Not this time. McKranky is a target rich enviorment, and we haven't even started on him yet. Once this primary is over with, expect wave after wave of viral video. Expect him to get tied to the Bushies with an anchor chain.
See what the boot licking corporate press doesn't understand is that they are not the only game in town.
All the nominee has to do is keep his/her soundbites to minimum and on point. If you don't think the netroots has any juice, then you are not paying attention.
Change is coming. Like death and taxes, it will not be put off.
We are part of that change.
The corporate media is advancing its own irrelevancy but they are to blinded by their own self love to notice.
Bub bye
Posted by SnarkySWhark at April 6, 2008 08:09 AMYES. The press always takes out the candidates who threaten coporations first. That's why they gave us nonstop video loops of John Edwards combing his hair. That's why they took out Al Gore in 2000 with the nonstop chanting of "he said he invented the internet." That's why the relentless attacks on Hillary Clinton. If you threaten corporate interests you will be taken out by the press. If they get Hillary out of the race they will begin a nonstop assault on Obama. At this point McCain looks to be very strong in November all due to media narratives.
Posted by Johnny at April 6, 2008 08:20 AMI assume McCain will be our next President. The media apocalypse waiting for a Hillary run or the media creature waiting under the bridge to destroy Obama is a given in my play book.
Plan for the worst.
Posted by Jim DeRosa at April 6, 2008 08:31 AMAnd don't forget the press' influence in completely alienating Hillary's supporters from Obama due to their non-stop Hillary-hatred and Obama-fawning. This will cause numerous Hillary supporters to either stay home or vote for McCain in protest against their own party's and the press' treatment of the first female candidate for the highest office in this country.
Posted by at April 6, 2008 09:08 AMAt this point McCain looks to be very strong in November all due to media narratives.
No, he's just the only republi-con out there running for president. And that's his biggest negative. He can scream he's an "American" in all of his ads, never once saying "Republican." But there is a point where he has to identify as a republi-con and that ends his electability. Republi-cons broke America -with the help of many Democrats- and the chickens are coming home to roost both for down-ticket DINOs and for the Presidency.
Posted by phidipides at April 6, 2008 09:36 AMThanks for being the only one besides me that points out the fact that Mr. Family Values dumped his first wife, Carol Shepp, after a horrible auto accident left her 5 inches shorter. (had he kept her, he would have looked taller on the stump)
The young rich Cindy also had a car accident in 89, which left her addicted to pain killers.
I see a pattern here. I hope the authoritahs checked the vehicles for crimped brake lines.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 6, 2008 11:19 AMno
Posted by tfitznc at April 6, 2008 11:21 AMThere is no such thing as "the press" or "the media" such that either might be regarded groups or entities or independent actors. There are very rich people who own or control large corporations. These corporations control the messages and images that are published and broadcast (and podcast!).
The question is not what those rich people and their employees will do. The question is what the Americans who vote will do.
Will they continue to believe the lies? Will they act on those beliefs?
I am finding it very hard to be optimistic.
Posted by James E. Powell at April 6, 2008 11:25 AMDespite media support and hysteria, McCain may lose provided there is a strong Democratic party fighting him every step of the way.
Therein lies my problem. The hate and race baiting Democratic campaign has successfully alienated enough Democrats so that the Democratic party has a major problem picking itself from the canvas.
Assuming that Obama is the nominee, why did he have to prefer Reagan, a union buster moron, over Bill Clinton? Is Obama the new DLC with the moronic support of many progressives?
Neither Obama nor Hillary can now have a united party; that's great to McWar.
Posted by koshembos at April 6, 2008 11:26 AMAs several of us have been arguing ad nauseum, there is no possible way to conclude that the great mass of "journalists" that still exist are independent or substantially dedicated to "serving" the public any more. Their behavior simply diverges too far from what an independent press could be expected to "do"----such basic things as be informed about their beat, ask pertinent follow-up questions and question talking points and obvious spin.
Those things are simply not done any more, especially on TV, and I believe most journalists understand how "far" they are allowed to go by their corporate owners and editors, and don't go beyond that. So our press is neither independent or professional.
The stories and "message" they push are mostly those that their large corporate interests want disseminated, and one of those messages is certainly NOT the conventional wisdom that Repub McRube should have no chance after the decade of Repub catastrophe. To the extent that the race ever seems to be going south for him in the coming months, the corporate media---most especially the cable TV "news" teams---will jump in to help him, as ordered by their corporate owners. At the very least, the MSM want a down to the wire "horserace" and a completely unpredictible end.
