Last month John McCain made widely ridiculed remarks about the security of taking a leisurely stroll in Baghdad:

“…there are neighborhoods in Baghdad where you and I could walk through those neighborhoods today.”

But during an interview on 60 Minutes, McCain displayed the mark of leadership for which he has become known by offering this explanation: He misspoke.

McCain courageously confronted his critics with the bold admission that his words meant nothing. But more than that, he revealed that this was not the first time, and he defiantly pledged that it would not be the last. Now, that’s what I call “straight talk.”

When in our nation’s history have we had a leader who could be so reliably confounding; whose mangling of language rendered communication so hopelessly irrelevant? If you’re like me, then you know the answer to that question. And you know that John McCain is the perfect candidate to revitalize the legacy of George W. Bush, America’s most proficient prevaricator.

When McCain tells you that he misspoke, you know that you don’t have to worry yourself with anything he has said. When he tells you that he has done it before, you know that he is a man of experience. When he tells you that he will misspeak in the future, you can rest assured that he is making a promise he intends to keep.

Vote for John McCain in 2008. He says things he might actually mean.