Straight talking vs. fact checking


The Washington Post this morning has an article about Howard Dean, the Democratic frontrunner in the campaign for President in 2004.

The reporters bring up a number of circumstances where Mr. Dean played fast and loose with the truth. However, the interesting part to me wasn't the information that politicians misspeak, get their facts wrong, or even outright lie.

The part I found interesting was a quote from a former Gore 2000 campaign manager who said "To a great extent, the public does not give a damn" about the allegations and that voters want straight talkers, and are OK about those straight talkers getting their facts wrong.