Reps claim confusion by Dem ire then CRANK it up a notch

White House communications Director, Dan Bartlett, is puzzled why Democrats are "throwing up such a huff" when Karl Rove was very specific in his speech last week that stated the liberal response to the the 9/11 attacks was "to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers."

"It's somewhat puzzling why all these Democrats ... who responded forcefully after 9-11, who voted to support President Bush's pursuit of the war on terror, are now rallying to the defense of Moveon.org, this liberal organization who put out a petition in the days after 9-11 and said that we ought not use military force in responding to 9-11," Bartlett said on NBC on Friday. "That is who Karl Rove cited in that speech ... There is no need to apologize."

The official WH and Republican party stance is that there is no partisanship or slander in Rove's statement (or in any other criticism of liberals by the party and administration) but that he was simply pointing out that there is a philosphical difference of opinions between the President who wanted to take "the fight to the enemy" [by planning an invasion of Iraq despite the lack of evidence implicating Saddam Hussein in the attack] and Democrats "who questioned that approach".

Meanwhile, at the College Republican National Convention (CRNC aka the "crank") in DC this week-end, was kicked off by Tom DeLay worthy of an elder statesman educating political neophytes in avoiding bitter partishanship and political gridlock:

"The trend isn't just about liberal rhetoric, it's about a disturbing liberal psychology," DeLay said. "A bizarre, knee-jerk reflex to assume the world's worst problems are America's fault."

DeLay also defended White House adviser Karl Rove, who came under fire for a New York speech he made Wednesday in which he accused "liberals" of wanting to "offer therapy and understanding for our attackers" after the Sept. 11, 2001, strikes.

DeLay said: "That is not slander, that is the truth."

The Crank, which is seen as the source for the next generation of Republican leaders has gotten a head-start in learning about ethics and fundraising; early reports indicate that a portion of the money raised was "received from elderly donors who were pursued with misleading appeals."

Tags: republican; politics; Rove; DeLay

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