Shooting, With Silencer

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 18:06:12 -0400

This morning's White House press gaggle was filled with scuffling between press secretary Scott McClellan and reporters about the official delays in disclosing Vice President Dick Cheney's shooting of a fellow hunter this weekend. The rancor reportedly peaked with a flare-up between McClellan and NBC's David Gregory, with McClellan telling Gregory to hush because "the cameras aren't on right now." Gregory replied that McClellan was being a "jerk" and that he resented the press secretary "tak[ing] shots at me personally" from the podium.

"I'll calm down when I feel like calming down," Gregory said.

The press office seems to still be trying to quash Gregory after the fact: The entire exchange, though widely reported, is missing from the official transcript.

*CLARIFICATION: Romenesko notes that the transcript is from the still-contentious press conference, later in the day. The morning gaggle has still not been posted on the White House site.

Observer » Shooting, With Silencer

Shooting, With Silencer