ad Absurdam: the non-attributable comments thing is getting totally out of hand. courtesy of Michael Hiltzik, the new LAT blogger, via howard kurtz
Going Positive: "'Determined to paint their own fair and balanced portrait of Sam Alito before the nasty Democrats could flash a distorted image of the man before the nation, three Justice Dept. officials briefed Washington reporters about his record on Thursday. Here's a transcript of this curious session:
'The three officials insisted on being identified as 'Senior Department of Justice Official One,' 'Senior Department of Justice Official Two,' and 'Senior Department of Justice Official Three.' One assumes they chose these monikers to preserve their dignity, since they might just as easily have been identified as 'Winken,' 'Blinken,' and 'Nod,' or 'Moe,' 'Larry,' and 'Curly,' or, for that matter, 'Gonzales,' 'Clement,' and 'McCallum.' The two DOJ flacks who managed the session (I assume they were flacks) are identified as 'moderator' and 'staffer.' Interestingly, they insisted that the reporters asking questions identify themselves by name and employer. These IDs show up on the transcript unenshrouded by euphemisms such as 'Senior Washington Correspondent One.'
'The Washington reflex to put everything off the record continues to amaze. Why these officials required anonymity to peddle their anodyne praise for the nominee's sagacity and integrity is anyone's guess. For a flavor of what they said, here's one of the more controversial statements:
'If you read Judge Alito's opinions and there are hundreds of them, they show that he's a mainstream, principled, and very careful, thorough Judge. If you look at his opinions, you'll see in every one a very thorough analysis and a very careful and meticulous application of Supreme Court precedent.
'Now it can be told: This was uttered by Senior Department of Justice Offici"