Thursdays with Wolfie: Smallest Violin Edition
Cablenewser has a PDF of Paul Wolfowitz's letter to the journalists covering Iraq in response to complaints about his statement last Tuesday that media coverage in Iraq was flawed because, "Frankly, part of our problem is a lot of the press are afraid to travel very much, so they sit in Baghdad and they publish rumors." Since it might be hard to cut through Wolfowitz's language -- well, we understand it so you don't have to.
Wolfie saysWolfie meansI know that many journalists continue to go out each day. . . to bring us coverage of the war.It's not like I'm the President.I knew personally three journalists who died near the war's beginning.They all start to blur together after that.I have visited in the hospital with journalists who have been grievously wounded. Journalists who were with me. . . were almost killed in a terrorist attack.This is pretty much the extent of my combat experience. I work at the Pentagon. I really have no excuse for calling them cowards, do I?[On Tuesday], I remarked on the difficulty of covering the war, given the dangerous circumstances journalists. . . face.Maybe if I don't repeat the thing I'm apologizing for, no one will notice what an asshole I was.Unfortunately, in meaning to convey my frustration about the erroneous coverage of one particular story. . .Maybe if I don't mention what story it was, no one will notice what a fucking disaster this war has been.. . . the statement came out much differently than I intended.I meant to just bitch to Cheney about it.And while I know most reporters understand better than most that sometimes the best of intentions and the most elaborate of preparations can’t prevent error, that doesn’t for a moment change the seriousness of my mistake or the deep regret I feel that I did not instantly correct the record.Sure, I'm apologizing, but you people should have known better than to blame me in the first place.I understand well the enormous dangers that you face, and want to restate my admiration for your professionalism, dedication, and, yes, courage.[Sound of gritting teeth.]I pray that you all return safely.I pray that you stop covering the war entirely.
This is such utter bullshit.
Wolfowitz Apologizes To Journos Covering Iraq [Cablenewser]
Wolfowitz Says Media 'Afraid' in Iraq, Resulting in Rumors [E&P]