Who ya gonna believe?

Pat Robertson or your lyin' ears?

"I didn't say 'assassination.' I said our special forces should 'take him out.' And 'take him out' can be a number of things, including kidnapping; there are a number of ways to take out a dictator from power besides killing him. I was misinterpreted ..."

Yes, Pat, you did say assassination. You were not misinterpreted. Everybody and his dog has heard the original tape by now.

"If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it," said Robertson on Monday's program. "It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war."

(See "Pat Robertson: Just Shut Up!" for more detail.)

Does this man have any advisers, or even close family members, who might be able to talk sense to him? As a Christian and as an American, the Oklahomilist finds himself embarrassed that Robertson continues to claim to speak for both God and Americans, and does neither very well.

UPDATE -- Somebody must've whispered in his ear. Later this afternoon Robertson apologized for his remarks, claimed he was upset over Chavez's recent remarks and behavior, and over-reacted. This time Robertson spoke only for himself. Naturally Chavez and the Venezuelan government are demanding that the aging 700 Club evangelist be arrested and prosecuted for unspecified criminal violations. As much as we disliked his remarks, we hope that the matter is allowed to drop. Trying to make Chavez happy would be counter-productive; it would only feed his meglomania. Plus, the last time we checked, the First Amendment allows for the utterances of stupidity, even if directed against foreign heads of state.