The Public's Right to Know

When Smith asked why the White House was resisting letting its top aides testify under oath, Snow scolded him for "assuming that the center of action was at the White House."

Smith: "But Tony, even from a cursory look at these e-mails, it looks like it reaches much farther than the Justice Department.

Snow: "No it doesn't. . . . If you take a look at the e-mails, Harry, it appears that there were some communications, like 'what we're thinking about' --"

Smith: "Karl Rove wasn't involved? Harriet Miers wasn't involved? C'mon!"

Snow: "This is where what you're trying to do is create a narrative that I'm not so sure the facts are going to justify. This is why what we're trying to do is get everybody to figure out what's the deal. So let me start again -- . . . "

Smith: "Tony, here's what it looks like. That these people who certainly serve . . . at the pleasure of the president, have been kicked out for undue political influence. . . . "

Snow: "Harry, you're sounding like a partisan rather than a reporter here. Please permit me to try to explain what's going on. . . . What you need to do is stop making a brief for political interference, and maybe do what we're asking members of Congress to do, which is figure out what the facts are. . . .

"Any shred of information anybody needs is going to be available. What we don't want is a kind of Perry Mason scene where people are hot-dogging and grandstanding and trying to score political points. . . .

"Let me try to make the point that I've tried to make a couple of times, which is the executive branch doesn't have to do anything. But what we've decided to do is to make available any communication -- if anybody's worried about the communication the White House may have made with somebody, they're going to get it. . . .

"What they're not going to get is the ability to create a show-trial atmosphere. 'Cause you know what? People are a little tired of that. And they probably would like to get the truth. Wouldn't t you?"

Smith: "You bet. You owe it to me."

Raw Story has a complete transcript.