Back during the 2008 campaign, I noted one of the immutable truths of American politics; the only reason the institutional left ever builds up a Republican candidate is to tear them right back down.
The classic example, of course, was John McCain; the left spent the better part of a decade solemnly declaring that “McCain is the good Republican”, willing to “compromise” – praise that Mac curried aggressively. But once Mac became an endorsed candidate, the knives came out; the “moderate”, “post-partisan” McCain was suddenly – and had always been – an “extremist”.
Is the left trying to set up Sarah Palin in the same way?
Noel Sheppard at Newsbusters has a theory:
Would you ever in your wildest dreams imagine Chris Matthews flatteringly comparing Sarah Palin to former President Bill Clinton?
During a lengthy opening segment about Palin’s political future on the syndicated program bearing his name, Matthews said, “There’s one unlikely Democrat you might compare to Sarah Palin when it comes to being a natural: the generally incomparable Bill Clinton”
And why would Tingly do that?
After all, it’s got to be one way or the other: media live to build people up and/or knock them down. We’ve grown so accustomed to the latter with their treatment of Palin that we haven’t considered the alternative.
Of course, this could all backfire miserably since the more attention they heap on Palin, the more folks currently with a negative opinion of her might change their minds.
It’s a little early to speculate about 2012.
But not about the left and media’s (pardon the redundancy) manipulation of public opinion…
The left and media (pardon the redundancy) want to select GOP candidates whenever possible. Ever since Nixon the media considers itself a “player” rather than observer.
Well, Before Nixon, actually. “Dewey defeats Truman”. I suppose an unbiased media is too much to ask for.
If Matthews were to have Palin on his show I think the tingle he’d feel down his leg would be from urine.
Heard many liberals say (circa 1999-2005) “I would vote for McCain if he the Republicans would run him for President”. Then the same people in 2008 did the usual nasty attacks on him. I reminded a couple about what they said a few years earlier. Repy “I can’t believe you are brining something up I said 8 years ago”.
The Left believe that Palin is unelectable, therefore the usual suspects in the MSM breathlessly report everything she does in hopes of giving her candidacy a shot at the next RNC. They believe no matter how badly Obama is doing, he’ll be able to defeat Palin. I call this strategy a double down. It has significant risk for Obama. If the economy continues to struggle, Obama is vulnerable. And by giving Palin free air time plus the opportunity to handle the slings and arrows of the press, the MSM unwittingly contributes to the growing perception that she is the one for the job. If they just did their jobs, they’d realize that Palin lacks experience, quit the governorship of Alaska before her term expired, etc , and stop running stories about her. But they are so anxious to trash her, hell, they compete for the privilege, that they are turning her into an incarnation of the Uncle Remus tarbaby. By the time they get their arms stuck shoulder deep in pitch it will be too late to escape.
Any Republican candidate becomes a far Right extremist the moment he faces a Democrat.
Out of the GOP I think we’ll see a number of candidates with the qualifications and appeal to beat Barry in ’12.
In a few short months the MSNBC crowd will all be sitting around in their urine soaked britches making all kinds of comparisons, and I’m sure that the handful viewers that they have left will concurr with their “observations”, but at the end of the day it’ll have little impact in shaping the race.
Scott;
I think that even Cletus the slack jawed yokel from the Simpsons could beat Obumbler.
Remind me to write in Cletus at our next CD5 election.
MN CD5 is already represented by Cletus.