Howard Fineman Rides the Curve
Ahh, the curve.
So we've got David Broder saying if only Obama had agreed to those townhalls that McCain wanted then the tone of the campaign wouldn't be so negative (viewable at the very end of our most recent Sunday Show Roundup), before that a trio of pundits arguing that McCain simply couldn't have any idea what kind of tactics are actually being employed in his campaign, and now here's Newsweek and NBC correspondent Howard Fineman, last night on MSNBC's Countdown, talking about the implications of Joe Lieberman's "country first" comments from yesterday: "I still don't think if you said to McCain flat-out, 'Do you approve of that kind of message,' that he would necessarily agree with it or support it."
It looks like Fineman missed this tidbit posted by Election Central earlier in the evening:
McCain Campaign Officially Endorses Lieberman's Claim That Obama Hasn't "Put Country First"
Funny story: at the start of last night's show, Countdown host Keith Olbermann actually name-dropped Talking Points Memo, citing that very McCain campaign e-mail Election Central reported on. Good to know that someone is reading!
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Comments (6)
Keith mentions TPM fairly often (considering that unlike the WoPo/Newsweek you are not their media partner).
August 13, 2008 4:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well look at it this way: Maybe they figure it's John McCain's LEARNING curve! I think that the MSM was so taken with McCain during his 2000 campaign that they refuse to see how much he's changed since then. Either that, or they can't admit they were hoodwinked by his "maverick" meme all those years ago. The shame of it is that in doing this, they are withholding ALL the facts of this campaign, and it's high time they started doing their jobs correctly.
John McCain is proving to us right now that he has no business being POTUS. He just said in his news conference that "invading a foreign country just isn't done in the 21st Century"! Oh really, Senator? What did WE do in Iraq??
August 13, 2008 4:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
John McCain is proving to us right now that he has no business being POTUS.
But the stupids on the right think he's acting presidential.
August 13, 2008 5:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Howard the Duck is absolutely right that McSame would not straightforwardly approve that message. Howard's stupidity lies in his thinking that it matters.
I mean, why would McToast want to commit suicide? He uses his campaign and surrogates to splash that tar around.
That begs the question of why old, dottering McFeeble is not responsible for his campaign. But no MSM reporter would dare go there. (The truth, of course, is that McCranky knows what's going on and likes it.)
Seems our not-so-bright Howard is just another mesmerized, inside-the-beltway tool.
August 13, 2008 7:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is really an odd point to me making in "defense" of John McCain.
The implication is that John McCain is so busy campaigning that he is not responsible for the details of how the campaign is being conducted. Now if McCain can't manage a small campaign staff how in the hell will he ever be able to manage a nation. Maybe McCain should tell the apologist supporters to cool their jets if this is the best they can come up with. Pointing out that McCain is not up to speed is hardly a ringing endorsement.
August 13, 2008 11:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Exactly. That was the funniest thing about that whole line of argument. McCain is so honorable and respectful that he would never allow his campaign to employ such tactics, so... the only logical conclusion is that he's so out of it that he doesn't even know what's going on in his own campaign.
August 14, 2008 2:26 PM | Reply | Permalink