From: "Mark" 

I dunno Rich, I guess I just don't see what the big deal is here.

"Rich Gauszka"  wrote in message
news:434fba1a$1{at}w3.nls.net...
> Oh Right. The Iraqi voters were the intended target for a conference
> between Bush and US Troops.
>
> 
>
> Reporter "Was the event with the troops choreographed?"
>
> Scott Mclellan  "No. But talk to the DOD about that. I don't think it was
> rehearsed."
>
>
> It sounds more like Bush is trying to pep up US Troops prior to the Iraqi
> elections. Nothing wrong with that at all. They didn't have to use the
> 'spontaneous' ruse though
> http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/10/20051013.html
>
>
> "Mark"  wrote in message
news:434fb0c8$1{at}w3.nls.net...
>>I don't suppose it occurred to you, that you were not the intended
>>audience. Perhaps, just perhaps, Bush wanted some media coverage straight
>>from the horses mouth to reassure the Iraqi voters -- hence the selected
>>questions and the timing just before the constitutional referendum.
>>
>> So, yes, I think you (and the press, but they always do) did get caught
>> up in insignificant side issues.
>>
>> "Rich Gauszka"  wrote in message
>> news:434fa1e3$1{at}w3.nls.net...
>>> Yeah right. I reckon I just got caught up in 'side issues'. The belief
>>> that Bush would engage in an honest conversation with the troops.
>>> ===
>>> Later, at the White House briefing, Scott McClellan, the press
>>> secretary, deflected questions about the choreography, saying reporters
>>> who asked about that were getting caught up in "side issues."
>>>
>>> "Mark"  wrote in message
>>> news:434f2ab0$1{at}w3.nls.net...
>>>> Why in the world you'd think any televised interview by anyone of
>>>> anyone, would be anything but pre-planned for brevity and content is
>>>> beyond me Rich. "Caught?" with the cameras
running all along?
>>>>
>>>> But this is a most entertaining take on it:
>>>>
>>>> http://biglizards.net/blog/archives/2005/10/ap_response_to.html
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Rich Gauszka"  wrote
in message
>>>> news:434ee31b{at}w3.nls.net...
>>>>> The Bushies get caught again
>>>>>
>>>>> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051013/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_iraq_8
>>>>>
>>>>> WASHINGTON - It was billed as a conversation with U.S.
troops, but the
>>>>> questions President Bush asked on a teleconference
call Thursday were
>>>>> choreographed to match his goals for the war in Iraq
and Saturday's
>>>>> vote on a new Iraqi constitution.
>>>>>
>>>>> "This is an important time," Allison Barber,
deputy assistant defense
>>>>> secretary, said, coaching the soldiers before Bush
arrived. "The
>>>>> president is looking forward to having just a
conversation with you."
>>>>>
>>>>> Barber said the president was interested in three
topics: the overall
>>>>> security situation in Iraq, security preparations for
the weekend vote
>>>>> and efforts to train Iraqi troops.
>>>>>
>>>>> As she spoke in Washington, a live shot of 10 soldiers
from the Army's
>>>>> 42nd Infantry Division and one Iraqi soldier was beamed into the
>>>>> Eisenhower Executive Office Building from Tikrit - the
birthplace of
>>>>> former Iraqi leader     Saddam Hussein.
>>>>>
>>>>> "I'm going to ask somebody to grab those two
water bottles against the
>>>>> wall and move them out of the camera shot for
me," Barber said.
>>>>>
>>>>> A brief rehearsal ensued.
>>>>>
>>>>> "OK, so let's just walk through this,"
Barber said. "Captain Kennedy,
>>>>> you answer the first question and you hand the mike to
whom?"
>>>>>
>>>>> "Captain Smith," Kennedy said.
>>>>>
>>>>> "Captain. Smith? You take the mike and you hand
it to whom?" she
>>>>> asked.
>>>>>
>>>>> "Captain Kennedy," the soldier replied.
>>>>>
>>>>> And so it went.
>>>>>
>>>>> "If the question comes up about partnering - how
