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 Olympia Business Review - Episode Seven: Post Session and Election
from AWB Podcast Center
May 12, 2008
Olympia Business Review is a podcast of the Association of Washington Business. Your host, Dan Brunell, takes you where business and politics meet square on in Washington state. The world of Olympia is our oyster. In episode seven of the Olympia Business Review, Richard Davis and Gary Chandler join us to discuss the aftermath of the 2008 session and AWB efforts as the 2008 election draws near. Issues covered: The economy, budget, taxes, property taxes, family leave, health care, captive audience, climate change, 2008 elections, endorsement process. For more information about this, check out our website at www.awb.org.
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 BARACK OBAMA WINS IN SOUTH CAROLINA DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY HILLARY CLINTON COMES IN SECOND
from Binside TV
January 27, 2008
Senator Barack Obama won the South Carolina Democratic Primary beating Senator Hillary Clinton in the crucial win in the presidential race. ``After four great contests in every corner of this country, we have the most votes, the most delegates, and the most diverse coalition of Americans that we've seen in a long, long time,'' Obama told a cheering crowd of supporters in Columbia, South Carolina. Obama received an endorsement from Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, the daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy, who said Barack Obama could inspire Americans the way people tell me my father inspired them. Obama, who's vying to become the nation's first black president, got a boost from black voters who made up about half of those casting ballots today, according to exit polls cited by CNN. He overcame an initial swing toward Clinton among those voters, who in the past gave strong support to her husband, former President Bill Clinton.``Tonight was a rejection of the politics of the past, politics that divide us against each other,'' said Robert Gibbs, Obama's communications director. Gibbs said Obama's victory crossed racial, gender and income lines. Clinton released a statement saying she had called Obama to congratulate him. ``We now turn our attention to the millions of Americans who will make their voices heard'' in upcoming primaries, Clinton said in the statement. Exit Polls Obama carried 81 percent of the black vote to Clinton's 17 percent, according to exit polls cited by Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. Obama also got 24 percent of the white vote, with Clinton and Edwards dividing the remainder, the exit polls showed. Exit polls cited by MSNBC showed that Obama also won 49 percent of the state's young voters, aged 18 to 29. (source)
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 Media fawn over John McCain while covering NH primary
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
In discussions and reports on the January 8 presidential primaries in New Hampshire, numerous media outlets and personalities praised Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (AZ) both before and after McCain s victory in the primary, claiming that he is authentic, real, independent, and a "maverick," and describing him as "Mr. Straight Talk." For example, a January 9 USA Today editorial called McCain "straight-shooting" and claimed that "John McCain s decisive win over Mitt Romney was a triumph of authenticity over packaging," while a January 9 Los Angeles Times editorial similarly claimed that Romney "looks far less appealing than the flinty independence of John McCain." On MSNBC, host Chris Matthews repeatedly called McCain a "maverick" throughout the evening of January 8. Matthews claimed that "in New Hampshire, there are a lot of Republicans who like mavericks," adding that if McCain won the primary, "[h]is challenge will be to go against the grain nationally" and that "[i]t s always going to be hard to be a successful maverick." After McCain s victory became apparent, during Fox News January 8 coverage of the primaries, Fox News chief political correspondent Carl Cameron called McCain "Mr. Straight Talk": "And across the country, Republicans now have to begin to ponder the possibility of having Mr. Straight Talk as their standard-bearer, a candidate, a Republican that many of them have had an awful lot of issues with over the years. And now GOPers have to figure out whether or not they can get their arms around John McCain all over again." During CNN s coverage of the primaries, CNN senior political analyst Gloria Borger also referred to McCain as a "maverick," saying that being the "establishment candidate ... didn t work for him, so after July when he was broke and he had to fire most of his staff, he said, I m going to go back to being John McCain. I m going to go back to New Hampshire and work those town halls and be who I am, and I m going to become the maverick Republican again. Well, this is a year for mavericks. In case you hadn t noticed, all we re talking about is change, so that worked for him." Later on CNN, after McCain gave his victory speech, host Anderson Cooper said that McCain is "real": COOPER: And an amazing night watching him speak. You know, not the best speaker out there. Certainly, he read -- he doesn t like teleprompters. He reads from, you know, paper -- stuff written on a page. He stumbles from time to time. But he is real, and that certainly comes across. Additionally, in claiming that McCain s victory "was a triumph of authenticity over packaging," the USA Today editorial added: "Even when it has hurt him, such as on immigration reform and the war in Iraq, McCain has stuck stubbornly to unpopular positions." Yet McCain has, in fact, acknowledged that he has shifted his stance on comprehensive immigration reform -- as Media Matters for America noted -- now calling for border security first before the creation of a guest-worker program or a path to citizenship. McCain told reporters that he "understand[s] why you would call it a, quote, shift." Moreover, the editorial did not explain what it was referring to by McCain s "unpopular positions" on the Iraq war, which he supported and continues to support. From the January 9 USA Today editorial: Among the Republicans, John McCain s decisive win over Mitt Romney was a triumph of authenticity over packaging. Even when it has hurt him, such as on immigration reform and the war in Iraq, McCain has stuck stubbornly to unpopular positions. By contrast, Romney has drawn derision for repeatedly abandoning positions -- on abortion, gay rights, embryonic stem cell research -- that he held as governor of blue-state Massachusetts to cater to a more conservative national Republican audience. McCain sarcastically zinged Romney for being the "candidate of change" during Saturday night s television debate. Polls of voters leaving voting booths showed the straight-shooting McCain, the oldest candidate in the field at 71, leading the GOP field among voters ages 18-29. McCain s win, on the heels of Mike Huckabee s victory in Iowa five days earlier, leaves the Republicans with the sort of chaotic, wide-open race usually associated with Democrats. Romney, seriously wounded after staking his strategy on Iowa and New Hampshire, makes what could be his last stand next week in Michigan, where his father was governor. And Rudy Giuliani was both a loser and potential winner: He finished dismally in New Hampshire, but his ignore-the-little-states strategy could pay off with a Jan. 29 win in Florida, where polls show him narrowly ahead of Huckabee. From the January 9 Los Angeles Times editorial: Some of the same dynamics are at work among Republicans. Suddenly Mitt Romney, a second-generation politician, looks far less appealing than the flinty independence of John McCain. There, the politics of change are murkier, complicated by McCain s enduring popularity in New Hampshire, Mike Huckabee s popularity with Christian conservatives and Romney s inability to convince voters that he is a man of genuine conviction. Still, for Republicans as well as Democrats, it s a tough year to be a candidate whose principal credential is experience. Indeed, for Republicans it s a tough year to stand for anything, as the GOP remains in search of a standard-bearer. From the 5 p.m. ET hour of the January 8 edition of MSNBC s Hardball with Chris Matthews: MATTHEWS: Good evening. I m Chris Matthews. Welcome to Hardball, tonight from NBC News headquarters in New York. This is the night, the night that could be the beginning of the end of a front-runner s presidential candidacy, a night that could turn a movement -- or turn a moment, rather, into a movement, a night when a maverick Republican could rise from the ashes to claim victory, a night when conventional wisdom crumbles and change becomes the touchstone for this country. Tonight is the night of the New Hampshire primary. From the 6 p.m. ET hour of MSNBC s coverage of the January 8 New Hampshire primary: MATTHEWS: Let me ask you, David [Gregory, NBC News chief White House correspondent]. It seems to me that this anger is hard to read, if you look at all the candidates on the Republican side. You know, John McCain, although he s a maverick, has sided with the president on the war. And you could argue maybe if you re very pro-Bush, you d stick with McCain. But on the other hand, his personality is so different than Bush s and his person. It s hard to read that, isn t it? From the 7 p.m. ET hour of MSNBC s coverage of the January 8 New Hampshire primary: MATTHEWS: Well, the wild thing about John McCain is, although he s a great military man who has served his country and is obviously a patriot in all the great ways you could be a patriot, both in public service and in his military career and his sacrifice, he s not popular among the regular Republicans, the people that go to meetings and organize the Republican Party victories. He s not popular among the evangelicals, right? KEITH OLBERMANN (Countdown host): Mm-hmm. MATTHEWS: Who does that leave? It leaves the media, and it leaves people who like mavericks. I think in New Hampshire, there are a lot of Republicans who like mavericks. They like Pat Buchanan. They like going against the grain. His challenge will be to go against the grain nationally if he wins tonight. That s a