What Happened
Encyclopedia
What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception is the #1 New York Times bestseller of Scott McClellan
, who served as White House Press Secretary
from 2003 until 2006 under President George W. Bush
. The book was scheduled to be released on June 2, 2008; however, excerpts were released to the press a week before publication. The book quickly became a media sensation for its candid, insider's critique of the Bush administration and ran as a leading story on most top news outlets days after the content became public.
approach" to governing, rather than making the best choices. McClellan stops short of saying Bush purposely lied about his reasons for invading Iraq (in fact, stating flatly that he did not believe that Bush would intentionally lie), writing that the administration was not "employing out-and-out deception" to make the case for war in 2002, though he does assert the administration relied on an aggressive "political propaganda campaign" instead of the truth to sell the Iraq war. The book is also critical of the press corps for being too accepting of the administration's perspective on the Iraq War, and of Condoleezza Rice
for being "too accommodating" and overly careful about protecting her own reputation.
Dana Perino
, who said, "Scott, we now know, is disgruntled about his experience at the White House. We are puzzled. It is sad. This is not the Scott we knew." The administration additionally took exception to the claim that they had misled the nation in the lead up to the war in Iraq, as Perino said, "He's suggesting that we purposely misled. There is no new evidence of that."
(D-FL) and Rep. Jerrold Nadler
(D-N.Y.), who is the Chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, have called upon McClellan to testify under oath
in front of Congress. McClellan testified publicly under oath before the House Judiciary Committee in July of 2008.
, and its printing was quadrupled to more than 300,000 copies by its publisher, PublicAffairs
.
Scott McClellan
Scott McClellan is a former White House Press Secretary for President George W. Bush, and author of a controversial No. 1 New York Times bestseller about the Bush Administration titled What Happened. He replaced Ari Fleischer as press secretary in July 2003 and served until May 10, 2006...
, who served as White House Press Secretary
White House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
from 2003 until 2006 under President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
. The book was scheduled to be released on June 2, 2008; however, excerpts were released to the press a week before publication. The book quickly became a media sensation for its candid, insider's critique of the Bush administration and ran as a leading story on most top news outlets days after the content became public.
Content
McClellan harshly criticizes the Bush administration over its Iraq war-making campaign, though he writes in detail about his personal admiration for President Bush. He accuses Bush of "self-deception" and of maintaining a "permanent campaignPermanent campaign
Permanent campaign is a theory of political science conceived by Patrick Caddell, then a young pollster for U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who wrote a memo on December 10, 1976 entitled "Initial Working Paper on Political Strategy"....
approach" to governing, rather than making the best choices. McClellan stops short of saying Bush purposely lied about his reasons for invading Iraq (in fact, stating flatly that he did not believe that Bush would intentionally lie), writing that the administration was not "employing out-and-out deception" to make the case for war in 2002, though he does assert the administration relied on an aggressive "political propaganda campaign" instead of the truth to sell the Iraq war. The book is also critical of the press corps for being too accepting of the administration's perspective on the Iraq War, and of Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
for being "too accommodating" and overly careful about protecting her own reputation.
White House response
The Bush administration issued a statement about the book through Press SecretaryWhite House Press Secretary
The White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
Dana Perino
Dana Perino
Dana Maria Perino is an American political commentator for Fox News. She served as the White House Press Secretary for President George W. Bush from September 14, 2007 to January 20, 2009...
, who said, "Scott, we now know, is disgruntled about his experience at the White House. We are puzzled. It is sad. This is not the Scott we knew." The administration additionally took exception to the claim that they had misled the nation in the lead up to the war in Iraq, as Perino said, "He's suggesting that we purposely misled. There is no new evidence of that."
Congressional response
In response to the claims made by McClellan in the book, Congressman Robert WexlerRobert Wexler
Robert Wexler is the president of the Washington-based S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace.Wexler was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing , from 1997 until his resignation on January 3, 2010.-Early life:Wexler was born in Queens, New York to Sonny and...
(D-FL) and Rep. Jerrold Nadler
Jerrold Nadler
Jerrold Lewis "Jerry" Nadler is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1992. He is a member of the Democratic Party.The district includes the west side of Manhattan from the Upper West Side down to Battery Park, including the site where the World Trade Center stood...
(D-N.Y.), who is the Chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, have called upon McClellan to testify under oath
Under oath
Under oath could refer to:* Offering testimony while under oath and subject to charges of perjury* Underoath, an American metalcore band...
in front of Congress. McClellan testified publicly under oath before the House Judiciary Committee in July of 2008.
McClellan response
McClellan has responded by stating that his role as Deputy White House Press Secretary during the lead-up to the Iraq War was not to make policy , contending that he was inclined to give the Administration the "benefit of the doubt" like most Americans, and that he did not fully appreciate the circumstances until after leaving the "White House bubble" and being able to reflect with a more clear-eyed view of events.Sales
While McClellan's book advance was for a comparatively low $75,000, What Happened reached the number-one position on the sales chart of Amazon.comAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
, and its printing was quadrupled to more than 300,000 copies by its publisher, PublicAffairs
PublicAffairs
PublicAffairs is an imprint of the Perseus Books Group, an American book publishing company located in New York City. From PublicAffairs' web site:...
.
External links
- McClellan: Plame leak case was turning point Today (NBC program) May 29, 2008
- Scott McClellan Interview with Keith Olbermann on COUNTDOWN May 29, 2008