McCain Redefines 'The Surge'

Yesterday, Sen. John McCain took pains to redefine the meaning of what he means when he says "The Surge." In effect, McCain had made a silly gaffe when he declared that our infusion of troops into Iraq back in early 2007 facilitated the Sunni Awakening, which, as many were quick to point out, actually happened months before. As Political Machine's Dave reported earlier, candidates make mistakes on the campaign trail. But rather than correct the record and wipe the egg off his face, McCain decided to take another approach. Since historical revisionism could be easily exposed by even the most novice fact-checker, McCain decided to go after the English language itself.

In order to make it seem like he never made a gaffe in the first place, McCain employed some Clintonian linguistic deconstruction. You see, McCain didn't misspeak, it just depends on what the meaning of the word "surge" is. I have my problems with Keith Olbermann and his overly-dramatic impersonation of Edward R. Murrow, but on this story, he pretty much nailed why McCain's re-explanation of the surge is going to get him into much more trouble than if he'd simply admitted an error.



Of course, "the Surge" is the best card in McCain's hand, so he knows he can't afford to watch it be buried. Why on earth, then, does he insist on tossing more dirt upon it? Pretty soon, his chances of winning this election will be dead and buried.