Steele refers to Repug congresscritters and/or operatives as "scurrying mice" then backtracks -again

Steele adviser issues bizarre explanation for "scurrying mice" comment
John Aravosis (DC) · 3/11/2009 03:11:00 PM ET · Link

In a rather bizarre update, an adviser to embattled GOP chairman Michael Steele issued a clarification to an incendiary statement Steele made to columnist Cal Thomas, in which he appeared to suggest that Republican members of Congress were "scurrying mice." The adviser now says that when Steele referred to people on "the Hill" as "scurrying mice" he really meant people working everywhere else BUT the Hill. Ben Smith has more:

Anderson emails that, the reference to "the Hill" aside, Steele was referring to "political operatives," not Congress.

"It’s ridiculous, unfair, and inaccurate" to suggest otherwise, he emails. "The hill is obviously used as a metaphor for just about everything that happens in Washington…lobbyists, political operatives, reporters, etc."

The explanation is simply bizarre. When one says "the Hill" in Washington, DC, it means "the Congress." It doesn't mean reporters, political operatives and lobbyists - and it most certainly doesn't refer to anyone other than Hill staff and members of Congress. Lobbyists work on "K street." Reporters work at their own newspapers (for example, reporters who cover the White House don't respond, when asked what they do for a living, "I work at the White House.") Or is Steeel's adviser now claiming that Steele in the future will refer to all lobbyists, journalists and political operatives who ever visit the White House as "the White House"?

And another thing: So Steele was dissing Republican political operatives and lobbyists? Yeah that's it - clearly Steele was saying that people were ticked at him because now that he's the chairman, they no longer have access. Those people clearly aren't Democrats, as they didn't have access to the GOP chairman before Steele arrived on the scene. He means Republicans. Republicans who are ticked at him because he shook things up, got rid of the old boy's network, and now they don't have access.

So which Republican operatives and lobbyists was Steele referring to when he called them "scurrying mice"?

Oh wait, Cal Thomas is now issuing a correction as well. He didn't mean to say that Steele referred to "scurrying mice" on "the Hill." He thinks Steele really meant "scurrying mice" on "the hill" (small "h"). Clearly Steele was using the well-known metaphor, "scurrying mice on the hill." Come on, you'll all familiar with that famous saying right? Uh huh. Keep digging boys.

http://www.americablog.com/2009/03/steele-adviser-issues-bizarre.html