Obama Broadens Pool of White House Questioners
President Obama broadened the pool of questioners at White House news conferences Tuesday night by calling on representatives of Ebony magazine, Univision and Stars and Stripes, the publication for military service members.
Networks covering the news conference were so unprepared for Univision to be called upon that some had no name to superimpose on the screen when reporter Lourdes Meluza asked her question.
After Obama’s first prime-time news conference as president last month, Hazel Trice Edney, editor of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, also known as the Black Press of America, was quoted telling colleagues, "We were nothing more than window dressing." She had a front-row seat then but was not called upon.
Obama’s plans to redress the nation’s economic straits dominated Tuesday’s news conference, but the president also took a question on race, from Ann Compton of ABC News.
"Yours is a rather historic presidency," she said. "And I’m just wondering whether, in any of the policy debates that you’ve had within the White House, the issue of race has come up or whether it has in the way you feel you’ve been perceived by other leaders or by the American people? Or has the last 64 days been a relatively colorblind time?"
"And, you know, obviously, at the inauguration, I think that there was justifiable pride on the part of the country that we had taken a step to move us beyond some of the searing legacies of racial discrimination in this country, but that lasted about a day.
"And, you know, right now, the American people are judging me exactly the way I should be judged. And that is: Are we taking the steps to improve liquidity in the financial markets, create jobs, get businesses to reopen, keep America safe? And that’s what I’ve been spending my time thinking about."
Compton’s question was immediately preceded by one from Kevin Chappell, Washington bureau chief of Ebony and Jet magazines, which followed a question from Univision, the Spanish-language network.
"Today your administration presented a plan to help curb the violence in Mexico and also to control any or prevent any spillover of the violence into the United States," Meluza said. "Do you consider the situation now a national security threat?
"And do you believe that it could require sending national troops to the border? Governor Perry of Texas has said that you still need more troops and more agents. How do you respond to that?" referring to Gov. Rick Perry.
"We are sending millions of dollars in additional equipment to provide more effective surveillance," Obama said. "We are providing hundreds of additional personnel that can help control the border, deal with customs issues. We are coordinating very effectively with the Mexican government and President Calderon, who has taken on a(n) extraordinarily difficult task dealing with these drug cartels that have gotten completely out of hand," referring to Felipe Calderon.
The president also said, "if the steps that we’ve taken do not get the job done, then we will do more."
Chappell asked Obama, "A recent report found that as a result of the economic downturn, one in 50 children are now homeless in America. With shelters at full capacity, tent cities are sprouting up across the country.
"In passing your stimulus package, you said that help was on the way, but what would you say to these families, especially children, who are sleeping under bridges and in tents across the country?"
"The most important thing that I can do on their behalf is to make sure their parents have a job," Obama replied, outlining items in his recovery package that address unemployment.
He continued, "Part of the change in attitudes that I want to see here in Washington and all across the country is a belief that it is not acceptable for children and families to be without a roof over their heads in a country as wealthy as ours. And so we’re going to be initiating a range of programs as well to deal with homelessness.
"One area in particular I want to focus on is the issue of veterans."
Chappell told Journal-isms afterward, "I think that the president was thorough in his answer to my question. I believe increased homelessness in today’s economy is affecting people across racial and socio-economic lines."
Compton said, "We were all amused by his observation that the historic notice of his inauguration ‘lasted about a day.’
"And satisfied that the question seemed to come as a surprise, not something he expected. I had several questions in mind, but thought the two month point is an appropriate time to get him on the record about the issue of race."
As with previous news conferences, questioners were selected in advance. But, as Compton noted in an e-mail, "reporters do not know in advance they are on the list given to the Pres."
Michael H. Cottman, who covered the event for BlackAmericaWeb.com, said he counted about 10 black journalists in the room. About 300 in all were present, Cynthia Gordy of essence.com, who was also present, wrote on her blog.
On CNN, pundits presented the range of reactions to Obama’s performance. Roland Martin said the president had undertaken a "smart strategy" in urging patience, echoing Obama’s closing words, "This is big ocean liner; it’s not a speedboat. It doesn’t turn around immediately." But Bill Bennett, a former Reagan administration official, said Obama had entered a "murderers row" with a press corps that had lost its infatuation with the president.