In the history of mankind, many republics have risen, have flourished for a less or greater time, and then have fallen because their citizens lost the power of governing themselves and thereby of governing their state. TR

Wh3

White House Dossier

Press Erupts in Laughter at Carney Invoking “Principle”

Updated 4:11 pm ET

The White House press corps got a good laugh today following an assertion by White House Press Secretary Jay Carney that President Obama’s claim of executive privilege to keep from Congress documents related to Fast and Furious was “entirely about principle.”

Here’s how it went down:

QUESTION: I guess my question is are you declaring that mostly on principle to ensure the separation of power more or…

CARNEY: This is — thank you for phrasing it like that. This is entirely about principle . . .

At that point, the press spontaneously broke out into peals of laughter.

Here’s some video of the moment. The sudden laughter sounded much more voluble and dramatic in the room than the videotape conveys.

Carney earlier had said it was “absolutely” untrue that the withholding of the documents was in any way a “coverup.”

54 thoughts on “Press Erupts in Laughter at Carney Invoking “Principle””

    2. Mike c

      so sad Carney could not remember the name of our dead border agent. Then again, he is not “in the court of the king” so he is really a non-person.

  3. Justavet

    Carney earlier had said it was “absolutely” untrue that the withholding of the documents was in any way a “coverup.” Did he than say he had a bridge for sale in New York he could let go at a song?

    Here is the principal to which he was referring. It is the principal of when you can’t any longer rely on your stooge (Holder) to protect your butt, you have to get down into the mud, the blood and the beer yourself.

    I guess they were really laughing at the word principal and referring to Obama in the same sentence.

  4. Cooper

    I guess if the principal is one of CYA then maybe so. This president and his administration are amazing short on principal, especially so since that was a campaign theme. That hopey changey BS that so many chumps swallowed like candy. But promises are made to be broken and Obama has proven to be a master at it. Consumate liar, fraud, and hypocrite rolled into a neat little package.

  6. srdem65

    It’s almost painful to listen to the Obama supporters parrot out the same talking points and to blame the Repubs for everything.

    There can only be one reason for MrO to invoke Executive Privilege and that is there are items that contradict MrHolder’s claims and point the finger at the wrong-doers. These papers must hold the basis for criminal charges of manslaughter. This isn’t a search for the screwup who put a stupid plan in the works, this is a search for the person who armed known killers with powerful weapons resulting in the death of one or hundreds or thousands.

    The fix was in when MrHolder promoted/silenced the wrong doers but when the promise of protecting them was being breached, the Prez stepped in to protect everyone.

    2. RickW

      Listening to anyone from this Administration reminds me of the scene in the M.A.S.H. movie when Hot Lips screamed “This isn’t a hospital, its an insane asylum!”

  7. Anonna

    Keith — do you have any idea what principle Carney-Barker meant? I suppose the WH has chosen some principle to bear the burden of being their excuse.

    Glad to hear that the pool laughed instead of bowing reverentially and jotting down his words to repeat exactly to the public.

    1. Keith Koffler

      They are referencing the principle behind executive privilege – that is, the president should be able to freely receive advice from his advisers without having to worry it will be scrutinized.

      The laugh was so spontaneous – no one had a moment to think.

  8. Moe

    Now the Press core is laughing at Carney, think about that for a second. We do not have a President who is not respected in any way shape or form. This makes me sad.

    1. Susan

      Thank you for the link Granny Jan. What I found more stunning than the laughter, was the Carney Barker’s claim that the operation “used a tactic that originated in a field office…”. Is he trying to claim some low level bureaucrat engaged in international gun trafficking without the approval of the DOJ or State Department? If that is true, somebody should have been brought up on charges of treason.

      1. Techie

        Susan, gun shop owners here in AZ were actually begging the DOJ people to stop demanding of the owners to continue selling these weapons.

    2. ol gator

      Do you recall back when newly appointed holder spoke about Americans being a bunch of cowards? Remember eric, when you are pointing your skinny little racist finger at us , you are actually pointing 4 more back at yo sef ! You’ve done a crappy job from day one & you need to go away !

  10. langley spook

    Mr. Koffler,
    You guys-gals in the “White House ‘propaganda’ Corps” need to ‘laugh’ (re: ask REAL questions?) at Carney ALOT! more…!!!
    Those of us in America LAUGH/VOMITat every Carney-Obama propaganda/”press” brief…

  11. ECM

    The press is…laughing. They have ignored this every step of the way, and now they’re *laughing*?? They think this is in any way, hilarious?? OMFG **** these people.

    1. Susan

      BOOM…from the Executive Branch, to the DOJ, to the DHS, to the State Department, to Mexico. They used Project Gunrunner as a cover for Fast and Furious for the express purpose of removing our 2nd Amendment rights. The murders of hundreds of Mexican nationals as well as federal agents Brian Terry and Jaime Zapata meant nothing more than collateral damage to these monsters…

      1. srdem65

        Were the two agent’s deaths really “collateral” ?.
        Like as in one of Sherlock Holme’s adventures, what didn’t happen is suspicious.
        At the crime scene of AgentTerry’s death, two of the illegal firearms were found nearby and traced back to the gun dealer in Arizona.

