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June 17, 2005
Durbin: I'm Sorry You Didn't Comprehend My Genius

Under fire for his remarks comparing humiliation techniques for interrogations at Gitmo to the atrocities of Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union's gulags, and the Khmer Rouge's killing fields, Senator Dick Durbin has finally attempted to calm the waters with a statement of "regret":

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Friday that he regretted any misunderstandings caused by his comments earlier this week comparing American interrogators at Guantanamo Bay to Nazis. The White House, Senate Republicans and others had called for an apology after Durbin's comments Tuesday. ...

On Friday, Durbin tried to clarify the issue. "My statement in the Senate was critical of the policies of this Administration, which add to the risk our soldiers face," he said in a statement released Friday afternoon. "I have learned from my statement that historical parallels can be misused and misunderstood. I sincerely regret if what I said caused anyone to misunderstand my true feelings: Our soldiers around the world and their families at home deserve our respect, admiration and total support."

This, of course, is the classic example of the non-apology apology. Note that he doesn't retract a word of what he said. He says that he regrets if others misunderstood his "true feelings", not that what he said was wrong and historically inept. Basically, this is the translation one is meant to hear:

I'm sorry you were too stupid to understand me.

If this is the best that Durbin can do after comparing the men and women of our armed forces to Nazis and Stalin's goons, as well as comparing Islamofascist terrorists to Japanese-American victims of WWII detention centers, then he's a bigger idiot than I thought.

UPDATE: Hugh Hewitt notes that he specifically told a Chicago radio audience that he had "no regrets" this morning:

Q. No regrets on the statements you made?

Durbin: No, I don't, and I'll tell you why. I went to the floor and read a memo from the FBI. This isn't something I made up.

No, unfortunately the Democrats have been spouting the military=Nazis line for decades (and Bush=Hitler since 2001). Durbin didn't make it up.

Sphere It Digg! View blog reactions
Posted by Ed Morrissey at June 17, 2005 6:22 PM

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