JIM ACOSTA: Yea, Brooke I wish we had some video or some audio from this briefing to share with you but the White House mandated that we are not allowed to cover the White House press secretary for the United States of America in that fashion. And so yes, when we're asking important questions about where are the tapes? Does the president have recordings of his conversations here at the White House? The White House is refusing to answer those questions on camera or in any kind of fashion where we can record the audio.
My guess is because they want their evasive answers not saved for posterity. That is the only conclusion one could draw. That when they give us answers, that it somehow reads better in print than it can be seen on television or heard over the radio. There were a number of important questions asked today about the health care bill that is being, I guess cobbled together in the Senate and what the White House has to say about that. You're not going to hear or see those answers. The question was asked whether the president has the ability to fire the special prosecutor, Robert Mueller, you're not going to be able to hear or see the answers to those questions. You're only be able to read about it.
And I guess people can say, well there goes the media again, they're acting like cry babies because they can't cover things the way they want. Maybe I'm old-fashioned Brooke, but I think the White House for the United States of America should have these questions answered on camera so we can see what they're saying. And when they don't do this they're doing a disservice to the people of this country. I don't want to sound like I'm getting on my soapbox here, but when Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, who is pretty highly paid for a government official in this country, comes in and just says you can't record the video or audio from these briefings, that wouldn't be tolerated at city council meetings or at a governor's press conference. Here we have the representative of the president of the United States saying, no, you can't cover it that way. I just don't know what we are doing.
It's not even like we're covering a White House anymore with Kellyanne Conway and Omarosa in the briefing room off to the side of Sean refusing to be on camera. It's like we are covering bad reality television is what it feels like.
