Editor’s note: Each week, WorldNetDaily White House correspondent Les Kinsolving asks the tough questions no one else will ask. And each week, WorldNetDaily brings you the transcripts of those dialogues with the president and his spokesman.
At today’s White House news briefing, WND asked presidential press secretary Scott McClellan about the prospect of questioning the Bush twins since they now have graduated from college and will be working for their father’s re-election campaign.
WND: Scott, a two-part. Andrew Card impressively addressed –
McCLELLAN: A fine chief of staff.
WND: Thank you. Andrew Card impressively addressed this weekend’s annual gathering in New York of 250 talk-radio hosts, where there was considerable debate over the possibility that if Howard Stern is driven off the air for his many obscenities by the FCC fines, all of us could be driven off the air by the government for our political opinions. And my question: Can the White House give us assurance that our expressed political opinions, liberal or conservative, will never be treated like Stern’s obscenities by any organization in the Bush administration?
McCLELLAN: Les, I’m not going to try to speculate on something that’s so – so broad as what you’re bringing up. Obviously, the president believes that there are certain standards of decency that should be adhered to.
WND: Right.
McCLELLAN: And we all have a responsibility to adhere to those standards.
WND: But he would never let the FCC –
McCLELLAN: And that if people violate those standards, they should be held accountable. And there are measures in place to hold people accountable.
WND: Of course. But he would never allow the FCC to take action against any of us in talk radio for our political opinions, would he?
McCLELLAN: In a general sense, no. But, again, you phrase that in a context of some standards that apparently violated some of the – our standards of decency.
WND: Sure. Almost all of us have respected the President and Mrs. Bush’s request that questioning of or about their twin daughters are out of bounds. But the twins are both now college graduates and are going to work for the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign. And my question, so they now are no more out of bounds for questions than you or the president’s brother, Jeb, are they, Scott?
McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, we hope that the media will continue to show respect for the daughters and allow them to –
WND: Respect. If they’re going to be in the campaign –
McCLELLAN: – go about their lives. But the daughters have also expressed a strong interest in helping the president on his re-election. And I know the president very much appreciates that.
WND: Therefore, they are subject to questions, aren’t they? If they’re going to be in the political campaign, they’re certainly subject to questions?
McCLELLAN: Les, I think I addressed your question.
Go ahead.
WND: You addressed it? You evaded it!
McCLELLAN: I think that the media, hopefully, will continue to show respect that – and recognize that they are the president’s daughters –
WND: – and ask respectful questions.
McCLELLAN: – and that they have their own lives.
Go ahead.
ANOTHER REPORTER: Do they have any questions for us? (Laughter.)
McCLELLAN: They are not – they are not the person on the ballot.
Go ahead.
COLUMNIST HELEN THOMAS: If they’re on the campaign trail, they’re fair game to questions.
McCLELLAN: Go ahead. Helen, I just made a comment on that. I just said we hope the media will continue to show respect for –
THOMAS: That doesn’t connote that we don’t –
McCLELLAN: – for the daughters.
THOMAS: That doesn’t mean we don’t respect them, but we can question them.
McCLELLAN: Understood. Oh, understood.
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