        The evil-doers left evidence of the gunwalking rather than take the coveted and expensive firearms with them as they fled the scene. Why?

        1. Susan

          You’re absolutely right, srdem. So many unanswered questions about Agent Terry’s death. Why leave the weapons behind? How was he shot in the back? Why was he armed with a non-lethal bean bag gun when the violence of these drug gangs is widely known? We sure could use the services of Sherlock Holmes about now…

          1. Thomas J Gassett

            Seriously? You think the BO administration doesn’t have the answers to those and other questions? If so, we sure don’t expect much, other than a check, from our government these days. I guess that’s only logical … since we relected the most unquailifed, unaccomplished fool in our history.

    2. SnarkEsq.

      Great clip! Deputy AG David Odgen spelled out those new tactics before congress in the clip someone linked here yesterday. This clip is a terrific find and really makes it clear that the WH was involved from Day One.

      Did you catch how the “STIMULUS MONEY” ($10 million) was used for this? Gee, I don’t recall ever being told about that. I thought it was for “shovel ready” jobs.

    1. SnarkEsq.

      Great clip! Deputy Ag David Odgen spelled out those new tactics before congress in the clip someone linked here yesterday. This clip is a terrific find and really makes it clear that the WH was involved from Day One.

      Did you catch how the “STIMULUS MONEY” ($10 million) was used for this? Gee, I don’t recall ever being told about that. I thought it was for “shovel ready” jobs.

  15. lcsouthern

    At a minimum, he should have known Agent Terry’s name. Tapper asked some good questions…he should have been laughed out of the room.

  17. AZ Granny

    Agents Terry and Zapata were killed because of F&F, not to mention hundreds of people in Mexico. That they were considered scrambled eggs in the making of an omelette is absolutely deplorable. If Obama and Holder knew what principle was, they’d do a real investigation instead of trying to cover it up. The person responsible for the deaths needs to go to jail. Now.

    From Agent John Dodson’s testimony: “[T]here was a prevailing attitude amongst the group and outside of the group in the ATF chain of command… I was having a conversation with Special Agent [L] about the case in which the conversation ended with me asking her are you prepared to go to a border agent’s funeral over this… because that’s going to happen. And the sentiment that was given back to me by both her, the group supervisor, was that…if you are going to make an omelette [sic], you need to scramble some eggs.”

    1. srdem65

      Yes. The firearms were never meant to go to Mexico, they were to be used in the US so as to cause alarm and give the ATF a basis for banning the sale of assault weapons.

      When Agent Terry was killed, the guns were deliberately left at the scene to imply that they were used in the murder. There is no proof that those firearms were the murder weapon.
      The wistleblowers that brought Fast and Furious to the public’s attention were decent men who were horrified by the means that caused the death of a US Border Agent and an unknown number of Mexican nationals.
      What followed is a coverup of a dastardly, evil, and totally unconstitutional plot connived by the DEA, the FBI and the ATF.

      1. AZ Granny

        I remember how the media had a field day accusing the Lone Wolf Trading Co of selling the guns illegally before the whistle blowers came forward. I also remember Obama told Sarah Brady that they were working under the radar on gun control.

        I will never understand why Agent Terry was armed with a bean bag gun, especially since he was on a special team, similar to a SWAT team. You don’t take bean bags to a gunfight and the person that ordered them to do so is responsible for his death too.

  19. Newark

    When, oh when will this dear unfortunate pathetic figure develope the modicum of self respect to go on….unemployment insurance.

  21. Quintis Arrius

    Movie quotes form the movie: Fast and Furious
    Brian O’Conner: I lied to you. I lied to Dom, I lied to everybody. That’s what I do best. That’s why the feds recruited me.
    Mia Toretto: Maybe you’re lying to yourself. Maybe you’re not the good guy pretending to be the bad guy. Maybe you’re the bad guy pretending to be the good guy. Did you ever think about that?
    Brian O’Conner: Every day

  22. Pingback: White House Press Secretary Jay “Frasier Crane-y” Carney sings Buttons and Bows | Stealth Magnolia

  23. Pingback: With the options available, why did Obama choose to invoke executive privilege? « CITIZEN.BLOGGER.1984+ GUNNY.G BLOG.EMAIL

  24. Pingback: Carney flees question about Obama, polygamy « CITIZEN.BLOGGER.1984+ GUNNY.G BLOG.EMAIL

  25. noneyabusiness1969

    Wow…seriously Jay…step down…have you looked at yourself in the mirror today? For the first time EVER I really really feel sorry for this guy. I can’t help it. I know he’s a slimy guy….just doing his job, but obviously the job is over fricken whelming him. He must have a nice nest egg saved up between he and his wife, why not just quit ? This man clearly has cried his eyes out over the weekend and has not slept in days….and for WHAT Jay? WHAT? If Obama could sleep like a baby while Amb Stevens and 3 others were fighting for their very lives….you are NOTHING to him Jay…NOTHING! You know what Jay…Obama may just start blaming YOU for selling the false narrative…wheels on the bus go round and round!!

Comments are closed.