Even though I think that Move-On or any other blog has right to take any AD as long as it is not illegal in content, I believe Move-On did a dis-service to the Iraq war debate by giving opportunity to Republicans in diverting the attention away from all that spinning on war by the general and the ambassador. The smart thing to do would have been to wait until the general's testimony and then take AD attacking it point by point.
I do not think Dems are really smart when it comes to the politics. They know how to lose even if they are ahead.
Posted by suresh at September 20, 2007 03:41 PMJeff, the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department... didn't they just have two people resign from there? Yep, the Division Head Wan J. Kim, and Bradley Schlozman, who was caught up in the DOJ scandals. Was Hillary being clever, I wonder?
And I can't believe those stupid Dems voted for the frikkin' MoveOn thing. Even if I didn't think it was helpful, for exactly this reason - a goddamn waste of time debate - I can't see any reason the Dems would even think of doing this. Idiots!
Posted by iamcoyote at September 20, 2007 04:08 PMSay, has anyone heard if Hillary has given unequivocal support to the ad? Or did she play it safe and find a way down the middle of the road?
I thought Obama's boycott of the vote was the smartest response of all. Too bad ALL the Dem Congresscritters who thought it was an imapporpriate issue to be brought up for vote didn't boycott it, too, to show their disdain for such stupidity.
Posted by Julie at September 20, 2007 04:55 PMIn other words, this bill was a tarbaby for Dems, no matter which way they voted.
Posted by Julie at September 20, 2007 05:04 PMEven though I think that Move-On or any other blog has right to take any AD as long as it is not illegal in content, I believe Move-On did a dis-service to the Iraq war debate by giving opportunity to Republicans in diverting the attention away from all that spinning on war by the general and the ambassador.
It's an opinion so we can't say for sure but polling following the Petraeus spectacle does not support the assertion that MoveOn's ad helped the Republicans. On the contrary, one could argue that MoveOn's provocative ad actually focused people's attention on the dishonest General and Bush's propagandistic use of a general to push his lies. Sure it sent the Republicans and their sycophants in the media into a tizzy but sO wHaT!?
I do not think Dems are really smart when it comes to the politics. They know how to lose even if they are ahead.
When you say "Dems" are you referring to the Democratic Party or MoveOn? I think you meant MoveOn, since that's who you are criticizing in the first part of your post. MoveOn IS NOT "the Dems." You can be "liberal" or "progressive" while not being a "Democrat."
On the other hand if you were referring to the Democratic Party leadership I would agree with you: Democrats who cowardly piled on in a "Me too" way, criticizing MoveOn for it's ad using Right Wing talking points (see John Kerry, Barack Obama) were being really Not Smart, politically. I'm not a big Hillary fan but at least, in this case, she abstained from that kind of garbage, as far as I know.
Is it "smart politics" for Democrats to so readily swallow the conventional framing of these "controversies?" My opinion is this hasn't worked for the last 20 years at least.
Posted by TrainWreck at September 20, 2007 05:42 PMi agree with suresh;
moveon would have done much better to refute the report point by pint after his testimony...
and repugs were given room to attack...but if not this, they would have found something else...
I hope these stupid "sense of senate" wasters get stopped from now on. they just waste time in that senate doing nothing....they have so much else to do...Reid needs to get them to stay at weekends to finish all the appropriation bills before spe 30th...
Posted by mp at September 20, 2007 06:39 PMCoyote, I don't know if Hillary was trying to be clever but it's a good, and funny in a weird way, point that you bring up. I wonder who's heading the Civil Rights Division these days?
And as far as the MoveOn vote, Taylor Marsh might sum it up the best.
Posted by Jeff Dinelli at September 20, 2007 06:47 PM