http://blog.washingtonpost.com/dot.comments/2008/05/mcclellan.html

McClellan, Bush and the Press
by Doug Feaver

The Bush Administration still has about eight months to go, but the
first big former insidertell-all book is out and our Readers Who Comment
are all over it. Scott McClellan, the former White House press secretary
who spent an enormous amount of time at the podium defending Bush and
the war in Iraq, says it was sold to Americans with a sophisticated
"political propaganda campaign" led by the president, aimed at
"manipulating sources of public opinion" and "downplaying the major
reason for going to war," Michael Shear reports.

This provides the ammunition our RWC need to replay two themes that have
consistently been part of what they have had to say about both the
current administration and Iraq:
1) Bush should be impeached.
2) The press, including The Washington Post, didn't do its job in
questioning the need for the war before it was started.

Comments also suggest that there's no news here, we've known this for a
long time, and that McClellan is just trying to make money. It's a
cynical and angry group this morning, and there are few comments
defending Bush or the war.

We'll start with DLN1, who said, "This only confirms what many of us
know...that the Bush administration destroyed a country then occupied it
while lying to its own citizens."

UrbanEndeavors asked, "Can we impeach now...?"

And mcdermott99 said, "The Washington press corps should be sat down in
a room with the door locked, made to wear dunce caps, and to listen as
McClellan's book is read to them over and over again..."

pkiel provided the one comment I could find supporting the Bush
administration in writing, "This 2-bit Jerk wants to make a couple of
bucks at the expense of his former employee! Why the hell can't anyone
remember 9-11. What a bunch of short-sighted sheep! Washington Post will
print whatever suit them!"

pundito tried sarcasm, writing, "I'm shocked, shocked!"

And slim2 suggested, "He [McClellan] is either hyping a little
sensationalism to peddle his book or else was an eyewitness to criminal
activity. I suspect the latter."

RegisUrgel said, "Not much we did not know about the Bush
administration. What is scary is how the press treated this entire
period... The same kind of thing happened in other dark periods in our
history... I am sorry, and scared, it hasn't learned."

ih82blog asked, "So, Scott, what took you so long? Criticizing the Bush
Administration at this point is like shooting lame ducks in a barrel
(and getting paid for it)."

And stikyfingas added, "McClellan, kinda late now... Same goes for all
the Bush Administration lackeys not one of them resigned and told the
truth; they all left, waited a year then made money off a book deal."

SpinningPlates said, "The NYTimes and Post can all go to hell. Its just
unbelievable that nobody called shenanagins on this administration a
long time ago. Our "Liberal Media" sucks. They got duped and are just as
much to blame as bush."

tydicea wrote, "I think by now the whole world knows the truth behind
the premise for going to war with Iraq, and the deceptions and stupidity
of employed by this president and his cohorts. Nonetheless, it is
refreshing to see someone of the inner circle come clean, because
neither Bush and present company have neither the courage nor the moral
fiber to do so."

infuse said, "...What's nice is that McClellan corroborated the
information, but it is not news."

bkaufmann wrote, "These lies killed half a million people."

12345leavemealone said, "The truly sad thing is that even if Bush
admitted fault some people would still believe that he told the truth."

protagoras wrote, "Looks like the protesters and the dissidents were
spot on. Too bad the press hasn't admire them as much as it admires
those unnamed sources...."

We'll close with CJackson36, wrote:
I don't know what kind of advance McClellan got for this book, but I'm
not buying a copy. I'm sick of people who lie to us while being paid
with our tax dollars then getting a hefty advance to tell us they were
deceived. If McClellan had come clean sooner, he might have spared us a
second term of Bush &Co.