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Ms. SEELYE: And then the other--the other thing that I think really hurt him was when he said capturing Saddam didn't make America safer. That may have been true, and, as he pointed out, you know, we're back on a higher alert; we're stopping these planes coming in from London. But, you know--so are we really safer? But it was so--it was so...
Mr. BRODER: I think what...
Ms. SEELYE: ...dis--dissident with the national mood that I--I think it up--unsettled a lot of people.
Seelye, of course, was so in touch with the national mood. From a CBS poll released after the capture:
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AS A RESULT OF CAPTURING SADDAM, THE FOLLOWING THREATS WILL:
Attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq
Increase 19%
Decrease 24%
Same 52%
Terrorist threat against U.S.
Increase 18%
Decrease 19%
Same 60%
(thanks to reader ss for the tip)
...(I'm not criticizing her use of the word "dissident" - it was probably mis-transcribed from dissonant).