Five Questions 'This Week': Jake Tapper
This week we asked ABC News senior White House correspondent Jake Tapper - who is usually the one asking the questions - to answer five questions for us. Take a look at his answers below and let us know your thoughts in the comments. Remember, you can like "This Week" on Facebook here and follow the program on Twitter here.
1) So, you are senior White House correspondent for ABC News. Big job. How many hours a week do you work? Describe a typical day.
Tapper: There are no typical days on this beat - it could be quiet for a few days, and then insanely busy for a week - but I suppose a typical busy day would begin with me getting up at 5 a.m. for "Good Morning America." The spot will have already been written, tracked (the voice-over part) and cut the night before. I check in with sources and "GMA" to see if there's anything new. The "GMA" hit will usually be at the White House North Lawn some time between 7 a.m. and 7:15 ET. Then I go home and help my wife with the kids, take the kids to school, and head back to the White House by 9:30. I work at the White House all day reporting, preparing a spot for "World News with Diane Sawyer" and/or "Nightline," blogging, attending briefings, making phone calls, and such. If I have a "World News" spot, I'll head home after that.
2) OK, we all know you love Twitter, but your puppy, @WinstonTapper, has a Twitter account. Explain.
Tapper: One of my cats @WalterTapper has a Twitter account too, but you didn't ask about that, largely because of the anti-feline bias in the media, I suspect.
I got the puppy. People liked the puppy. Now the Tapper family can tweet pix of him to anyone who wants them. As of now, there are 714 great souls who follow Winston. This way, puppy photo addicts had a way to deal with their jones.
3) You are known to have a very sharp wit. Where does that come from?
Tapper: I suspect many folks, including my wife, would disagree with the suggestion that it's either "sharp" or "wit," but whatever sense of humor I have probably developed after my little brother was born. He and I spent an enormous amount of time trying to make each other laugh.
4) We know that you didn't love Aaron Sorkin's "The Newsroom," but what about "The American President?" It wasn't on a list of your favorite ten political films.
Tapper: Ugh. Sorry, I don't care for that film. It is stock full of clichés about politics. Let us now praise Mr. Sorkin for "SportsNight," "Moneyball," and the courtroom scene in "A Few Good Men."
4B) Did you watch "The West Wing?" Did you like it?
Tapper: I liked "West Wing," though I was never the rabid fan that, say, my brother was. My brother really wants Jimmy Smits to run for president, by the way.
5) Some say that Sen. John McCain picking Sarah Palin as his running-mate was a "game changer" in the 2008 presidential election. Is Mitt Romney selecting Rep. Paul Ryan a game changing move?
Tapper: Y es in the sense that it changes the discussion, at least in the short term, from one about jobs to one about the size and scope of government. No, as of now, in terms of the electoral math or key demographic groups.
Be sure to watch "This Week" Sunday when Jake will host the program.