Timing is Everything

I was going to call it a night, turn off the computer, and put the blog to bed on this election eve, but I just can't let this one go. It's that timing of the Saddam verdict and Tony Snow's feigned incredulousness to the idea that the White House had it politically timed that has me steamed. First the quote from the president's spokesman:

Snow dismissed the suggestion as "preposterous" and absurd. "Are you smoking rope?" he replied when a reporter asked about timing manipulation aboard Air Force One on Saturday. "Are you telling me that in Iraq, that they're sitting around -- I'm sorry, that the Iraqi judicial system is coming up with an October surprise?" Corrected on the date, he expressed incredulity, "A November surprise. Man, that's -- wow."

Pretty cut and dry, huh? Smoking rope, we are. I guess Mr. Snow didn't take this into account as he practiced his acting skills.

The full verdict, a document of several hundred pages, explaining how and why today's judgment was reached was not released. U.S. officials said it should be ready by Thursday. So why issue the verdict today? U.S. court advisors told reporters today it was delayed mainly for technical reasons.

The verdict wasn't ready, yet they went ahead with the announcement anyway. Preposterous, absurd, high on rope, well, this rope-fiend thinks a follow-up question is in order for Mr. Incredulity Snow.