GEE, I WONDER IF SHE'LL BE CALLED TO TESTIFY?

And I wonder if she'll be on every news channel, morning show and Sunday political talk show on the dial. And I wonder if every word in her book will be presumed to be true and accurate.

Doubtful.

Presidential adviser Karen Hughes kicked off a six-week national book tour Sunday with unblinking support for President Bush and the war in Iraq.

Speaking about her memoir "Ten Minutes from Normal," Hughes said she was upset by recent claims from former White House counterterrorism chief Richard Clarke that the administration didn't take the threat from al-Qaida seriously enough before the Sept. 11 attacks.

Hughes called Clarke's criticism the "Washington blame game."

"The only person responsible for the al-Qaida attacks on America was al-Qaida," Hughes said Sunday. "I've been very distressed and almost sickened as I've watched over the last week the distortion that I've seen."

Since every blogger on the planet has hashed and rehashed Richard Clarke's book, testimony etc, I'm not going to do the same here. But I've had a behind the scenes discussion with a reader on this issue...and I'd like to ensure he sees this link.

Perhaps it was the best decision he could make under the circumstances. It's too bad Clarke cuts no one in the Bush administration the same slack he so easily cuts himself.