Washington Sketch

Post columnist Dana Milbank, who serves as the capital's foremost critic of political theater in his Washington Sketch columns, took your questions and comments about the things politicians say -- and the absurd ways they find to say them.

The transcript follows.

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Dana Milbank: A Good Friday to everybody. This week we witnessed one of the greatest pieces of oratory in American history on the subject of race. I refer, of course, to Vice President Cheney's interview Wednesday with Martha Raddatz on ABC's Good Morning America, when the vice president demonstrated conclusively that he belongs to an alien race.

MS. RADDATZ: Two-thirds of Americans say it's not worth fighting, and they're looking at the value gain versus the cost in American lives, certainly, and Iraqi lives.

VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: So?

MS. RADDATZ: So -- you don't care what the American people think?

VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY: No, I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls. Think about what would have happened if Abraham Lincoln had paid attention to polls, if they had had polls during the Civil War. He never would have succeeded if he hadn't had a clear objective, a vision for where he wanted to go, and he was willing to withstand the slings and arrows of the political wars in order to get there.

In this one passage, Cheney was able to compare Bush and Iraq to Lincoln and the Civil War, refer to the president's support in the polls -- which ranges from about 32 percent to 34 percent -- as fluctuations, and respond to American public opinion with one word: "So?"

It is in this style that I will attempt to answer questions this morning. You disagree with my style? So?

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Alexandria, Va.: Okay, okay, will we ever know the identity of those individuals who illegally accessed Barack Obama's passport records? In January? In February? In March? Or would this violate their privacy? Will Condoleezza come to the Hill to testify on this topic, or would that violate her privacy? It seems to me that the Bush administration has an unhealthy interest in other people's private lives. Why this obsession?

washingtonpost.com: Two Fired for Viewing Obama Passport File (Post, March 21)

Dana Milbank: The administration's reaction to the passport-files breach last night was, in so many words, "so?"

I suspect it won't wash for this to be brushed off as a bit of harmless curiosity by low-level contractors. The administration did choose a fortuitous time to break the bad news -- while Congress was off on Easter recess and on the eve of a holiday weekend. But we're certain to hear about the launch of congressional investigations and/or demands for special prosecutors.

I haven't seen the names of the snoops yet, but my money is on Scooter Libby.

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Bethesda, Md.: Love your style, Dana, especially when you're on "Countdown." In your opinion, what quote best encapsulates Cheney's legacy? Personally, I'm torn between "we'll be greeted as liberators," "go (bleep) yourself" and "so?" I think I'm leaning toward the second.

Dana Milbank: All good choices, Bethesda, but I'm afraid you missed my very favorite: "They are in the final throes, if you will."

Or maybe they weren't in the final throes. So?

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Georgetown, Texas: My congressman, John Carter, has kept a low profile since his mentor, Tom DeLay, left the House. What kind of a reputation does he have around the Capitol's hallowed halls?

Dana Milbank: There's a congressman named John Carter?

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Washington: I used to seek out your byline because I treasured your witty and insightful observations. Now it seems your job is just to mock everything you touch. Doesn't this get a bit dull?

Dana Milbank: I understand how you feel, Sen. Reid, but who told you it would be a good idea to stage your own fireside chat on the 75th anniversary of FDR's first fireside chat? With logs burning in the fireplace, no less?

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washingtonpost.com: Video: Sen. Reid's Fireside Chat (washingtonpost.com, March 13)

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Silver Spring, Md.: You reported Hillary spokesperson Ann Lewis as saying that "the role of the president of the United States is to support the decisions that are made by the people of Israel." If Obama has to say his mea culpas because of things his pastor said, why isn't more attention being drawn to this? Why isn't Hillary asked to clarify if this is also her view?

washingtonpost.com: The Audacity of Chutzpah (Post, March 18)

Dana Milbank: Good question. This is another fine example of the Kinsley definition of a gaffe: accidentally speaking the truth. The remark played well in the room -- a meeting of Jewish leaders -- but might play less well in a general setting. I would point this out, but like everybody else in the media I am hopelessly biased towards Obama.

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Ramsey, N.J.: What will it take to get the press to cover John McCain's knowledge of global and domestic issues with distance and objectivity? Will he have to poison them at his next Sedona barbecue?

Dana Milbank: I have been too busy nursing my Obama bias to keep my McCain bias in good standing. While his Iran/al-Qaeda gaffe did manage to break into the news cycle this week, I suspect McCain will get something of a free ride while the Democrats do his work for him.

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Fleetwood, Pa.: While we have a tanking economy and unfair trade agreements along with a drawn-out war, is it a diversion to start a conversation about race at this point in the Democratic campaign? It seems divisive on Obama's part to carefully craft a speech that is now touted as spectacular and has people suggesting that he's the one to unite us. I've thought the discontent in our nation was more about the Bush administration than about any division of the races, and with today's news of his radio interview ("she's a typical white person") it seems he wants controversy rather then a discussion of his plans. What do you think?

washingtonpost.com: Obama on WIP: My grandmother's a "typical white person" (Philadelphia Daily News, March 20)

Dana Milbank: At least he didn't call her a "stereotypical white person." That presumably would require her to drive a pickup.