often do we train
>>>>> with the Iraqi military - who does he go to?" Barber asked.
>>>>>
>>>>> "That's going to go to Captain Pratt," one
of the soldiers said.
>>>>>
>>>>> "And then if we're going to talk a little bit
about the folks in
>>>>> Tikrit - the hometown - and how they're handling the political
>>>>> process, who are we going to give that to?" she asked.
>>>>>
>>>>> Before he took questions, Bush thanked the soldiers
for serving and
>>>>> reassured them that the U.S. would not pull out of
Iraq until the
>>>>> mission was complete.
>>>>>
>>>>> "So long as I'm the president, we're never going
to back down, we're
>>>>> never going to give in, we'll never accept anything
less than total
>>>>> victory," Bush said.
>>>>>
>>>>> The president told them twice that the American people
were behind
>>>>> them.
>>>>>
>>>>> "You've got tremendous support here at
home," Bush said.
>>>>>
>>>>> Less than 40 percent in an AP-Ipsos poll taken in
October said they
>>>>> approved of the way Bush was handling Iraq. Just over
half of the
>>>>> public now say the Iraq war was a mistake.
>>>>>
>>>>> White House press secretary Scott McClellan said
Thursday's event was
>>>>> coordinated with the Defense Department but that the troops were
>>>>> expressing their own thoughts. With satellite feeds,
coordination
>>>>> often is needed to overcome technological challenges,
such as delays,
>>>>> he said.
>>>>>
>>>>> "I think all they were doing was talking to the
troops and letting
>>>>> them know what to expect," he said, adding that
the president wanted
>>>>> to talk with troops on the ground who have firsthand
knowledge about
>>>>> the situation.
>>>>>
>>>>> The soldiers all gave Bush an upbeat view of the situation.
>>>>>
>>>>> The president also got praise from the Iraqi soldier
who was part of
>>>>> the chat.
>>>>>
>>>>> "Thank you very much for everything," he
gushed. "I like you."
>>>>>
>>>>> On preparations for the vote, 1st Lt. Gregg Murphy of
Tennessee said:
>>>>> "Sir, we are prepared to do whatever it takes to
make this thing a
>>>>> success. ... Back in January, when we were preparing for that
>>>>> election, we had to lead the way. We set up the
coordination, we made
>>>>> the plan. We're really happy to see, during the
preparation for this
>>>>> one, sir, they're doing everything."
>>>>>
>>>>> On the training of Iraqi security forces, Master Sgt.
Corine Lombardo
>>>>> from Scotia, N.Y., said to Bush: "I can tell you
over the past 10
>>>>> months, we've seen a tremendous increase in the
capabilities and the
>>>>> confidences of our Iraqi security force partners. ...
Over the next
>>>>> month, we anticipate seeing at least one-third of
those Iraqi forces
>>>>> conducting independent operations."
>>>>>
>>>>> Lombardo told the president that she was in New York
City on Nov. 11,
>>>>> 2001, when Bush attended an event recognizing soldiers for their
>>>>> recovery and rescue efforts at Ground Zero. She said
the troops began
>>>>> the fight against terrorism in the wake of the Sept.
11 terrorist
>>>>> attacks and were proud to continue it in Iraq.
>>>>>
>>>>> "I thought you looked familiar," Bush said,
and then joked: "I
>>>>> probably look familiar to you, too."
>>>>>
>>>>> Paul Rieckhoff, director of the New York-based
Operation Truth, an
>>>>> advocacy group for U.S. veterans of Iraq and     Afghanistan,
>>>>> denounced the event as a "carefully scripted
publicity stunt." Five of
>>>>> the 10 U.S. troops involved were officers, he said.
>>>>>
>>>>> "If he wants the real opinions of the troops, he
can't do it in a
>>>>> nationally televised teleconference," Rieckhoff
said. "He needs to be
>>>>> talking to the boots on the ground and that's not a bunch of
>>>>> captains."
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>

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