Post Politics Hour

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Don't want to miss out on the latest in politics? Start each day with The Post Politics Hour. Join in each weekday morning at 11 a.m. as a member of The Washington Post's team of White House and Congressional reporters answers questions about the latest in buzz in Washington and The Post's coverage of political news.

Washington Post national political reporter Anne E. Kornblut was online Wednesday, May 28 at 11 a.m. ET to discuss the latest in political news.

A transcript follows.

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Archive: Post Politics Hour discussion transcripts

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Anne E. Kornblut: Sorry for the delay! Technical issues. Here now, and eager for your questions. Thanks so much.

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Arlington, Va.: Hi Anne. I know you are not even finished traveling for the primaries yet, but are you going to travel with a candidate for the general election as well? I don't know what we would do without your updates and chats in the fall!

Anne E. Kornblut: I love this question, and therefore will start with it. I am going to be part of a team covering the Democratic nominee, so it'll keep coming. Thank you so much.

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Southwest Nebraska: Will any future president be able to do the job on the press, Congress and the public that George Bush has been able to do? What about the politicization of the Justice Department, science, etc.? It seems that McClellan has taken the press to task in his book. Will the press be so cooperative with a president again, or has the media been reminded that they actually have an important, difficult job to do?

Anne E. Kornblut: I haven't read McClellan's book yet, but really look forward to it, especially on the point you raise. My immediate reaction upon hearing he'd said that was: "Wait, what!? Isn't it the job of those employed at the White House to be straightforward in the first place?" In my experience, reporters do know the importance of the job, and face many obstacles in trying to get information (especially from this administration). But I also do think all of our efforts have been redoubled over the last few years. I'm so proud of my colleagues at The Post who covered Walter Reed for that very reason.

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St. Paul, Minn.: Hi Anne -- Thanks for taking my questions and for chatting with us today. So what is it with this White House and tell-all books? Is this administration unusual in that respect, or has it always been that way? More importantly, what impact, if any, will this have on the presidential race (Sen. McCain in particular, as the de facto "incumbent"?)

Anne E. Kornblut: I just was thinking that very thought this morning. I don't have an answer, and I suspect Outlook already is assigning someone a piece looking at it, but I do think that this administration did put enough people in awkward positions that they felt they needed to redeem themselves afterward. My unforgiving take on that is that they should have done their jobs better, or pushed back harder, in the first place, while they could actually make a difference. As for the McCain race -- I think that might be a different dynamic. But I'll be curious to see how many of the tell-all authors sign up to work for him...

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washingtonpost.com: Ex-Press Aide Writes That Bush Misled U.S. on Iraq (Post, May 28)

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Washington: Did Sen. Clinton say anything about Michigan and Florida at the time the rules committee decided to exclude their votes? Has anyone asked her whether she would consider disassociating herself from anyone in her campaign that is on that committee and voted to "disenfranchise" voters?

Anne E. Kornblut: A trick question for Clinton! Obviously, everyone reading this knows that Harold Ickes, top Clinton adviser, also voted on the rules committee. He'll be part of the decision-making meeting this Saturday. I don't think she has been asked it precisely that way, and she is also too smart to get ensnared by it (drat!) but I can tell you that others in her campaign have basically said they had no idea the turnout would be so big back then.

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Columbia, Mo.: A pet peeve from flyover country! Please, please, please ask your fellow pundits and journalists to quit assuming that many issues don't matter "outside the Beltway" -- for example John McCain's lobbyist issues. Not true. We in flyover country are very aware of seemingly "small" issues that we often are told "don't matter to the rest of the country". I'm sick of this attitude -- it's as if journalists (especially those on TV) are making the decisions about what is important to the voters. Please encourage your fellow pundits and journalists to keep those opinions to themselves, as we voters have the intelligence to discern this for ourselves.

Anne E. Kornblut: Thank you for the input! Seriously, it's so good to hear. The good news is, most reporters have spent the last six months traveling through all 50 states plus Puerto Rico, so we've all gotten greater-than-usual exposure to your states. And something tells me we'll be in Missouri for the general. But I will also pass on your request!

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Atlanta: Hi, Anne. As you have been covering Sen. Clinton's campaign, I think you would have the best insight to my question.