hard one. It s always going to be hard to be a successful maverick. From the 8 p.m. ET hour of Fox News coverage of the January 8 New Hampshire primary: CAMERON: McCain now has to look forward to Michigan, a state that he also won in 2000 by only 8 points. He dropped from an 18-point victory in New Hampshire to an 8-point victory in Michigan. This time they go back to Michigan feeling particularly confident. Mr. McCain has been spending a tremendous amount of time there as well as in South Carolina. And across the country, Republicans now have to begin to ponder the possibility of having Mr. Straight Talk as their standard-bearer, a candidate, a Republican that many of them have had an awful lot of issues with over the years. And now GOPers have to figure out whether or not they can get their arms around John McCain all over again. From the 8 p.m. ET and 9 p.m. ET hours of CNN s coverage of the January 8 New Hampshire primary: BORGER: It s been so interesting because just six months ago, Anderson, we had all these headlines last July. He had $250,000 in the bank when he was the establishment candidate. He had to fire half his staff, and the question on the campaign trail was, "Can a souffl rise twice?" And in John McCain s case, tonight, he just proved that it could. And what he s done is he was the establishment candidate. That didn t work for him, so after July when he was broke and he had to fire most of his staff, he said, "I m going to go back to being John McCain. I m going to go back to New Hampshire and work those town halls and be who I am, and I m going to become the maverick Republican again." Well, this is a year for mavericks. In case you hadn t noticed, all we re talking about is change, so that worked for him. [...] COOPER: And an amazing night watching him speak. You know, not the best speaker out there. Certainly, he read -- he doesn t like teleprompters. He reads from, you know, paper -- stuff written on a page. He stumbles from time to time. But he is real, and that certainly comes across.
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Matthews on Clinton's performance: "good enough here for women who wanted to root for her anyway"
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
During MSNBC s coverage of the January 8 New Hampshire Primary, Hardball host Chris Matthews, responding to exit polling regarding women voters, asserted of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton s (NY) performance in the January 5 Democratic presidential candidates debate at St. Anselm College, "I thought the debate Saturday night, and I was in the room, was a draw. I wasn t clear at all that she won it. But maybe she was good enough to seem good enough here for women who wanted to root for her anyway." Matthews continued, "By the way, we keep forgetting, this is the first campaign a woman can actually win the presidency in, ever. So it s just as striking as a pioneer opportunity for women voting -- especially older women voting, who may figure this is their last chance to elect a woman president." After Keith Olbermann, host of MSNBC s Countdown, noted that "there was a survey of girls who thought -- 40 percent of them thought they would not see a woman president in the next 10 years and still some large number, 30-35 percent, thought they would never see a woman president? That s from five years ago," Matthews asserted, "Well, there s only one candidate still. And even one -- there s not even another on the horizon. Where are the governors? Where are the big-state women governors? Where are they? Name one." Four of the last five U.S. presidents had previously been governors, and several of the men currently running for president are or have been governors. But Matthews did not mention that several of the states that currently have women governors are comparable in population to the states in which the male candidates serve or have served as governor. A Media Matters for America analysis of 2006 U.S. Census population estimates indicated that: Massachusetts, where Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney served as governor, had an estimated population of 6,437,193. By comparison, Christine Gregoire (D) serves as governor of Washington, a state with an estimated population of 6,395,798; and Janet Napolitano (D) is governor of Arizona, a state with an estimated population of 6,166,318. Arkansas, where Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee served as governor, had an estimated population of 2,810,872. By comparison, M. Jodi Rell (R) is governor of Connecticut, a state with an estimated population of 3,504,809; and Kathleen Sebelius (D) is governor of Kansas, a state with an estimated population of 2,764,075. New Mexico, where Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson serves as governor, had an estimated population of 1,954,599. Matthews mentioned that Jennifer Granholm (D), the current governor of Michigan, a state with an estimated population of 10,095,643, is constitutionally ineligible to run for the presidency since she was not born in the United States. Other incumbent women governors include: Linda Lingle (R), governor of Hawaii, a state with an estimated population of 1,285,498; Ruth Ann Minner (D), governor of Delaware, a state with an estimated population of 853,476; and Sarah Palin (R), governor of Alaska, a state with an estimated population of 670,053. From the 10 p.m. ET hour of MSNBC s January 8 New Hampshire Primary coverage: OLBERMANN: Lee Cowan at Obama headquarters and he s right about the women: 47-34, Clinton over Obama. And Chris, in Iowa, of course, that was 35-30 Obama over Clinton. And when you ask where John Edwards was, we re waiting for his comments in a few moments. Obviously he s not going to win this. It will be very interesting to see what he says this night compared to what he said in Iowa after the strong second-place finish there. MATTHEWS: Well, this was fairly predictable until a week or so ago. The Democratic Party is still driven largely by women, issues like health care, education, child enrichment, parental issues like Social Security and Medicare. The Democratic Party has made those issues its preserve. Those are the ones they re primarily interested in. OLBERMANN: What was number one in the exit poll for both parties tonight? It was the economy. MATTHEWS: Right. Well, that s of interest to every family, by definition. OLBERMANN: All right, fine. MATTHEWS: But clearly, Hillary Clinton -- well, we re going to know more because we re going to get more anecdotal information over the next couple days of people who saw her on television break down to some extent. She did not break down. She had an emotional -- OLBERMANN: Teared up. Teared up is the easiest way to describe it. MATTHEWS: Yes. Possibly watered up a bit. But I think that was it. And I have to say that I thought the debate Saturday night, and I was in the room, was a draw. I wasn t clear at all that she won it. But maybe she was good enough to seem good enough here for women who wanted to root for her anyway. By the way, we keep forgetting, this is the first campaign a woman can actually win the presidency in, ever. So it s just as striking as a pioneer opportunity for women voting -- especially older women voting, who may figure this is their last chance to elect a woman president. OLBERMANN: What was the number from just five years ago, six years ago, that there was a survey of girls who thought -- 40 percent of them thought they would not see a woman president in the next 10 years and still some large number, 30-35 percent, thought they would never see a woman president? That s from five years ago. MATTHEWS: Well, there s only one candidate still. And even one -- there s not even another on the horizon. Where are the governors? Where are the big-state women governors? Where are they? Name one. They don t exist. Michigan, she s a Canadian. She can t make it. OLBERMANN: Yeah, Governor Granholm. That s right, she s ineligible. Unless we change the, you know, Schwarzenegger rule to bring her in as well. MATTHEWS: That would be the Schwarzenegger-Granholm rule, I think you d have to call it. OLBERMANN: All right. We haven t checked in with Pat Buchanan and Rachel Maddow going head-to-head on the issues in a little while. Let s bring them back in now. Pat, what about this still-too-close-to-call Democratic race and the shift, particularly for women from Iowa and how they voted for Barack Obama handily there, to how they voted for Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire? PAT BUCHANAN (MSNBC analyst): This is an astonishing development. Look, the pollsters were dead wrong. They were predicting seven, eight to a dozen points for Obama. The press was dead wrong. We had virtually canonized Obama and said he d been born in Bethlehem, and now you ve got a race where Hillary Clinton is running three or four -- MATTHEWS: I don t think you were on that list of apostles. BUCHANAN: -- three or four points ahead of this fellow. Something has happened. There is a hidden vote here somewhere, or my guess is this: The New Hampshire voters said, look, the press has been telling us Obama s the second coming. We don t think so. The press has been telling us she s gone, and the women came out and said, no, she s not. What New Hampshire did was stand up and body slam the national establishment, the press corps, the pollsters, the whole bunch that came in here, as well as Barack Obama s folks, who must be in a state of shock tonight. RACHEL MADDOW (Air America host): Pat, I will tell you that on the influential -- influential perhaps on the left -- website Talking Points Memo today, you want to know who they re blaming for women voters breaking for Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama? Who they re blaming for this late showing in a big vote for Hillary Clinton? They re blaming Chris Matthews. People are citing specifically Chris not only for his own views, but also for as a symbol of what the mainstream media has done to Hillary Clinton. MATTHEWS: Which website is this? MADDOW: This is talkingpointsmemo.com. And it s -- you re being cited anecdotally, not statistically. MATTHEWS: My influence in American politics looms over the people. I m overwhelmed myself. MADDOW: People feel that the media is piling on Hillary Clinton. They re coming to her defense with their votes.
