Most politicians are masters in using weasel words. Weasel words are those things they say when they don’t want to commit to doing something, but are afraid of pissing off part of their supporters.
They give the supporters the chance to say “Well he’s really on our side, even if he can’t say so” or “I think he is coming around to our way of thinking.” An example would be the phrase, “I’ll give that careful consideration.” Now this means the same thing as when you were in high school and asked your dad for the keys to the car and he said “I’ll think about it.” So here is an example of weasel words.
"We're going to make sure that, number one, careful consideration is given to any proposed permits here, and number two, we want to enforce our rules and our laws that balance a need for responsible mining and protecting our environment and protecting our water," Beshear said.
Here is an example of candidate not using weasel words.
Galbraith told The Associated Press that the practice has caused "unsurpassed environmental damage" in Appalachia and should not be permitted to continue. "It is too large a cost for the extraction of coal," he said Thursday.
"I'm for coal, but mountaintop removal is the most wasteful, unsustainable method for extracting coal. It destroys an ecological heritage that belongs to all of Kentucky."
You decide who is giving you a straight answer.
