I just saw the Daily Show a little while ago, and Jon Stewart showed a clip of the press briefing with Scott McClellan where he parrots the administration's official late pontiff talking points about John Paul II embracing a "culture of life". Someone in the press corps brought up the Pope's disagreement with Bush on the issue of the death penalty, and asked, "How is the death penalty consistent with a "culture of life". To which McClellan feigns shock that she would bring that up at a time like this.
Of course, Stewart nailed it and said something like, "How dare you dishonor the Pope by calling attention to our hypocrisy?!" Official White House transcript below the fold...
Go ahead, Elaine.
Q Scott, you mentioned the culture of life. When Pope John Paul II wrote about the culture of life in 1995, he described it also in terms of the death penalty, not just abortion and euthanasia. He said that in these modern times, cases where the death penalty was warranted are rare, if not nonexistent. Now, knowing that the President fully supports the death penalty, used the death penalty, does he see it as a contradiction to use that phrase, "culture of life," and still support the death penalty, which the Pope expressed his opposition to?
MR. McCLELLAN: Elaine, I think the President's views are well known. I don't think now is the time to talk about where they may have differed on one or two areas. This is a time to honor a great moral leader, someone who, as the President said, was a hero for the ages.
Q Well, wait. Don't you honor a great moral leader and a great teacher, somebody who did engage in debate, whose whole life was about this kind of discussion and wrestling with difficult moral problems, by answering that question: Does the President see it as a contradiction that he adopts only part of what Pope John Paul said was the culture of life?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, let's separate out -- I mean, because I spoke about this issue last week, and why the President's view is the way it is. And that's because we're talking about the difference between innocent life and someone who is guilty of horrific crimes.
Q But, Scott --
Q Scott, if I could --
MR. McCLELLAN: Okay, Wendell, and then Les. We'll get to Arizona Minutemen in a minute. (Laughter.)
Q I didn't ask that.
Q It is the Pope's phrase, "a culture of life," which the President adopted, endorsing only part of.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, first of all, the President's views go back a long ways. This is not something that was new to the President over the last decade. The President has long believed in promoting a culture of life in America. And that is something he has talked often about, and he will continue to talk about. And he has stood on the side of defending life when it comes to legislative efforts.
But one of the things that I think -- and I think that the Holy Father was a great moral leader in this respect -- and one of the things the President talks about is that building a culture of life in America is about more than laws, it's about changing hearts. And that's what the President has tried to do, as well.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/04/20050404-2.html
Great job with the questioning, Elaine. Nice and persistent. Too bad it gets you nowhere with this administration.