McRube knows this, he's been assured of it, it's quite clear it's already happening and that he can rely on there being NO sustained negative stories about him, his astounding ignorance, his blatant nonsense (Iran loves al qaeda!) and his out of control militarism. That won't be mentioned.
So the press is a corporate propaganda arm. And the presence of a few (mostly print) "good apples" isn't going to mean a thing in this (or any) election---because most Americans no longer read anything longer than a text message, and simply know absolutely nothing. Our political ELITE still cannot tell shi'ite from sunni, and cannot explain the most basic concepts behind the housing bubble/recession, so don't think the masses can do better.
The American electorate messily shit its pants in public in 2004 and once that happens, you just can never trust the crapper to do the right thing ever again. Instead, you have to constantly ask them "Are you sure you don't have to go?" There is simply no good reason to think that Pinhead Majority (tm) who voted for Bushco in 2004 won't vote for McRube this time. Basically, we fell and can't get up.
Lastly, McRube has likely been saved by the hopeless split in the Dem party, with various national polls now making very clear that double digit numbers of Hillarians and Obamans have decided that they will not under any circumstances vote for the other Demonic Dem. That is all the Repubs ever need, and we have all seen the delight of peter pinhead over this course of events---Repubs simply cannot believe it. And we hilariously thought THEY would be the dispirited, split party!
So the corporate MSM will manipulate the message to favor McRube, the electorate can't figure the most basic things out and are as easily fooled as a puppy, and the Dem party has idiotically split upon staring possible victory in the face. As Jim DeRosa says, prepare (mentally) for the worst.
Posted by euzoius at April 6, 2008 11:35 AMPresident McCain.
It has a nice sound.
Posted by Bagley at April 6, 2008 11:55 AM"really could be our next President"?
He will be our next President, no question.
You should look at it as doing you a favor.
Should a Democrat happen to win it would put you in the unfortunate position of having to really lead.
Democrats have proven to be utter failures at that.
Be careful what you wish for.
Posted by jj at April 6, 2008 12:10 PMMcCain won't win despite the CSM's desire or how it sounds. Republicans don't lead, they lie, damage and steal.
A majority of Americans know this now - after eight painful years of the worst administration and congress the republic has had to endure.
Time to return to intelligent government and put the fools away, the criminals in jail, and Bush's legacy in the toilet where it belongs.
Posted by wilson at April 6, 2008 12:21 PM"A majority of Americans know this now..."
The voices you hear in your head do nt constitute "a majority of Americans."
Posted by Bagley at April 6, 2008 12:35 PMShould a Democrat happen to win it would put you in the unfortunate position of having to really lead.
Democrats have proven to be utter failures at that.
Jesus, can you get your head any farther up your butt?
Republicans have proven they can lead all right... right over a cliff.
For all you idiots who are still Republicans at this point let me tell you something you know way down in the bottom of your shit filled hearts.
Iraq and the Economy are going to get much much worse. And even though most Americans are pretty simple minded, they know who has been running things.
Tidal wave bitches.
Posted by SnarkyShark at April 6, 2008 01:45 PMyou said
"Iraq and the Economy are going to get much much worse"
That is your example of leadership? Hoping are you?
What fools you are.
Posted by jj at April 6, 2008 02:03 PMAfter years of gulping down gallons of poisonous Repub boobery, jj has finally internalized the principal rule of "conservative" leadership:
Deny Reality, Know Nothing and Hope for the Best!
See you at the bottom, jj!
Posted by euzoius at April 6, 2008 02:24 PMThe Mark of McCain has a biblical sound, don't you think?
Posted by Copeland at April 6, 2008 02:33 PMReading the delusional troll comments makes me feel better about owning Creation Museum stock.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 6, 2008 02:39 PMThat stock is still gonna blow through the roof, TIKI! Were you in on the ground floor, when Falwell (RIP) had only two chins?
Posted by euzoius at April 6, 2008 03:53 PMYes, oozo, I invested in the "museum of scientific truth" back when Jerry Falwell was knocking back boilermakers and pinching barmaids on the bottom.
I'm counting on that stock to defy reality and carry us thru the Great Bush-Iraq War Depression of Aught Eight.
Posted by TIKI AL at April 6, 2008 04:44 PMThat is your example of leadership?
No, my idea of leadership would be to take all the tools provided by authoritarian loving traitors like yourself to wiretap every registered Republican. Then when the first right wing whacko sets off a bomb or shoots an abortion doctor(and they will), I would declare the RNC a terrorist organization.
I would then waterboard the likes of Rush or Shaun Hannity until they confess to something that sounds real terroristic.(about 3.5 seconds to confess I'd wager) Then we could go about rounding up all you traitorous scum and run you through portable execution vans China style.