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Media figures claimed Clinton's emotional moment in NH was "pretend[]," not "genuine"
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
While discussing a recent campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, during which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton s (D-NY) voice broke as she talked about why she is seeking the presidency, several media figures have baselessly claimed that Clinton s actions were not "genuine" or were "pretend[]." For example, CNN Headline News host Glenn Beck said of the incident, "Hillary Clinton isn t just running for president, but she s also making a run for the best actress nomination," while New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, in her January 9 column, quoted an anonymous Times reporter s assertion: "That crying really seemed genuine. I ll bet she spent hours thinking about it beforehand." Further, right-wing pundit Michelle Malkin wrote: "Anyone who believes Hillary spontaneously teared up and got emotional on the campaign trail has been in a coma the last three decades." As Media Matters for America documented, Weekly Standard editor and New York Times columnist William Kristol similarly claimed on Fox News that "[s]he pretended to cry; the women liked it," adding, "The women were sorry for her, and she won." The characterization of Clinton as calculating is one frequently invoked by the media. During the January 8 edition of CNN Headline News Glenn Beck, Beck opened the program by asserting that the "[b]ig news from New Hampshire tonight is: It cries." During his recurring "The Point" segment, Beck asserted: BECK: I don t buy the hype of the tears. I don t think you should, either. Apparently, Hillary Clinton isn t just running for president, but she s also making a run for the best actress nomination. And here s how I got there. Believe me, I know what it s like to get caught off guard and break down occasionally. I mean, I cry on this freaking show like every 10 minutes, so don t get me wrong here. I get it. And I appreciate somebody who can cry. But I m a big sissy in a purple shirt, and I m not running for the leader of the free world. You know what I m saying? After airing a clip of Clinton saying, "You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards," Beck said, "Is it just me? Maybe because I just don t buy any of her bullcrap anyway." Later in the segment, Beck added: BECK: Hillary, we see what s happening here. You re losing, and this is some sort of bizarre, last-ditch strategy to ingratiate you with women, maybe? Or make you seem less like the Terminator? I mean, I ve -- I wouldn t put it past you to have your eye fall out and this little red light coming out of your eye socket. I m just saying. For those -- for those of you who thought those tears were for our country, I think you re mistaken there. Maybe, I think, if the tears were real, they were just because of the grind that she is under right now. In her Times column, Dowd wrote: "When I walked into the office Monday, people were clustering around a computer to watch what they thought they would never see: Hillary Clinton with the unmistakable look of tears in her eyes." Dowd added that one "reporter joked: That crying really seemed genuine. I ll bet she spent hours thinking about it beforehand. He added dryly: Crying doesn t usually work in campaigns. Only in relationships. " In her January 9 syndicated column, Malkin wrote of the incident: "So long, feminist hero. Hello, weeping willow. Anyone who believes Hillary spontaneously teared up and got emotional on the campaign trail has been in a coma the last three decades." Malkin later added that Clinton "can t tolerate someone else out-politically-correct-ing her. This was supposed to be her year. Her triumph. Her her-story. Maybe a few of those tears welling up in her eyes were real after all. Expect more as this contested race -- a race she thought would be a cakewalk -- continues." From the January 8 edition of CNN Headline News Glenn Beck: BECK: Well, hello, America. Big news from New Hampshire tonight is: It cries. After spending decades stripping away all trace of emotion, femininity, and humanity, Hillary Clinton actually broke down and actually cried yesterday on the campaign trail. So, I guess, here s "The Point" tonight. I don t buy the hype of the tears. I don t think you should, either. Apparently, Hillary Clinton isn t just running for president, but she s also making a run for the best actress nomination. And here s how I got there. Believe me, I know what it s like to get caught off guard and break down occasionally. I mean, I cry on this freaking show like every 10 minutes, so don t get me wrong here. I get it. And I appreciate somebody who can cry. But I m a big sissy in a purple shirt, and I m not running for the leader of the free world. You know what I m saying? Let s a take minute here just to look at the Hillary episode where she was responding to the question, "How do you do it?" CLINTON [video clip]: You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards. BECK: Is it just me? Maybe because I just don t buy any of her bullcrap anyway. I just -- wow. You might want to go grab the tissue if you need one, because the waterworks is just beginning. The tough-as-nails attorney and political animal tried to choke back the tears and dig deep for the words, and she offered this. CLINTON [video clip]: This is very personal for me. It s not just political, it s not just public. I see what s happening. And we have to reverse it. BECK: OK, that part I was OK with. But then she went into, and you know, some people just aren t prepared. And it just seemed like more of the same old-same old. Hillary, we see what s happening here. You re losing, and this is some sort of bizarre, last-ditch strategy to ingratiate you with women, maybe? Or make you seem less like the Terminator? I mean, I ve -- I wouldn t put it past you to have your eye fall out and this little red light coming out of your eye socket. I m just saying. For those -- for those of you that thought those tears were for our country, I think you re mistaken there. Maybe, I think, if the tears were real, they were just because of the grind that she is under right now. From Dowd s January 9 New York Times column: When I walked into the office Monday, people were clustering around a computer to watch what they thought they would never see: Hillary Clinton with the unmistakable look of tears in her eyes. A woman gazing at the screen was grimacing, saying it was bad. Three guys watched it over and over, drawn to the "humanized" Hillary. One reporter who covers security issues cringed. "We are at war," he said. "Is this how she ll talk to [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-il?" Another reporter joked: "That crying really seemed genuine. I ll bet she spent hours thinking about it beforehand." He added dryly: "Crying doesn t usually work in campaigns. Only in relationships." Bill Clinton was known for biting his lip, but here was Hillary doing the Muskie. Certainly it was impressive that she could choke up and stay on message. She won her Senate seat after being embarrassed by a man. She pulled out New Hampshire and saved her presidential campaign after being embarrassed by another man. She