Kennedy's Answer Is Blowing in the Wind

Poor Ted just can't get hammered enough by his former loyalists. None other than Greenpeace, Local 103 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and the Daily Show on Comedy Central have taken their shots with Greenpeace leading the charge in an anti-Kennedy ad. It's gotten so ugly that Providence Journal writer, Froma Harrop writes: “After 45 years in the Senate, Kennedy should be polishing his liberal legacy. But his manipulative attacks on this wind farm have so sickened supporters that his long career may be headed for a sorry end.”

What had Ted Kennedy done to deserve such attacks from his base? He committed the unpardonable. Shockingly, he put personal interest ahead of principle trying to kill a wind farm that disturbs his view from his yacht. He certainly doesn't have a monopoly on hypocrisy. But it's hard to understand why Ted would be singled out in light of Save The Planet Al Gore's outrageous electricity, gasoline, and fuel jet usage.

Maybe Ted's defense created some of the rancor Al's been spared. Here's what Melissa Wagoner, a Kennedy spokesman, said: The senator opposes the wind farm for economic and environmental reasons. She added: ‘‘He also doesn’t believe it’s appropriate to hand any one developer 25 square miles of public property on a no-bid basis and before national standards for offshore wind farms are in place to protect coastal communities.’’

Yeah, right. Nice try, Ted. But here's the infamous quote that really got Ted into trouble: "But don't you realize - that's where I sail!"

I think that qualifies as a "gotcha" moment.