In an unlinked entry at The Corner, Byron York reproduces a statement from the White House Correspondents Association, which reads as follows:
"Since 1914, the White House Correspondents' Association has operated independently of the White House and the White House credentialing process. We intend for the White House Correspondents' Association to remain independent of that process.York goes on to say (emphasis added):
"Consistent with the First Amendment, the White House Correspondents' Association stands for inclusiveness in the credentialing process so that the White House remains accessible to all journalists. We hope that individual episodes do not obscure the broader principles of a fair and evenhanded credentialing process that serves the goal of free and full exchange of information."
Some anti-Bush groups, among them David Brock's Media Matters for America, have called on the White House to limit access to press briefings. White House correspondents have generally opposed such a move, and today Correspondents' Association president Ron Hutcheson (of Knight-Ridder newspapers) told National Review that the organization also opposes any new limits. "If we ever felt like [Bush press secretary Scott McClellan] or anybody else at the White House was applying some sort of ideological screen, we'd raise a stink," Hutcheson said, adding that, "we're not proposing any changes."Well, don't take it too hard, folks. You can still have fun humiliating James Guckert ---in the [principled] course of exposing the hypocrisy of the conservative Republican establishment.