There's this really smart guy named Larry Sabato that the traditional media goes to when they want to find out what's actually going on. Sabato is said to know the score on the American elections process; he runs an operation called "Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball" that's supposed to gaze into the electoral future.
The article quoted below is all about Michele's White House chances, her national base, all that stuff I've been writing about here and elsewhere for so long. The article's also kind of funny, because Michele Bachmann is quoted talking about her "common sense, post-partisan" message. (No, I'm not kidding, that's what she said.)
(CONTINUED)
Describing Michele Bachmann's political message as "common sense and post-partisan" is like describing serial killer John Wayne Gacy as "a people person."
(See this, it's funny.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
I can't wait for Bachmann to campaign in Wisconsin and remind 'em that they're "the birthplace of Jeffrey Dahmer.")
Even her long-time supporters will recognize Bachmann's characterization of her own message ("common sense and post-partisan") as an outright lie. Bachmann has been rabidly partisan throughout her career, regularly demonizing Democrats and liberals as enemies of freedom and "gangster government." Post-partisan? Oh, boy, that's worthy of "Pravda."
But the lie may work--after all, it is not the things that Bachmann actually said and did that constitute her record. It is the traditional media's collective decision on how to present her to the public--that will characterize her record. I'm just tellin' ya, that's the way it works. If the corporate media decide "we're not going to run pieces on her crazy conspiracy theories and hate rhetoric and bigotry"...
...then the nut, liar, and bigot can get on that White House ticket, you betcha. Here's the Sabato take:
Sabato said many Democrats who want to see President Barack Obama re-elected next year are delighted with all of the attention Bachmann is getting.
"They think she would make a very weak general election candidate, somebody that Obama could easily beat because she's perceived as being too far to the right by those swing voters who make the difference in a November election," he said.
Sabato's right, there are a lot of Democratic activists (and progressives) who want Bachmann to be on the ticket. Some show up in the comment thread to my diaries on Bachmann at the Kos, doing clapping and cheering and dancing when they hear that Bachmann has advanced another step forward in the political process.
Bachmann's presence on a GOP White House ticket might compromise a GOP White House victory, a la Palin. But it would result in a voter turnout of conservative evangelical voters, enthusiastic right-wingers, tea party organizers/funders/ j.o.'s, thousands of enthusiastic right-to-life activists working the phones and raising money and GOTV-ing around the nation...And the fervent and uncompromising support of the nation's vast conservative evangelical media as well as the fervent support of the "secular" conservative broadcasters: Fox, Limbaugh and his army of clones in hundreds of radio markets...
Imagine all those resources rallying together, and a relatively high rate of unemployment still in place. Or some other bad political news for the White House coming out next summer.
"Couldn't happen," you say? I'm "wringing my hands" about the White House, and that's not helpful, eh? Okay, fine. Imagine I'm worried about nothing there; that there's no disagreement and the White House is safer than ever with Bachmann on the ticket. For sake of argument, I'll pretend I have no problem with the opinion that Obama beats a ticket with Michele on it somewhere, hands down.
But if Bachmann appears on that GOP ticket somewhere--and draws all the resources I just mentioned above--out to the polls next year: what will be the effect of the presence of all that pro-Bachmann media and right-wing enthusiasm on the other political races, next year? The races for the Senate, and the congressional races?
Hmm. The dancing stops, when I point that out (I hope. I hope that you guys dancing out there are not so divorced from reality that you continue to dance at the thought of a Bachmann candidacy-- after realizing the effect that such a candidacy will have on those down-ticket elections.)
See--if Romney and GOP dump Bachmann and go with someone else...they forego a tremendous advantage in driving Dems out of Congress(if the job scene continues weak, if there's a split between left and Dems, etc.) They know that Bachmann's an asset in more ways than one; it's not just about the White House, it's about control of the country. They probably don't want to run two relatively colorless candidates for the White House and drive down conservative (and conservative evangelical) money, turnout, enthusiasm.
They don't care that she's crazy, they don't particularly care what happens to her: they care what happens to them. And Bachmann's presence somewhere on a White House ticket can do a lot for them. (See that list of things that Bachmann brings to a GOP White House bid, above, again.)
And right now, even though we have long accepted the fact that Bachmann's nuts, and collected the video and audio that shows she's a nut, bigot and liar--the traditional media, the big media, seems to be doing some kind of conga dance behind her to enhance her credibility with independent voters.
All of this: is not a good thing. So I will not join you in your own "happy dance to celebrate Bachmann moving closer and closer to the White House run." (I'm prejudiced. I'm the one running around since 2006 telling people how important it is for all Dems to cooperate to end her career. Even back in 2006 I was writing about the national forces behind her. If she's on that White House ticket somewhere next year: my bet is that you'll be sorry even if she doesn't win.)
Here's the link to the Sabato story:
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/...