New Concepts in Spin

So far, I have resisted commenting on the report of the Iraq Study
Group.  But this is too good to pass up.  From href="http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2006/12/nothing_can_mat.html">DeLong,
who got it from href="http://myalteregospeaks.blogspot.com/2006/12/s-r-t.html">Alter
Ego, comes a precious quote from a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/12/20061207-1.html">Presidential
press conference:

Q Mr. President, the Iraq Study Group said that
leaders must be candid and forthright with people. So let me test that.
Are you capable of admitting your failures in the past, and perhaps
much more importantly, are you capable of changing course, perhaps in
the next few weeks?



PRESIDENT BUSH: I think you're probably going to have to pay attention
to my speech coming up here when I get all the recommendations in, and
you can answer that question, yourself. I do know that we have not
succeeded as fast as we wanted to succeed. I do understand that
progress is not as rapid as I had hoped...



You wanted frankness -- I thought we would succeed quicker than we did,
and I am disappointed by the pace of success...

"We have not succeeded as fast as we wanted to succeed."
 Brilliant.



So what are the possibilities?

• I understand that our influence in Congress was not
  increased as much as we were counting on, in the midterm
  elections.
• Victims of Katrina are still struggling.  I see
  that.  And I know that we are doing a heck of a job much
  more slowly than we planned.
• I know I said "bring it on."  I just hoped they
  would bring on less than they did, and not
  as fast as they did.
• When I said "Mission Accomplished," I meant that it would
  be accomplished fairly soon.
   And it is not happening as soon I thought
  it would.
• I'm a uniter, not a divider, but the rate at which the
  country is uniting is not yet above zero.
• Look, the economy is improving.  The fact the
  foreclosures, homelessness, and childhood poverty are up, simply means
  that progress is being made, but in the wrong direction.

I'm sure some of you can come up with better ones.