In case you missed Monday’s episode of The Daily Show, which brought this to my attention…
Blitzer: So the bottom line, is the world safer today as a result of the removal, the invasion of Iraq, or is the world less safe?
Musharraf: Oh, I think it’s less safe, certainly. We are…
Blitzer: So it was a mistake for President Bush to order this invasion, with hindsight?
Musharraf: Yes, with hindsight, yes. We have landed ourselves in more problems, yes.
The same program, a few minutes later:
Blitzer: Shortly after the interview, a Pakistani government spokesman told me General Musharraf didn’t want to be that categorical in his assertion that President Bush had made a mistake by invading Iraq.
Right, never mind what the president of Pakistan actually says in response to direction questions about Bush’s policies; the important thing to remember is what an anonymous Pakistani official, who had probably just hung up the phone with Karl Rove, believes his president meant in response to those questions. Good of them to clear this up for us.