What is the logic of Clinton supporters who say that if she does not win the nomination, they will vote for McCain? I just don't get that. McCain is the antithesis of Clinton: no withdrawal from Iraq, Bush tax cuts permanent, no universal health care, no sensible energy or environmental policy, the list goes on and on. On the other hand, there is very little difference in Obama's positions and Clinton's. Why would these Clinton supporters not vote for Obama?

Anne E. Kornblut: I think emotions are running high, and a lot of Clinton supporters are angry at Obama and his campaign. I also think that after a lot of hard work, Obama has a good shot at winning them back. On a whole range of issues, you're right. We shall see...

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Bethesda, Md.: June 3 is the last primaries, right? So what happens in the nomination process after June 3?

Anne E. Kornblut: We're all wondering the same thing at this point. It's a good question. Presumably, after June 3, the superdelegates will begin to move quickly on their decisions (at the urging of party leaders) and the result will be very clear. One glitch in that scenario is the rules committee at the Democratic National Committee, whose May 31 ruling could be appealed, which would move the whole process over to another committee that meets on June 29. But Democratic leaders are crossing their fingers that the situation is cleared up by then so they can move onto the general.

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Toronto: Am I correct in thinking that in modern times, it has been rare for vice presidential picks to have beards? If so, how does this affect the chances of, say, Bill Richardson or Charlie Crist?

Anne E. Kornblut: I have not pursued this particular line of inquiry, but I love it, and thus I shall.

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Anonymous: The Clinton's have blamed Obama, Obama supporters, the mainstream media, pundits and others for their current situation. Who isn't the Clinton campaign mad at?

Anne E. Kornblut: I think you pretty much have named the list. There is definitely a lot of anger over there; it has been a long season. We'll see whether that evolves over the next few weeks.

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Potomac, Md.: McClellan needs to get over himself. The nerve of blaming the media for their failures in the run-up to the War. Elisabeth Bumiller so eloquently explained how things work the night before the Iraq War started, 4,000 dead American soldiers ago: "It's live, it's very intense, it's frightening to stand up there. Think about it, you're standing up on prime-time live TV asking the president of the United States a question when the country's about to go to war. There was a very serious, somber tone that evening, and no one wanted to get into an argument with the president at this very serious time."

Anne E. Kornblut: That's a good point. (I'm a huge Bumiller fan.) To that I would add that most reporters, or at least this reporter, looked continuously for cracks in the facade internally, and the assistance of an aide such as McClellan in helping us understand the flaws is essential. I would urge all future White House aides to remember that sometimes the press can be a friend when things inside start going wrong.

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Pittsburgh: Do you think Scott McClellan's new book will ultimately help rehabilitate George W. Bush's reputation, or harm it? Clearly he likes Bush, but blames some of his top aides for Bush's mistakes.

Anne E. Kornblut: Ack! I knew I should have run to the bookstore before this chat. I apologize to everyone for not having read it. I will say, based on what I've read so far, that I suspect there's a little bit of trying to have it both ways -- blaming the Bush administration without blaming Bush -- but Scott would not be the first former official to take that approach. A lot of old Bush hands still love the guy.

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Portland, Ore.: How hard do you think Bill and Hillary Clinton will campaign for Obama?

Anne E. Kornblut: With the obligatory "the voting isn't over yet" caveat, I would say: I don't know. If she is not the vice presidential nominee, there will be pressure on her to at least work hard to bring her core constituencies over to his side. And yet it is really hard to envision a more painful scenario than Hillary Clinton, having lost the nomination, spending her free time campaigning in rural Ohio for someone else. So I don't know. As for Bill Clinton ... maybe not.

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Philadelphia: Hi Anne ... you just said, "a lot of Clinton supporters are angry at Obama and his campaign" Why? Why aren't they mad a Hillary or Mark Penn, or Bill? Obama has worked hard and hasn't bashed Hillary the way Hillary has bashed Barack. And while you are around the Clinton backers who say they will vote for McCain, remind them of the Supreme Court and who McCain has promised to nominate.

Anne E. Kornblut: Another good point. I think different Clinton supporters are mad for different reasons, but they feel a great degree of sexism has hampered her (the "boys" ganging up on her in debates); they feel Obama is not inexperienced enough to be president, and they're mad he could be the nominee and lose; they sometimes argue that it was Obama who played the race card. They're mad that he was held to a lower standard. So maybe they're mad, really, at just the media (though that's not the case). A lot of different factors.

