John McCain has figured out that one way to build enthusiasm among
conservatives is to confront his former best friends in the liberal
media. As the media glorify Barack Obama the "statesman" on his trip
abroad, with the three network anchors lining up for interviews like a
gaggle of smitten fan-club presidents, the McCain campaign suddenly
acquired a surprising "Annoy The Media" flavor.
Like many Obama-loving press outlets, Newsweek has reported that
McCain's campaign is struggling against an Obama crusade that seems
"blessed by destiny." This spin is maddening. The Obama campaign has
been blessed by a media that arrogantly aspires to be the manufacturers
of our destiny, and make history by beating the electorate senseless
with glowing Obama coverage.
McCain is learning that the best way to fight the "destiny" makers is
to take them on directly. The Drudge Report revealed that after The New
York Times published an op-ed by Obama on July 14 laying out his
thoughts on Iraq, McCain submitted an op-ed in reply. But the Times
rejected it. David Shipley, the deputy editorial page editor, suggested
that McCain's article wasn't constructive enough to publish.
"It would be terrific to have an article from Senator McCain that
mirrors Senator Obama's piece," Shipley wrote. "To that end, the
article would have to articulate, in concrete terms, how Senator McCain
defines victory in Iraq. It would also have to lay out a clear plan for
achieving victory with troops levels, timetables and measures for
compelling the Iraqis to cooperate."
Republicans and conservatives quickly smelled that Shipley -- a former
Clinton aide and New Republic executive editor -- wanted McCain to
resubmit an article that "mirrored" Obama's views. But what the Times
really refused to tolerate was any criticism of their precious prince
Obama. Announce your own plan for Iraq, fine, but don't try to grace
our pages by saying Obama "mangled the evidence" and has "learned
nothing from recent history," as McCain's rejected op-ed stated.
McCain's piece would be rejected for prose disparaging Obama's
position: "In 2007 he wanted to withdraw because he thought the war was
lost. If we had taken his advice, it would have been."
But Shipley had no problem publishing Obama's article, which bashed
McCain for bad judgment in voting for the "grave mistake" of war in
Iraq, and claiming that McCain wanted permanent bases in Iraq, like our
presence in South Korea. While Shipley demanded McCain recommend a
timetable for withdrawal, McCain was clear in his rejected article that
he thought a rigid timetable was unwise, even dangerous.
The New York Times is out of control. On a regular basis, the news
department makes headlines for outrageously biased non-news, such as
the incredibly scummy story in February alleging that McCain had a
sexual relationship with lobbyist Vicki Iseman despite the paper's
utter lack of proof. Even their advertising department has gotten into
the act. Recall how they made a sweetheart deal with MoveOn.org to slam
Gen. David Petraeus as "General Betray Us." Now it's the op-ed
department, refusing to give McCain the opportunity to respond to Obama
because they don't like the response, period.
Meanwhile, over in TV land, the network anchors lined up for their
chance to boost Obama's adventures. In the first days of the trip, it
led all the network newscasts, and they praised him aggressively, down
to the jump shots he made playing basketball in Kuwait. Now compare
that to their coverage of McCain when he went abroad. On a trip in
March, the networks amassed four stories in the entire week. CBS gave
McCain's trip ... 10 seconds, 31 words.
When McCain went to Colombia and Mexico a couple of weeks ago, ABC beat
him up. Five times over the course of two segments on July 2, various
"Good Morning America" hosts, reporters and analysts emphasized that
McCain's trip might result in voters thinking he didn't care about the
domestic economic situation. Robin Roberts began her interview: "So,
why is Senator McCain abroad when Americans are focused on the economy
here at home and losing jobs, more and more jobs?" McCain said the drug
trade in Colombia is a serious issue for Americans. But Roberts just
plowed ahead, and asked again why on Earth he would go to South
America. ABC didn't want an answer. ABC wanted people to resent McCain
for leaving the country.
McCain's campaign is now running Internet ads mocking Chris Matthews
for his "thrill up the leg" comments about Obama and other assorted
media goo, complete with Frankie Valli crooning "Can't Take My Eyes Off
You" in the background. It's quite clear that the media are
hypersensitive about any mockery of Obama. So mocking his pitter-patter
valentines in the media may be the best hardball he can throw.
