Out of Both Sides of Her Mouth

In this piece, the Washington Times covers Claire McCaskill's hateful remark that the President let people die in New Orleans "because they were poor and because they were black."

What the Times doesn't point out is that the remarks were made in an atmosphere where there's reason for McCaskill to be concerned that she's in danger of losing some of the black vote.

But the Times does report McCaskill's damage control efforts -- which amount to arguing that she was merely acknowledging the sentiment of many Americans. Get it? It's not what she thinks, just what "many people" think.

It's noteworthy that she made the remarks to Pub Def Weekly, a nonpartisan political blog concentrating on the City of St. Louis, because the city is largely African-American. And so, coupled with McCaskill's explanation, it's hard to avoid the conclusion that Claire McCaskill is the kind of candidate who simply whispers to each constituency what she thinks it will want to hear . . . whether it's the rural voters in "Ashcroftland" or the African-American voters in the City of St. Louis. And she's not above a little race-baiting as she does it.