The Democrat Thread

[bmags]

When you say stupid things every day for the last 35 years, people stop noticing as much. Palin's comments don't get the 100 point headline on Drudge though.

 

Honestly and seriously though, I think there may be a perception difference between the tickets that might account for that. Biden is the experience guy here, and the line from the Obama campaign has always been that Obama wanted a substantive running mate who can have respectful disagreements with. Palin is seen as the Stepford candidate, and when your campaign is using phrases like "learning at the foot of the master," to describe her - it makes her comments seem a bit more outrageous.

 

And the other reason why I think the media has turned on McCain/Palin? And I think they have by the way, has to do with access. Outside of those carefully planned and detailed few interviews Palin has given, she has not had one single media avail, and has not taken one reporter's question on the campaign trail. McCain hasn't taken a single question from any non-local reporter in over five weeks either. If you don't acknowledge or talk to the press, I'd wager they are less likely to give you the benefit of the doubt.

 

And further, F*** balance v. accuracy. Obama has not had the type of ridiculous statements and false ads that the McCain camp has, and since it has a duty to cut through the spin, it isn't f'n bias to cover more time to uncover the party who is doing, frankly, more of the lying. This whining and b****ing about the media from the McCain campaign is a disgrace. Stop blaming the media, the sad part is it worked for clinton, but I don't think it'll work for McCain. B/c the media genuinely was so interested in Obama in the primaries, the best leg of his campaign, that they were self-conscious on how to cover him. But McCain has been actively lying and then chastising the media, when he used to embrace them.

 

There is a great three part series on McCain in Esquire, I suggest you all take th etime to read it. Esquire does awesome profile pieces.

[BigSqwert]

One sunny day in 2009 an old man approached the White House from

across Pennsylvania Avenue , where he'd been sitting on a park

bench. He spoke to the U.S. Marine standing guard and said, "I

would like to go in and meet with President Bush. The Marine looked

at the man and said, "Sir, Mr. Bush is no longer president and no

longer resides here." The old man said, "Okay" and walked away.

 

The following day, the same man approached the White House and said

to the same Marine, "I would like to go in and meet with President

Bush. "The Marine again told the man, "Sir, as I said yesterday, Mr.

Bush is no longer president and no longer resides here." The man

thanked him and, again, just walked away.

 

The third day, the same man approached the White House and spoke to

the very same U. S. Marine, saying "I would like to go in and meet

with President Bush. "The Marine, somewhat agitated at this point,

looked at the man and said, "Sir, this is the third day in a row you

have been here asking to speak to Mr. Bush. I've told you already

that Mr. Bush is no longer the president and no longer resides here.

Don't you understand? "The old man looked at the Marine and said,

"Oh, I understand. I just love hearing it."

 

The Marine snapped to attention, saluted, and said, "See you tomorrow."

[southsider2k5]

When you say stupid things every day for the last 35 years, people stop noticing as much. Palin's comments don't get the 100 point headline on Drudge though.

 

Honestly and seriously though, I think there may be a perception difference between the tickets that might account for that. Biden is the experience guy here, and the line from the Obama campaign has always been that Obama wanted a substantive running mate who can have respectful disagreements with. Palin is seen as the Stepford candidate, and when your campaign is using phrases like "learning at the foot of the master," to describe her - it makes her comments seem a bit more outrageous.

 

And the other reason why I think the media has turned on McCain/Palin? And I think they have by the way, has to do with access. Outside of those carefully planned and detailed few interviews Palin has given, she has not had one single media avail, and has not taken one reporter's question on the campaign trail. McCain hasn't taken a single question from any non-local reporter in over five weeks either. If you don't acknowledge or talk to the press, I'd wager they are less likely to give you the benefit of the doubt.

 

As long as the media outlets aren't crossing the Obama campaign anyway...

[Rex Kickass]

As long as the media outlets aren't crossing the Obama campaign anyway...

 

That is such a bulls*** argument.

[southsider2k5]

That is such a bulls*** argument.

 

Of course it is. Its also a BS arguement that somehow Bidens' gaffe's get more attention than anything Palin does.

