Election '08: Pigs and Lipstick
Despite months of kid-glove coverage in the mainstream media, Barack Obama is now complaining about their focus on his "pig" remark, saying it is a "cynical" distraction from the real issues of the campaign. And although the whole thing is indeed ridiculous, Obama has no one to blame but himself for the last two days of coverage, two days in which he has gone "off message."
Obama should have been smart enough to avoid the problem in the first place. He should have let Joe Biden attack Sarah Palin. (Perhaps he thinks the senator from Delaware is not up to the challenge?) But, having made the remark (which his audience clearly interpreted as a dig at the Alaska hockey mom), he should have quickly apologized and moved on.
Instead, he continues to whine about idiom usage and unfair coverage, in the process diminishing his own stature. The Republicans, who have faced one media slime after another, are only too happy to provide Obama with the shovel he needs to bury himself. While none of the attacks on Palin has stuck to her, this kerfuffle over pigs and lipstick has clearly rattled him.
If Obama can't handle this, how can anyone expect him to take on America's enemies?
posted by Stan Guthrie at 9:55 AM
StanGuthrie.com
4 Comments:
Stan,
I'm an outspoken Obama supporter, so factor that into how you interpret my perspective, but ... I've been following this "lipstickgate" story, and I have not once heard Obama "complain" about the media coverage. No, he's repeatedly stated that the McCain campaign is being hypocritical and petty in their "false outrage" over this insignificant comment -- a comment McCain himself used as a dig against Hillary Clinton earlier in this presidential campaign.
Secondly, to characterize Obama as being "rattled" over this is ridiculous. Did you see him on David Letterman last night? He was joking about this and, frankly, showing how his campaign is taking the high road while McCain sinks deeper and deeper into Karl Rove-style lies and misrepresentation (led by Karl Rove himself, who is now an official advisor to the McCain campaign).
Take a look at how McCain is campaigning and compare it to Obama, and you'll see who is the better leader and who has the greater integrity. But people don't vote based on that, they vote based on the issues, right? The McCain campaign has cynically thrown out the issues (McCain's own campaign manager said as much), and they are hoping to win on character assassination of Obama.
You are probably right to suggest that Obama should allow Biden to make these attacks and not get tangled in the fray himself. But the blind approval and acceptance by conservative evangelicals of McCain's Rovian campaign tactics is frankly disheartening.
When will you call the McCain campaign to task for the lies about Palin's record on the "Bridge to Nowhere" and the perversity of the latest attack ad on Obama's education record? I'd like to see some thoughtful commentary from you (and other evangelicals) on what McCain is doing wrong in this campaign. He may be right on the issues, but he is absolutely wrong to use swiftboat politics to slice and dice his way to the White House.
Shalom,
Steve K.
Steve,
You need to check your facts. Obama has indeed complained about the media, to wit:
“What their [McCain’s] campaign has done this morning is the same game that has made people sick and tired of politics in this country,” he told a the crowd gathered in a high school library here Wednesday for a town hall focused on education. “They seize on an innocent remark, try to take it out of context, throw up an outrageous ad, because they know that it’s catnip for the news media.” (See http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/09/10/1374527.aspx.)
As far as me not criticizing the Republicans, check out my earlier post, "Community Organizing 101." I agree there has been a lot of nasty campaigning going on--from both sides. Have you seen the incessant, and mostly libelous, attacks on Palin since McCain selected her? Do I wish the campaigns and press focused only on the relevant issues and the characters of the candidattes? Of course. But politics is a contact sport, and I expect each side will do what it can to gain the upper hand (within the bounds of legality and good taste).
Anyway, thanks for writing.
Stan
Hey Stan,
Thanks for responding! I guess this is, to some degree, a matter of perspective, because even that quote you posted is to me Obama pushing back on the McCain campaign (not a "complaint" about the media). I would expect a "complaint" (your term) about the media to look like, "I'm tired of how the media keeps talking about this trivial stuff that the McCain campaign keeps bringing up." That would be a complaint about the media, and I just don't see that in the quote you've given.
I'll have to go back and look at your post on community organizing. The Republicans definitely stepped over a line there and offended thousands of hard-working Americans (again for short-term political gain).
You mention the "libelous attacks" on Governor Palin, but I suspect you mean by the media (who are investigating her record) and bloggers (who have spread innuendo and suspicion). None of that has been generated by the Obama campaign itself like this attack ads, which have come straight from McCain For President. That's the contrast here.
I'm not a lawyer, so I suspect just about anything is probably "legal" in a political campaign, but McCain's latest attack ad (on Obama and education) is the "libelous" one if you ask me. It's been called "sleazy" and "perverse" by others, so, if nothing else, it clearly fails your qualification of "good taste."
I think the evangelical movement, in its complicity with Karl Rove-style politics and the inherent contradictions in Sarah Palin's life and policies, is teetering on the precipice of irrelevance. If some conservative leaders don't stand up to McCain for this kind of campaigning, then I'll be deeply disappointed (but perhaps not surprised).
Steve,
We agree that the process is too ugly and inane. I hope you won't mind if I don't engage you on each of your points.
Let me just say that even if Sen. Obama's campaign has not done certain actions officially, it has enough connections with the media and the leftwing bloggers to informally get its points across. (And I'm sure the Republicans could say the same in the opposite direction!) I have seen that Team Obama is actively working with some Alaskans to "debunk myths" about Palin (http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iOxgjoYM2D7PHjG3ZUj6ycOahTqQ), so it's hard to say his campaign is pure in all this.
Anyway, I appreciate your time and input.
Best,
Stan
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