Republican Umbrage Resurfaces

General Wesley Clark: He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee. And he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn't held executive responsibility. That large squadron in the Navy that he commanded — that wasn't a wartime squadron. He hasn't been there and ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn't seen what it's like when diplomats come in and say, "I don't know whether we're going to be able to get this point through or not, do you want to take the risk, what about your reputation, how do we handle this publicly?" He hasn't made those calls, Bob.

Bob Schieffer: Can I just interrupt you? I have to say, Barack Obama hasn't had any of these experiences either, nor has he ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down.

Clark: I don’t think getting in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to become president.

So there's that. The McCain campaign's response:

Campaign Manager Rick Davis: Sending Wesley Clark out as a surrogate for your campaign and attacking John McCain and his war record and his military experience and his service is, I think, just the lowest form of politics.

I would love to hear, from Davis, McCain, or anyone else on the campaign team, exactly which part of Clark's statement was untrue, unfair, or an attack. Pointing out that spending time in a POW camp does not equate to executive experience is like saying that going to kindergarten isn't the same as playing wide receiver on a professional football team; it is offensive only in that it is so blatantly obvious, it should never need to be said.