[Rex Kickass]

Of course it is. Its also a BS arguement that somehow Bidens' gaffe's get more attention than anything Palin does.

 

I never said that. Let me clarify what I've said. Biden is a known quantity. Him putting his foot in his mouth is relatively normal. Oh and the Obama campaign doesn't even try to make the campaign about Biden.

 

Palin is new, unknown and she has become the bigger name and face to the McCain campaign than McCain has been.

 

Biden takes a backseat in Obama's campaign, Palin does not take the same backseat. If McCain wants Palin to be less of an issue in the campaign, maybe he should take steps to be the bigger of the two figures on his ticket.

[BigSqwert]

More Palin related media flap.

 

There's a battle going on right now over how the networks will be allowed to cover Sarah Palin's big day of visits in NY with world leaders. Palin is scheduled to meet with Afghan President Hamid Karzai shortly, followed by Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and then with McCain advisor, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. The networks had arranged for a "pool" camera- one camera to cover the meetings, whose video would be pooled or shared with all networks. Such arrangements are standard when dealing with intimate high-level meetings between leaders and candidates. But typically, along with cameras, there is an editorial presence-- at least one print reporter, one TV reporter and one radio reporter is standard. Today, the McCain campaign had said it would allow only one editorial person inside. Now, the campaign is saying it wants only the camera inside with no editorial presence. All of the networks are objecting. Stay tuned.

 

 

P.S.: The networks have just voted to BAN any use of the photographs/video in protest.

 

The AP reports that CNN has pulled its TV crew from the event.

And CBS News adds to the news media's objections:

 

Television networks, including CBS News maintain a policy that if they are prevented from having an editorial presence at an event, they will not allow cameras to shoot it.

 

 

The McCain/Palin campaign's effort to stifle editorial coverage of the candidate's meetings with world leaders comes a week after CBS News asked Palin an impromptu question about the AIG bailout, while Palin made an off-the-record stop at a Cleveland diner.

 

After the Cleveland event, a Palin staffer told CBS News that questions "weren't allowed."

 

In Orlando on Sunday, Palin had another off-the-record stop at an ice cream shop, but the pool producer who was assigned to be in Palin's motorcade was not notified when the candidate departed to get ice cream, and so there was no editorial presence at the event.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Palin hasnt had a press conference, they shield her from ALL media and questioning and McCain hasnt held a press conference in 40 days!

 

Talk about running and hiding.

 

The media has its catch phrase: No Talk Express

Edited September 23, 2008 by Athomeboy_2000

[HuskyCaucasian]

McCain Advisers: He wont support Middle East peace-

Two McCain advisers told participants in a weekend retreat that his administration would discourage Israeli-Syrian peace talks and refrain from actively engaging in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

[StrangeSox]

I have a very serious dislike for Sarah Palin and the way they are trying to completely shield her from the media.

 

I'm glad her favorability ratings are plummeting.

Edited September 23, 2008 by StrangeSox

[bmags]

I have a very serious dislike for Sarah Palin and the way they are trying to completely shield her from the media.

 

I'm glad her favorability ratings are plummeting.

 

The very reason the media is so hard on her is because they are keeping her such a secret. This is a presidential race, an important one at that, she is second in line, you can't shield her except for scripted speeches. This is an absolute disgrace. This is a slap in the face to democracy. I pray that McCain does not get away with this and skip into the presidency. The nation will never recover from such a campaign. The media never will either.

[HuskyCaucasian]

The very reason the media is so hard on her is because they are keeping her such a secret. This is a presidential race, an important one at that, she is second in line, you can't shield her except for scripted speeches. This is an absolute disgrace. This is a slap in the face to democracy. I pray that McCain does not get away with this and skip into the presidency. The nation will never recover from such a campaign. The media never will either.

McCain wont hold press conference, they keep Palin shielded... if I were the MSM, i'd pack up shop and say we have nothing to cover and go home.

[BigSqwert]

I really want one of these.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Who's ready to lead? Obama warns of major economic failure back in March of 2007...

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/...ter-to-bern.php

[southsider2k5]

Who's ready to lead? Obama warns of major economic failure back in March of 2007...

