The Washington Post had a field day when White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told the White House press corps, "Good morning. The president had his usual briefings this morning and just recently completed an interview with the Sun, for a discussion of his upcoming visit to the United Kingdom." Yes, THE SUN, Gothamist's favorite British tabloid, which is where we find out everything we want to know about Kylie, Liam, Posh'n'Becks, Sadie'n'Jude, Chris'n'Gwyneth, Madge'n'Guy... The WP's Dana Milbank reports that a British reporter of a reputable journalistic outlet asked McClellan, "Just to clarify, why has the president chosen to do an interview with the Sun? It's a newspaper which publishes daily pictures of topless women." After detailing the Sun's bread and butter (not just naked ladies - there are stories about natives eating someone's ancestor and "German saboteurs plotted to bomb Palace with peas in WW2"), Milbank notes McClellan's answer, "It has a large readership." Notably, Bush hasn't given one-on-one interviews to publications like the NY Times, WSJ, Washington Post, Time or Newsweek this year (and hasn't given solo interviews to LA Times, Chicago Tribune, and Boston Globe ever). Hypothesis: Rupert Murdoch is a billionaire, The Sun-owning media baron and Bush is running for re-election next year. Ta-da, Bush interviews with Trevor Kavanagh.
From the Bush interview in the Sun (and we love how he slouches in front of company):
"One of my vows to the American people is, I wont forget the lessons of September 11, 2001. I was at Ground Zero after the attacks. I remember this haze and the smells and the death and destruction. Ill always remember that. I made up my mind right then. We were at war and we were going to win the war. And I still feel that determination today that I did then. Presidents and Prime Ministers should never worry about how they are viewed in short-term history. I think in terms of long-term history. I set big goals. And I know what were doing is going to have a positive effect on this world.
From the Sun's coverage of Bush's security during his trip to London:
There will be a supply of clean shirts and suits for Bush to change into if he suffers a minor injury and needs to appear on TV to prove he is alive.
Yup, words for the masses.
