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Wednesday, December 20, 2006

One More Time

By Ken Herman | Wednesday, December 20, 2006, 06:43 PM

mark_mckinnon.jpg President Bush, again, has nominated Mark McKinnon of Austin, his longtime media adviser, to the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

This time, in an effort to actually get McKinnon on the board, Bush today used the recess appointment process to bypass Senate confirmation. A 2005 attempt to get McKinnon on the board went nowhere due to Senate crossfire over appointees to the panel.

McKinnon says all appointments to the board got caught up in “issues that go back years.”

“Nothing to do with me,” he says. One of the obstacles, however, was that Bush had picked McKinnon for a Democratic seat on the board. When Senate Democrats objected, Bush did did some juggling and named McKinnon to a GOP seat, but there never was a confirmation hearing.

The board oversees the federal government’s non-military, international broadcast operations. That includes the Voice of America and operations that target Middle Eastern, Cuban and Asian audiences.

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Enter Country. Open Wallet.

By Ken Herman | Wednesday, December 20, 2006, 11:34 AM

ridge.jpg Former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, whose job was to keep bad guys out of the U.S. of A., has signed on with a group intent on making sure that good guys - and their tourism dollars - can get into the country.

The Discover America Partnership announced today that it has “partnered” with Ridge “to evaluate the U.S. entry process and propose strategies for striking a better balance between secure borders and open doors.”

“We must restore America as a desired destination among international business and leisure travelers,” said Steve Porter, the group’s chairman.

Porter also is president of the InterContinental Hotels Group. Committee members include officials from many segments of the travel industry, including Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Anheuser-Busch and the National Restaurant Association.

A recent survey done for the Discover America Partnership found that many foreign visitors to the U.S. are deterred by the visa process and, in the partnership’s words, “how visitors are treated at points of entry.”

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Phone Warning

By Ken Herman | Wednesday, December 20, 2006, 11:18 AM

treatyroom.jpg One White House aide has found a new way forward in the ongoing battle to prevent cell phones from ringing during a presidential news conference.

In addition to the usual formal warning, today’s admonitions included this reverse-psychology approach from press aide Kimmie Lipscomb.

“Turn them on to loud rap music please,” she said.

Mission accomplished. Not a single jingle during President Bush’s news conference today.

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