posted by Damozel | God, I wish Reid would pick his words with more care. Republicans are so damn touchy. His tendency to say just what he---along with many Americans---actually thinks has already brought "the world's dorkiest cheerleader" on us all.
Now he's been unkind to General Pace, thereby terrorizing the Secretary of Defense into dropping the nomination lest the Democrats blackball Pace and drag the whole Iraq war through the mire, causing the public to lose their childlike faith in staying the course. The worst part is Democrats trying to do the Republican spin-thing.
So did Reid call Pace "incompetent" as The Politico alleged? Well, yes, he did, though apparently he meant it in [Dame Edna voice] the kindest way[/Dame Edna voice], at least if you believe Bob Geiger:
What he said about Pace was not said in the spirit of throwing some rhetorical red meat to a bunch of liberal bloggers by gratuitously bashing General Pace -- which is certainly what one could infer from The Politicos "reporting" on this story....
Here's exactly what Reid said:"I guess the president, uh, he's gotten rid of Pace because he could not get him confirmed here in the Senate… Pace is also a yes-man for the president and I told him to his face, I laid it out to him last time he came to see me, I told him what an incompetent man I thought he was."
So, did Reid utter the word "incompetent" in the same sentence with General Pace's name on the conference call? Yes, he did.
But in the context in which it was said -- and based on Reid's tendency to speak like the straight-talking, former boxer that he is -- it all makes sense. And to those of us not looking for a Matt Drudge-worthy story, it hardly seemed remarkable. BobGeiger.com, The Politico Fails Journalism 100.
I wish he'd learn a little tact. They're such tender plants, Republicans and particularly the ones on the far right, or associated with, this Administration. Let's remember that before we start going all Limbaugh on their asses. As much as they can dish it out, they just can't take it. And they are a simple people: they can't possibly understand the distinction between announcing "I told him what an incompetent man I thought he was" and "What an incompetent man he is!"
Tim Grieve has the backstory at Salon. Salon, "What did Harry Reid really say?"
Or, to quote Wonkette (on a completely different topic): "Republicans: They’re like even stupider versions of Democrats, if you can imagine such a thing."
CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG????
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