He said, he said? How about He said, he lied?

Michael Kranish, over at the Boston Globe, covers McCain's New England tour. He does a pretty good job of balancing the two campaign's claims, but does get a little bit stuck in the "he said, he said" trap of reporting both sides' claims as if they were merely opinions:

Appealing to voters angry over high prices at the pump, McCain launched a hard-hitting new TV ad yesterday accusing Obama of doing nothing to help motorists.

"Gas prices - $4, $5, no end in sight, because some in Washington are still saying no to drilling in America," the narrator says. "No to independence from foreign oil. Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?" A crowd, chanting "Obama, Obama," can be heard.

"Don't hope for more energy, vote for it," the announcer says, ridiculing one of Obama's main campaign themes.

Obama's campaign says that more offshore drilling wouldn't provide any relief for a decade, and instead promoted his plan to invest $150 billion in renewable sources of energy.

The thing is, it's not just "Obama's campaign" that says that - it's virtually everyone who's not a Republican politician. Even this administration's own energy bureaus and agencies. Best estimate for getting oil from new fields to American drivers? Seven years. That's the best estimate, remember. Some say fifteen.

So points to the Globe for pointing out that McCain's claim is contested, but points off for acting as though there isn't an objective truth out there. It really is more than "he said, he said, take your pick."