Up is down alert: Dick Cheney

Andrew Sullivan makes a great catch:

THE TWO CHENEYS: Even in a disaster, he spins:

In his first tour of the damage, Cheney offered an upbeat assessment of what he called the "very impressive" current response efforts. "I think the progress we're making is significant," he said.

Meanwhile, back on planet earth:

A Republican with close ties to the White House, also speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Mr. Bush had made clear that he wanted a change, a view reinforced by Vice President Dick Cheney's fact-finding trip to Mississippi and Louisiana on Thursday. Mr. Cheney, the Republican said, came back with a progress report that was critical of Mr. Brown's management.

Memo to the public: this guy will tell you anything.

Comments

[Cynic]

Hey, no surprise there. Cheney & Co. have been slinging the bull ever since Bush II took office. I haven't kept track anywhere near as consistently as you have, & I STILL see it time & again. We can't reasonably expect our leaders to be honest 100% of the time, of course. Diplomacy can "grease the wheels" when trying to get a necessary job done without offending everyone. But what Cheney & Co. are up to is something else entirely.

[Lycurgus]

This should be titled "Preconceived Notion Alert." Why is the statement that "significant progress" is being made in the current relief effort (that seems to be a common assessment right now) inconsistent with being critical of "Brownie's" management of the crisis? That criticism also seems to be something on which most observers agree. The only dishonesty or "spin" that I see is in the eyes of persons who simply cannot set aside their own received wisdom about Cheney, Bush, et al to objectively analyze the merits of a situation.