One of the questions President Obama fielded at this morning's White House press conference concerned the treatment of Pfc. Bradley Manning, the alleged Wikileaks leaker who's being held, and many would say abused, in military custody. ABC News' Jake Tapper, namely, asked Obama about chief State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley's candid claim that Manning is being "mistreated" in a way that's "ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid."

Tapper couldn't get the president to say anything about Crowley or his future employment prospects, but Obama did offer this most general of comments about Manning's situation: "I have asked the Pentagon whether or not the the procedures that have been taken in terms of his condition are appropriate and are meeting our basic standards. They assure me that they are." That settles it, then. Obama asked the Pentagon if it was doing anything wrong, and the Pentagon said no.