PERINO’S POOR PERSPICACITY…. It’s best not to expect much from Dana Perino’s appearances on Fox News. The former Bush White House press secretary tends to make largely forgettable comments, representing a generic and uninteresting partisan Republican perspective.
But Perino’s appearance last night with Sean Hannity was more noteworthy than most. The topic was the shootings at Fort Hood, and Perino, playing her usual role, criticized the White House for not having labeled the massacre as “terrorism.” She emphasized that the rhetorical description of the violence “matters,” though she didn’t say why.
More important, though, is what Perino went on to argue: “We did not have a terrorist attack on our country during President Bush’s term. I hope they’re not looking at this politically. I do think that we owe it to the American people to call it what it is.”
It wouldn’t be the first time Perino said something puzzling, but in this case, it’s not even clear what she was going for.
George W. Bush served for eight years, and during his tenure the United States suffered its most devastating terrorist attack ever. Soon after, there were the anthrax attacks against Americans. Depending on how one chooses to define the word “terrorism,” it’s also worth remembering the countless attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“We did not have a terrorist attack on our country during President Bush’s term.” Someone’s going to have to explain this one to me.
