Just Kidding

Fox News reports that Madeleine Albright insists she was just kidding when she suggested the Bush administration is holding Usama bin Laden captive, and waiting to reveal it at the best political moment.

According to Fox, witnesses to Albright's comment said the ambassador did not appear to be joking when she suggested President Bush may reveal bin Laden's capture as an "October surprise" before next November's presidential election.

Albright was in the Fox News studio's green room waiting to appear on an evening program when she remarked:

Do you suppose that the Bush administration has Usama bin Laden hidden away somewhere and will bring him out before the election?

Fox News analyst and Roll Call executive editor Mort Kondracke said, "She was not smiling." Two makeup artists who prep the guests before their appearances also reported that Albright did not ask her question in a joking manner.

Of course, other than Fox, the mainstream media wouldn’t cover Albright’s delusionary comments. The blogosphere didn’t give Albright a free ride.

In “Conspiracy Dems II,” Matthew J. Stinson posted, “Kondracke prompted her to say that she was kidding, Albright's demeanor reportedly implied that she was serious.”

In “Someone call the Center for Disease Control! ,” Country Store broadened the story to include this madness from Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, (D-TX) who just got back from a junket to Syria:

Jackson Lee said she was so impressed with Syrian President Bashar Assad during her visit that she invited him to speak in Texas, even though his country is designated by the United States as a rogue state and a sponsor of terrorism.

"I'm sure someone will write a headline, `Congresswoman invites a terrorist'," Jackson Lee said. "But that's not what I'm trying to do."

Newsmax obliged Sheila - Congresswoman Invites a Terrorist. Sheila was previously famous for asking NASA whether the Mars Rover could drive over to the flag left by Neil Armstrong and complaining that the names of hurricanes weren't black enough.

UPDATE: Steven L. Taylor, reminds us in "Madame Albright" at Poliblog, that Mort Kondracke is not a right winger.

Scott W. Johnson, Big Trunk, in "The fantasy life of Madeleine Albright," reveals that the Republican National Committee is now on the Albright story.

Over at Blogs for Bush they wonder whether can you picture Colin Powell being this kooky?