As Bill Clinton Noted the Other Day,

the "vast right-wing conspiracy" is alive and well and probably even more nutty now than it was when he was president.

Somebody like Glenn Beck, who I regard as a mental midget when I used to watch him before I had my cable/dish service cut off, shouldn't even get the time of day, but there he is, with his mug plastered all over the place and even making the cover of Time. He and others of his ilk are fanning the flames of hatred all the while raking in the big bucks.

Naturally our mainstream media don't really hold these crazies and their political fellow travelers up to serious scrutiny. They are so afraid of being accused of liberal bias (think clear back to Nixon's day), they believe these wackos deserve equal time and little criticism.

The sad thing is there are people who actually believe in Beck and his ilk's drivel.

More Political Commentary

In this columnist's eyes, it's long past time for the media to stop with the trashing of Sarah Palin and her family, including the sexist subtext that she can't have both a high-profile job and have a family.

This has nothing to do with the political stance of Palin; this has to do with how we treat women politicians with one set of standards, and men with another. It also has to do with the whole notion of the so-called "mommy wars."

This much-ado-about-nothing over Palin reminds me of the classic Ms. essay written by Jane Brody in 1971, "Why I Want a Wife." Despite her having a somewhat nontraditional husband, Palin still doesn't have a wife.

No wife, no life is Palin's problem.


The more I think of the media harping on Palin, the more I see something else at work. Given the fact the media are in the tank for John McCain and have been for years, this constant slamming of Palin actually BENEFITS McCain and doesn't hurt him at all. McCain, in turn, can complain about media unfairness and get away with it because the media DOES appear to be unfair to him. What this does is strengthen the resolve of his supporters and pisses off other people on the fence. At the same time it hurts Obama, whether or not Obama and his campaign are up to their eyeballs in promoting the smears. I am coming to the conclusion there is a lot more than meets the eye here.

We will see if my growing suspicion is right or is just simply borderline tinfoil.

Gene Lyons

writes about the dirty tricks campaigning going on this season. Democrats had the opportunity to turn two McCain gaffes to their advantage, but ultimately they bombed because McCain, the darling of the media, could call these assertions distortions and get away with it.

But back to Democratic dirty tricks. Everywhere you looked, from The Washington Post to Keith Olbermann’s MSNBC News program, you saw McCain pilloried for two classic “gaffes.” As the Post put it, the GOP candidate’s “inability to recall” how many houses he and his wife own jeopardized his strategy of framing Obama as an “elitist.” Campaigning in Wisconsin, the Democratic nominee lampooned McCain’s forgetfulness, also mocking him for defining as “rich” only somebody with an income exceeding $ 5 million a year.

The point was clear: The famous “straight-talking maverick” is basically a gigolo (to use a word Republicans used to describe John Kerry in 2004 ) whose much younger second wife inherited more money than the Bush family and Scrooge McDuck combined. For Obama, it was a twofer, also hinting that the 71-year-old McCain’s memory might be fading.

Alas, neither of these things ever happened. Asked how many homes he owned, McCain advised the reporter to check with his staff. He didn’t sound unable to recall, merely unwilling.

It’s much the same with the $ 5 million thing. Asked to define “rich” by Pastor Rick Warren, McCain jokingly ducked the question.

“If you’re just talking about income,” he said, “how about $ 5 million ?” He laughed, Warren laughed, the audience laughed.

It's not going to get better I'm afraid. The media will defend McCain no matter what.

More Campaign Notes.

Mr. Campaign Finance Reform is looking for some fat cats to donate to his campaign.

Speaking of McCain, I am reading a book co-written by David Brock of Media Matters about McCain's relationship with the media. It is a book that needs to be written, for it is one of the most corrupt relationships imaginable.

In the end, the favorable coverage is a result of the virtually unlimited access McCain provides to reporters.
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Why, No Shit,

Chris. Of course McCain has had the media in his pocket, and that is the biggest reason why he is likely to be the next president.

Clinton or Obama or anybody else who may be the Democratic nominee will NEVER be able to get a fair shake from the media once the fall campaign starts:





When you've bought off the media in a corrupt relationship, as in unlimited access in return for favorable coverage, you have it made.