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Rolla, Mo.: Re: Florida, Michigan and the disenfranchised argument, is anyone addressing the issue of the hundreds of thousands of voters who didn't show up to vote because they were told these primaries were not going to count?

Anne E. Kornblut: I am sure that case will be made on Saturday ... stay tuned.

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Chicago: Hi Anne, what is the likelihood that the rules committee will resolve the Michigan-Florida issue? Is the Clinton Camp intent on appealing and hand wringing if they don't get exactly what they want? Thanks

Anne E. Kornblut: Is that someone from the Obama headquarters in Chicago wondering? I am wondering, too. If they appeal, it could then go to June 29; so far they've sent mixed signals about what they'll do.

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The next president and the media: Anne: Based on McClellan's book, the relationship between a presidential administration and the media (and by extension, the public) is going to be based on significant disbelief. At this point in time, the Bush administration has next to no chance of convincing most people of a threat from Iran worth attacking it, and they've earned that distrust. If McCain or Clinton became president, the same attitude would be true. Obama likely would get a very brief honeymoon based on his "change" theme, but even that wouldn't survive the first international crisis.

In your mind, is there any other way to view the state of affairs?

Anne E. Kornblut: I think -- and I don't think this is the first time in U.S. history we've been in this situation -- that the next president is going to have a major "restoring trust" task ahead. Hopefully that will prevent the dire situation that McClellan laid out. I think that part of what made Congress in particular so angry at this president is that he abused the natural trust that exists between all these institutions, almost encouraging hostility.

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Anonymous: Does Hillary have any leverage left to coerce Obama to help her settle her campaign debts or to do anything for her?

Anne E. Kornblut: I don't think we know that at this point. Obama probably will want to appear magnanimous, regardless. We'll see what requests she makes...

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Anger from Clinton Voters..: Anne, as for the anger issue, my parents are both Clinton supporters -- my mom is dyed-in-the-wool New York liberal who's been waiting to vote for a woman for 71 years, my dad is very moderate and sees Clinton as more electable.

Over the weekend, both made a point of expressing their anger at the way the race evolved (blaming it on the media, the primary system, sexism et al) and are fearful that Obama will walk into a buzz saw (negative smears, latent racism, etc.) and lose to McCain.

Right now they don't want to abandon Clinton, even if somehow she takes the nomination away from Obama, offending a large segment of the Obama voters and guaranteeing a McCain victory.

My impression is that come five months from now they will pull the lever for Obama but there will need to be a time for healing first.

Anne E. Kornblut: This is a really great first-hand description of what I'm hearing from Clinton supporters all over the country. Thanks for sending it along. The fear among Clinton folks that Obama is just too naive for this process is one I hear a lot (to which I usually, playing devil's advocate, argue that if he beats Hillary Clinton, he's probably more adept at this game than you think). This phase of healing, whatever it winds up looking like, is going to be essential, no doubt about it.

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Rockville, Md.: "They feel Obama is not inexperienced enough to be president..."

Is this a joke, or a slip? I never can tell.

Anne E. Kornblut: Thank you so much for drawing this too my attention. Hilarious. It was, I can assure you, a slip. I meant to say, not experienced enough.

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Albany, N.Y.: Just to follow up on what a reader said earlier about Bumiller's quotes about why the press was right not to question the Bush administration too much on the eve of the war and your thoughtful reply, don't you think that sometimes the press can be too confrontational with this White House? Maybe if you were just more polite, you'd get better answers.

Anne E. Kornblut: I know what you mean -- and in general, I do believe in asking questions politely, and that way too much of what goes on in the press briefing room is for the television cameras. Style aside, I think that reporters learned in this administration that they needed to up their skepticism-meter a great deal more. And nothing made getting answers easier, no amount of "pleases," I can assure you.

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Re: Columbia, Mo.: The flip side of the previous chatter's point is also worth noting. I live inside the Beltway (though I grew up in flyover country) and am tired of being excluded from the category of "Real Americans" by the media. If reporters and pundits would stop assuming that people who live in and around Washington (or on either coast, for that matter) don't share the same concerns as those in the "Heartland," and vice versa, we'd all appreciate it.

