Michael Chertoff, gaffe machine

The Secretary of Homeland Security and former Bush-appointed federal judge who helped author the USAPATRIOT Act can't be too fazed by Joe Biden's weekend remarks, which are otherwise sending Republicans into Gamma-9 paroxysms of self-righteous outrage:

"Any period of transition creates a greater vulnerability, meaning there's more likelihood of distraction," Chertoff said in an interview yesterday. "You have to be concerned it will create an operational opportunity for terrorists."

The risk is the same whether Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain is elected president on Nov. 4, he said. That comment undercuts McCain's argument that the U.S. would be more in danger of an attack if Obama, 47, wins.

McCain garners coveted al-Qaeda endorsement

So Obama's Hamas endorsement is now a wash. (And yes, that is a link to a NewsMax "story" using WorldNutDaily as its source.)