By: At President Bush's press conference this morning -- only the 18th during his four years in office -- the president naturally was asked about the top news of the day, the death of 30 or more U.S. soldiers in a helicopter crash in Iraq. But he also tackled other subjects, including the rising concern about columnists and commentators taking money or receiving other favors from officials in return for friendly coverage.
Bush said the Education Department made a mistake in paying conservative commentator Armstrong Williams to promote administration policies. (It has also now come out that another columnist, Maggie Gallagher, received money from a different department.)
"There needs to be a nice, independent relationship between the White House and the press," Bush said, adding that the White House didn't know about the Williams agreement.
He added: "But all our Cabinet Secretaries must realize that we will not be paying commentators to advance our agenda. Our agenda ought to be able to stand on its own two feet. I'm confident you'll be, over the course of the next four years, willing to give our different policies an objective look -- won't you?"
The transcript of that part of the press conference follows:
Q: Mr. President, do you think it's a proper use of government funds to pay commentators to promote your policies?
THE PRESIDENT: No.
Q: Are you going to order that --
THE PRESIDENT: Therefore, I will not pay you to -- (laughter.)
Q : Fair enough. Are you ordering that there be an end to that practice?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I am. I expect my Cabinet Secretaries to make sure that that practice doesn't go forward. There needs to be independence. And Mr. Armstrong Williams admitted he made a mistake. And we didn't know about this in the White House, and there needs to be a nice, independent relationship between the White House and the press, the administration and the press. So, no, we shouldn't be going for it.
Yes, sir.
Q : Mr. Williams made a mistake. Did the Department of Education make a mistake?
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. They did.
Q What will happen to the people that made this decision?
THE PRESIDENT: We've got new leadership going to the Department of Education. But all our Cabinet Secretaries must realize that we will not be paying commentators to advance our agenda. Our agenda ought to be able to stand on its own two feet. I'm confident you'll be, over the course of the next four years, willing to give our different policies an objective look -- won't you? Yes, I can see that.
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