A little puzzle as we head into the weekend . . .

Read the following remarks and then try to guess the publication in which they appeared (very well known) and who wrote them (not very well known):

“One of the most widespread criticisms of Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) is that he is talking about bold new ideas without offering any. But, on two of the most pressing issues of the day, Iraq and the tax cut, he has put forward views that will take the Democrats further than anything Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has offered. Ford voted for the use-of-force resolution but, in explaining that decision last week, said something simple and profound: ‘September eleventh changed things for me.’ In other words, he recognized -- as few other Democrats seemed to -- that catastrophic terrorism requires a rethinking of how Democrats approach foreign policy.”

It’s amazing what passes for “profound” these days, isn’t it? Oh, and what the hell, while we’re ascribing profundity to the merely banal, why not throw in a lie about how our craven Democratic lawmakers waft through life blissfully unaffected by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001? Let’s see what we can do to get everyone to believe Democrats are degenerate pacifists, trapped in a 1970s mindset, hostile to their own country, and indifferent to its fate. Nope, ain’t nobody doin’ any thinkin’ on this side of the aisle . . . You boys just go about your business.

I’ll share the correct answers with you on Monday.