McCain gets a pass and that means Palin gets a pass. The media is soft-balling it as well as they can.
I have given it some time, waited to see if the media would do the work and broadcast the news into the households looking to find out a little bit more about the heartbeat away from the presidency.
I've been watching MSNBC all day to try and get the gist of what's being fed the American population. For daytime watchers, you got hurricanes. A lot on hurricanes. There was very little on Sarah Palin, though what was covered was her daughter spit shining her infant's hair, talk about her out-reach to "small town voters", unchallenged assertions to her qualifications, very little about her not facing the media for questions, and a few things about being a reformer.
Near the end of David Shuster's hour, McCain's Walter Reed visual gaffe was covered as one of three things "you should know", the other two is that Sarah Palin looks like an SNL actress and the McCain jet got a new makeover.
I would have thought this would be something the media would love to eat up. Can you imagine if Obama tried to milk patriotism from Walter Reed like this and put up a High School instead??? Buchanan would go batshit rabid insane. I can see him now screaming, "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?He.doesn't.EVEN.know.WHAT.the.Hospital LOOKS LIKE!" FOX would hardly be able to contain themselves.
At 5 til 5pm EST there is some brief discussion about her by Amy Stotter. Amy referenced Palin not talking to the press, the investigation into her, even the "eBay jet", but this was at the very end of the hour and over.
Everyone has talked about how great her speech was, they have "reported" on how it has energized the base, how it brings "small town" "average Americans" into play. There is no mention of the moderate Republicans appalled by this decision, there is no mention to rifts in the Republican party, no mention of McCain pandering to the religious right with this choice, no real mention of being swayed at the last moment to chose Palin "the maverick gave into his advisors", nobody has gone over her speech and discussed the inaccuracies and lies it was riddled with, barely has anyone really gone after the Republicans for blaming the media and what there has been was yesterday.
Chris Matthews, who went after Buchanan in a rare moment of honesty last night, is being a soft handed yutz today. He's brought up some good points, but I still haven't heard anyone address the lies in her speech. Or how when John McCain began speaking about "tough times in America" the crowd started chanting U-S-A! U-S-A!
WTF? Anybody find that bizarre?
When Matthews has Pfotenhauer on, he basically goes after "How can McCain be an agent of change...?" OK. Not bad, but there has been a wealth of inaccuracies flowing from the RNC convention, and Matthews stuck to superficial simplicity, not the zen like simplicity I'd prefer.
It makes me sick, a convention filled with signs stating "Country First" and "Service", not one bobble head has yet to mention the bizarre contrast between that concept and a purely political VP pick. He'd rather lose an election than lose a war? Really? But he's willing to leave this nut-job from Alaska at the helm if his health fails? But no one can say that because "she's an ingenious pick that energizes the campaign." As if the campaign is what matters, not the job campaigned for.
There's been a lot about the craziness of the balloons dropping. Poor old Angela Mitchell got just buried in them balloons and it was a hoot.
The media covered Rev Wright ad naseum. We did not hear the end of it. When the late, venerated Tim Russert interviewed Obama he spent a whole twenty minutes covering every possible angle of the Rev Wright "issue" to ensure, to be absolutely positively sure Obama would not trip up on anything or say anything that could not absolutely ensure he was not involved in this country hating crazy reverend's mind set. And this was after it had been done to death.
I have not heard one whisper of Sarah Palin's husband's registered involvement in the Alaska Independence Party from 1995-2002. This is a group that has openly advocated infiltrating other parties to obtain higher political office. She has addressed their conventions on at least one occasion. And we don't hear anything about it. Nothing. Her husband was a member of a secessionist party and that's not worth a peep, yet the moment Rev Wright hit the youtubes, the media feasted like pigs.
Some decent questions came from Roger Simon on Hardball, but they still lacks substance. Anyone want to bring up that John McCain graduated fifth from the bottom of his class and Sarah Palin went to 6 colleges in 7 years and contrast that with Barack Obama's Harvard achievements instead of discussing whether or not her 6 colleges in 7 years is something that should be talked about? Is it too much to ask?
David Gregory is so bad. He starts his show with the "Fight over Change". His first question to Buchanan and of the show was "Is the old John McCain back?" Before we proceed, I have a question.... "Is it acceptable to have disappearing and returning personalities? Is this not something that was lambasted as flip-flopping by the press and the GOP 4 years ago? Or more frightening... insane?" That's my question.
The eBay story gets some attention on David Gregory's show. Not much, but some. No one calls it what it is: a lie. She lied, McCain picked up on the lie and said it, now they are both lying. Anyone have a problem with that? Gregory doesn't. He returns to "change" again. Its about change and who's winning the message war, not her qualifications.
That's my point. None of the hard questions are in the production of the show. When the Democrat on the show brought up that she wasn't a change element because of her role in the Bridge to Nowhere, stating how she was for before it she was against it and the State still got to keep the money, Gregory then goes back to change. Doesn't even follow up with, "Yeah, she wasn't even in a position to say 'no thanks', Congress killed the bill." Nope, just back to the script.
I haven't heard a peep today about her ability to get money as mayor of Wasilla. She's just exciting and changes the race up. That's what is important.
Then Gregory decides to cover Obama on O'Reilly's show. They play Obama's response to the surge question. And then Gregory gushes to Buchanan, "DO you buy that Pat?"
Now tone matters a lot. More is often said with tone than with words. Its harder to pin down because anyone else can say, "I didn't hear it that way" and perhaps they are right. But I see a constant difference in tone when different candidates are discussed. Gregory has never responded to anything McCain or Palin have said like that. Never. And neither has anyone else for that matter, except Olberman and Maddow. They are alone.
The show's producers do not want to go after the many issues that are out there. There is no interest in beating to death issues of patriotism or loyalty when clearly there is grounds for it. The media is not compelled to even stand up for itself. The Republicans can label questions about Palin as media hysteria and there is little response. That seems like a big deal to me. A ruling political party in this country just slanders the media and the media is barely offended? THAT seems like something to talk about a lot, what a crummy line of defense that is and how the likes of Fred Thompson should be ashamed. But it was covered a little at the time. And that's it. Move on. It was such a great convention!
Not once have I heard, "Where's Dick Cheney? Why was he not able to attend the convention? What could be so important?" Well, he has been in Georgia and Azerbaijan and the Ukraine furthering particularly friendly relations with states that are directly on Russia's doorstep. That could use a little reporting, I think.
The media is at such despicable lows, it really frightens me. I really hope the majority of Americans can see through the utterly bogus nature of all cable news. MSNBC is really the best of them, but if it weren't for Maddow and Olberman, they'd be a perfect zero.
Gregory ends his show with, "Take a listen to Sarah Palin's rock star welcome at the Republican Convention in St Paul wednesday night." The only problem Gregory sees Palin having for McCain is that she might suck all the "oxygen out of the room" because she is so wildly popular. And he laughs. I wonder if Pat agrees.
What a disgrace.