Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Media silly season didn't end in August

This one paragraph might be a good summary of much that is wrong with our media these days.
The summer is essentially over, and the Obama White House probably couldn’t be happier after dealing with one crisis after another. Ukraine. ISIS. The VA. Ferguson. But the chief result of this tough summer -- which has sent President Obama’s approval ratings to the low 40s (and maybe even lower) -- is a White House that’s second-guessing itself. It’s divided over using military force in Syria to combat ISIS. It’s conflicted over whether to announce executive action on immigration before or after the midterms (Obama last week seemed to signal that he would be punting). And it’s unsure where and how to campaign in the fall midterms. This kind of second-guessing always happens when the goings get tough. But it’s never helpful when all this is happening 63 days -- or 9 weeks -- before a big Election Day. Obama seems to be keeping his own counsel more than ever. That is frustrating a lot of longtime aides who worry he is more in a bubble. And the nervousness among the outside advisers is contributing to the uncertainty inside the West Wing.
And thus NBC News (no, its not Fox) would have you believe that the Obama administration is lacking in confidence as we head into the 2014 midterms. Clearly they didn't watch the same speech the rest of us did from President Obama in Milwaukee yesterday.

But lets also deconstruct the attempt they made at an argument for their case (notice that they provide no quotes or links to substantiate their claims other than that vague reference to "outside advisors" at the end). 
  • Apparently the Associated Press thinks the White House knows EXACTLY where its going to campaign over the next few weeks. 
  • The fact that the President's advisors might not agree about what to do in Syria is nothing new...been going on since the civil war there started three years ago. 
  • And you KNOW this same media would have been howling about how President Obama doesn't work with House/Senate Democrats if he hadn't at least been willing to listen to their arguments about putting off action on immigration until after the midterms. 
But they saved the whopper till the end. Can someone please explain to NBC News that "being in a bubble" is the exact opposite of listening to conflicting opinions? I mean really...is that nuts or what!? Its like someone said, "Let's make up a meme about the Obama administration second-guessing itself." And then proceed to throw the kitchen sink at it in hopes no one will notice that its all a bunch of BS.
 
Geez!!!!!

1 comment:

  1. From January - March of this year, the media blowhards gleefully predicted that the "Obamacare rollout" and "glitches" would allow the Republicans to ride a "momentum wave" in November. It's funny how they never talk about Obamacare anymore these days. Any guesses as to why (insert full sarcasm here)?

    And how frequently did we see pundits claiming that Obama's second term was doomed for failure earlier this year too?

    Oh yes -- it was the new host of NBC's Meet the Press, Chuck Todd.

    Yep -- that Chuck Todd.

    I remember him stupidly declaring on national television that Obama's presidency was "over" because of a slanted poll released during one week in June by NBC News/Wall Street Journal. And now, he's been given a recent promotion to further spew his nonsense on Sunday mornings.

    I give the media/press very little credit for anything. But one thing they're all consistent in doing is inhaling the egocentric mendacity of each other like a pack of rabid dogs in heat.

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