24 Days and Counting
| Mon Sep. 22, 2008 4:16 PM PDT
24 DAYS AND COUNTING....The Washington Post is miffed:
John McCain selected Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to be his running mate 23 days ago. Since then, Ms. Palin has not held a single news conference with the national media....Meanwhile, Mr. McCain, who once referred to the media as his base, has himself become inaccessible. He promised to hold weekly news conferences as president but has not held a news conference as a candidate in more than a month. A candidate who stiffs the media on the campaign trail isn't likely to perform better once in office.
It's really pretty amazing. Can they get away with it? Or will the press eventually succumb to Steve Schmidt's comical bleatings about how unfair everyone is being to John and Sarah? Wait and see!
And speaking of comical bleatings, it seems that conservatives are finally coming out of their fetal crouch on the Wall Street mess and going on the offensive, desperately trying out new and innovative ways to convince America that a financial crisis brought on by deregulation is the fault of — yes! — Democrats. Fannie Mae! CRA! Sarbanes-Oxley! They'd probably toss in repeal of Glass-Steagall just for the hell of it if it hadn't been quite so obviously the brainchild of McCain's consensus future secretary of the Treasury. Their campaign to alter reality isn't working so far, which gives me renewed faith in the common sense of the American public, but I don't expect them to stop trying. By this time next week they'll be blaming the fact that FDR screwed around with the price of gold in 1933.
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"And speaking of comical bleatings, it seems that conservatives are finally coming out of their fetal crouch on the Wall Street mess and going on the offensive, desperately trying out new and innovative ways to convince America that a financial crisis brought on by deregulation is the fault of ? yes! ? Democrats."
yup, and the democratic "leadership" is helping.
i saw bill clinton on letterman last night. he's not a democrat, he's a clintoncrat.
"And speaking of comical bleatings, it seems that conservatives are finally coming out of their fetal crouch on the Wall Street mess and going on the offensive, desperately trying out new and innovative ways to convince America that a financial crisis brought on by deregulation is the fault of ? yes! ? Democrats."
yup, and the democratic "leadership" is helping.
i saw bill clinton on letterman last night. he's not a democrat, he's a clintoncrat.
Submitted by Neil B (not verified) on Mon Sep. 22, 2008 4:45 PM PDT.
Hello after a lacuna, Kevin! Well, McCain's allies will try to spin this as standing up to uppity media, and the antidote is to remind voters that no access to "the media" means no access "to the voters."
Kevin, we have to stay on top of the after-the-fact blame game. You chuckle, but this is deadly serious business and wide swatches of the public is vulnerable to such spin. Like you say, Republicans and allies want to blame this on Democrats and liberal sentiments (like, the horrible impulse to make it easier for low-income/minorities to borrow money and own their own home (never mind that GWB constantly said he too wanted to support "the ownership society", boost home ownership etc.)
For example, this fairly blatant propaganda piece in Bloomberg news is trumpeted on Drudge, and now we see that Drudge is pushing Palin-McCain very hard ("sure" but it wasn't so clear before, maybe "girl"friend Coulter is pushing him to.) Note Bloomberg news very tied to finance world interests - BTW should Mike Bloomberg have ever been considered a great VP etc. choice considering his AFAIK involvement with that sector?):
How the Democrats Created the Financial Crisis
Kevin Hassett
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aSKSoiNbnQY0
He blames it all on Fannie and Freddie, and the Democrats wanting to extend the pool of loan eligibles - to hell with repackaging, no income checking, phony ratings, etc., that are much more at cause for what happened.
Today, Hannity the Ham was on the same tack. (But can you believe, Michael Savage is blaming the Wall Street hacks for it and not the FMs etc? The guy, awful as he can be [sample tonight, about gang members versus finance sharks "of course, different skin color"] has an honest populist bone in his body.)
Don't laugh. I warn you all, this will get around and must be beaten back vigorously, not just snickered at.
Re the CRA, this study from Jan 2008 is fascinating. Study title:
"The Community Reinvestment Act:
A Welcome Anomaly in the Foreclosure Crisis
Indications that the CRA Deterred Irresponsible Lending
in the 15 Most Populous U.S. Metropolitan Areas"
Also search on the title of the study for an addendum and some glowing news accounts.
They also recently lobbied to have a "simple" VP debate format for the Alaskan Governor.
Look for her to give lots of stock answers at the debates, lots of sound and fury, signifying nothing, followed by a MSM being impressed by how well she did.
On 9/7 McCain told Bob Schieffer on Face The Nation (PDF) that Palin would make 65 appearances. I guess he includes campaign stops and fund raising appearances, not necessarily press conferences.
He was also "strongly recommending that she come on FACE THE NATION." That's the best he can do, strongly recommend? Has there ever been a post 1960's VP candidate who did not appear on a Sunday talk show? Has there ever been a VP candidate who did not hold a press conference?