I doubt Obama wants to sustain the race controversy. It certainly had been the worst week of the campaign for him, at least until Florida and Michigan helped him out by denying revotes. Now, undoubtedly, he's relieved that we're talking about who snooped in his passport file.

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Overland Park, Kan.: So, did Obama offer Richardson the vice president's spot?

Dana Milbank: I'd be surprised if Richardson gave the endorsement for anything less than Secretary of State.

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Philadelphia: Can you please pass on major kudos to your co-worker E.J. Dionne Jr.? What a great article! Can I get your opinion on it? And can you please tell me why the TV morons like Joe Scarborough and Sean Hannity won't let this thing go, and insist on implying that Sen. Obama is the political equivalent of Rev. Wright? Guilt-by-association is a joke! I am an independent who likes the Clintons and John McCain, but I have leaped into Obama's corner because of all of this. The man speaks the truth about race, and displays leadership way beyond the comprehension of talking empty-heads on TV! P.S. -- I'm white, a grown-up, and I am not afraid of talking about bringing people of different races together!

washingtonpost.com: Another Angry Black Preacher (Post, March 21)

Dana Milbank: I agree with everything E.J. ever has said or ever will say about anything.

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Washington: Are you a typical white person? Am I?

Dana Milbank: There is nothing typical about you, Mr. Vice President. Even if 68 percent of Americans said you were typical, I would say to them: "So?"

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Burke, Va.: Mr. Milbank, first let me say that I love your columns and your commentary when you appear on MSNBC and elsewhere, but sometimes -- especially in your personal appearances on TV or in your video appearances at washingtonpost.com -- I get the feeling that you think the whole Washington scene is something of a sitcom. Are things really as ridiculous as you make them seem, or are you just trying to give us some laughs in an otherwise tragic nightmare?

Dana Milbank: Thanks, Burke. My day job is writing the Washington Sketch for the newspaper three or four times a week, and those tend to be (a bit) less flip than short videos or TV hits. But to the larger point, I think of the environment in the capital now as a tragic comedy (or is it a comic tragedy)? It would be funny if it weren't all the byproduct of a rotting power.

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The Will of the People: When the people of Israel speak, are we supposed to jump, or just say "so?"

Dana Milbank: There are fluctuations in public opinion on this topic.

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Washington: Speaking of "so?" why do the papers insist on making headline news of Richardson's endorsement? No one paid attention to him when he was running for president; do you really think his endorsement -- or most endorsements -- carry any weight with voters?

Dana Milbank: Endorsements other than Oprah's have very little importance, but I took this question because I thought your reference to Richardson's waistline (does his endorsement "carry any weight") was particularly clever.

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Baltimore: Why is it important for The Washington Post to tell us what kind of socks Ben Bernanke wears, or how tall Kucinich is?

washingtonpost.com: From the Fed Chairman, Red Flags and Brown Socks (Post, March 1, 2007)

Dana Milbank: You seem obsessed with hosiery, Baltimore. In the column of mine to which you refer, I raised skepticism about the Fed chairman's claims, almost exactly a year ago, that everything in the short-term economy was just fine, thanks.

He wasn't worried about drops in the stock markets; he expected moderate growth for the economy; he saw no liquidity problems in world markets; and of the subprime lending problems, he said: "We don't see it as being a broad financial concern."

Possibly his brown socks were an early indication that his forecasts could not be trusted.

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Washington: Yesterday you noted: "A study by the Project for Excellence in Journalism found that events in Iraq got 4 percent of the news media's attention last week -- compared with 23 percent for Eliot Spitzer's prostitute scandal." Clearly our troops need our support, and the support of our hookers. A USO tour, perhaps?

washingtonpost.com: An Antiwar Blockade Amid the Apathy Armada (Post, March 20)

Dana Milbank: Now that's the best idea I've heard all morning. Let's sign up Kristen, aka Ashley. In fact, we could broaden it to all sorts of people who need work, like those nosy State Department contractors, and Scooter Libby. Scooter would not have to undress, however.

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Washington: Is there a two-drink minimum if I want to read this chat? And are you the headliner, or just the warm-up guy for Jonathan Weisman's chat?

Dana Milbank: Weisman's the main act, starting in just seven minutes.

This was the best available time slot -- but I'm not seeing a lot of West Coast questions coming in. To which I say: "So?"

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Harrisburg, Pa.: I am enjoying this new reality show on C-SPAN, "Congress," and I find your book as a great guide to better understanding the characters. Yet, I have to admit -- I am not finding the characters believable. Maybe they should try new writers. There is no way that anyone ever would behave like that in real life.

Dana Milbank: Thank you, Harrisburg -- I was worried I'd get through a whole chat without a chance to plug my book, "Homo Politicus: The Strange and Scary Tribes that Run Our Government" (Doubleday, 2008). Available where fine books are sold -- proceeds benefit the Alberto Gonzales Legal Defense Fund.

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Arlington, Va.: I think you may be the child of the union of Michael Kinsley and Maureen Dowd -- the meticulousness of Kinsley with the, um, smarm, of Dowd.

Dana Milbank: Oh, to have Maureen's smarm and Mike's meticulousness! I am unworthy. But I guess if Bush can be likened to Lincoln, anything's possible. After all, opinion polls fluctuate.

Thanks to all eight of you for tuning in this morning. We'll chat again next week.

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