Politicians possess a special language that requires special translators. Yet, they don't simply engage in double-speak and obfuscation. Their primary objective, particularly during elections, seems to be contributing to national narratives that can be better understood as myth-making: the idea of American exceptionalism.

This year's number one word/phrase & myth is "change." Sen. Barack Obama claims to embody it, yet, Sen. John McCain – who would keep troops in Iraq for a 100 years – also claims to be "the face of change." Gov. Mike Huckabee, who supports overturning the 14th Amendment (birthright citizenship), also claims to have become "the face of change."

Political double-speak and myth-making, however, is not a partisan affair. For instance, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has refused to entertain the issue of impeachment, claiming that it is "off the table." She appears to have confused her role as a leading Democrat, with her Constitutional role as the head of the House of Representatives, whose primary duties are to uphold the Constitution and to carry out the peoples' business.


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