was seen as so controlling when she ran for the Senate that she had to be seen as losing control, as she did during the Monica scandal, before she seemed soft enough to attract many New York voters. From Malkin s January 9 syndicated column, as published in The New York Post: Many will point to Hillary s watery-eyed performance at a Portsmouth rally on Monday as a watershed moment. Down in the polls and facing imminent defeat, the erstwhile anti-Tammy Wynette turned on the spigot and played damsel in distress: "It s not easy, and I couldn t do it if I didn t passionately believe it was the right thing to do. You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backward, you know?" The steely voice -- infamous for uttering profanities at staffers, state troopers and her Secret Service detail, bellowing at the Bush administration and Rush Limbaugh, and imitating a fiery Southern drawl -- turned drippy: "You know, this is very personal for me. It s not just political; it s not just public. I see what s happening, and we have to reverse it." Insert heartfelt pauses and choke-ups as directed. So long, feminist hero. Hello, weeping willow. Anyone who believes Hillary spontaneously teared up and got emotional on the campaign trail has been in a coma the last three decades. Bill Clinton s diarrhea of the mouth didn t help. He flailed at reporters for putting his poor, poor wife at a "breathtaking disadvantage" (never mind the countless regal magazine covers of his wife and softball coverage over the years); lamented that he can t turn her into something "younger, taller, male," and whined that "the wealthier have more right to free speech than the rest of us" (never mind their $100 million war chest). [...] You can t fake a core. You can t fake charm. And you can t fake humility. Mannequin Hillary tried during the ABC News debate in New Hampshire over the weekend when questioned about her likeability. "Well, that hurts my feelings," she coyly purred in attempted mock self-effacement. One problem: The Clintons are too steeped in the politics of self-entitlement to pull off credible self-effacement. Seated next to a rival who has stolen her liberal thunder and who might make history as the nation s first black president, Hillary couldn t help declaring: "I am an agent of change, I embody change. I think having the first woman president is a huge change." She can t tolerate someone else out-politically-correct-ing her. This was supposed to be her year. Her triumph. Her her-story. Maybe a few of those tears welling up in her eyes were real after all. Expect more as this contested race -- a race she thought would be a cakewalk -- continues.
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On GMA, Sawyer allowed McCain to tout his "positive" New Hampshire campaign
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
In an interview with Sen. John McCain (AZ) about his January 8 win in the New Hampshire Republican primary, during the January 9 edition of ABC s Good Morning America, co-anchor Diane Sawyer did not challenge McCain s claim that he "ran a positive campaign" in New Hampshire. In fact, McCain ran a negative TV ad in the state and, in the days leading up to the primary, his campaign posted three negative Web ads about one of his opponents, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R). Explaining why he felt he had won the New Hampshire primary, McCain told Sawyer "I came back to tell them the truth and have lots of town hall meetings. We had over our 101st yesterday. Day before yesterday. And we ran a positive campaign." When Sawyer asked if "Governor Romney [is] authentic or not," McCain responded: McCAIN: Well, I think it s clear that Governor Romney has changed positions on a lot of issues, but I think he s a very fine person. And works very hard. I think he s very sincere. But also I think that has to do with the fact that we ran a positive campaign, and obviously, there was a slew of negative ads. And, so, I think that contributed to the positives that we had going into the election yesterday. In neither instance did Sawyer challenge McCain s claim that he "ran a positive campaign." In fact, as Media Matters for America documented, in a December 28 press release, McCain s campaign announced the release of its TV ad "Consider," which quotes a Concord Monitor editorial asserting, "If a candidate is a phony ... we ll know it. Mitt Romney is such a candidate." Time magazine senior political analyst Mark Halperin reported on his Time.com blog The Page that the ad was the "first negative ad by any candidate besides Romney." In a December 28 post on ABC News blog Political Radar, Matt Stuart reported that Romney responded to the ad, saying: "It s an attack ad. It attacks me personally. It s nasty. It s mean spirited. Frankly, it tells you more about Sen. McCain than it does about me that he would run an ad like that." McCain s campaign has also posted three negative Web ads against Romney in January. Additionally, the Nashua, New Hampshire, Telegraph reported on December 18 that McCain "launched an attack -- a direct mail campaign labeling New Hampshire primary front-runner Mitt Romney as a serial flip-flopper that voters can t trust. " The Telegraph added that the "mailing is believed to be the first, campaign-paid flier in New Hampshire by any candidate critical of former Massachusetts Gov. Romney, who holds onto a solid lead in GOP primary polls here." Media Matters has noted several media outlets, including the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, the Politico, The Washington Post, USA Today, the New Hampshire Union Leader, and CNN, quoted or paraphrased McCain saying that negative campaigns or ads don t work without noting McCain s negative ads against Romney. From the January 9 edition of ABC s Good Morning America: SAWYER: Good morning to you, Senator McCain. So "comeback kid," huh? How old do you feel this morning? McCAIN: Well, I m going to say the noun "kid" doesn t fit very well. So "Mac is back" is our -- is our phrase. Feeling very good, very grateful to the people of New Hampshire, and now, as you know, we re on to another state. I came back to tell them the truth and have lots of townhall meetings. We had over our 101st yesterday -- day before yesterday. And we ran a positive campaign. SAWYER: Let me ask you about the exit polls and some of the things they seem to be showing. They show that among voters who say that they re voting for a candidate who says what he believes, you defeated Governor Romney, 53-13. That s massive. This is the question. Is Governor Romney authentic or not? McCAIN: Well, I think it s clear that Governor Romney has changed positions on a lot of issues, but I think he s a very fine person. And works very hard. I think he s very sincere. But also I think that has to do with the fact that we ran a positive campaign, and obviously, there was a slew of negative ads. And, so, I think that contributed to the positives that we had going into the election yesterday. SAWYER: You have stuck with the surge and stuck with your position on the surge in Iraq from the beginning, and as you probably know, one of the most viewed videos now on YouTube is the video of you saying -- interjecting when someone talks about being in Iraq for 50 years, and you say, "Could be 100 years." Explain that.
