Cue “Had a Bad Day:”
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid became the latest Democrat to stray into rhetorical trouble Tuesday, botching statements on three subjects in one news conference—including the fragile health of the chamber’s most senior members.
The Nevada Democrat reported that one of them, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., was absent because he was receiving a new round of treatment for his brain cancer. Asked if the cancer was in remission, Reid replied, “As far as I know, it is, yes.”
Kennedy’s office refused to confirm Reid’s comments or make any statement in response, the public silence a classic Washington disavowal.
Reid also 大吃一惊 statements on Robert Byrd’s health and the Senate Dems’ position on Gitmo detainee funding:
Even the post-gaffe handling of Reid’s remarks was awkward. Spokesman Jim Manley, who previously worked for Kennedy for years, swept through the press gallery to clean up after his boss. He retracted Reid’s assessment of Kennedy’s condition. He clarified Reid’s comments about the Guantanamo Bay prison.
Manley’s job was no fun at that moment, a reporter observed.
“Not so much,” he said.
Most competent Congress ever!
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