On Tuesday, disgraced former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe went on The View to promote his new book (the title of which is too long to repeat here).

During the show, Meghan McCain challenged McCabe, "I would like you to say right here on national TV that you were not a source for the New York Times, you were never a source for the New York Times or any other publication — considering that's what you're accused of lying about."

McCabe paused, visibly struck, as he clearly did not have a prepared response for such a challenge.

Then McCain added, "Basically, were you ever a leaker to the New York Times?" and, in doing so, bailed out McCabe.

McCabe immediately retorted, "Absolutely not.  Not in any time ever.  You should understand, Meghan, that when I was serving as deputy director, I was one of two people in the FBI who had the authority to disclose information to the media."

McCabe's answer was strikingly similar to Comey's response to a similar question during an Anderson Cooper interview on April 25, 2018.

When Cooper pressed Comey on whether he leaked memos to a Columbia professor in order to spur a special counsel investigation, Comey responded by saying, "Well, not to get tangled up in it, I think of a leak as an unauthorized disclosure of classified information."

Days earlier (Maddow, April 19, 2018), Comey stated, "There were two people who could authorize disclosures, the director and the deputy director.  So, Andy had the authority to speak to the media."

So how is it again that McCabe had such difficulty in responding to McCain's original challenge while he was so adept in quickly striking down any notion that he leaked to the media?

The reason is that McCabe, just as James Comey did, was looking to parse words.

Implied in their answers is that Comey and McCabe are incapable of leaking because, when they do leak, the act is inherently authorized and therefore, by definition, not a leak.

And this after Comey told Trump in January of 2017, "I don't do sneaky things, I don't leak, I don't do weasel moves."

Tell that to former FBI agent Terry Albury, who is currently serving four years in prison for leaking to the media.