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NY Times' new columnist Kristol said Clinton won because "[s]he pretended to cry"
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
During Fox News January 8 "You Decide 2008" coverage of the New Hampshire presidential primaries, Fox News political contributor and recently hired New York Times columnist William Kristol attributed Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton s (D-NY) victory in the Democratic primary to "the tears," saying, "She pretended to cry; the women liked it." Anchor Brit Hume asked Kristol, "You think she pretended?" Kristol responded, "I do," to which Hume replied, "I don t." Kristol added, "The women were sorry for her, and she won." Hume had previously asked Kristol if "there [is] anything else to attribute it [Clinton s victory] to," to which Kristol said, "No, it s the tears." Kristol was referring to a recent campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, during which Clinton s voice broke as she talked about why she is seeking the presidency. Kristol s January 8 comments came moments after Fox News political contributor and National Public Radio special correspondent Juan Williams said of the incident, "Now, Hillary Clinton shows a little emotion, and people say, hey, wait a minute, the ice queen is melting. There s a real person inside." As Media Matters for America documented, Kristol is one of several media figures who described Clinton s actions as "calculated," reviving a characterization frequently made by the media that Clinton is "calculating." On the January 7 edition of Fox News Special Report, Kristol said, "I don t believe it was genuine. I think no Clinton cries without calculating first," adding, "She s crying for herself, and I don t even believe it s genuine. I think it s entirely calculated." The blog Think Progress also noted Kristol s January 8 comments. From the 10 p.m. ET hour of Fox News January 8 "You Decide 2008" coverage: HUME: And quite an achievement for her, I suppose, to come back with only a few days and the momentum coming out of Iowa and all that, and the Barack Obama -- I mean, the, good Lord, you certainly -- there was nothing about the media coverage of the last several days that would have generated any momentum for her -- unless, as one of my colleagues suggested tonight, that perhaps that incident in the restaurant when she showed a little emotion. WILLIAMS: That s right. HUME: That that might ve -- I mean, that was obviously seen everywhere. I mean, there are very few people who -- WILLIAMS: In fact it was headlines. It was headlines. HUME: It was headlines. WILLIAMS: And inside the Clinton campaign, they were calling it the anti-Muskie, you know, the reverse Muskie, because, remember, Ed Muskie cried here, and everybody thought he had broken down and he was a weak man and certainly couldn t be our president. And all of a sudden he went down. Now, Hillary Clinton shows a little emotion, and people say, hey, wait a minute, the ice queen is melting. There s a real person inside. And this has to do with her redirecting her campaign in the last few days, because, as we ve seen in the exit poll numbers, it was the last few days that seemed to have changed the tide here. And if that s the case, Hillary Clinton showing emotion, Hillary Clinton starting to offer some sort of vision beyond I m Bill Clinton s wife and I m a policy wonk, that started to stir people up. And her appeal to women on the abortion issue, I think -- HUME: So your view of it was then that in doing that, with her voice soft, and whatever it was, it was certainly feminine, that that was appealing to voters? WILLIAMS: It was appealing to women voters specifically, Brit. And I think it s going to pay off. And I think going forward -- you know, we ve talked about the black vote, we have not talked about the Latino vote, but the Latino vote is strongly with Hillary Clinton. Going back to John Edwards for just a second, I think at this point he s a wholly owned and operated subsidiary of the unions, and that s why he stays in. You know, his "Two Americas" speeches way back in 04 was very effective, talking about the need to care for the poor, health care, education. But, you know what? It s gone away from that now, and I think it s become personal between him and Hillary. And if that s the case, I think a lot of people are just gonna turn off to John Edwards as he s got his problems, but it s not about the leadership and future of the country. HUME: Here s old stone heart here with his data. KRISTOL: No, I, well, I m -- unfortunately, senior women are not stonehearted, as I am, and they went big for Hillary. It s interesting if you look at when people decided. This was an even race before Iowa. I mean, let s not overdo this. It s not as if Obama has been here for weeks or months. He was behind, he caught up, Hillary Clinton was slightly ahead. People who decided sometime in the last week strongly for Obama. He did get a bump out of Iowa. Sometime in the last few days, a little bit for Obama. In the last day, for Clinton -- a small margin, but still for Clinton. HUME: Well, is there anything else to attribute it to? KRISTOL: And that s the tears. No, it s the tears. She pretended to cry; the women liked it. HUME: You think she pretended? KRISTOL: Yes. HUME: I don t. KRISTOL: The women were sorry for her, and she won.
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Morris, Ingraham claimed Clinton's expression of emotion raises questions about her national security credentials
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
On the January 7 edition of Fox News Hannity s (D-NY) comments during a January 7 campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in which her voice broke when she responded to a question, Fox News contributor Dick Morris stated: "I believe that there could well come a time when there is such a serious threat to the United States that she breaks down like that." Morris continued, "I don t think she ought to be president." Likewise, during the January 8 edition of Fox News Fox t have people who break down and start crying at the most difficult moments. I mean, come on. This is the big time. She s in the big time." Ingraham went on to say, "[C]ome on, this is the big leagues. You can t start crying because you re behind. I mean, welcome to politics." As the blog News Hounds noted, Hannity s Meet the Press, Romney became emotional after host Tim Russert noted that "it wasn t till 1978 that the Mormon Church decided to allow blacks to participate fully." Romney appeared to choke up during his response. He stated, "I heard it on the radio, and I pulled over and -- and literally wept. Even at this day it s emotional, and so it s very deep and fundamental in my life and my most core beliefs that all people are children of God." After asserting that Romney "cried on Meet the Press," Colmes asked, "Should he not be president because he cried with Tim Russert?" Morris responded, "No, but I m not sure that ... he cried in sympathy for himself." Morris went on to say, "Hillary s crying ... is I m being victimized. " Although Ingraham discussed Romney during her appearance on Fox s emotional reaction during his December 16 Meet the Press appearance raised similar questions about his fitness for the presidency. Romney also became emotional during his December 6, 2007, speech on faith and politics. A December 19 Boston Globe article -- headlined "Romney has another teary moment" -- further noted that during a December 17 campaign event, "his eyes filled with tears for the third time in as many weeks on the presidential campaign trail." From the article: On Monday at a Londonderry, N.H., military contractor, Romney told a stock campaign story about watching the casket of a US soldier killed in Iraq come off the conveyor belt of a plane at Logan International Airport in Boston. The soldiers he was with saluted and passengers in the terminal paused and put their hands on their hearts, he said. But then, as he added a new twist to the story, his eyes welled again. "I have five boys of my own," he said. "I imagined what it would be like to lose a son in a situation like that." That moment prompted reporters to ask him whether he was showing a different side - and Romney to respond that he was just acting like anyone else. Nor did the Fox News hosts ask Ingraham whether President Bush s emotional moments make him unfit for the presidency. As the blog Think Progress noted, news outlets have repeatedly reported Bush s tears: An April 2002 Newsweek article reported: "The president is tremendously sentimental. Forget about putting his parents anywhere near him. At his inauguration he purposely kept them out of his line of sight so he could stay as dry-eyed as possible. He has learned not to brush the tears away." A January 12, 2007, Washington Post article reported, "The pictures were just what the White House wanted: A teary-eyed President Bush presenting the Medal of Honor posthumously to a slain war hero in the East Room, then flying here to join the chow line with camouflage-clad soldiers as some of them prepare to return to Iraq. A January 12, 2007, Chicago Sun-Times article reported: "A tear rolled down Bush s cheek during the event, an extraordinary display of emotion by the commander-in-chief. Bush has been known to tear up and reportedly once cried in a private meeting with war widows." From the January 8 edition of Fox News Fox ve been on the campaign trail for so long, you still look good, how do you do it. And then she welled up, and people are making a lot of the tears or near tears, and in fact, I d say 30 or 40 percent of our emailers think she was faking it. What s been the reaction up there? SUSAN ESTRICH (columnist and Fox News contributor): Well, two things. First of all, I ve known Hillary Clinton for a long time. I watched the whole two minutes of tape. I don t think she was faking it. But it s pure campaign land. I mean, if she were way ahead, everyone would say, "What a genuine show of emotion, you know? She s doing the passion thing." Because you re