Meaning and saying

This was predictable:

Cheney Softens Comments on Kerry and Terror Threat

Like we couldn't all see it coming from miles away.

I don't believe for a second that Dick Cheney didn't know exactly what he was saying. This is a political tactic that seems to be becoming more popular, and it works. You say something that plants a seed in people's minds (especially if it's a fear seed) and then come out and say later that, no, they were misquoted. It has two good effects: one, it allows candidates to essentially slander their opponents while also a) blaming the media for misquoting them and b) making anyone who was upset by the initial comment feel dumb for misunderstanding and two, it allows them to stretch out the point by making one issue and turning it into two stories: the initial comment and the clarification.

Since getting into office, I'll give every amount of credit to the Bush administration for realizing that, as Republicans, they can get away with stuff that makes the Democrats look like lying weasels. Cheney has now made front-page headlines twice, and both times, has made sure that undecided voters and all Republicans question whether they would *really* be safe with John Kerry in office. You've gotta hand it to them: they're clever.

It still seems a little risky, though. Doesn't it take only a slight bit of effort to piece together that Richard Clark resigned over the Bush Administration's poor handling of terrorism, and that it's possible that the cutbacks and lack of attention to issues of terrorism were partly to blame for the 9/11 attacks? Well, it does take a slight bit of effort, but that still seems more than a lot of people are willing to give it. No, it's true: we'll all die with Kerry at the helm. Better to know that you're not safe than wonder if you're not safe? I don't even know anymore...