Meghan McCain on pot, Axe on Obama: The dumbest political quotes of the week

Each week, the Daily Caller picks the dumbest political statements and ranks them (just for Yahoo! readers) on a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being the worst). Who do you think said the dumbest thing? Vote in our poll below!

Meghan McCain is a gift that keeps on giving. When the daughter of Sen. John McCain—and erstwhile pot smoker—went on “The Tonight Show” Tuesday to hawk her new book, “America You Sexy Bitch,”

she said that her positive experience with cannabis convinced her that she should publicly come out in favor of legalizing the herb.
 
“Yes, I come out for legalizing marijuana in this book,” she told host Jay Leno. “I was living in Los Angeles very briefly last year and I was shocked at how people here smoke weed the way people in New York pour wine.”
McCain also said that this “research” led her to believe that the economic benefits of legalizing weed outweigh the negatives.

If toking up counts as research, there are about 16.5 million Americans in their parents’ basements right now who are experts on the subject.

Cringe Factor: 2/5

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Joy Behar must not be familiar with the maxim, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

During a Tuesday interview with Mediaite, the soon-to-be Current TV talk show host shared her strong opposition to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
 
When asked about Romney’s remarks last week that suggested the government cut back on firefighters and policemen, Behar said, “I mean, I’d like to see [Romney’s] house burn, one of his millions of houses burning down.”
 
Sure, Mitt may have some mansions to spare, but that doesn’t mean they deserve to be burned to the ground. Think of all the housekeepers and landscapers that would be out of jobs. What of them, Joy, what of them?
 
Cringe Factor: 4/5

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Golf enthusiasts might dub this the double-bogie of political gaffes. During last Friday’s White House press conference, President Obama had political pundits heated when he said that the “private sector is doing just fine.” 
 
Despite the fact that his dismissal of a major economic issue lit up the blogosphere like a Christmas tree, Obama’s top adviser David Axelrod isn’t so sure that his boss’ statement is that big of a deal.
 
During an interview Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Axelrod said, “I suspect much of this will be of little consequence.”
 
Sorry to break it to you, Axe – but, too late! Trying to make a story go away by dismissing it is one of the oldest tricks in the book. Unfortunately, this statement will follow Obama until November.
 
Cringe Factor: 5/5