behind, everybody says, "My God, she s losing it, she s lost it, it must be -- you know, some new strategy to try to get it back." I think it was genuine, but politically it didn t help. KILMEADE: Hey, Laura -- Laura, do you think that Hillary Clinton loses big, and it s over? INGRAHAM: Well, I think it could be. I mean, and it s absolutely stunning to many of us -- and certainly me, who thought the Clinton machine was unbeatable. But look: I think one thing about the weeping episode, just to -- I actually felt sorry for her for that moment. But remember, we have Islamic jihadists, bin Laden, Mullah Omar, and all these other freaks that want to come to the United States and wreak havoc upon our population. We can t have people who break down and start crying at the most, you know, difficult moments. I mean, come on. This is the big time. She s been in the big time. ESTRICH: I don t think anyone really doubts that Hillary is tough enough to be president. I think the question has always been is she nice enough to be president. CARLSON: Exactly. That was always the complaint. INGRAHAM: Oh, come on, this is the big leagues. You can t start crying because you re behind. I mean, welcome to politics. CARLSON: But I think it s good for both men and women to show emotion. We ve discussed that before here. From the January 7 edition of Fox News Hannity s too stiff; she s got no feelings; she s an automaton. Then she finally shows emotion -- it s either calculated, which you did not say, or it s having a breakdown or a meltdown. Let me show you when a man does it and we ll -- how the reaction is totally different. Here s President Bush 41. GEORGE H.W. BUSH (former president) [video clip]: They took note of his defeated opponent, who showed not merely with words but by his actions what a decent -- HANNITY: That s not the same. COLMES: He gets a hug. He s not called weak. Should we rescind his presidency because he cried? MORRIS: Where was that? COLMES: Where was it? MORRIS: Yes. Where was he physically? COLMES: Well, he was physically talking about Jeb Bush. HANNITY: About his son. MORRIS: About his son. COLMES: The point is he was probably crying about the guy who s president now. But that s OK. MORRIS: And he s 80 years old. COLMES: And he s a man. He s a man, so it s different, right? MORRIS: You asked a question, let me answer. He s 80 years old. I don t think he should be elected president now. I don t think he should be president. The most famous example of somebody crying on the campaign trail was [former Sen. Edmund] Muskie [D-ME]. COLMES: And Pat Schroeder. MORRIS: And everybody felt that after Muskie cried that he was not fit to be president. And I believe that there could well come a time when there is such a serious threat to the United States that she breaks down like that. COLMES: Mitt Romney cried on Meet the Press. MORRIS: I don t think she ought to be president. COLMES: Should he not be president because he cried with Tim Russert? Emotional about how civil rights was recognized by his church? And should Mitt Romney not be president for that reason? MORRIS: No, but I m not sure that -- HANNITY: In 1978 -- COLMES: It s a double standard. MORRIS: I m not sure he cried in sympathy for himself. COLMES: I see, but he cried. MORRIS: Hillary s crying and Muskie s crying is "I m being victimized" -- COLMES: Well, that s your interpretation. HANNITY: We ve got to run. But our hope is that Alan will be crying. From the December 16, 2007, edition of NBC s Meet the Press: RUSSERT: You -- you raise the issue of color of skin. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court, Brown vs. Board of Education, desegregated all our public schools. In 1964, civil rights laws giving full equality to black Americans. And yet it wasn t till 1978 that the Mormon Church decided to allow blacks to participate fully. Here was the headlines in the papers in June of 78. "Mormon Church Dissolves Black Bias. Citing new revelation from God, the president of the Mormon Church decreed for the first time black males could fully participate in church rites." You were 31 years old, and your church was excluding blacks from full participation. Didn t you think, "What am I doing part of an organization that is viewed by many as a racist organization?" ROMNEY: I m very proud of my faith, and it s the faith of my fathers, and I certainly believe that it is a faith -- well, it s true, and I love my faith, and I m not going to distance myself in any way from my faith. But you can see what I believed and what my family believed by looking at -- at our lives. My dad marched with Martin Luther King. My mom was a tireless crusader for civil rights. You may recall that my dad walked out of the Republican convention in 1964 in San Francisco in part because Barry Goldwater, in his speech, gave my dad the impression that he was someone who was going to be weak on civil rights. So my dad s reputation, my mom s, and my own has always been one of reaching out to people and not discriminating based upon race or anything else. And so those are my fundamental core beliefs, and I was anxious to see a change in my church. I can remember when -- when I heard about the change being made. I was driving home from -- I think it was law school, but I was driving home, going through the Fresh Pond rotary in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I heard it on the radio, and I pulled over and -- and literally wept. Even at this day it s emotional, and so it s very deep and fundamental in my -- in my life and my most core beliefs that all people are children of God. My faith has always told me that. My faith has also always told me that, in the eyes of God, every individual was, was merited the fullest degree of happiness in the hereafter, and I had no question in my mind that African-Americans and, and blacks generally, would have every right and every benefit in the hereafter that anyone else had, and that God is no respecter of persons.
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ABC's Snow labeled Clinton's discussion of housing issues "tedious"
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
On the January 7 edition of ABC s World News, in a report on Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton s (D-NY) question-and-answer session that day with voters in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, ABC News anchor Kate Snow commented that Clinton s "answers were detailed, even tedious." Snow said that Clinton spent "10 minutes" answering a question "on real estate insurance," then showed a brief clip of Clinton saying, "I think we should raise FHA [Federal Housing Administration] limits." Clinton has promoted Federal Housing Administration reform, aimed at easing the subprime mortgage crisis and increasing opportunities for home ownership. Snow did not quote any attendees saying they found her housing-related answers "tedious," nor did she provide any further detail about what Clinton was talking about in her response. From the January 7 edition of ABC s World News with Charles Gibson: GIBSON: So we ll begin with the Democrats and ABC s Kate Snow with Hillary Clinton in Salem, New Hampshire -- Kate. SNOW: Charlie, good evening. Senator Clinton never actually let a tear escape from her eye and roll down her face, but if you were in the room, you could tell that she was clearly fighting back tears. And the question now with her campaign struggling is: Will this one moment help or hurt? [begin video clip] SNOW: Clinton had been fielding questions for an hour, sitting in a Portsmouth coffee shop with 17 undecided voters. Her answers were detailed, even tedious -- 10 minutes on real estate insurance. CLINTON: And I think we should raise FHA limits. SNOW: And then one final question. MARIANNE PERNOLD-YOUNG (New Hampshire voter): As a woman, I know it s hard to get out of the house and to get ready, and my question is very personal: How do you do it? CLINTON: I couldn t do it if I just didn t, you know, passionately believe it was the right thing to do. You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards. This is very personal for me. It s not just political, it s not just public. I see what s happening, and we have to reverse it. And some people think elections are a game. They think it s like who s up or who s down. It s about our country, and it s about our kids futures. And it s really about all of us, together. You know, some of us put ourselves out there and do this against some pretty difficult odds. But some of us are right and some of us are wrong. Some of us are ready, and some of us are not. Some of us know what we will do on day one, and some of us haven t really thought that through enough. SNOW: We spoke to people in the room, both before and after Clinton s appearance. That moment swayed some voters from Obama to Clinton. Did that clinch it? ALISON HAMILTON (New Hampshire voter): Her whole thing today really convinced me, but that really did clinch it for me, yeah. SNOW: The moment was the talk of New Hampshire politics today. A reporter asked John Edwards to respond to Clinton s emotion. JOHN EDWARDS (Democratic presidential candidate): I really don t have anything to say about that. I think what we need in a commander-in-chief is strength and resolve. And it s -- you know, presidential campaigns are tough business, but being president of the United States is also very tough business. SNOW: Clinton herself has taken on the weight of her campaign. It was her idea to take so many questions and confront Barack Obama. CLINTON: That s not change. SNOW: Late today, in an interview for tomorrow s Good Morning America, [anchor] Diane Sawyer asked Senator Clinton if different standards apply to female candidates. CLINTON: Now, as a woman, I know that I ve got to be, you know, always presenting a very, you know, sort of organized front, and nobody s ever said that, that wasn t one of my strong suits. But I, also, you know, I m a person, much to some people s surprise. SNOW: Clinton is hoping showing that other side will help bring women to the polls tomorrow. Kate Snow, ABC News, Salem, New Hampshire.
