-
Reached Wednesday, Crotty was more than a bit anxious about the incident.
"I accept full responsibility for that," the forlorn father said. "His mother was out of town, and I let him stay up too late. I should have prepped him better."
Prepped him? Come on, chairman. He's a 12-year-old, not Karl Rove. He did what 12-year-olds do during long political speeches -- in this case, 42 minutes. They get bored and fidgety.
Actually, Tyler has had a birthday since the event. As of last week, he's 13. (Happy birthday, pal.)
Dad, who is among the elite Bush backers to achieve "Pioneer" status for raising more than $100,000 for the president's re-election efforts, loosened up as our conversation went on.
"It was a funny bit," he conceded.
And when Tyler finally saw the tape, Crotty said, "he laughed so hard he almost cried."
Ooops. Never mind. The White House just called and insisted this whole incident didn't happen. As a good journalist, I must believe them unquestioningly.