Monday, May 21, 2007
Jimmy who?
Count on one of two things happening when former President Jimmy Carter makes the headlines; either he’ll look like a buffoon now, or he’ll look like one later. His current brush with the spotlight pretty much fits in the former category.
On Saturday, Carter was quoted in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette as saying "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history."
It’s not that Carter was ever good at thinking; it’s just that he now speaks quite a bit more without the benefit of same. So when he realized the nature of his remarks, he immediately went into semi-retreat/kill the messenger mode, saying that he was "careless or misinterpreted" (in itself a wonder of an excuse, but one foray into delirium at a time, please).
The paper stands by its account, so Carter has framed the issue as a ‘Who do you trust, me or the media?’ sort of thing. Very catch-22.
Regardless of whom you choose as whipping boy, Carter or the paper, one bright spot of agreement has emerged. White House spokesman Tony Fratto called Carter "increasingly irrelevant." Carter responded “"Well, I don't claim to have any relevancy.”