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Matthews baselessly suggested Latino voters "want more of an open border"
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
On the January 4 edition of MSNBC s Hardball, while previewing the upcoming January 5 presidential debates sponsored by ABC News, Facebook, and ABC New Hampshire affiliate WMUR, host Chris Matthews said: "[S]uppose [moderator and ABC World News host] Charlie Gibson asks her [Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY)] a good question like Tim [Russert] did, a decision where you really have to choose between constituencies: You choose between Latino voters who want more of an open border and the other voters, the Lou Dobbs types, who definitely don t want that kind of an open border, right?" Yet, while Matthews did not offer any examples of "Latino voters who want more of an open border," in fact, a number of national and regional Latino groups have specifically rejected the idea of "open borders" while advocating for comprehensive immigration reform, as have members of Congress representing states and districts with large Latino constituencies. Senators taking the lead in efforts to pass the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 included: Ken Salazar (D-CO), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Mel Martinez (R-FL), and John McCain (R-AZ). The bill ultimately failed, but if passed, it would have provided legal status and a path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, while including provisions to strengthen border security with increased surveillance, border personnel, checkpoints, border fencing, and barriers, among other measures. Moreover, numerous House members representing parts of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New York, and Texas also sponsored a comprehensive immigration reform bill (the Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy Act of 2007 or "STRIVE Act") that included numerous provisions calling for increased border security. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus strongly endorsed comprehensive immigration reform, with many of its members taking leadership roles in efforts to secure its passage. On January 8, 2007, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) urging them "to make immigration reform one of your top priorities during the first 100 days of the new Congress." In the letter, the group rejected the notion that it supports "open borders," saying that "this is simply false": The 110th Congress can find an immigration solution that keeps America s border safe, while dealing fairly with undocumented workers. Of course, the radical anti-immigrant forces will say that our objective is to open borders -- this is simply false. As proud and patriotic Americans, we value national security and we stand for strong borders that protect our families, our homes and our way of life. We also believe that as part of their earned legalization process, undocumented immigrants should learn English to be successful and productive members of society; pay any back taxes they may have accrued while undocumented; and hold no criminal record in the U.S. Undocumented immigrants should be subject to these requirements just like any other American or pay the consequences if they fail to do so. We are not asking for special privileges or hand-outs, just fair and humane treatment for people who have contributed so much to America. Additionally, as part of its "OneMillionVoicesUnited" campaign, LULAC stated that proponents of comprehensive immigration reform "aren t for open borders or closed borders -- neither is realistic nor desirable" and that "reform would bring the overwhelming majority of well-intentioned immigrants through our legal system so that we can screen them and admit them if they would contribute to our nation, or bar them if they intend to harm us" (emphasis in original): Are proponents of comprehensive reform advocating open borders? No. The options aren t for open borders or closed borders -- neither is realistic nor desirable. Comprehensive reform would bring the overwhelming majority of well-intentioned immigrants through our legal system so that we can screen them and admit them if they would contribute to our nation, or bar them if they intend to harm us. The system we advocate has enforceable quotas and limits, in contrast to our current chaotic system in which unauthorized entry is a daily occurrence and enforcement resources do not distinguish between those who might try to harm us and those coming to work. By writing realistic immigration laws and enforcing them to the letter, we will finally achieve border control that is good for national security, our families, and our economy. We must replace random and ineffective enforcement with targeted and efficient enforcement. The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), an organization that claims to be "the largest national Latino civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States" that "works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans," asserted on its website that it "does not and has never advocated open borders": NCLR does not and has never advocated open borders. We believe that the U.S. is a sovereign country with the right to control its borders. We care a great deal about how our borders are enforced; NCLR has long argued that enforcement at the border and in the interior must be conducted in a way that maximizes effectiveness without undercutting our values as a nation. We are especially troubled that more than a decade of increased enforcement measures along the U.S.-Mexico border have resulted in a steep increase in the number of border deaths without much impact in deterring migration. NCLR takes the position that any border enforcement policies must be both effective and humane. The Coalition for Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CCIR) -- whose board and strategy council includes several members of various Latino interest groups -- states in its "campaign principles" that Americans who advocate for immigration reform "want neither open borders, nor closed borders, they want smart borders": Immigration is a defining feature of America s history and of America s future. Unfortunately, America s current immigration system is broken. Instead of legal channels, legal immigration, and orderly, screened entry, the immigration system has fostered a black market characterized by a ballooning undocumented immigrant population, widespread use of fake documents, increasingly violent smuggling cartels, and widespread exploitation of undocumented workers. The American people are frustrated with their leaders on this issue and hunger for a solution that will work. They want neither open borders, nor closed borders, they want smart borders. The time has come for the President and Congress to work together to enact comprehensive legislation that rewards work, reunites families, restores the rule of law, reinforces our nation s security, respects the rights of U.S.-born and immigrant workers, and redeems the American Dream. As part of its comprehensive immigration reform platform, the National Immigration Forum, which describes itself as "the nation s premier immigrant rights organization" that is "dedicated to embracing and upholding America s tradition as a nation of immigrants," has said that comprehensive immigration reform "will make our immigration laws more realistic, permitting an intelligent enforcement regime that should include smart inspections and screening practices, fair proceedings, efficient processing, and strategies that focus on detecting and deterring terrorists and cracking down on criminal smugglers and lawbreaking employers." The Forum added that "[s]uch a system will better enable the nation to know who is already here and who is coming in the future, and will bring our system back into line with our tradition as a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws." From the 7 p.m. ET hour of the January 4 edition of MSNBC s Hardball with Chris Matthews: JENNIFER DONAHUE (senior adviser for political affairs at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics): I think [NBC Political Director] Chuck [Todd] just hit on something because here s when Democrats in New Hampshire will make their minds up and independents: tomorrow, the debate. How will Hillary perform? She does well in debates. She s disciplined. She learned a lesson last night. So -- MATTHEWS: Except in Philly. DONAHUE: Except in Philly. And she s been hemorrhaging ever since. MATTHEWS: Where Tim took her -- Tim [Russert] took her head off in Philly. DONAHUE: Well, you know she had Philly happen, and then she has been campaigning in a negative fashion ever since. Bad combination. MATTHEWS: Yeah, because something fell through that night. DONAHUE: Right. MATTHEWS: Inevitability fell through. DONAHUE: It did. And so she s been in a freefall. But I do think Iowa leveled her out. Despite the fact that she looked stunned last night, and she did -- MATTHEWS: OK, let me ask you, suppose Charlie Gibson asks her a good question like Tim did, a decision where you really have to choose between constituencies: You choose between Latino voters who want more of an open border and the other voters, the Lou Dobbs types, who definitely don t want that kind of an open border, right? DONAHUE: Yep. MATTHEWS: And you have to choose on the spot. DONAHUE: Right. MATTHEWS: You ve got to make a big political call on the spot. Can she do it? DONAHUE: Go to the middle. Go to the middle. Go to the middle. She can do it. She doesn t need -- MATTHEWS: Does she need a lifeline? Does she need a lifeline, Joe [Scarborough]? Does she have to call up Mark Penn [Clinton s chief strategist] or somebody? DONAHUE: She s got to go centrist, not liberal because she already voted centrist and right on the war.
