Campbell Brown's double standard

By GottaLaff

On CNN right now, Campbell Brown is ripping into Barack Obama for bantering with a reporter today when he was asked about his previous remarks about Hillary Clinton during the primary election. Here's the exchange:

QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. President-elect.

You’ve talked about the importance just now of having different voices and robust debate within your administration. But, again, going back to the campaign, you were asked and talked about the qualifications of the — your now, your nominee for secretary of state. And you belittled her travels around the word, equating it to having teas with foreign leaders. And your new White House council said that her resume was grossly exaggerated when it came to foreign policy. I’m wondering whether you can talk about the evolution of your views of her credentials since the spring.

OBAMA: Well, I mean, I think — this is fun for the press to try to stir up whatever quotes were generated during the course of the campaign. No, I understand. And you’re having fun.

But the — and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m not — I’m not faulting it. But, look, I think if you look at the statements that Hillary Clinton and I have made outside of the heat of a campaign, we share a view that America has to be safe and secure. And in order to do that…

OBAMA: … the statements that Hillary Clinton and I have made outside of the heat of a campaign, we share a view that America has to be safe and secure. And in order to do that we have to combine military power with strength and diplomacy. And we have to build and forge stronger alliances around the world so that we’re not carrying the burdens and these challenges by ourselves.

I believe that there is no more effective advocate than Hillary Clinton for that well-rounded view of how we advance American interests. She has served on the Armed Services Committee in the Senate. She’s knows world leaders around the world. I have it extensive discussions with her both pre-election and post-election about the strategic opportunities that exist out there to strengthen American’s posture in the world.

And I think she is going to be an outstanding secretary of state. And if I didn’t believe that, I wouldn’t have offered her the job. And if she didn’t believe that I was equipped to lead this nation in such a difficult time, she would not have accepted.

Campbell "no bull, no bias" (oh, puh-leeze) Brown accused Obama of being flip, avoiding "a legitimate question", and playing games with the press. Whether she's right or wrong about his obligation to answer that particular question, I don't seem to remember her ever ranting about that in regard to the Bush administration, who virtually spit in the faces of anyone daring to ask so much as one "legitimate" question, let alone a follow-up. Nor would (or could) Bush make even a minimal attempt to give an honest, or coherent, response.

If evasive, nasty little retorts were middle fingers, Bush managed to blatantly flip off the press on a regular basis... if and when he held any press conferences.

Maybe Mrs. Dan Senor should have had the same set of standards, and intestinal fortitude, to face off with the current president before lashing out at the future one.