As he did last year, the president hosted a year-end press conference this morning; he even graciously gave White House reporters more than a few minutes beforehand.
It was a fairly light-hearted affair, but there were some relatively substantive exchanges. Here are the highlights from my notes.
* Retroactive immunity for telecoms: Before taking questions, Bush talked about what he’d like to see from Congress in the new year, and highlighted FISA: “The bill should include liability protection for companies that are facing multi-billion-dollar lawsuits, only because they are believed to have assisted in the efforts to defend or nation following the 9/11 attacks.” Bush may be confused — the telecoms started giving up information without warrants long before 9/11.
* CIA torture-tape controversy: It was the first question, and Bush clearly didn’t want to hear a second: “I am confident that the preliminary inquiry conducted by the AG and the IG of the CIA, coupled with the oversight provided by the Congress, will end up enabling us all to find out what exactly happened. And therefore, over the course of these inquiries and oversight hearings, I’m going to reserve judgment until I find out the full facts.” He would not elaborate, though if he wanted to, he could find out the “full facts” now — he’s the president.
* Presidential qualities: Bush, of course, wouldn’t talk about the 2008 election — he said didn’t want to be “the opiner-in-chief” — but one reporter asked about the kind of qualities he’d look for in a successor. The president emphasized he’d ask candidates, “[H]ow do you intend to get advice from people you surround yourself — who are you going to surround yourself, and what process will you have in place to ensure that you get the unvarnished opinion of advisors?” Given the impenetrable ideological bubble Bush has created, I found the response unintentionally hilarious.
* Iraq: A reporter noted that there’s been no political progress in Iraq, despite the fact that it was the point of the surge. He asked, “What benchmarks can the Iraqi government meet that would change this? What do you want them to do?” Bush immediately changed the question and dodged the point: “I don’t agree with your premise that there’s no politics taking place in Iraq. There is a functioning government….Your statement was, security didn’t provide room for a government to stand up and function. Well, it’s happening.” Actually, it’s not.
* Afghanistan: Asked about the performance of NATO countries in Afghanistan, Bush eventually said, “As you all know, I’ve said this many times from the podium, I do believe in the universality of freedom. I believe if people are given a chance to be free, they will do so. Now, I understand some don’t believe that. It’s kind of like we’re the only ones that can be free; it’s kind of the ultimate isolationism, isn’t it?” I wonder who those “some” people are, who believe “we’re the only ones that [sic] can be free? Bush is always at his best when he’s lashing a strawman.
* Global warming: Bush told reporters, “I told Vice President Gore that I take the issue seriously. And we’re developing a strategy that will deal with it, and an effective strategy.” I could almost hear the media chuckling in the background.
* International standing: Following up on Bill Clinton’s recent suggestion that he would travel abroad to promote American diplomacy, Mike Allen asked Bush if he would consider “a goodwill mission to restore the country’s good name abroad.” The president responded, “That’s what I do during my presidency. I go around spreading goodwill and talking about the importance of spreading freedom and peace.” Yes, because nothing’s done more to improve our standing around the world than Bush’s “spreading goodwill.”
* Lebanon: Commenting on Lebanese elections, Bush said, “Majority plus one ought to determine who the president is.” Given that he came in second in 2000, I wonder if he appreciated the irony.
* Taxes: Amazingly, Bush still believes in the Tax Fairy: “[W]e have been reducing the deficit. Pro-growth economic policies work. By cutting taxes, the economy grows, which yields more revenues for the treasury.” Poor guy doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
* Economic growth: Bush added, “[M]aybe somebody else thinks you can raise taxes and keep the economy growing; I don’t.” I often wonder if the president was conscious during the 1990s.
* War on Christmas: Don’t tell O’Reilly, but Bush used the word “holiday” five times during his press conference, including telling reporters, “Have a wonderful holiday season.” He only mentioned “Christmas” once, in passing. I’m looking forward to the Fox News boycott of the Bush White House.
Anyone else watch it? Did I miss anything noteworthy?