Two senior advisers for Barack Obama came to the rear of the press plane to brief reporters Tuesday — on background, meaning no quote attributable to anyone — about Obama’s one-on-one with King Abdullah and the subsequent dinner.

The press corps rebelled, demanding an on-the-record briefing since Obama is in the middle of a presidential campaign and that campaign must be held accountable for what it does and what Obama says about his meeting with world leaders.

The senior Obama advisers refused. One, a former high-ranking official in the Clinton White House, said the briefing had to be on background because “in all my years with the White House I never read-out a meeting on the record.”

Numerous reporters said Obama wasn’t the president and this isn’t a Whiter House trip.

Considering the massive interest in the trip, reporters are demanding basic levels of transparency.

The senior Obama staff refused to break the “on background” rules and no briefing occurred.

So, as yet, no on-the-record details about Obama’s meeting with Abdullah or the subsequent dinner with the King’s senior political, military and intelligence advisers.

Obama’s camp pledged “to revisit” the system of briefing reporters.

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