See if you can spot it:
Q The possible timing of this, just before the elections — some people might be skeptical of that?
MR. SNOW: Are you smoking rope? (Laughter.) Are you telling me that in Iraq, that they’re sitting around — (laughter) — I’m sorry, that the Iraqi judicial system is coming up with an October [sic} surprise?
Q November.
MR. SNOW: A November surprise? Man, that’s — wow.
Caught that? Let’s try again. Dick Cheney obviously endorses waterboarding, which everybody but Dick Cheney considers torture:
In an interview Tuesday with WDAY of Fargo, North Dakota, Cheney was asked if “a dunk in water is a no-brainer if it can save lives.”
The vice president replied, “Well, it’s a no-brainer for me, but for a while there I was criticized as being the vice president for torture. We don’t torture. That’s not what we’re involved in.”
Snow replies:
Tony Snow denied that Cheney had endorsed water boarding.
“You know as a matter of common sense that the vice president of the United States is not going to be talking about water boarding. Never would, never does, never will,” Snow said. “You think Dick Cheney’s going to slip up on something like this? No, come on.”
Now you have the basic workings of a Tony Snow script. Instead of answering an undeniable, obvious question, act like it’s the most ridiculous thing that you’ve ever heard. Who would believe that the president’s middle name starts with W? Ridiculous. Somebody must be huffing glue.
A while back I pointed out, via Joe Gandelman, that Tony Snow was the first wingnut press secretary. Looks like I didn’t know the half of it.