But thats just me. My fellow progressives might have alternative ideas.
Hoping are you?
No, I have determined what is going to happen by objectively observing events and then envisioning scenarios, constantly updating information and doing more research. I realize that this concept is alien to the side that believes in tinkerbell reality, but there it is.
Posted by SnarkyShark at April 6, 2008 04:47 PM"But thats just me. My fellow progressives might have alternative ideas."
SS: Can I have the job of hooking up the vacuum hose from the exhaust pipe to the detention area of the troll van?
Posted by TIKI AL at April 6, 2008 05:04 PM"The Mark of McCain has a biblical sound, don't you think?"
Yes, I do.
Perhaps his election will vanquish the identity politics and leftist insanity of the (present incarnation)of the Democratic Party; cast you Leftists to the wind, and recreate some sense of sensibility in the Democratic Party (e.g. Zell Miller, Joe Lieberman, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy...all unwelcome in today's Democratic Party).
Posted by Bagley at April 6, 2008 05:50 PMParadox,
The gentle people want to know. The horse was great in exposing *idiots* in the press. Is the horse ever going to come back and rescue us?
Posted by ghost2 at April 6, 2008 06:30 PMSS: Can I have the job of hooking up the vacuum hose from the exhaust pipe to the detention area of the troll van?
All yours dude. Don't forget to get video to post to u-tube.
Posted by SnarkyShark at April 6, 2008 07:07 PMMurder obsessed peacenicks, gotta love em.
Posted by onar at April 6, 2008 07:26 PMMurder obsessed peacenicks, gotta love em.
More like fumigation at this point. When malaria threatens your village, its time for some DDT.
It's become the same in regard to Republicans.
And I prefer, nay, embrace the title of DirtyFukinHippy.
Peace love and 7.62 X 39, yo
Posted by SnarkyShark at April 6, 2008 07:47 PM"The Baghdadis know that the only thing standing in the way of another sectarian conflagration is the U.S. military. This may explain why every Iraqi who offers me a view on American politics seems to be praying for a McCain victory. A 100-year American military presence, of which McCain once spoke, may seem a bit much; I suspect most Iraqis would be happy with five." By Bobby Ghosh / Baghdad / Time
"The first sign of change comes when I board the Royal Jordanian Airlines flight from Amman. It's an Airbus A320, and that is good news. It means the flight will not end with the heart-stopping corkscrew landing that characterized all my previous arrivals in smaller, more nimble aircraft. If Royal Jordanian is willing to use a large jetliner, it can only mean that the likelihood of a missile attack has greatly diminished."
Time
Yeah, there's more good news...
BAGHDAD, April 6 (UPI) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Sunday that Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr must disband his Mehdi Army.
Folks, look at what some have been wishing for...this dream team of Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton...to take on some silly old man! Wow, one can't seem to do the job by themselves...we're going to need both of the to beat this old man. With all the bad news happening, just as it happened in 2004 when your allies in the press did all they could to get John Kerry elected. Week after week of bad news assaulted Americans eyes and ears via the news. Still some 62 million voted for our president. Now, with the economy going south, you're desperate and will take anything from either or both of these less than truthful candidates.
Democrats lost this race on February 4th when they fractured the party by choosing two leaders to lead. These two then went on to assure Democrats further damage to they're party by playing identity politics usually used against Republicans upon fellow Democrats. No "change" coming from either of these candidates. Some are now looking for that saint of old Albert Gore to come save you from this mess. He won't stand up for a primary. He won't stand up for himself. If he's drafted, will he serve? I doubt it, he's got other things to do. He would lose anyhow, he probably knows it too.
There has been change brought to the Iraqi's. They like what they're seeing and want more of it.
Posted by peter at April 6, 2008 08:21 PMNo one ever accused me of being a peacenik. I just think we should fight only when it makes sense, and then we should go all out with devastating results.
These one arm tied behind the back corporate welfare wars are stupid and bad for the country in the long run.
Now it's bomb Iran? Why not wait for winter and march to Moscow?
Posted by TIKI AL at April 6, 2008 08:33 PMThe world’s temperature rose about half a degree centigrade during the last quarter of the 20th century; but even the Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research - part of Britain’s Met Office and a citadel of the current global warming orthodoxy - has now conceded that recorded temperature figures for the first seven years of the 21st century reveal there has been a standstill.
The centre now officially expects global warming to resume at some point between 2009 and 2014.
How can this be? China's exceeding the IPCC's expectation of CO2 growth by large measures(IPCC forecast from 2.5 to 4.5 growth in reality its more like 10 to 11 percent growth). If man/greenhouse gases are the problem...with China's economy rolling into overtime and producing much greater amounts of greenhouse gases...how could man made climate change take this apparent break?
