Tony Snow says he'll accept job as Bush spokesman [View All]

[norml]

April 25, 2006, 11:21PM
Tony Snow says he'll accept job as Bush spokesman
Fox News host reportedly assured of having a role in policy debates


By HOWARD KURTZ
Washington Post

WASHINGTON - Fox News commentator Tony Snow agreed Tuesday night to become White House press secretary after top officials assured him that he would be not be just a spokesman but an active participant in administration policy debates, people familiar with the discussions said.

A director of speechwriting for President George H.W. Bush, Snow views himself as well-positioned to ease the tensions between this White House and the press corps because he understands both politics and journalism, said the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the appointment has not been officially confirmed. An announcement is expected today.

Snow will become the first Washington pundit — and an outspoken ideological voice at that — to take over the pressroom lectern at a time when tensions between journalists and the administration have been running high, about issues such as the Iraq war to investigations involving leaks of classified information.

Dee Dee Myers, a spokeswoman for President Bill Clinton, said that if Bush wants smoother relations with journalists, "Tony has stature. He understands how the press works from both sides. He has a big personality, and that can be helpful." But she noted that Snow has "a long paper trail" and would have to defend policies he has criticized.


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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/3820234.html