Well, they are going to have a tough go of it as a huge majority of Americans see the economic problem as caused by the (R)'s
The will try to blame Clinton [1999] but the Gramm Leach Bliely was along party lines 54-44. Biden didnt vote for it, McCain did. And the vote after adding the RCA was 90-8-1 [Veto proof]
In the spring of 1987, the Federal Reserve Board votes 3-2 in favor of easing regulations under Glass-Steagall Act, overriding the opposition of Chairman Paul Volcker
Clearly Palin was having problems with a sympathetic interviewer, there is no way they will let her face a tough one. Similarly for McCain. So we are left with hoping that the media will be miffed by lack of access, and start saying unflattering things. I think the risk of that isn't very high.
As long as the R's can find and tout a couple of Dems as contributing to the financial meltdown, it can be claimed to be an equal opportunity (both parties did it) issue.
Palin has pretty much given all she's going to. The wingnut-enthusiasm bonus is in the bank, and they'll get whatever benefit it confers whether or not Palin does any more press.
I caught part of a NewsHour McCain profile today. They were STILL pushing his supposed maverickiness. (I had to turn away as I was gagging.) I don't think the fracking DC press core will ever completely throw McCain over, so he can pull whatever crap he likes with Palin.
How many press conferences has Senator Obama held?
Even if he's only had one, that would be one more than St. Sarah, which, apropos of this post, is known as "the point." Nice try at simple-minded rhetorical deflection, though. I give it a "3" for brevity.
Schmidt and McCain's campaign have crossed over into complete imbecility now, it's actually getting hilarious which is a bit unsettling because this is a guy's organization who at least for the time being still has a chance to be in the White House.
This absurdity has to stop, it's as if complete wingnuts have taken over the McCain camp and actually get their information and arguments from the right wing blog-o-dome, seemingly unable to even sound sane, rational or civil anymore.
What the hell is going on? :)
On a serious note, does anybody have any proof that the repeal of Glass-Steagall was responsible for anything that's happened recently? There were a bunch of posts at Marginal Revolution either yesterday or today that seemed to refute that idea.
On a more cynical note, I'm starting to think that Republicans feel they can delay the real pain in this mess until January, so that a potential or even likely Obama administration would be damaged from the start. It might be too nasty a thought, but then, each time I give these guys the benefit of the doubt, they managed to piss all over it.
Also, the McCain camp should have known that hiding from the press was going to be a losing strategy, especially in the honeymoon period after picking Palin.
I guess she's that unprepared for exposure, as is McCain apparently too, because the results of such a strategy of denying access was eminently predictable (I was pointing this out just a couple days after the GOP convention when everyone still seemed shell-shocked by the political debutante's initial positive reception).
brian j, just because you ask: the repeal of glass steagall had nothing to do with this (indeed, merrill would probably have folded up by now were glass steagall still in effect).
the problem was the failure to create an appropriate regulatory regime to replace it.
I think they will keep her off limits to the press at least until the debate with Biden, so that expectations of her performance will be driven into the ground. Then all she needs to do is stay upright and recite talking points and she will have "won." We've seen this script before, many times.
The news media should boycott Palin as long as she boycotts them. No interviews = no coverage of any public events in which she is involved. No picking up statements issued defending her behavior in Alaska and no coverage of attacks on Obama.
I like the symmetry.
Not working, huh? One of the first callers to WJ this am was onto the THIS BEGAN WITH CLINTON crap already. Anyone seeing BC on Letterman last night got a crash course in what is going on, along with some hope, and the implications and potential solutions...blows my mind to hear an intelligent voice actually finish complete sentences. AND never fear the wingnut express is doing their best to pass on the POOR SCARAH the mean old press is picking on her family! Of course it works these MSM folks party with the money people nights and weekends and they'll be thrilled when the BAILOUT allows them to keep their STUFF...let the others eat "cake"!
Raise your hand if you think it might be a good idea for CONGRESS to stay in DC and work until they figure this mess out...the election be DAMNED!!!What the H did we hire them for and WHY do we keep them???I'm beginning to think it won't matter WHO we elect...if it's OBAMA he will be overwhelmed by the messes left behind by BUSHCO and if it's PALIN she can just go to war, that will beef up military spending and all will be well....
No wonder the Hasssett piece was such a crock, notice what I put in strong and also how dopey his stock market prediction was (I guess that's what qualified him for being McCain's advisor):
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Kevin Hassett is senior fellow at the think tank American Enterprise Institute where he directs economic policy studies. He regularly appears on Bloomberg Television. He advised President Bush in his campaign, and he currently serves as a senior economic adviser to the John McCain 2008 presidential campaign.
Hassett is coauthor with James K. Glassman, of Dow 36,000: The New Strategy for Profiting From the Coming Rise in the Stock Market. It was published in 1999 before the dot-com bubble burst. The book predicted that the Dow Jones industrials index would rise to 36000 within three to five years--i.e., 2002 or 2004. Hasset also writes for the AEI magazine The American.
Hassett obtained a Ph.D. in economics, from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor's degree in economics from Swarthmore College.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bloomberg did note the McCain connection at the bottom of the article, but didn't say "economic" advisor - BTW I think all media should put such admissions at the beginning of pieces but that's my minor gripe.
