Tribune Media Services fired Armstrong Williams (link) from his syndicated column yesterday, but Williams plans on self-syndication.
Has anyone, including Bush, been fired? Not yet. But they're denying and making excuses and arguing semantics.
"Our contract was for advertising," said department [of education] spokesman John Gibbons. "Our intent was to reach out to minority audiences. Armstrong went out and talked about it -- we didn't have anything to do with that."
Did you see that? "Advertising". So now when you decide to rob a bank, be sure to claim that you were simply "withdrawing cash" or "borrowing some money" when you're caught. The Washington Post continued:
But the contract also required Williams to "utilize his long term working relationship" with black producers to "encourage" them to "periodically address the No Child Left Behind Act."
In other words, pass off "advertising" as "news" or "information". That means "propaganda".
What does the White House say? More...
Friday's McClellan press gaggle:
Q Can I ask one more substantive question, before we get to that?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, no substantive questions today. It's Friday.
Q Or any other day, right? (Laughter.)
USA Today says the Education Department paid a TV commentator, Armstrong Williams, about a quarter million dollars to promote No Child Left. And in a related matter, the GAO found yesterday the drug policy office broke federal law by using taxpayer money for covert, "propaganda," with made for TV story packages. Are these practices that you condone?
MR. McCLELLAN: On the first one, that was a decision by the Department of Education, and a contracting matter. So you ought to direct those questions to the Department of Education. I know the headline said that the White House -- basically implied that it was the White House, and it wasn't. If you read the story -- if you read the story, it pointed that out.
Q It's your administration, Scott. It's the President's administration.
Typical dodge by the White House. "I didn't do it! It was the CIA, FBI, "a few bad apples", the DoE..." Can we please have one responsible adult from the Bush White House? Please? What is it, exactly, that the White House is accountable for? Nothing? They have parties with Elmo and make skits about the dog, and that's it? Are we really to believe that the White House operates in a vacuum independent of the actions of its subordinates?No. They're 100% responsible. When was the last time propaganda was an issue? How about torture? These are unique to the Bush Era.