Anne E. Kornblut: As a native of inside-the-Beltway, I hear you. Whenever politicians bash Washington, I think: "Do you have to bash the whole city? Couldn't you just stick to the politicians?"

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Concord, N.H.: "What is the logic of Clinton supporters who say that if she does not win the nomination, they will vote for McCain?"

The same logic that prompted many Obama supporters to swear they wouldn't vote for Clinton if she won. One thing that may help to bridge the divisiveness is for supporters of one candidate to stop painting supporters of another candidate with such a broadly damning brush. That goes for both sides of the Democratic battle.

Anne E. Kornblut: An interesting thought ... I think we'll hear a good amount of this.

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Following up on Washington: I don't think asking Sen. Clinton about her 180 degree on Michigan/Florida should be considered a trick question! If her campaign is going to focus on this issue, I think it would make a lot of sense to examine very closely why this principled stand appeared as soon as it became politically expedient. Sure, she's clever and she's not going to answer questions in a way that hurts her, but (just like the White House staff), doesn't that just mean you reporters should push back harder, and keep writing about this issue until it is resolved?

Anne E. Kornblut: I only referred to it as a trick question because we've already asked her (and Ickes) this six ways from Sunday and gotten no real response or acknowledgment of the question. Their stock answer is that things were different then, that's the past, let's look forward to the future and fix the problem. It's as infuriating for reporters as it is for you, believe me!

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Re: Potomac, Md.: Wait a minute, Bumiller was advocating stenography. Methinks if her relative (or yours) was about to head over to Iraq, she might have done more than wait for "cracks in the facade." That's just whistling by the graveyard. Obviously, none of your children, nephews or nieces will ever enlist in our Armed Forces, but you might want to develop some empathy for the countless people in flyover country who actually lose loved ones when we go to war. Not because you're a journalist, but because you're a, you know, human being.

Anne E. Kornblut: As one with a parent and two grandparents buried at Arlington National Cemetery, I can tell you that this has nothing to do with taking war lightly. If anything, I think we all felt a great sense of deference toward the presidency, as an institution, and wanted to be respectful on the eve of war, trusting that any president would only take such an important step in good faith. That isn't to say we shouldn't have been more skeptical and pressed harder in print -- and I have no doubt we all will next time, if there is a next time -- but it wasn't out of cluelessness that we did not do more.

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Vienna, Va.: I don't understand this comment: "The assistance of an aide such as McClellan in helping us understand the flaws is essential." Did you expect him to publicly say "I don't agree with this but here's our rationale for the invasion?" Do you even expect him to say that off-the-record? Why would he openly share disapproval or disagreement with policy decisions with you?

Anne E. Kornblut: Some of the greatest scandals of all time (Watergate?) have been exposed by administration insiders who felt a patriotic duty to get the real story out. We as reporters use them all the time to help get to the bottom of things. Almost always in private. And in my experience (in my smaller incidents than Watergate) aides do so because they want the public to know what is going on, and they can be an essential part of making that happen. As reporters, we can only deal in information that we are given -- and we can't actually force a White House to give us information if it doesn't want to.

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You must be kidding!: Just a comment: You think it's the job of people employed by the White House to be straightforward? Uh, no -- it's the job of the media to hold the government responsible. If the people in the White House were straightforward, Americans would not need the media to intercede as our surrogates in ensuring that truth is separated from bull.

Anne E. Kornblut: I know, I know, a dream land -- but I do actually know some rare public officials who are straightforward, and I happily would pursue another line of work if everyone else followed their examples. But I'm not really worried about unemployment (not for that reason, anyway).

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Anonymous: Isn't Scottie getting a bad rap from some? Wasn't his job just to repeat to the press what the administration tells him to say?

Anne E. Kornblut: Different people do the press secretary job in different ways. Some people just repeat talking points; other work to shape coverage behind the scenes; and some, believe it or not, help reporters get to the bottom of what is going on, even if it's not what the president would like out there. Not surprisingly, the latter category is my favorite kind. As an aside, I really like Scott -- he's a nice guy.

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Arlington, Va.: Regarding Obama not bashing Hillary or going negative: it seems to me that he does and has done both. He just does it in a subtle manner or one of his campaign staffers does it for him. Of course, he then apologizes for what they said, even they they represent him.

Anne E. Kornblut: Another good point, and that is one thing that drives Clinton fans crazy -- that he seems to have gotten away with it.