Posted by peter at April 6, 2008 09:00 PMBTW, Can The Press Really Elect McCain?
Yes.
This has been another edition of simple answers to simple questions.
Posted by ghost2 at April 6, 2008 11:07 PMHey,
Once we bury McCain, can we maybe get the Fairness Doctrine back in place so that maybe we could stop this crap from happening ever again?
Or is that like Pelosi and Impeachment, "Off the Table" WTF??
Posted by kcbill13 at April 7, 2008 12:15 AMThe morning after the 2006 elections I woke up with a chilling thought: The press would do all in its power to help the Republicans keep the White House.
Absolutely nothing has changed my mind.
Sure enough, as soon as Democrats gained control of Congress there were calls for bi-partisn cooperation from the Village pundits. When polls showed Republicans slipping and Democratic primary candidates putting up knock offs of John Edwards' policy platform there came the Unity 08 'movement' complete with the arrogant threat that if the front running Democratic candidate didn't stress bi-partisanship that they would mount a run for the presidency. And to make matters worse one Democratic primary candidate (Obama) adopted his unity, reconciliation, bring Republicans into the process, bi-partisan (oops! post-partisan) schtick and put the icing on the cake by attacking his fellow Democrats from the right.
The press followed form by trashing the most progressive Democratic candidate in many cycles as soon as Obama declared. And now that the Democratic race has narrowed to two the press has dusted off its Clinton destruction manual and executed it with renewed vigor. We're seeing this across the whole spectrum. Dowd is Dowd of course, Cohen adapted his Gore trashing style first to Edwards and now Clinton. Frank Rich has dusted off his Gore animus and adapted it to Clinton.
So the stage is set. Dispose of the biggest potential threat by making sure Edwards doesn't get off the ground. Make sure that only one of the historic duo has a chance at the nomination and be sure to trash the more progressive of the two. The one far and away better equiped is trashed as often as possible. Just in case.
Ignore every McCain inconsistency and inanity. And if McCain should moderate slightly for the general election campaign he'll be hailed as a man of great wisdom willing to alter policy in light of events.
Not saying McCain will be elected but the press is trying mightily to make it happen.
Posted by cal1942 at April 7, 2008 01:49 AMWhat did the 110th Congress do last year that the press distorted? After some 40 odd attempts to pass something on Iraq, was the press at fault? Congress wrote several blank checks last year after they said they wouldn't. Congress authorized changes to FISA after they said they wouldn't...they had to go on their August break and couldn't be bothered with getting it right. Congress doesn't have their dismal approval ratings because of the press. The president doesn't have his dismal approval ratings because of the press.
As for McOld, didn't the press write him off last year, I know I did? Did the press raise him up this year? The people who voted for him had nothing to do with his getting this nomination? Folks, last year we had all those debates to get to know the candidates, someone was watching, someone was paying attention, they voted. The press didn't do squat. More often than not, even with you peoples scorn, they presented enough for the insurgent candidate Barry Obama to surface and take the lead in the everlasting Democratic Primary season.
Geesh, write-off everything that within ones responsibility and blame the press, the MSM.
Now as for McOld, he has invited the press onto his bus. He has sat with them, spoken with them, shared his thoughts with them. They have had almost unfettered access to this candidate. Have either of the Democrats done that? I remember the Clinton/Gore bus having some of that. It didn't hurt his election, McOld has done the 92 race one better. Yeah, the press loves him...they know him. Their's the old adage, "to know me is to love me." He practices that and more. He's lived his campaign.
Folks, I'm very surprised he hasn't had Secret Service up to now. American's have had direct access whenever they see him.
Posted by peter at April 7, 2008 03:44 AMI trully beleive the media is still in power. When i hear that democrats are tuning into FOX news because they have been fairer to Clinton than MSNBC (it has) I have to worry. We all know what their game is. Just waitin for Obama to seal the deal then watch out.
Posted by glennmcgahee at April 7, 2008 07:01 AM"Their brave leader is an old, doddering, confused ranting militarist kiss-ass.."
But not a warmonger. Heavens no.
Posted by bob h at April 7, 2008 07:28 AMThe "framing of the narrative" for the Clinton-Obama contest would be proof enough of what is about to transpire, if the partisans of both camps would stop hyperventilating long enough to notice. The media do not fail to overlook any petulant but "juicy" triviality and magnify it a thousand times, and neither do they fail to ignore and attempt to marginalize any substantive policy idea. In this context, the Samantha Powers and Mark Penns are thrust into the glaring limelight for public ridicule and the candidates shoved into background near-irrelevancy. Even the blogosphere appears to be mesmerized by the main ring of the media circus, and the ringmasters are only too happy to egg on the nastiness -- conflict is the heart of drama, after all, and how it must delight them that they are able to turn a Democratic campaign that has brought out citizen participation at record levels and turn it into an alleged "negative" for Democrats.
