Patterico's Pontifications

9/15/2009

Obama’s Sunday Talk Show Sweep (Updated x3)

Filed under: Obama,Politics — DRJ @ 3:42 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

In a Presidential first, President Obama plans to do five Sunday talk shows — NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN and Univision, a virtual sweep of the liberal television media — as he tries to make the case for health care reform. But it will be hard for Obama or the media to avoid questions about BigGovernment’s ACORN reports because of their shocking content.

Today House GOP leaders sent a letter to the White House asking Obama to end all government funding and break all ties to ACORN. Yesterday, the Senate voted to block HUD from giving housing and community assistance grants to ACORN. Add to that last week’s decision by the Census Bureau to sever its ties with ACORN.

In my view, the fact that Obama will appear on several Sunday shows makes ACORN questions even more likely because if the earlier programs avoid the subject, they risk being scooped by programs that air later in the day. And every minute spent talking about ACORN is time Obama isn’t talking about health care. As a result, the emergence of the ACORN story may be coming at the worst time for Obama and could blunt his big push for health care reform.

UPDATE 1: Some in the media are doing their best to avoid the ACORN story. When he was asked today why the media isn’t covering it, ABC’s Charlie Gibson said “I don’t even know about it” and then “Maybe that’s one you just leave to the cables.” Audio at the link.

UPDATE 2: Ed Morrissey at Hot Air makes a good point:

“Let’s pose the question this way. If the Federalist Society, which got a heaping helping of demonization during the John Roberts and Samuel Alito confirmation hearings, started giving advice to prospective pimps and hookers on tax evasion and hiding child-prostitution rings, does anyone think that the Charlie Gibsons and the Papers of Record in the US would let that slide to the cable networks? Or would it headline their outlets, complete with a dissection of Federalist Society support for Republicans?”

UPDATE 3: At Hot Air, Karl says “the news that Pres. Obama is going to appear on five Sunday talk shows takes on an ‘I’m dancing as fast as I can’ quality.” I also agree that Obama’s polls may be suffering from his overexposure, something this Sunday sweep won’t help.

— DRJ

45 Responses to “Obama’s Sunday Talk Show Sweep (Updated x3)”

  1. Henry Louis Gates, Kanye, ACORN, it’s always something, isn’t it? Why do the fates hate ObamaCare?

    tim maguire (4a98f0)

  2. Nobody on the named networks will ask the Prez anything about ACORN. They wouldn’t dare, might get called racist. Nor will they mention ACORN in their “news” broadcasts unless it’s in the context of funds being denied.

    glenn (757adc)

  3. I’ve updated the post with links to a Charlie Gibson interview (Update 1) and Hot Air (Update 2).

    DRJ (a51a0e)

  4. Barack Obama’s ostentatious display of commandeering his servile punk-ass media just underscores that his dirty socialist health care scheme is all about him. A kneecapping of our little country’s freedoms and economy to the dirty socialist glory of his picayune self.

    I feel like I can confide in you, DRJ: I’m sick to death of him.

    happyfeet (71f55e)

  5. Update 3, adding some thoughts by Karl.

    DRJ (a51a0e)

  6. Hi! I’m Jamie Holts, and I’ll be your comment spammer today.

    Please, please visit my lame-ass blog so I can belive someone cares what I have to say.

    Thanks bunches!

    Jamie Holts

    PS: Posted by Jamie Holts

    [Jamie is a spambot that comes through occasionally. I was deleting them but got distracted before you commented. –Stashiu]

    TakeFive (7c6fd5)

  7. Don’t forget though that these ACORN ones are still the lovable scamps Meghan’s daddy* used to think were really quite nifty and palsy walsy. Him lurved them to pieces to where he just couldn’t bring his coward self to vote to cut off their funding.

    * Meghan’s daddy was the Republican candidate for president in 2008.

    happyfeet (71f55e)

  8. DRJ: They may or may not ask about ACORN. I would not be surprised either way.

    If he’s asked, he’ll answer it in a sentence or two and move on.

    However, I kind of agree with Glenn, that it probably won’t come up, but for different reasons.

    The bulk of the questions for the president will of course concern a reform which will affect around 1/6th of the U.S. economy.

