Gibbs Hints At Reason Behind Clinton Mission – Before His “Blockbuster” Return

We know former Pres. Bill Clinton went to North Korea to help secure the return of Laura Ling and Euna Lee.

But the next question becomes: what did the U.S. give up, and did Clinton talk about nuclear weapons as well? During today’s White House briefing, press secretary Robert Gibbs addressed these questions, and indicated Clinton may have talked nukes.

Gibbs didn’t say outright, but speculated the conversation occurred:

I can only imagine that, given his history on this issue, that he would strongly encourage the North Koreans to set aside their renewed pursuit of a nuclear weapon, come back and live by the agreements that they’ve been party to before, and to encourage them to understand that the acquisition of those weapons is not going to bring international prestige, but further isolation.

When asked where the negotiations may have led as far as an agreement, Gibbs wouldn’t say: “I haven’t been party to any of those negotiations. I haven’t heard of anything.”

This is mostly what the media was already speculating, but to hear Gibbs give some form of tacit admission is a step toward more details emerging about what really went down in North Korea.

Meanwhile the New York Post writes about Clinton’s return to the U.S., calling it “staged” by a movie mogul and PR firm.

A key player in Clinton’s high-flying diplomatic mission to rescue Laura Ling and Euna Lee was entertainment mogul Steve Bing, a longtime “Friend of Bill” who lent the ex-president his private Boeing 737… Hollywood p.r. firm Rogers & Cowan, which represents Bing along with a bevy of A-list celebs, began organizing the arrival ceremony after it got word Tuesday morning — while Clinton was still on the ground in Pyongyang — to get ready, according to a Hollywood source. The firm chose as its venue Hangar 25 at Bob Hope International Airport in Burbank, a solar-powered facility that has hosted other press events.

Whoever handled it, they pulled it off very well. All broadcast networks covered the emotional return live.

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