Molly Ivins Demotes a Duke
Beginning this month, I will try to take note of any time one of our 20 pundits makes a correction, so here’s the first one. Molly Ivins inflated Randy “Duke” Cunningham’s importance in a column last month:
The amusing case of the congressman whose house was bought by the founder of a defense firm for $700,000 more than it was worth is being exceptionally well-reported by the congressman’s hometown paper, the San Diego Union-Tribune. You will not be amazed to learn the congressman in question (Randy Cunningham) oversees the committee that grants contracts to that very defense firm.
Ms. Ivins issued a correction yesterday, now calling him “obscure”:
True, Duke Cunningham is merely an obscure Republican from San Diego (Crow Eaten Here: In a recent column, I said Cunningham was in charge of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, whereas actually he is only a member thereof… apologies. He is also on the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.) On the other hand, the whole tale is so… so prototypical, so archetypal, so (even though I keep promising not to use the word) paradigmatic.
