It should be no surprise that President Bush prompted controversy with his (unfortunate, I think) comment that the violence in Iraq will be seen to be “just a comma” in the global war on terror. What is surprising is that some critics see the comment as “code language” designed to appeal to evangelical Christians.
“Critics of Bush began e-mailing and blogging about the remark within minutes of the CNN interview. The Carpetbagger Report blog called it stunning ‘even by Bush’s already-low standards’ and added: ‘Everything we’re seeing is “just a comma.” I’m sure that will bring comfort to the families of those who have sacrificed so much for Bush’s mistakes.’
“Then Ian Welsh, on his Agonist blog, postulated a theory about the hidden meaning of the comment, citing the ‘never put a period’ saying and calling it a ‘dog whistle’ comment that only some would understand: ‘He is constantly littering his speeches with code words and phrases meant for the religious right. Other people don’t hear them, but they do, and most of the time it allows Bush both to say what those who aren’t evangelical or born again want to hear, while still reassuring the religious right [what it] wants to hear.'”
However, the Post goes on to report, accurately, that if the “comma” comment is part of President Bush’s religious right strategy, he should try again:
“But it turns out that the phrase ‘never put a period’ originated not with a Christian conservative figure or biblical passage but with Gracie Allen, the comedienne wife of George Burns. And the phrase is a favorite not of the religious right but of the religious left. The United Church of Christ, which is devoted to fighting for what it calls social justice and opposes the war, adopted the phrase in January 2002.
“‘I needed something short and succinct,’ said Ron Buford, the marketing director who came up with it. ‘When I saw the Gracie Allen quote, I was up all night thinking about it — God is still speaking, there’s more for us to know.'”
But wait. Perhaps the conspiracy theorists are right. Maybe President Bush is giving secret code messages to the religious left. Maybe this is designed to wake up the powerful voting bloc of United Church of Christ voters? Could it be an appeal to Jim Wallis not to give up on the Bush White House just yet?
And keep in mind: Gracie Allen was married to George Burns whose most famous role was playing…The pieces are all falling into place.
Say goodnight Gracie.