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Payson, Ariz.: Anne, it has been evident for quite a while that our Arizona senator, John McCain, has no earthly idea how to handle the Bush administration. He was blindsided by Bush in the South Carolina primary in 2000. Then his own presidential ambitions seemed to overrule everything else -- he stood off to the side while the same Bush ops blindsided fellow Vietnam vets Max Cleland and John Kerry, then chose to go up on stage with Bush for the infamous kiss on the forehead. Yesterday, President Bush flew to Phoenix for McCain fundraiser that was moved from a public venue to private home to avoid the press and protesters. McCain appears to have given up a lot of self-respect to get the support of the people surrounding Bush. Now he's not so sure what to do with it. Do you think McCain will keep trying to have it both ways with the outgoing administration up through the elections?

washingtonpost.com: McCain Accepts a Hand From Bush, at Arm's Length (Post, May 28)

Anne E. Kornblut: In a word: Probably!

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Kansas City, Mo.: I see that you will be part of a team covering Obama or Clinton. I also see that the right is trying to paint Obama as an exaggerator, as they did with Gore. As Washington Monthly pointed out, most of the Gore "exaggerations" ended up being more exaggerations by the press than by him. Not to be critical, but will the press take a step back this time before buying the "exaggeration" line? Seems like confusing Shia and Sunni is worse than Auschwitz and Buchenwald.

Anne E. Kornblut: Hopefully we in the press will get to write the story line, and not leave it up to the two sides. Thanks very much for the thought.

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Falls Church, Va.: Hi Anne. I'm tired of hearing it's all the media's fault for this war. The president made the decision to attack. Does anyone else see that this administration has the lone responsibility in this mess?

Anne E. Kornblut: I do think the media had a responsibility, just not all the responsibility (believe me, if we had that kind of power, the world would look a lot different -- though not necessarily for the better). And let's not forget that Congress voted, too...

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Silver Spring, Md.: After he leaves office, do you think Bush will write a book accusing his aides of deceiving him?

Anne E. Kornblut: That's a great question. I'm actually really curious to see what Bush does post-office; his version of events would be fascinating to hear.

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Re: Rules and Bylaws appeal: If the Clinton campaign appeals the decision of the Rules and Bylaws Committee, it does not just go to June 29 -- it goes to the convention. That is because any decision by the Convention Committee on June 29 has to go to a floor vote at the convention. In other words, if the Clinton campaign appeals, the Democrats can kiss the presidency goodbye.

Anne E. Kornblut: You are correct about the timetable, and this is a good point. I meant that the literal next step would be a meeting on June 29.

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Indianapolis: Bill Clinton's argument that Hillary is doing better in the polls than Obama is just so silly. We're five-plus months away from the general election. Presidents Dukakis, Gore and Kerry all were leading at this point in their respective races.

Today's polls are tomorrow's landfill materials.

Anne E. Kornblut: Thanks for this...

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Buffalo, N.Y.: In your Clinton Again Seeks to Explain, you hit the bull's-eye, by my reckoning, when you said:

"Voters ... have expressed deep-seated concerns for Sen. Barack Obama's safety -- concerns which form the backdrop against which the RFK comments played out, and which Clinton did not mention in her letter. Given this widely shared worry, any mention of a political shooting would likely have sparked a firestorm, regardless of Clinton's intentions or the immediate context of her remarks."

Just why, some days after her initial seeking to explain, and with access to counsel, has Hillary still not acknowledged the hurt to the Obama family that she must have caused?

Anne E. Kornblut: I honestly don't know. I have been getting questions about Obama's safety since before he announced he was running, and all the time get letters from readers wondering how good the Secret Service is (extremely, is my answer). Add to that Alma Powell's worries about her husband if he had run, and it seems pretty obvious to me that mentioning assassination would be tricky territory. But Clinton has not said or apparently seen it that way.

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Claverack, N.Y.: Re Scott McClellan's assertion that the presidency became a "non-stop campaign". Yes this sounds awful. But isn't this is just a fact of the modern presidency? Bush Sr. may have been the last president to not be in that mode, and he was swept out of office.

Anne E. Kornblut: Another good point...

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Anne E. Kornblut: Thanks so much, everyone, for joining me today! As always, wonderful questions -- have a great rest of the week.

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