Thursday, February 01, 2007

Biden burned by 'clean' language

There is alot of hoopla surrounding Senator Biden's announcement that he is running for president.

Senator Biden on Barack Obama-

Mr. Biden is equally skeptical—albeit in a slightly more backhanded way—about Mr. Obama. “I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

What people are saying...

"I really regret that some have taken totally out of context my use of the word 'clean,' " Biden said in an afternoon call with reporters several hours after formally joining the Democratic field.

He said he did not mean to offend the Illinois senator or other African-Americans who have sought the presidency. Obama "understood exactly what I meant, and I have no doubt that Jesse Jackson and every other black leader, Al Sharpton and the rest, will know exactly what I meant," Biden said.

Obama replied in a written statement. "I didn't take Senator Biden's comments personally," the statement said, "but obviously they were historically inaccurate. African-American presidential candidates like Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton gave a voice to many important issues through their campaigns, and no one would call them inarticulate."

Late in the day, Biden released an apology. "I deeply regret any offense my remark in the New York Observer might have caused anyone. That was not my intent and I expressed that to Sen. Obama," he said.

Biden is a 34-year veteran of the Senate whose 1988 presidential candidacy ended amid allegations that he plagiarized portions of his speeches.

Others also criticized Biden's remarks. Biden "definitely misspoke and stepped on his announcement," said Donna Brazile, a Democratic strategist who ran Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign. Biden has a strong civil rights record, she said, but his comments "reflect some old-school thinking."

Jackson said he had called Biden to ask what he meant but had not yet spoken with him. Jackson sought the Democratic nomination in 1984 and 1988. He described Biden's comments as a "diversion from the substantive issues of our time" and said it could be interpreted as attempting to "diminish" the role of his campaigns in the 1980s or to cast Obama as "all style over substance."

Of course, it did not take long for the media to blame President Bush for this:

The dustup over Biden's remarks came the same day President Bush also described Obama as "articulate" in an interview on Fox News.

Asked what he thinks troops would feel about a President Obama, Bush said: " He's an attractive guy. He's articulate. I've been impressed with him when I've seen him in person, but he's got a long way to go to be president."

White House spokesman Tony Snow said, "It's silly to compare the comments. What the president said requires no apology or explanation. He issued a compliment — not in code, but in plain English."

Can you believe that?

The disease is called BDS(Bush Derangement Syndrome). The media is so chock full of the disease, BDS, that they have actually discovered a way to blame Bush for the words coming out of a Democrat's mouth.

Good Grief!!!

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