What Happened

What Happened

Scott McClellan

PublicAffairs

As press secretary, I spent countless hours defending the administration from the podium in the White Housft®iefing room. Although the things I said then were sincere, I have since come to realize that some of them were badly misguided. In these pages, I’ve tried to corner to grips with some of the truths that life inside the White House bubble obscured....

History appears poisedl to confirm|what most Americans today have decided—. that the decision to invade Iraq was a serious strategic blunder. No one, including me, can know with absolute certainty how the war will be viewed decades from now when we can more fully understand its impact. What I do know is that war should only be waged when necessary, arid the Iraq War was not. Waging an unnecessary war is a grave mistake. But in reflecting on all that happened during the Bush administration, I’ve come to believe that an even more fundamental mistake was made—a decision to turn away from candor and honesty when those qualities were most needed...

Scott Mcclellan served as White House Press Secretary from 2003 to 2006. Before that he served as the Principal Deputy White House Press Secretary and as traveling press secretary for the Bush-Cheney 2000 campaign. Earlier in his career, McClellan served as deputy communications director in the Texas governor’s office, a top legislative aide, and campaign manager for three successful statewide campaigns. Born in Austin, Texas, he graduated from the University of Texas and now lives near Washington, D.C. with his wife, Jill.