Can Snow Help Turn Bush's Fortunes Around?

April 26, 2006 — -- With the appointment of Tony Snow as his third press secretary, President Bush is changing another part of how his White House operates in an attempt to turn his political fortunes around.

Republican sources say that Snow's appointment above all else represents two realizations: first, that the White House daily briefing is too valuable a megaphone to waste, and, second, that the Bush administration needs better relations with the Washington press corps if it is going to get its message out to the American people.

Even in the age of the Internet and the swirling changes in communications, the opportunity for a strong spokesman or spokeswoman to have an impact is something new White House chief of staff Josh Bolten wants to exploit.

Bush's two previous press secretaries ended up with rough professional relations with the White House media and rarely helped move his agenda through their words, even with all the attention the daily midday briefing gets.

Snow is expected to get along better with reporters by earning their trust and being more involved in shaping policy, rather than just talking about it. Making reporters feel like something may actually happen at the daily briefings gets them more invested in the events themselves, and they then take the administration's message more seriously. That's good for the president, the press corps and, most important, the country.

The White House also hopes Snow helps Bush with his legislative agenda and the midterm elections by using the platform and megaphone of the White House to more clearly communicate with the American people.

Snow is the first press secretary in a long time with broadcasting experience -- on television and radio -- and the first one with such experience since the daily briefings began to be televised during the Clinton administration. Those performance skills should serve him well as he becomes part of an effort to go back on the offense.

In the short term, Snow is likely to finesse Democratic and media attempts to make an issue of his past statements critical of the Bush administration and on controversial topics. Clinton spokesman Mike McCurry and Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer worked as press secretaries after saying negative things about their bosses in the past.

As Snow transitions from pundit to spokesman, his real challenge will come when and if he strongly disagrees with the president going forward. After a professional lifetime as a pundit, Snow is now becoming the face of an administration that has never welcomed public disagreement.

Bush and Bolten plan other changes in the days and weeks ahead to salvage the president's second term. Changing the face of the White House -- and bringing in an aggressive, media-savvy Washington fixture -- is one of the most visible moves an administration in trouble could make.