Politics | 11/25/2008 8:30 am

White House Spokeswoman Dana Perino Gives Obama 8 Months Until Press Dives In

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

Whitehouse.gov

White House Press Secretary Dana Perino gives the Obama administration eight months until the media starts using the new president as a battering ram.

Perino, who did an in-depth Q&A with wowOwow last month – in which she told us how she had to have a thick skin in her job, how she tries to relax, and where she likes to shop – spoke to The Washington Post media columnist Howard Kurtz about trying to get news outlets to correct bad reporting, how blogs are ruining reputable journalism and her relationship with the press.

She said that while the media is still swooning over President-elect Barack Obama, the honeymoon won’t last forever.

"He was a great candidate, a phenomenal candidate," she says, but warned his incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, that it wouldn’t last forever. "I’ll give you eight months," she told him.

But Perino’s job has undoubtedly been made harder by the fact that President Bush’s approval ratings are in the toilet, and he’s been bashed by not only Democrats, but by members of his own party, as well. And where has he been during the economic crisis? MIA, it seems.

"There’s no doubt that when you’re more popular, your press is better,” says Perino, who took the podium in the summer of 2007.

“We took it from all sides, and it was difficult … When you’re that close to your boss, it’s hard sometimes not to take it personally."

The 36-year-old said that the attacks in the press and elsewhere have gotten so bad — in her words, “vitriolic” — that she stopped reading blogs – and told mom to stop, as well.

Our advice to Perino? Book yourself a nice, long vacation beginning January 21 — the day after inauguration day — and get as far away from Washington and Texas as you can, for a little while at least. You deserve it.

24 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

YOU KNOW, THE MEDIA IS A TERRIBLE THING OR IT IS A WONDERFUL THING TO HAVE AROUND. IT IS NEVER SATIFFIED, NO WORDS ARE EVER THE RIGHT DESCRIPTIONOF SOEMTHIGN OR OTHER AND TOO FEW WORDS IS AT TIMES TOO MANUY … WHEN YOU STOP -STAND BACK- AND LOOK- WHAT IS IT THAT YOU SEE? B.S. WHOEVER YOU SEE DOING WHATEVER YOU SEE THERE IS GOING OT BE SOMETHING WRONG WITH IT. NOTHING IS EVER GOOD ENOUGH FOR THE MEDIA………..IT IS NEVER DONE PERFECT LY. IT NEVER GETS CLOSE TO RIGHT . SO WHY HAVE IT ? THE NEWS MAKES SO MANY SAD- AT TIEMS HAPPY- SOME GET WORRIED- SOME GET RICHER AND SOME GET POORER. WHY HAVE IT? THERE HAS TO BE A REASON TO THE WHY THOSE OLD WESTERN MOVIES SHOW HOW THE BAD GUYS WENT IN AND MODOCKED THE PRINTING “STUFF” ALL GONE!!! DOES THAT BRING TO MEMEORY/WHY WHAT YOU WERE THINKING TO DO WITH IT ? A CHILDS WAY OF LOOKING AT IT WOULD BE TO GO BE AN ACTOR FOR AWHILE EVERYONE LOVES SCRAMBBLING SOMETHING SO IF YOU ARE PRACTICING FOR ACTORHOOD THEN IT WOULD BE OK TO TEAR THE HEY OUT OF IT . YOU NEED TO GET YOUR UNDERSTUDY TO HELP WITH IT THO.SOMETIMES. LOL! BUT DON’T YOU JUST WISH SOMETIMES THAT YOU COULD JUST CHEW IT UP AND SPIT IT OUT AND THROW IT IN THE GARBAGE. I DO.

By newzie snoozie on 11/25/2008 10:02 am

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I don’t agree with Dana on many things, but on this one we are in full agreement. I agree that when the president is looked upon favorably, his relationship with the press goes well. And right now Barack is fresh and new, shiny and sparkly with everyone hanging on his every word. But I predict as much as everyone is vowing to give him time enact the changes he ran on, we will most assuredly be impatient and the press who now love him will turn on him like a pack of wolves.

By Belinda Joy on 11/25/2008 11:32 am

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I hope she re-surfaces in an awesome job - no matter how you may feel about her boss, she is one courageous and bright person that deserves whatever job she wants, but yes, after a nice long vacation with no Blackberry and no TV!

By Chips AHoey on 11/25/2008 11:33 am

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When did the press, other than Helen Thomas ever tear into Bush? They pretty much gave him a free ride until Senator Obama was elected.

