Anonymice Initiatives

Several worthwhile items in Dan Froomkin’s “White House Briefing” today, including this item from an e-mail to the White House press corps, currently encamped en masse in Waco, Texas: “The Crawford In-town Travel Pool needs to gather at 7:15 am CST in the Waco Hilton Lobby. Note: Travel Pool should wear ranch appropriate shoes.”

What really caught our eye was another chapter in the useless and purposeless White House background briefings: “In a teleconference, two ‘senior administration officials’ gave reporters a gigantic runaround, refusing to provide any details — or even the name — of the initiatives to be announced today.”

The discussion included this great exchange:

Q: Is there a name for this initiative? . . .

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: It does have a name. Are we sharing the name now?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I think let’s hold off on that at this point.

Q: What should we call it? Should we call it a program, an initiative, a structure, a commission?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I think initiative.

Remind us, again, for the rationale for why reporters don’t refuse to cover these discussions?

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