    Frankly, ACORN is a major player in the Democratic Party only in the minds of some conservatives, who seem to believe ACORN swung the election or are running the party in some way. Y’all have given them a ridiculously large profile, IMO. I attribute this to the blogosphere and right-wing radio.

    Didn’t the Dems just join some bipartisan vote to strip ACORN of funding? Would they have acted so decisively against a group crucial to their success? (Think about what you know about Democrats before answering.)

    I appreciate the good, grassroots reporting that led to the scrutiny of ACORN, but if anyone is holding out hope that stories about this community group will somehow derail reform or the Obama Administration — don’t set yourself up for needless heartache.

    I think ACORN claimed to have registered 1.3 million people in the ’08 election. The NYT said the figure was more like 450,000.

    Do you know how many people voted in the last election? Something like 130 million.

    If ACORN disappeared tomorrow, trust me, the Dems would be just fine.

    I look forward to the president’s media blitz, which will include a stop-over at Letterman.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  9. But it will be hard for Obama or the media to avoid questions about BigGovernment’s ACORN reports because of their shocking content.

    No it wont…Obama will simply and explicitly rule any ACORN questions out of bounds in advance of the interviews and the nets will gladly go along.
    No questions will be asked. And if god be priased someone DOES ask a question about it, it will be a softball framed in such a way as to denigrate the young muckrakers as racists and give Obama an easy pivot/out.

    mike d (b28b9d)

  10. “DRJ: They may or may not ask about ACORN. I would not be surprised either way.”

    Very definitive Myron, that’s something I like about you, your willingness to take a position.

    “If ACORN disappeared tomorrow, trust me, the Dems would be just fine.”

    Myron – Can you point to conservatives saying otherwise or is this a strawman of your own construction again. On the margin is it not good to get rid of fraud in government ptograms and voter registration? Surely that is something everyone can support?

    daleyrocks (718861)

  11. If dead people stopped voting in Chicago, Democrats would probably be fine, too. It helps, though.

    Mike K (2cf494)

  12. Myron,

    If ACORN is so unimportant to dems, why are they getting hundreds of millions in the porkulus?

    I’m not saying the dem party will disappear if ACORN dies, but to pretend ACORN is not a creature of the dem party is pretty dishonest.

    but, of course, I expect nothing less than a lib.

    Monkeytoe (a08e86)

  13. And, ACORN is the whole of O!’s real world experience. So, I would guess it is a pretty important organization to the One.

    Monkeytoe (a08e86)

  14. With his appearance on Letterman on the 21st, he is to be the sole guest. We don’t have a president, we have a celebrity.

    PatAZ (9d1bb3)

  15. Frankly, ACORN is a major player in the Democratic Party only in the minds of some conservatives

    No doubt that’s why their leaders are spinning so furiously in the midst of their death throes. No doubt that’s why the Congress fell all over themselves to deny their funding in order to get the story off the next news cycle. Tell me, what is the color of the sky in your world, Myron? Do you fart cinnamon buns as well?

    Dmac (a93b13)

  16. So, Charlie Gibson is completely ignorant of the ACORN scandal. Right. I think Sarah Palin should post a quick video of herself looking over her glasses at the camera, asking Charlie to explain the “ACORN Doctrine” to everybody.

    Rich (ea4bc5)

  17. Mike D said: Obama will simply and explicitly rule any ACORN questions out of bounds in advance

    He might. I don’t think it would be necessary, though.

    Actually, I think he’s more apt to be asked about Joe Wilson or calling Kanye a jackass than ACORN. People are more tuned into those kerfuffles.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  18. Daley: If you’re suggesting conservatives are not putting a whole lot of emphasis on ACORN, you’re out of the loop. Uh, did you notice DRJ’s post?

    Myron (6a93dd)

  19. but to pretend ACORN is not a creature of the dem party is pretty dishonest.

    Monkeytoe: Cut and past where I said that, please. Or otherwise, I might have to accuse you of just making stuff up.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  20. That’s “cut and PASTE” …

    Myron (6a93dd)

  21. And, ACORN is the whole of O!’s real world experience.

    I wouldn’t say it was his whole experience. But yeah, he cut his community organizing teeth with the group. But that’s neither here nor there.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  22. We don’t have a president, we have a celebrity.

    You can be both. It’s the entertainment age. Jon Stewart was voted the most trusted man in news, just to show you what we’re dealing with.

    More people watch Letterman than all the most popular newscasts combined.

