And Now A Word From Your President: "Havoc"

What Does The Billions of Taxpayer Dollars Spent On The Iraq Conflagration Get The American People? In a word, "Havoc." The reporters in the Whitehouse press pool spent a great deal of time trying to figure out if the "mission" in Iraq really had been "accomplished." But have a gander at the trail end of today's whitewashing by Scott, our outgoing spokesmodel:

Q Scott, given the current situation in Iraq, what the President described today as "havoc" --

MR. McCLELLAN: As what?

Q Havoc, he used the word havoc today, could he, would he possibly stand under a sign that says "Mission Accomplished" today as he did three years ago?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Peter, I think that there are some Democrats that refuse to recognize the important milestone achieved by the formation of a national unity government. And there is an effort simply to distract attention away from the real progress that is being made by misrepresenting and distorting the past. And that really does nothing to help advance our goal of achieving victory in Iraq.

Q Scott, simple yes or no question, could the President stand under a sign that says --

MR. McCLELLAN: No, see, this is -- this is a way that --

Q It has nothing to do with Democrats.

MR. McCLELLAN: Sure it does.

Q I'm asking you, based on a reporter's curiosity, could he stand under a sign again that says, "Mission Accomplished"?

MR. McCLELLAN: Now, Peter, Democrats have tried to raise this issue, and, like I said, misrepresenting and distorting the past --

Q This is not --

MR. McCLELLAN: -- which is what they're doing, does nothing to advance the goal of victory in Iraq.

Q I mean, it's a historical fact that we're all taking notice of --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think the focus ought to be on achieving victory in Iraq and the progress that's being made, and that's where it is. And you know exactly the Democrats are trying to distort the past.

Q Let me ask it another way: Has the mission been accomplished?

MR. McCLELLAN: Next question.

Q Has the mission been accomplished?

MR. McCLELLAN: We're on the way to accomplishing the mission and achieving victory.

Q Scott, during the planning for the war in Iraq, did Secretary Powell express any reservations about the troop strength or strategy?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, on the --

Q During the planning for the war, did then-Secretary Powell express any concerns about the plans for troop strength?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Secretary Powell talked about the views that he expressed. The President, when he was making the decision, looked to his team to provide advice, and he welcomed all advice that his team provided, and there was a lot of advice provided during that time.

Now, Secretary Powell talked about how the President looked to his military commanders who were the ones coming up with the plan to make those decisions. In fact, the President, when it came time to make a decision, sat at the table with his military commanders and asked those commanders, do you have everything you need, and do you agree with the plan that is in place? And the military commanders all said that they do.

Q Did Secretary Powell ever express any reservations?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, he talked about that yesterday. I can't go back all the way to that time and relive all the advice that was given. The there was a lot of advice given, and he talked about the advice that he provided, but he also talked about how it was the military commanders that the President was looking to to make such determinations. He said that the President's military advisors felt that the size of the force was adequate -- this was Secretary Powell's comments over the weekend -- and at the time, the President was listening to those who were supposed to be providing him with military advice. That would be his military commanders. And General Franks was the one who developed the plan.

Q Thank you.