We cannot for a moment falter in our determination to continue loudly calling attention to the imposter Wizard behind the curtain pulling the levers on the green smoke and thunder scary image machine. The framing for the general election campaign is already shaping up nicely, with McCain getting additional teflon coating to match neatly with the Alternate Reality of our "winning" strategy in Iraq, Clinton being demonized as racist in addition to power-hungry and emasculating, and Obama being set up as a scary black foreigner married to an ungrateful black woman who doesn't know her place (which they are discovering "just in time" after portraying him as that non-threatening, "bipartisan" alternative to those hate-filled Lefties calling for accountability and "scandal-plagued" Clintons).
How much more obvious does it have to be -- the media have hired Karl Rove, for goodness sake. Karl tried this "Jedi mind-trick" on the electorate in 2006, and failed miserably, in no small part due to our tireless efforts. We should be under no illusions that an even more strenuous effort will be called for in the upcoming campaign, as the Powers That Be understand only too well that a change in the White House will drastically affect their ability "to do business as usual". I know my Old Left friends think there is no real difference between the major parties, but just ask the Powers That Be -- for the price of a single whisky they'll tell you the differences, chapter and verse. And we'll never get Better Democrats until we get some More Democrats. On to November!
Posted by HenryFTP at April 7, 2008 08:19 AMMore Democrats in 2006 yielded more funding for the Iraq war and a reformed FISA authority for this president. Over forty votes on the Iraq war, over forty defeats at the hands of more Democrats. Lets give President McCain more conservative Democrats to work with. That's the cure. Work for the McCain election, work for more McCain Democrats.
And blame Karl Rove for the Democrats debacle of Obama and Clinton. It's all his fault, he's pulling the strings.
Posted by peter at April 7, 2008 08:59 AMI might point out that if the liberals want their talking points repeated in the press, then they probably should pick talking points that are not a direct contradiction to the media perception of things.
At this point, like him or hate him, nearly everyone sees John McCain as a "maverick". This has been an image he himself has fostered with his actions such as being on the gang of 14, working across the aisle on big bills with Russ Feingold & Ted Kennedy, openly criticizing the Bush administration when other Republicans wouldn't. The press has picked up on this and pushed the "maverick" image, likely in large part because of McCain's willingness to attack the Bush administration in ways that the media loved.
But now the left wants to portrait Mr. Maverick... Mr. Independent... Mr. Bush-critic... as being just a slightly older version of the current President.
The reality is that there is a pretty good chance that this dog just won't hunt.
Stop complaining about the press not buying the message and try finding a message that above all else is actually true. Seriously... consider the truth for a change.
Posted by CH Truth at April 7, 2008 09:57 AMThe real question is -- can Obama really lose to John McCain? And, unfortunately, if he keeps making arguments for himself like he has done recently -- that, for instance, his foreign policy expertise is based on a few years spent outside the country as a small child -- he may just hand the election over to him. (Memo to Obama supporters -- McCain is a military brat, he spent large parts of his childhood outside the country too. Not any more a convincing argument for him, of course, than it is for Obama.)
Posted by mary at April 7, 2008 12:18 PMOnce we bury McCain, can we maybe get the Fairness Doctrine back in place so that maybe we could stop this crap from happening ever again?
Yes. It is called "censorship" Avoid market conditions and what peoplel would like to hear.It would be a very good idea for you to promote.
Very smart!!
Go for it.
Posted by jj at April 7, 2008 04:02 PMjarjar jj: "Democrats have proven to be utter failures at that."
yet more projection after 7 MISERABLE years of ReThug failure
"Iraq and the Economy are going to get much much worse"
no hoping, jarjar, with Bush in the White House that is a prediction
bagless: "Perhaps his election will vanquish the identity politics"
again projection, coming from the party of the Southern strategy
hey pants pissing peter, how's that "good" news from Iraq doing? the stoopid, it BURNS
CH Lies: "But now the left wants to portrait Mr. Maverick... Mr. Independent... Mr. Bush-critic... as being just a slightly older version of the current President."
and name the ways McBush differs from Dear Leader
...sound of crickets chirping...
yeah, that's what I thought
poor mary, Obama has already proven he can slap down McSame
Posted by Gay Veteran at April 8, 2008 10:27 AM