Politico's Ben Smith calls bullshit on desperate Obama camps flip-flop assertion...

[SaveElmer]

Flip-Flop?

Taegan Goddard calls it a "flip-flop," and Drudge suggests the same, of Hillary's attacking (and she went at him hard in the Quad City Times) Obama as "naive" for apparently promising he'd meet dictators when she said she would "begin diplomatic discussions" with the same countries.

I don't get the criticism. The question seemed to be about a personal meeting with the President -- you can see it above. That's how Clinton, Edwards, and most of the people I talked to seemed to take it. Obama's staff says he took it differently.

But the flip-flop claim equates "diplomatic discussions" with a face-to-face meeting, which doesn't make any sense.

UPDATE: Goddard seems to have withdrawn his original post.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0707/FlipFlop.html

[Alamom]

1. Thanks for the clarification information. eom.

[SoxFan]

2. Gee, the Politico is spinning for Hillary

Next thing you know, you'll tell me doctors like to play golf.

[Ethelk2044]

3. It is still up on Political Wire Website.

Politico may have pulled it. However, Political wire did not retract.


http://politicalwire.com/archives/2007/07/24/flip_flop_of_the_day.html

[Ethelk2044]

4. If you go look at Political Wire it is still up on their site

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2007/07/24/flip_flop_of_the_day.html

[killbotfactory]

5. "I would begin diplomatic discussions with those countries with whom we have differences" - Clinton

Notice the "I would" and not "my underlings would begin diplomatic discussions".

It's because when referring to the presidency "I" basically becomes shorthand for their administration.

It would be like saying "Bush didn't invade Iraq" because Bush didn't personally invade Iraq. Idiotic semantics.

Why do you expect people to swallow this horseshit?

[SaveElmer]

6. Absolutely pathetic...

Why is it that people who decry Hillary's supposed "lying" and "triangulation" can't criticize her without doing it themselves...

[killbotfactory]

7. I would begin diplomatic discussions with those who accuse Hillary

of "lying" and "triangulation".

[zulchzulu]

8. Politico.com - a Drudge mirror site...nice source...

Sheesh...

[Capn Sunshine]

9. Just as long as the mud's fresh

That's all that counts, eh?

[rinsd]

10. Speaking of Drudge, that is what TPM called the Obama campaign out as.

This hit, which came before Hillary's "naive" comment, is a bit of a Drudgy attack -- indeed, Drudge has for many hours now been flacking the same alleged contradiction the Obama people pushed this morning.

[Forkboy]

11. Because nothing says truth to me more than Drudge and Politico.

I'm gonna stand by that Manson comment I made earlier. ;)

[wyldwolf]

12. Good to see Taegan reconsidered.