the "I meant to do that" defense

Steele on Limbaugh gaffe: ‘There is a logic behind it,’ ‘it’s all strategic.’

Earlier this month, RNC Chairman Michael Steele famously called Rush Limbaugh’s antics “incendiary” and “ugly,” resulting in a conservative backlash against the new GOP leader. Ultimately, Steele apologized to Limbaugh and has since cut back on his media appearances. Yesterday, however, in an interview with CNN’s Don Lemon, Steele said it was all part of his master plan:

STEELE: So if I do something, there’s a reason for it. Even, it may look like a mistake, a gaffe. There is a rationale, there’s a logic behind it. […]

Q: There’s a rationale behind Rush, all that stuff?

STEELE: Yup, yup. … I want to see what the landscape looks like. I want to see who yells the loudest. I wanted to know who says they’re with me but really isn’t. … It helps me understand my position on the chess board. It helps me understand, you know, where the enemy camp is and where those who are inside the tent are.

“It’s all strategic,” Steele claimed.
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Steele also left the door open to running for President in the future. “I would think about it. I have to have a very long conversation with the wife and kids,” he said.

(Think Progress)
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I really do hope that one of the repug front runners do run for president in 2012. Unless Obama starts eating kittens on live TV, he wouldn't even be touched by the likes of Steele, Palin, Jindal, etc.