If someone's already diaried this, I'll take it down, but I didn't see it in my search...
In an act of MSM fit-throwing today, CBS' Dean Reynolds compares life covering the McCain campaign vs. covering the Obama campaign. Seems Reynolds is still a McCain holdout who's going to be missing those great media barbecues at the ranch after McCain loses next month. What are his grievances?
Reynold's states the following:
"Obama is the big-time orator." He points out that McCain's crowd are just as big, with just as much energy when Palin is with him.
Reynolds states that McCain is sharper on the stump than he was before. Before what? Before the campaign tanked? Before the economy imploded? Before the Palin pick?
Reynolds argues this absurdity:
It is true that McCain enjoys taking questions from the audience in town hall-style settings. That doesn't mean he is the master of that kind of forum, it just means he's good at it. He likes to converse with voters. Obama does it well too, but seldom achieves that intangible bond with the people that all politicians crave -- or fake.
So is that "intangible bond" evidenced by the number of people calling for the opponent to be killed? Or calling the opponent a terrorist, or other racial epithet? Has Reynolds actually attended an Obama event? I can't imagine how he could come to this conclusion if he had.
Reynolds then attacks the campaign staff, calling them uninformed about the candidate's activities. He whines about how "baggage calls are preposterously early". Somebody's not getting their beauty sleep?
Reynolds goes into full toddler tantrum mode next- why do we have to wait on the tarmac? I want a printed schedule in a fancy book like the McCain campaign! Why doesn't the campaign care about early evening newscasts? I can't get on live TV! If I can't be live on TV, the Obama camp is "dissing tens of millions" of my fans every night! I don't get time to file my report, and Obama doesn't care! Whaaa! Whaaa! Whaaa!
But this is the kicker:
The McCain campaign plane is better than Obama's, which is cramped, uncomfortable and smells terrible most of the time. Somehow the McCain folks manage to keep their charter clean, even where the press is seated.
Wow, I'm not even sure how to take that one. Any suggestions? I think Reynolds is telegraphing something there... something vaguely reminiscent of calling the Obama camp "dirty, f*ing hippies".
And then, the threat:
Maybe none of this means much. Maybe a front-running campaign like Obama's that is focused solely on victory doesn't have the time to do the mundane things like print up schedules or attend to the needs of reporters.
But in politics, everything that goes around comes around.
Nice. Looks like CBS isn't going to be helping themselves or anyone else in the next administration. Also looks like someone needs to give Reynolds a timeout from campaign reporting, or at the very least a nap with his blankie.
UPDATE: For those of you who see the racist tones in the "smelly plane" ranting by Reynolds, or for those of you who wish to register your general annoyance at this nitwit, here's the contact info:
CBS News
524 W. 57 St., New York, NY 10019
Phone: 212-975-4321
Fax: 212-975-1893
email: evening@cbsnews.com