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/...ter-to-bern.php

 

Do you really want a guy who is 4 years behind George W Bush?

 

http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.a...306632135350949

 

McCain 2005

 

"If Congress does not act," McCain said in 2005, "American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system and the economy as a whole."

 

Bush 2003 FTW

 

Here's the lead of a New York Times story on Sept. 11, 2003: "The Bush administration today recommended the most significant regulatory overhaul in the housing finance industry since the savings and loan crisis a decade ago."

[HuskyCaucasian]

This was brought up in the Palin thread a while back I think, but here's some harder reporting on Palin's "time" as Governor. She played hooky.

 

The Washington Post recently reported that, in her first 19 months as governor, Palin billed the state of Alaska per diem charges for 312 days she spent at her home in Wasilla. Palin’s staff has explained that it was appropriate to bill the state for expenses related to Palin staying in her own house because her “official duty station” was at the state capital of Juneau, where the governor’s official office and mansion are located. But that argument raises a different question: How much time did that leave for her to spend at her “official duty station”?

 

Nineteen months totals 578 days, but after subtracting weekends and holidays, it is only about 397 workdays. Assuming Palin did not routinely bill the state for staying in her own home on weekends and holidays, she would have spent no more than 85 workdays in the state capital over the course of her 19 months in office, even if she traveled nowhere else in Alaska or outside of the state. That compares with 168 days that the Alaska Legislature was in session during the same period.

 

One of the state’s leading papers, the Juneau Empire, described her attendance like this:

 

“Palin has spent little time in Juneau, rarely coming to the state capital except when the Legislature was in session, and sometimes not even then. During a recent special session called by Palin herself, she faced criticism from several legislators for not showing up personally to push for her agenda. Someone at the Capitol even printed up buttons asking, ‘Where’s Sarah?’”

 

....almost all of the members of the Alaska Legislature were in the state capital far more often than the governor.

 

One member told the Juneau Empire, “At a time when [Palin’s] leadership was truly needed, we didn’t know where she was.”

 

Her attendance record: 15%. That's... like.... 25% lower than McCain's congressional attendance record the last 19 months.

 

McCain / Palin.... "Change is... um.... hello? You coming? Hello? Are you there?? Hmmm.... must have gone home. Well, change was here."

Edited September 24, 2008 by Athomeboy_2000

[HuskyCaucasian]

No "Tough" Questions Please:

McCain then looked around the room and gestured as if to welcome questions. The AP reporter shouted a question at Gov. Palin (“Governor, what have you learned from your meetings?”) but McCain aide Brooke Buchanan intervened and shepherded everybody out of the room.

 

Palin looked surprised, leaned over to McCain and asked him a question, to which your pooler thinks he shook his head as if to say “No.”

[Steve9347]

This is getting ridiculous.

[Steff]

No "Tough" Questions Please:

 

 

In all honesty if I were her I would tell him to stick the Veep job up his ass and bow out. He's making her look like a total moron. I would LOVE to hear exactly what they are telling her to, and not to do, and what to say, and not to say.

[BigSqwert]

It's mind boggling the way they are handling her. What a slap in the face to the people of this country that deserve to hear what her views are.

[BigSqwert]

Lets see if all the conservatives on this site raise as much flack about this as they did for John Edwards' $400 haircut. Somehow I doubt it.

[Cknolls]

For onetime make-up fee? If so, I would be pissed if I were one of his donors.

[BigSqwert]

For onetime make-up fee? If so, I would be pissed if I were one of his donors.

 

Shoot. You could have just given me $25 and I would have made him look a million times better. I would have picked up some Crest White Strips for him.

[kapkomet]

In all honesty if I were her I would tell him to stick the Veep job up his ass and bow out. He's making her look like a total moron. I would LOVE to hear exactly what they are telling her to, and not to do, and what to say, and not to say.

There's definitely something weird happening with this whole thing.

 

 

[Cknolls]

Shoot. You could have just given me $25 and I would have made him look a million times better. I would have picked up some Crest White Strips for him.

 

LOL