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Doolittle: My Wife Quit before I Fired Her
When we noted Rep. John Doolittle's (R-CA) conversion to ethical purity last week, we appended a loud "Sike!"* to note our skepticism.
But it didn't take long for Doolittle to take it back himself. In an interview with McClatchy newspapers Friday, he backtracked on his key reform: severing his campaign's and committee's financial relationship with his wife, who had been getting a 15% commission on funds raised.
Though Doolittle trumpeted the decision last week, now he says that she "dropped his congressional campaign as a client, rather than him firing her." And by the way, she'll still be doing fundraising for his political action committee; it just won't be in the form of a commission.
A brand new man.
*Note: Language purists are encouraged to read the comments to our last post before writing us an email on the spelling of "sike."
Comments (5)
corndog wrote on January 15, 2007 4:39 PM:The fundamental problem with your spelling of the word "psych/sike" has nothing to do with etymology, junior high illiteracy or any of that other gobbley gook everyone was arguing about.
The fundamental problem is that it is not a word meant to be written down. It is best - in fact really only works - in conversation. This is primarily because of the necessary comedic timing which is impossible to convey in writing. The speaker must wait until it appears that the listener is actually believing what has been said. And it is then that the "psych/sike" bomb is dropped, bringing both laughter and chagrin. Also important are inflection and volume, the former to increase embarrassment of the listener and the latter to announce the joke to as many as appropriate. Again, these are impossible to convey in writing.
(Furthermore, spelling it "sike" requires a reader to wonder what the hell that word is, then say it a couple of times before realizing that it is a phonetic version of the word. Spelling it "psych," whatever the legitimacy of the spelling, at least conveys immediately what the word's meaning is. And clarity should be the primary goal of any writing, particularly in journalism. So take that!)
Anonymous wrote on January 16, 2007 10:07 AM:Have no doubts that while Doolittle's wife won't be personally running the PAC, a friend, neighbor or relative will be -- and his wife will be a well paid "consultant."
scarshapedstar wrote on January 16, 2007 12:16 PM:I say, avoid the whole psych/sike quagmire and go with the Borat-style
"This congressman is ethical...
...
NOT!"
dump doolittle wrote on January 16, 2007 1:55 PM:Still, even though we can see through his fancy footwork for what it is (psych!), you have to admit this PR stuff is a new tactic for Doolittle. Given what Schwarzenegger has been able to pull off in CA, this could, unfortunately, work in his district. We can't wait for voters to remove him from office because if that was ever going to happen it was in this last election. We need both an indictment and conviction.
britney spears upskirt wrote on September 28, 2007 9:06 PM:britney spears upskirt