when there’s even the smallest chance you can take credit for the President’s behavior, who can blame you for exploiting it). The President may be doing a lot of interviews says Kurtz, but are they the equivalent of what he would face one on one in the briefing room? Says the San Francisco Chronicle’s Debra Saunders: “Clearly, they’re shielding him. Clearly, they’re afraid of getting the kind of questions that Lynn [Sweet] might ask, and they’re trying to cherry-pick where the interviews come from.” KURTZ: Well, Debra Saunders, White Ho
