dougv.com « Doug Vanderweide

Shame On You, Associated Press

Published in a recent news story on the growing Justice Department prosecutor firings scandal:

DES MOINES, Iowa – Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday blamed the Bush administration’s fear of scandal for the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, dismissals she said were virtually unprecedented.

Come on, Associated Press.

Nothing can be “virtually unprecedented.” A precedent is absolute. It serves as a guide to all similar, subsequent events. Therefore, the absence of a precedent cannot be virtual. A precedent either exists or it does not, period.

Now, it may well be that mass firings of this sort are rare, or avoided at all costs, or not handled in the manner the White House has handled the situation. That certainly seems to be the gist of the matter. (Hell, I’d argue everything this administration has done since being elected is a new precedent in bad advice, poor management, arrogance and ham-fisted public relations.)

It may even well be that “virtually unprecedented” is an exact term Clinton used; Lord knows, attorneys, for as smart as they’re supposed to be, routinely mangle the language as effectively as they mangle fairness and common sense. But there’s no need for the AP to repeat such nonsense; just quote Clinton making a fool of herself.

It’s amazing to me this sort of grammatical gaffe can make it all the way through a cycle, especially on the national wire, and especially because Webster’s New World College Dictionary — the official dictionary of the AP — clearly says that yes, indeed, precedents either exist or they don’t.

Seriously, AP, get your heads out of your asses.