By Sherrie Crews on 11/25/2008 12:02 pm

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Yes! Isn’t it amazing how the spin now is that the press is tough on Bush?! The press, instead of doing its job, allowed Bush to trample the Constitution, take away Civil Liberties, lie us into a war, tear down environmental regulations, without calling him on most of it. It took an election of a slight majority of Democrats into Congress to at least bring some of the stuff he did into the forefront so that the press HAD to finally address these things. And still, the press doesn’t expose his crimes and failures in a way that would be considered actually doing their job.

By DeBúrca obj on 11/25/2008 5:16 pm

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DeB, If the press had done its job in the leadup to Iraq, we wouldn’t be there now. And, right now, this minute, Bush is quietly passing laws that are relaxing our environmental policies. It is very telling as to what he thinks of this country.

By Diana T on 11/25/2008 10:56 pm

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I heard Robert Redford on the Rachel Maddow show last night talking about how he is quietly trying to allow drilling in some National land. Also, Bush has been transferring some of his “Know-nothing”, unqualified buddies from job appointments they got through his administrations to Civil Service jobs that they can’t be fired from!

By DeBúrca obj on 11/26/2008 8:17 am

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…and like you said, were is the press? Perino is actually full of it, they are STILL giving Bush a pass, even with his approval ratings in the toilet.

By DeBúrca obj on 11/26/2008 8:19 am

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DeB, I can’t find an article in some newspaper I read a couple of days ago that had a list of about 20-30 items of changes and outright getting rid of environmental laws, especially dealing with national park land. What kind of thinking would do these things? Is this the legacy he really wants to leave? What must he think of us little guys?

By Diana T on 11/26/2008 8:31 am

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Bush is a cynical weasel who thinks very little of us little guys. It’s the way he has run his whole administration and now some people are trying to rewrite history already and make us feel sorry for the man. He deserves every criticism he gets, he deserves to go down in shame. I think a few weeks about Bill Maher did some bit with Bush leaving the White House with it burning behind him… that is pretty much what he plans on doing don’t you think? The Bush/Cheney gang is despicable and has done more damage to this country in 8 years than I could have thought possible with Checks and Balances (which they did their best to get rid of).

By DeBúrca obj on 11/26/2008 8:48 am

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It will be very interesting someday to see what history says about this phase of our story. And, we have to acknowledge that the voters(not me dammit!) put them in there for a second term, and for that the voters have to take the blame for not making informed choices. If only……

By Diana T on 11/26/2008 8:54 am

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That is part of the reason I am so thrilled with the election of Barack Obama, and I think it’s the same for a lot of other people who have been against Bush from the beginning. After the 2004 election, the fact that so many people in this country could vote for that man again, made me feel not just anger at the Bush administration but anger and shame at a large part of this country who would be so uninformed and easily manipulated by fear to vote him into office again. But so many people this time around did NOT fall for the same fear and smear campaign methods and said “Enough!”. And that part of it alone made me proud to be an American again.

By DeBúrca obj on 11/26/2008 9:18 am

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And, Volcker is going to be heading up the Economic Recovery Team…. So far, his choices are stellar, and it is obvious he is a man who thrives on ideas and opinions from all sides of an issue. I worry, though about damage repair of the previous 8 years, and how he will reverse the signing orders that Bush would slip in and all of the environmental reverses that are being done these last few weeks. I’m just counting the days…..

By Diana T on 11/26/2008 10:16 am

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I’m counting the days too. It’s good to know that Obama is using his transition time so well though isn’t it?

By DeBúrca obj on 11/26/2008 1:35 pm

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That is a good point, Sherrie! Thinking back on the invasion of Iraq…when the press had a clamp put on them….might have something to do with that, though….One of the media boards I belonged to, by government order, was shut down. We were peons, no clout, and W did not want ANYone criticizing that invasion! Watching the cable news was difficult at times, as they were ALL hyped up and speaking favorably about W and the invasion—-helping to foster the non-truths of WMD…. When it became clear that Bush was losing his ‘political capital’, coincidently coincided, IMO, with the Press being willing to step over the Bush line…remember, specific members of the press corp were banned from the W press conferences, if they disagreed with him…. No one is afraid of repercussions that affects their paycheck, anymore—-and that has less to do with Obama (although he is a major force), and more to do with the fact that W is out, leaving us with the biggest, corruption-driven mess this country has seen in 80 years or so…and folks are just plain mad! I do agree that the press will eventually get to the place where they will start speaking to the complaints of the Obama administration—-but I disagree that it will be the same as what we have seen before….The difference is this: I, personally, have NEVER experienced a President-elect who has been so darned OPEN about what he is going to do, and why, and what to expect…..people get frustrated when they believe they are not being told the truth up front…..Obama tells us every day that this will not be easy and we should expect difficult times……and instead of solutions made behind closed doors in top-secret mode, and then thrust on us to conform—Obama is including us,and keeping the door open to allay our fears.

By Patty E on 11/25/2008 12:51 pm