The Gaffe Patrol

"And here was Gloria Borger on CNN, responding to Wolf Blitzer's assertion that Obama seemed to be on top of his game by pulling out the Straight Talk talking points (and leaving logic and rational thinking in a pile on the studio floor): ' . . . as the McCain campaign points out, he can't appear to be seen as running for the president of Europe. He's going to be really cheered in Europe, he's going to give a huge speech. He's going to have a lot of support there. But he's running for the president of the United States. And so they have to walk a very, very fine line here because they don't want to be seen having too many adoring people after him in Europe because he's running for president of the United States.'

"What do Borger and the McCain campaign think would play better in Missouri, Obama getting off the plane in Germany and having the locals throw tomatoes at him? Would that endear him to the people in Middle America -- who, in McCain World, are like an insecure girlfriend, panicked by just the thought of someone else finding their guy attractive?"

Joe Klein weighs in on the NYT-McCain op-ed brouhaha:

"I suppose that McCain's stubborn brittleness on this subject isn't news. But his inability to respond to a major change in policy from our Iraqi allies--the announcement that they can take it from here--certainly is newsworthy. There are three possibilities:

"--McCain doesn't believe the Iraqis can take it from here. (In the most benign reading, he may see this new position as mere domestic political posturing on Maliki's part, which is no doubt part of the truth.)

"--McCain doesn't want the Iraqis to take it from here. He still wants long-term, 100 year, military bases.

"--McCain doesn't move very quickly to adapt to changing facts on the ground.

"None of them speak very well of the guy."

The Washington Post's 12-part series on the murder of Chandra Levy is evidence of racism--or so says a Post reporter.

The Netroots Nation convention in Texas last weekend led to a big blunder by the Austin American-Statesman, as Editor & Publisher reports:

When feature writer Patrick Beach "referred to the crowd as 'marauding liberals' I knew it was not to be taken literally. But then we got this: "-- The audience nearly staged a 'faint-in' when Gore appeared (note use of '60s term).

"-- Pelosi is so far left her title should include '(D-Beijing).' This would come as a surprise to many in the crowd who have criticized her timidity -- and posed hostile questions in the Q & A. . . .

"-- Paul Krugman, as if to 'galvanize stereotypes,' wore Birkenstocks -- but Beach throughout the article clearly needed no help in having his own stereotypes galvanized. "-- It's shooting fish in a barrel 'to paint liberals as overly intellectual types incapable of having fun unless reading Noam Chomsky counts, and its sure does for them.' "

The American-Statesman has now yanked the piece online and run this editor's note:

"Our front-page story Sunday about the Netroots Nation convention included doses of irony and exaggeration . . . For many readers, we failed. In trying for a humorous take on the Netroots phenomenon without labeling it something other than a straightforward news story, we compromised our standards."

Ouch. I'm sure the congresswoman from Beijing appreciates it.

Katie Couric, in Tel Aviv to interview Obama, talks about her CBS tenure with Haaretz (via Politico):

"I find myself in the last bastion of male dominance, and realizing what Hillary Clinton might have realized not long ago: that sexism in the American society is more common than racism, and certainly more acceptable or forgivable. In any case, I think my post and Hillary's race are important steps in the right direction."

I wonder if Katie and Hillary have talked about this.