Replies

And so, in making his case about how the Bushies made their case for killing thousands of people in Iraq, my TV foreign affairs colleague kept shifting the debate the way a desert wind shifts the sands. No, the White House never said the U.S. was in imminent danger of attack by nuke-yule-er weapons wielded by terrorists, he said.

Subj: Imminence Front

Ms. Zerbisias seems to be Canada's answer to Molly Ivins. I've engaged her in an e-mail exchange over the above quote, pointing out that the TV producer was 100% correct.

She disagreed, contending she was, at that moment, watching a videotape of him saying just that. When I asked for the specific cite and context, she responded with:

A script for PBS Frontline

Upon reading the entire script (composed of sound bites) I noted out that, in no statement, had President Bush claimed Iraq constituted an "imminent threat" to America (though Bill Clinton certainly had, back in 1998-9). She then changed her point of reference to the following phrase:

Pres. GEORGE W. BUSH: The Iraqi regime could launch a biological or chemical attack in as little as 45 minutes.

Which, I reminded her, had originally been cited by Tony Blair, come from British intelligence sources -- and, in context, had referred only to Iraq's neighbors.

I eagerly await Ms. Zerbisias' next riposte.

She apparently hung an entire column on one willful mischaracterization. And, of course, she won't give it up -- just like dear Molly.

Makes one wonder, though, if the DNC's talking points memos have international distribution...