[FastCoyote]

"Trying to figure out exactly what she is saying is like wading through mud."

I bet she feels the same way. When I see the same phrase doubled in sentences (whether it is Harriet Miers or the kid next door), I immediately suspect systemic sloppy thinking. One is tempted to see an image of "The girl who was supposed to be bright". Harriet hides the fact that she isn't, by mirror imaging her sentences so they look complex but in fact contain piffle. Sorry to be mean, but that's what I see.

[Cicero]

I agree. I have no problem with simple sentences as such. In fact, a good style is a speaking style. I always enjoy reading my friend Denis Donoghue's books because he has that Irish gift of writing, so you seem to hear him speak. The same is true of Norman Podhoretz when he is at the top of his game. Or to take the instance of another writer who is popular here, there's Mark Steyn. I've never heard Steyn speak, but when I read his columns I seem to hear his voice.

[USAConstitution]

Harriet hides the fact that she isn't (intelligent), by mirror imaging her sentences so they look complex but in fact contain piffle. Sorry to be mean, but that's what I see.

The truth can be ugly, but it ain't mean...

[griffin]

i think i railed against you...and surely others while i was pro-miers.

please accept my apology!

What a friggin' commie, social engineering child sacrificer she turns out to be!

[ducdriver]

This is how I wrote in college, when I didn't have any idea what I was talking about. We called it "BS". Was sometimes good for a "B" if you were lucky.

[ridge]

I agree with her thought processing. I wonder how Harriet did on the LSAT. Assuming it was similar to the present format, the logic games and reasoning must have hammered her.

On one level, her style seems overly complex. It's like she's trying to write/talk like Buckley, and she can't pull it off 'cause her grammar is so bad.

On the other level, she can't seem to reason properly. It's mind-boggling to assume someone has spent a life time communicating with high-caliber professions, and she has not begun to mimic the same relative standard of written and spoken expression of thought. At her level she could hire someone to teach her clarity, style and grace.