Latest RW Cop Out Defense: "I'm Not So Sure Those Are The Facts"

[stopbush]

I've been hearing this one a lot lately.

O'Really used it on Barney Frank the other night as Barney sat there and quoted Santorum directly from an AP story about the "sex with dogs" quote. "Well, that's an AP story. We all know how bad they are...they misquote me all the time. That's not a first-person quote so I don't know if it's true or not," sez O'Really.

Tucker Carlson is making a career out of that phrase. It's his SOP whenever he's presented with a verbatim quote. Of course, he is famous for the "some people say" or "Democrats say" or "Democrats are basically saying" unsubstantiated/putting words in their mouths quote to advance his position, yet he answers "I don't know if that's true" when presented with an actual quote or an actual reference to a published article.

I'm sure there's a RW talking point memo out there advancing this strategy.

[Mz Pip]

1. "Then what are you sure of?"

might be an appropriate response.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[barbaraann]

2. or "I disagree."

They say that about FACTS!!! And interviewers let them get away with it!!!

[gratuitous]

3. Default fallback position

You'll see it whenever these dimbulbs make the mistake of asking someone on their program who's actually prepared. "I'll have to check on that," "Well, that's what you're saying, but I don't have my own research at hand," or "Very interesting," followed by a total non sequitur.

Of course, prepared guests who make these ersatz know-it-alls look like the blow-dried fools they are don't get invited back, and the promised follow ups never quite get done or even mentioned again.

[zbdent]

4. When John Kerry said that Bush was quoted "I really don't care" (about

Osama bin Ladin) and Bush replied "I don't believe I ever said that!" - the video links to the March 2002 speeches/press conferences were pulled from the White House website. WITHIN MINUTES. They never pulled the transcripts, though. Of course, without the video (which I am sure all the "liberal" MSM outlets had a copy of), it made John Kerry look like a liar.

It wasn't until earlier THIS YEAR that they put the links back up.

Even with a video, and a sworn statement, Repukes would claim it was "Hollywood special effects" and forgeries . . .

[Dr Fate]

8. Instead they focused on kerry's TRUTHFUL statement about Cheney's daughter

n/t

[zbdent]

10. Despite the fact that she had OUTED herself long ago

and it was well-known in the media.

[Norquist Nemesis]

5. That's code for "I haven't read my talking points yet" n/t

[ComerPerro]

6. This has been a long time coming

It used to be that they would just should you down and insist that you shut up.

Then they started demanding proof for every single statement you make, like an overbearing professor demanding footnotes for every assertion.

Now, even solid proof isn't good enough. They started calling the source into question.

The truth and the facts just don't have any crediblity anymore.

[bribri16]

7. "It doesn't matter if YOU know it's true. It's true!" n/t

[leftofthedial]

9. the facts do seem to have an anti-Bush bias

to quote Steven Colbert, or was it Rob Corddry?

[PurityOfEssence]

11. Proper response: "well, I am. Those are facts, there's proof"

Don't let little rhetorical flourishes stop you. Then pursue them with a response to what have now been shown to be facts. After all, the person who started it admitted his/her ignorance by not being sure, you can quash that by being calmly certain.