BRITNEY SPEARS - COMMENT ON SPEARS CALLED 'INADVERTENT'

LATEST: The wife of an American politician who declared she would shoot BRITNEY SPEARS if she had the chance made an "inadvertent figure of speech", according to her spokeswoman.

While speaking at a domestic violence conference at HOOD COLLEGE in Frederick, KENDEL EHRLICH, wife of Maryland Governor ROBERT EHRLICH, said it is important for women to get as much education as possible to avoid becoming dependent on anyone else.

She declared, "It is incredibly important to get that message to young women. You know, really, if I had an opportunity to shoot Britney Spears, I think I would."

But her spokeswoman, MEGHANN SIWINSKI, explains Ehrlich is a working mother raising a young son and she made an inadvertent comment while expressing her concerns about the influence of pop culture on children.

JIVE RECORDS, the New York-based label which represents the 22 year-old pop beauty, says in an e-mailed statement that Ehrlich "shot her own self in the foot by promoting violence".