    There is nothing to stop Republicans from taking advantage of the same medium.

    But you’re not going to do it with the likes of John McCain, Tim Pawlenty or Bobby Jindal. Boring.

    Or Sarah Palin. Dumb.

    Or Joe Wilson. Too many issues to name.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  23. I want to partly retract my comment on McCain. He’s not boring. He actually has a pretty good sense of humor. He was just a man out of time. 2000 was his year, but it was just a year where the superior man lost at both stages, to the woe of the country.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  24. Anybody remember the old joke about the History Channel?

    The major networks are giving the History Channel a run for its money.

    Ag80 (592691)

  25. OK, Dmac. We’ll soon witness how the potential demise of ACORN brings the Democratic Party to its knees. You know you’re right.

    And you know, too, the world belongs to you. I’m just visiting.

    Myron (6a93dd)

  26. Myron:

    I happen to agree with you. ACORN won’t bring the Democrats to their knees.

    But, shouldn’t corruption be rooted out regardless?

    And, actually — if you’re a Democrat — the world does belong to you.

    Thanks for the visit.

    Ag80 (592691)

  27. Every time he opens his mouth there is another opportunity for him to find his foot in it.

    He is too clever by half.

    crosspatch (6adcc9)

  28. “Daley: If you’re suggesting conservatives are not putting a whole lot of emphasis on ACORN, you’re out of the loop.”

    Myron – Since I did not suggest that, I guess I’m not out of the loop. Not even a good attempt at a dodge on your part.

    Are you in favor of clean elections or not? Are you in favor of eliminating fraud from government programs or not? If your answer is yes, then the behavior of ACORN over time and as illustrated most recently in the videos should give you great concern.

    Are you concerned Myron? Do you think they are a criminal enterprise?

    daleyrocks (718861)

  29. All this talk about ACORN being a criminal enterprise is foolish. It is a series of isolated events. The events are isolated to every ACORN branch office and each of ACORN’s 400+ subsidiaries. When will you right-wing kooks give up your pointillism? You falsely claim you have a portrait of corruption in your mind’s eye when you only have overlapping dots.

    John Hitchcock (3fd153)

  30. But, shouldn’t corruption be rooted out regardless?

    Ag80: Definitely. Which is what I was referring to earlier with

    “I appreciate the good, grassroots reporting that led to the scrutiny of ACORN …”

    It’s a shame, IMO, that it takes activists to do what reporters used to do.

    Myron (e63c20)

  31. This issue clearly has Myron all riled up. Why do Myron’s fellow travelers support enslaving underage illegal aliens? Murder? Pimping?

    JD (7cad2c)

  32. “It’s a shame, IMO, that it takes activists to do what reporters used to do.”

    Or what Democrat members of Congress have refused to do. Let’s be honest, Myron.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  33. Actually, I think he’s more apt to be asked about Joe Wilson or calling Kanye a jackass than ACORN. People are more tuned into those kerfuffles.

    Gee – do you think that is b/c the media is not covering this story b/c they don’t want to embarress dems? That is our entire point – that the media is covering for O! and the dems. That ACORN is in fact a huge story b/c it demonstrates the left’s values and tactics perfectly.

    If some conservative group were given millions in taxpayer money – the left would be outraged. How the left can do this type of stuff, and stick up for it – like everyting else – demonstrates the intellectual and moral bankruptcy of the left.

    And myron, your whole point was that ACORN is somehow not important to the dems and therefore it is o.k. for the media to ignore it and not ask O! questions about it. So stop being so damn disengenuous. But I guess to ask you to actually try to be honest – both morally and intellectually – is a lost cause. You are, after all, a leftist. You can’t argue without lying. Hell, I doubt you can speak or type w/o lying.

    Monkeytoe (e66874)

  34. O! “cut his teeth” with ACORN. And has included millions in gov’t taxpayer money in his porkulus plan. So, ACORN is apparently extremely important to O!

    Much like Bill Ayers and his communist mentor and Reverand Wright, we are not to look at the people who taught and formed O! So ACORN and their values and tactics can’t be mistaken for being the same as O!’s – teh same way we can’t equate Ayers or Wright or the avowed communist that helped raise him who he considered his mentor.

