I know Bush's teasing of a blind reporter has been making the rounds through the blogs over the last couple of days. I, myself, am certainly guilty of having posted this story on a few comment boards. However, I will give credit where it is due. Bush did follow-up immediately with a phone call to Wallsten to offer an apology for his insensitivity, claiming he wasn't aware that the reporter was blind.

"He said, `I needle you guys out of affection,'" Wallsten said. "I said, 'I understand that, but I don't want you to treat me any differently because of this.'"

Wallsten said the president said he would not treat him differently, so Wallsten encouraged him to "needle away."

"He said, `I will. Next time I'll just use a different needle,'" Wallsten said.

Wallsten said he thought that was a pretty good line. And his only complaint is that the president didn't answer his question at the news conference.

So, and I can't believe I'm saying this, but give the guy a break. It was an embarrassing slip and he made a sincere effort to apologize for it in a timely fashion. If you want to complain about anything, you can ask why Bush has yet to apologize for the much greater sin of mass murder in an elective and unnecessary war, or you can join Wallsten in wondering why Bush never answered the question. Barring that, I consider the matter now closed.