BTW', NBC News last night did give a good rundown on who benefits from Obama's tax plans versus McCain's, with the caveat that the current bailout might force tweaking of either plan.
Eric Blair, that's no excuse - Palin isn't using "new media" either, to present herself to unscripted scrutiny in a way respectful of the public's right and need to know. And Obama has been on plenty of shows where he's been asked tough questions, etc.
BTW, I can see now that Drudge is fully vested in the Palin-McCain camp ("girl"friend Coulter pushing him?) and is currently focusing on Biden "gaffes" to penalize the Demo Ticket. I wonder what Drudge gets in return?
All of this Palin needs to be briefed, Palin is over-briefed, Palin needs to study the issues, Palin needs to meet some world leaders, is bullshit.
If you saw the Hannity interview, which Hannity delivered on his knees, you know that the reality is: Palin is just plain stupid.
Her few public answers in response to questions about the economy are incomprehensibly stupid.
She watched the SNL skit "with the sound turned all the way down" and found it very funny!
Jonah Goldberg, Mr. Honesty, on The Corner said that Palin keeps saying the same thing over and over and over again because she's "staying on message".
What a crock.
She's being kept from the press because she's stupid.
some Obama press conferences :
- May 2, Indianapolis IN
- long one for his "racism" speech
- June 1, in which he cut ties to Rev. Wright
- June 25 in Chicago IL
- July 22 in Jordan
- Sept 6, on Fannie/Freddie
- Sept 9 in Riverside, OH
- Sept 16 in Golden, CO, on repairing economy
- Sept 30 impromptu in Tampa, FL
Eric Blair wrote: "It really isn't going to make a difference with Palin; the MSM had decided who she is before even asking her."
Quite true. The ultra-rich CEOs of the handful of giant corporations that own and control the mass media have already decided "who Sarah Palin is" -- she's the next Vice President of the United States, who will advance their agenda of rapacious, ruthless class warfare by the ultra-rich against everyone else.
So what's to ask her about?
Obama's been asked hard questions?!?
Obama went on O'Reilly, jackass.
Meanwhile, the Republicans are afriad to risk Palin speaking in anything but the most controlled conditions. Even McCain's campaign tacitly agrees she's incompetent and unready.
It really isn't going to make a difference with Palin; the MSM had decided who she is before even asking her.
That's the thing about having a track record. Too bad McCain didn't bother to vet her, but you Republicans are stuck with her, and all your whining about media bias can't disguise what a lousy candidate she is.
The GOP are like bratty little children who get caught with their hand in the cookie jar and try to blame their brother even though they are caught red-handed. Infantile bed-wetters are such gutless cowards that it is truly pathetic.
Look, this financial mess is the Republican's fault and theirs alone. I say let the whole house of cards collapse and let the blame fall right on the Republican's heads where it belongs. The GOP needs to be dismantled, piece by piece, and this financial crisis may be just the event that allows that to happen.
Hey Kevin and fans of "Domino", one of his two cats; there is this great youtube-ish video of a bunch ("30,000") of multi-colored dominoes going down. A black and white cat walks among them first:
"Oh, oh, Domino"
http://blogs.scienceforums.net/swansont/archives/798
Also see at Cosmic Variance blog.
NYT had a decent response to McCain camp's crap attack, I got this from USN&WR email:
The New York Times notes that Bill Keller, executive editor of The Times, "responded in a statement: 'The New York Times is committed to covering the candidates fully, fairly and aggressively. It's our job to ask hard questions, fact-check their statements and their advertising, examine their programs, positions, biographies and advisers. Candidates and their campaign operatives are not always comfortable with that level of scrutiny, but it's what our readers expect and deserve.'"
See the good point: "not always comfortable with that level of scrutiny..." - nailed it, good show.
I'm sure he doesn't have the stones to do it, but if O'Reilly questioned Palin the same way he questioned Obama, does anyone doubt that the Alaska governor would be reduced to an incoherent pile of weeping goo?
The biggest lie of all was that Palin was a pit bull.
What a crock.
Socrates wrote: "... if O'Reilly questioned Palin the same way he questioned Obama, does anyone doubt that the Alaska governor would be reduced to an incoherent pile of weeping goo?"
If O'Reilly questioned Palin the same way he questioned Obama, does anyone doubt that the Fox News bloviator would be looking for another job the next day?
"If O'Reilly questioned Palin the same way he questioned Obama, does anyone doubt that the Fox News bloviator would be looking for another job the next day?"
Yes, absolutely true.
And therefore too bad that interview will never happen - what could be better than seeing both?
Palin's candidacy in ruins and O'Reilly losing his job?
"And speaking of comical bleatings, it seems that conservatives are finally coming out of their fetal crouch on the Wall Street mess and going on the offensive, desperately trying out new and innovative ways to convince America that a financial crisis brought on by deregulation is the fault of yes! Democrats."
yup, and the democratic "leadership" is helping.
i saw bill clinton on letterman last night. he's not a democrat, he's a clintoncrat.