    I suppose we are not allowed to look at anyone that O! surrounds himself with or spends time with or works with to determine what his actual values and philosophy are. And we can’t use his actual words b/c somehow they are always “taken out of context”. Instead, we have to take the spin doctors’ word for it that O! is a brilliant guy who meant whatever polls best this week when he said or did what he did.

    So, take our word for it – despite his relationship with the communist (I can’t remember his name right now); Ayers; Wright; Van Jones; ACORN; and many others – O! is not a radical far-leftist socialist. No, it is just coincidence that everyone he surrounds himself with over the course of his life is a radical far-leftist.

    So of course the media should not cover this story or ask questions about it. It is unimportant.

    Monkeytoe (e66874)

  35. Obama is going on 5 liberal shows on Sunday. Is it a wise strategy to have 4 out of 10 people supporting him, so he talks even more to those 4 hoping to increase his support? He should be talking to people who maybe don’t support his program. And isn’t there a Sunday show that reaches more of the people that disagree with his plan than all the other 5 shows combined?

    Mike S (d3f5fd)

  36. But that’s neither here nor there.

    Yes, let’s not allow something as silly as past history and facts get in the way of your meme. Pish posh, and all that.

    Dmac (a93b13)

  37. BTW, I’d suggest you read up on the intertwining of ACORN and Obama’s rise to power in Chicago, but once again, that’s never here nor there.

    Dmac (a93b13)

  38. I think the Oboters like Myron here are planting alt information about the importance of ACORN…IMO an indepth investigation of ACORN will be resisted 100% by the Left/MMedia because of the trail that ties ACORN directly to Obama and the real fraud that his political campaigns have been…all the way to the WH. The ACORN trail has the possibility to be Obama’s Watergate to the 10th power and has the possibilty of destroying the whole Obama administration.

    WestWright (be2a2f)

  39. 35.Obama is going on 5 liberal shows on Sunday. Is it a wise strategy to have 4 out of 10 people supporting him, so he talks even more to those 4 hoping to increase his support? He should be talking to people who maybe don’t support his program. And isn’t there a Sunday show that reaches more of the people that disagree with his plan than all the other 5 shows combined?

    It’s a potomken interview plan. He goes on friendly shows, who throw him softballs and strawman “conservative” arguments to rebut and allow him to look “Presidential”.

    Then they show clips of those shows on the local and network news on Sunday night and Monday, allowing O! and claim that he answered tough interview questions and “rebutted” all the arguments against his plan. The vast majority of Americans, even those who pay some attention to politics, don’t watch any of the Sunday shows, so they will believe that O! was grilled and really answered questions.

    It’s all smoke and mirrors, in collusion with the mainstream media. At the point just one of these guys on one of these shows gets tough w/ O!, he will crumble – as we have seen he can’t answer the simplest questions without a script and teleprompter. Unfortunately, I hold out no hope that any of the people on these shows will do so.

    Monkeytoe (e66874)

  40. 38.I think the Oboters like Myron here are planting alt information about the importance of ACORN…IMO an indepth investigation of ACORN will be resisted 100% by the Left/MMedia because of the trail that ties ACORN

    they will also resist it b/c the evidence of rampant voter fraud that would be found would be shocking to most Americans and the calls for ID requirements for voting and other voting security measures would be overwhelming. And, as we know, the dems will fight to the death to prevent anything diminishing voter fraud from ever passing.

    Monkeytoe (e66874)

  41. How DARE he go on TV!! It’s just wrong!

    Unlike the Republican media blitz during the summer

    JEA (0ccd61)

  42. JEA is a lying hypocritical partisan hack.

    JD (59882e)

  43. It’s too bad I don’t have TV. I would like to see him on David Letterman. Letterman is the evilest piece of garbage ever to make it on television and I want to see whether his catamite side or his sodomite side will be dominant when Obama is there.

    nk (df76d4)

  44. 41.How DARE he go on TV!! It’s just wrong!

    That’s idiotic. Please read the post and all the comments before commenting. Nobody said it was wrong for him to go on tv and try and sell “his plan”.

    We are lamenting that the “news” media and political pundits will not ask him any hard questions or challenge any of his many lies.

    Monkeytoe (e66874)

  45. the Republican media blitz during the summer

    “…and then I remembered to put down my crack pipe.”

    Dmac (a93b13)


Powered by WordPress.

Page loaded in: 0.0937 secs.