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Media revive characterization of Clinton as "calculating" after emotional moment in NH
from Media Matters for America
January 09, 2008
While discussing a recent campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, during which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton s (D-NY) voice broke as she talked about why she is seeking the presidency, several media figures described Clinton s actions as "calculated," reviving a characterization frequently made by the media that Clinton is "calculating." For instance, right-wing pundit Michelle Malkin asserted that "this woman [Clinton] is all about calculation," while Weekly Standard editor and New York Times columnist William Kristol said, "I think no Clinton cries without calculating first" and nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh described the occurrence as "[e]motional blackmail," adding: "This is calculated." The January 7 incident occurred during a question-and-answer exchange at a coffee shop, during which Clinton responded to a question asked by Marianne Pernold-Young, a local freelance photographer: "How do you do it? How do you keep up ... and who does your hair?" According to CNN, Clinton responded that "she had help with her hair on special days, and that she drew criticism on the days she did not." Clinton then provided the rest of her response: CLINTON: It s not easy, it s not easy. And I couldn t do it if I just didn t, you know, passionately believe it was the right thing to do. You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards, you know? So. [applause] You know, this is very personal for me. It s not just political, it s not just public. I see what s happening, and we have to reverse it. And some people think elections are a game. They think it s like who s up or who s down. It s about our country, and it s about our kids futures. And it s really about all of us, together. You know, some of us put ourselves out there and do this against some pretty difficult odds. And we do it, each one of us, because we care about our country. But some of us are right and some of us are wrong. Some of us are ready, and some of us are not. Some of us know what we will do on day one, and some of us haven t really thought that through enough. And so, when we look at the array of problems we have, and the potential for it getting -- really spinning out of control, this is one of the most important elections America s ever faced. So, as tired as I am -- and I am -- and as difficult as it is to kind of keep up what I try to do on the road, like occasionally exercise and try to eat right -- it s tough when the easiest food is pizza -- I just believe so strongly in who we are as a nation. So I m going to do everything I can to make my case, and, you know, then the voters get to decide. Thank you all. During the January 7 edition of Fox News The Big Story, co-host Heather Nauert referred to the incident and asked Malkin, "Is that something that you think is sincere or you think was calculated to try to let voters know a little bit better who she is, show that softer side?" Malkin replied: MALKIN: I think the question answers itself. The Clintons don t have a spontaneous bone in their collective body. Hillary Clinton doesn t sneeze without it being planned, and I really think that this is going to backfire on the campaign. Look, you ve got Bill out there. Hillary dragged her mother out and Chelsea to remind everyone that she has a womb, that she s a woman, that she s a human being. And look, there are tears in her eyes. She s not the glacier that everybody thinks she is. But I think, you know, that practically speaking, it does remind people that this woman is all about calculation. Discussing the event on Fox News Special Report that same day, Kristol stated: KRISTOL: And I don t believe it was genuine. I think no Clinton cries without calculating first. This -- and I think this was -- if it was genuine, it was entirely solipsistic and narcissistic. It s all about her. Why is she crying for the country? Is Barack Obama not going to be liberal enough for her? Is Barack Obama not going to appoint the kinds of people she wants to the Supreme Court? Is Barack Obama not a stronger candidate in the general election than her? She s crying for herself, and I don t even believe it s genuine. I think it s entirely calculated. During the January 7 edition of his radio show, Limbaugh played the audio clip in which Clinton s voice broke and later said of it: "Emotional blackmail. This is calculated. Make no mistake about it, folks. This is not spontaneous. Because nothing with the Clintons is coincidence." While Malkin, Kristol, and Limbaugh asserted that Clinton s actions were "calculated," CNN political contributor Bill Bennett appeared on the January 7 edition of CNN s The Situation Room and told host Wolf Blitzer, "I m not going to criticize her. Donna [Brazile, CNN political analyst] says it was unscripted. OK." However, Bennett went on to add: "But it tells you about our politics, Wolf, and I guess something about the Clintons that so many people think it wasn t." MSNBC Live anchor Peter Alexander also revived the "Clinton as calculating" characterization by saying on January 7, "I think the presumption by a lot of people who have lost support for Clinton is that she seemed to be calculating. This for the first time, I think most will say, doesn t seem calculated at all. It seems very real." Reporting on the incident later on MSNBC Live that same day, anchor Norah O Donnell claimed that "Clinton choked up while talking about how much she wants to win." But as video footage of Clinton s remarks indicates, she "choked up" while saying she "passionately believe[d] it [running for president] was the right thing to do" and adding: "You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards, you know?" Contrary to O Donnell s claim, Clinton did not remark on "how much she wanted to win." From the January 7 edition of Fox News The Big Story with John Gibson and Heather Nauert: NAUERT: You just mentioned the word "calculation." And today, we had some news that developed -- Hillary Clinton became very misty-eyed out on the campaign trail. I imagine you saw that. What is your reaction to that? Is that something that you think is sincere or you think was calculated to try to let voters know a little bit better who she is, show that softer side? MALKIN: I think the question answers itself. The Clintons don t have a spontaneous bone in their collective body. Hillary Clinton doesn t sneeze without it being planned, and I really think that this is going to backfire on the campaign. Look, you ve got Bill out there. Hillary dragged her mother out and Chelsea to remind everyone that she has a womb, that she s a woman, that she s a human being. And look, there are tears in her eyes. She s not the glacier that everybody thinks she is. But I think, you know, that practically speaking, it does remind people that this woman is all about calculation. From the January 7 edition of CNN s The Situation Room: CLINTON [video clip]: You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don t want to see us fall backwards. BLITZER: All right, Donna, what do you think? This is a much softer side of Hillary Clinton than we saw Saturday night at that debate, where she really went on the offensive against Barack Obama. BRAZILE: Look, I know Hillary Clinton, and that was a very spontaneous moment. She was answering a question from a woman who talked about what it s like and how does she keep herself going. And I think Hillary, you know, really got inside herself, and it reminded her of why she s doing it. She s been a passionate fighter for children all her life. I think it was an unscripted moment for a candidate who is so-called scripted. And I don t believe voters will at all take offense at the fact that she really just spoke from the heart. And it was truly a touching moment. BLITZER: What do you think, Bill? BENNETT: Well, who knows? I m not going to criticize her. Donna says it was unscripted. OK. But it tells you about our politics, Wolf, and I guess something about the Clintons that so many people think it wasn t. I have to tell you, in terms of Clinton moments today, it was Bill s comments about Hillary, where he said, "I wish she were taller and younger and male," that I thought were truly bizarre. And he really should know better. Something s happening to the Clinton camp, obviously. The numbers are not looking good. We shall see what else happens. But these are not good days for the Clintons. I think, charitably, they re running -- she s running on no sleep. Adrenaline happens when you re winning. You know, you get more energy. And when you re hurting like she is in the numbers, at | |
