Bush's Muse Stands Accused

Most speeches were written as collaborations of Gerson, Scully and McConnell. But Scully says Gerson once instructed him not to copy himself or McConnell on a draft speech that was being e-mailed to senior White House staff, because "they don't know you're involved." Gerson credited the other two only on the more pedestrian texts, Scully writes.

"I think they look at my writing as the fine china, to be taken out on special occasions," Scully says Gerson once told him.

Gerson also had a way of making himself prominent in accounts of key moments. Scully recalls Bush telling aides on Sept. 13, 2001, "We're at war." But when the scene was later described in The Post, it was "Mike, we're at war." Likewise, while Scully and McConnell drafted a State of the Union, Gerson disappeared to a coffee shop to pose for cameras "pretending to craft" the speech. Scully says that sort of self-aggrandizement was known in the West Wing as "pulling a Gerson."

"I don't remember some of those instances," Gerson said yesterday. He said he went to the coffee shop at the request of NBC, which was filming a White House special. He said he did not remember ordering speeches not to be copied to Scully and McConnell but added that the White House generally tried to restrict the number of copies available.

Moreover, Gerson said, Scully did not complain to him. "He never came to me and confronted me about it," he said. "Not that I remember. I think he may have had some asides after some of the profiles, but I had no idea the depth of the concern."

The Scully article prompted a counteroffensive by Gerson allies. Peter Wehner, a former White House director of strategic initiatives who worked closely with Gerson, posted a defense of his friend on National Review Online and cited several instances when Gerson publicly credited McConnell and Scully. He also quoted several citations from Gerson's upcoming book that praise the two writers. "The idea of Mike as a press-hungry, glory-claiming monster just doesn't square with reality," Wehner said by telephone.

White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten and Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove both called unsolicited yesterday to offer testimonials to Gerson's character. "In all my dealings with the speechwriting team," Rove said, "I saw a close-knit group of close friends do a fantastic job together, and Mike Gerson was one of the first always to . . . call attention to the contributions and skills of his colleagues."

Bolten said everyone in the White House understood that the speeches were joint products. But he noted: "Mike's role was a little bit different than the other two guys'. For one thing, he was the head of the team, and so the head of the team tends to get more of the credit. . . . Mike's role was unique and particularly strong because he served as a kind of counselor to the president as well."

McConnell did not return telephone or e-mail messages.