you spelled Assad wrong>@StateDept Spokesperson Nuland: Even today, as Asad speaks of dialogue, the regime is continuing to kill its people.
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Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) January 06, 2013Grenell is right:
#Syria: Statement by Spokesperson Victoria Nuland on Bashar al-Asad's Speech go.usa.gov/guhe—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
Spokesperson Nuland: Bashar al-Asad's speech today is yet another attempt by the regime to cling to power. go.usa.gov/guhe #Syria—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
Spokesperson Nuland: Al-Asad's speech does nothing to advance the Syrian people's goal of a political transition. go.usa.gov/guhe—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
Spokesperson Nuland: Al-Asad's initiative is detached from reality, undermines efforts of Joint Special Representative Brahimi. #Syria—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
Spokesperson Nuland: Even today, as Asad speaks of dialogue, the regime is stoking sectarian tensions and continuing to kill its own people.—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
Spokesperson Nuland: Asad has lost all legitimacy and must step aside to enable a political solution. go.usa.gov/guhe #Syria—
(@StateDept) January 06, 2013
To some it may seem nitpicky. We all make spelling mistakes, after all.
But Grennell’s point about double standards is spot on:
if Sarah Palin's office spelled Assad wrong it would go viral in 1 minute. it's only a silly point if Hillary's office does it.—
Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) January 06, 2013
If you don’t believe him, you must be too young to remember this:
A minor slip-up by Vice President Dan Quayle hatched a frenzy and a long-running joke. Quayle led a spelling bee for sixth-grade students while visiting an elementary school in New Jersey in 1992. Working from an inaccurate flash card prepared by a teacher, he corrected William Figueroa, 12, when the child spelled “potato” on the blackboard – making the boy add an unnecessary “e” at the word’s end.
Quayle would never hear the end of it. The media assault for this goof was truly relentless.
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Correction: While the “Asad” spelling is unconventional in the US, it has been used by others and has been used by the U.S. Department of State for many years. We’re no experts, but we now think there is more than one way to spell the name. We believe our original post was in error. We apologize.