Snow is back on the podium

WASHINGTON — When last on the White House press room podium, Tony Snow challenged congressional Democrats to deliver to President Bush the money he wanted to pay for the Iraq war, without putting any limits on troop deployment.

That was five weeks ago, on March 23, before he had surgery that found that his colon cancer had returned and spread to his liver.

On Monday, the White House press secretary returned to his lectern, engaged in a five-minute emotional welcome and went to work.

Why hasn’t Congress sent the White House the Iraq funding legislation that was completed Thursday? he asked.

“They passed it five days ago. It’s a pretty simple procedure. In fact, I could walk down and pick it up today,” Snow said, plunging into the daily give-and-take.

Despite the surgery, Snow looked every bit the broadcaster he once was: hair parted sharply high on the left side, red tie with yellow and blue tulips knotted perfectly against his blue shirt. He was ready.

He began the day on early-morning television. He hit four networks, and spent five minutes on camera at the start of his normally off-camera morning briefing, which turned into a 30-minute question-and-answer session.

“Where ya been?” a reporter called out.

“Just hanging out,” Snow responded.

But his effort at nonchalance failed almost from the start.

Snow, 51, has lived in the disease’s shadow throughout his adult life; his mother died of colon cancer when he was 17, and he was treated for it in 2005. When he tries to rein in his emotions to talk about it, he is often unsuccessful. Such was the case Monday.

After announcing the president’s schedule for the day, he turned to his battle with cancer.

“I’ll try not to get choked up, so I’ll go slow.”

With that, he paused for 10 seconds, offered his thanks for the good wishes he had received, said, “You guys,” paused again, gave two thumbs up, and tried again.

“I’m getting there,” he said.

“Anybody who does not believe that thoughts and prayers make a difference, they’re just wrong,” Snow said.

The spokesman said he would start chemotherapy on Friday designed to put his cancer “into remission and transform it into a chronic disease.”

“If cancer is merely a nuisance for a long period of time, that’s fine with me,” Snow said.

He said he would be given “two agents that were not in broad use two years ago. Things are moving very rapidly, and there’s always hope.”

Then, with cameras shutting down, he turned to the briefing.

It wasn’t long before a reporter asked, “Tony, are we winning the war?”

“Welcome back,” another reporter called out.

“Yes, exactly,” Snow said. “Welcome back.”

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