Election Central July 4th Roundup
Republicans struggling to "define" Obama
Leading Republicans are beginning to complain that the McCain campaign hasn't yet settled on a way of "defining" -- a.k.a. "sliming" -- Barack Obama, prompting some to worry that Obama may prove as elusive a target for them as he did for Hillary. It's worth noting that the multiple GOP lines of attack floating around right now clearly contradict each other: One moment Obama's an elitist at a country club; the next he's a "street" organizer; and so on.
Candidates celebrating July 4th
Barack Obama will honor Independence Day with his family by attending a parade and a picnic in Montana. Meanwhile, McCain will be taking it easy in his home state of Arizona.
Poll: Slightly more see McCain as a flip-flopper
New numbers from CNN suggest that a substantial majority doesn't buy the McCain-as-straight-talker narrative. The poll finds that 61% say McCain shifts positions for political reasons, though nearly as many (59%) say the same about Obama.
Six-term GOP Congressman in Virginia suddenly facing competitive challenger
The emergence of a tough and well-funded Democratic challenger to GOP Rep. Virgil H. Goode, Jr., who represents south-central Virginia's fifth district, has prompted CQ Politics to shift its rating of the race from Safe Republican to Republican Favored, essentially declaring the contest a competitive one. Goode's challenger, lawyer Tom Perriello, is expected to run well in and near Charlottesville, especially among liberal academics around the University of Virginia, and will also benefit from Obama's vigorous efforts in the state.
McCain to talk about the economy in key battleground states next week
McCain plans to spend the week following July 4th weekend talking about the economy in important battleground states, beginning on Monday with the release of a jobs plan in Colorado. McCain, who will also visit Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, and Wisconsin, trails Obama in polls by a substantial margin among voters citing the economy as a top concern.
Obama's national lead over McCain edges up
CNN's latest poll of polls finds Obama leading McCain by six points in the national match-up, up very slightly from his five-point lead last week. A cautionary note: On July 4th, 2004, John Kerry led George W. Bush by four points in CNN's poll of polls, and in the summer of 2000, Bush led Al Gore by six points before going on to lose the popular vote (and becoming president anyway).
Conservative pundits begin lying about Obama's Iraq remarks
Right-wing opinion-makers have begun falsifying Obama's Iraq remarks yesterday, starting with Charles Krauthammer of The Washington Post, who has a remarkably dishonest column this morning asserting as fact that Obama has "already begun" his "shift" in the direction of erasing "all meaningful differences with McCain on withdrawal from Iraq." Curiously, there's no mention in Krauthammer's column of the subsequent presser Obama held yesterday firmly reiterating his commitment to a 16-month withdrawal timetable.
Happy fourth, everyone!
Any column by Krauthammer by definition cannot be "remarkably" dishonest.
July 4, 2008 9:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
Speaking of the Washington Post, the dead tree edition has it's most prominent headline stating "Obama May Consider Slowing Iraq Withdrawal" subtitled "Candidate Says He Remains Committed to Ending War". To me, that headline translates "flip flop". I hate the Post. I can't seem to persuade my husband to break his (and my) lifelong Post habit.
July 4, 2008 9:44 AM | Reply | Permalink
I actually really appreciate how WaPo covered this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/03/AR2008070303919.html
And I'm usually pretty critical of the Washington Post. I think they did a good job of conveying the substance of Obama's approach here, without giving undue credence to McCain's spin.
July 4, 2008 11:25 AM | Reply | Permalink
In fact, Jonathan Weisman's article is decent; actually, the reporters at the Post aren't bad for the most part - some are excellent. But the headline sucks as does the editorial and op ed pages. The person who writes the headlines must answer to Fred Hiatt somehow.
July 4, 2008 2:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
I always find something on the OpEd to argue with. And Cilezza is a joke. And they are not consistent on the front page, either. But, they are getting it right now and again.
July 4, 2008 2:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks that is a good link.
For the most part all of the msm is going after the angle that "Obama is going the center". Their reporting in this instance was reporting on the facts not somebody's angle.
July 5, 2008 5:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
I do love how the media has jumped on Obama for a perceived "flip-flop" that clearly wasn't a flip flop, yet when McCain actually flip flops repeatedly, they don't make a big deal out of it. Yet this gets front page attention. Let's talk flip-flops:
http://www.thepersonalispolitical.com/search/label/Flip-Flop
July 4, 2008 9:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
When do they EVER report McCain's flip flops? They practically had to be dragged kicking and screaming to the CA property taxes story, and that disappeared quicker than you can say "Fred Hiatt sucks Charles Krauthammer."
July 4, 2008 4:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Quote: "Charles Krauthammer of The Washington Post, who has a remarkably dishonest column this morning"
Same old, same old.
July 4, 2008 9:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
Like it or not, Obama has to start doing a better job of taking the stupidity of the MSM into consideration. He has a tendency to ruminate in public which is guaranteed to offer brain-dead reporters an opening to write these kids of stories. He needs to stop doing it and get better at talking in the kind of simple, highly disciplined sound bites that reporters can grasp. Sad, but that's the world we live in.
He also needs to do a better job of prepping for easily anticipated news-conference questions so he doesn't have to think out his answers on his feet to the accompaniment of lots of "uh...uh"'s.
July 4, 2008 9:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sure, and once Obama followed your advice, then the same inane MSM would declare that Obama has abandoned his signature thoughtful responses in order to adopt the usual sound bite behavior of all other politicians.
Think again, Steve. There is a reason Obama is where he is, and it may have a great deal to do with the public being able to appreciate his taking care to offer reasoned, even if hesitant, responses. I feel a strengthening of my support for Obama every time I hear his calm and obviously thoughtful responses. The hesitations mean to me that the guy is thinking on his feet right in front of everyone, and that is a centeredness and genuineness not often seen.
July 4, 2008 10:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
Luckily Obama is prone to saying things like "I know I have to get better as a candidate". Unlike a lot of his starry-eyed defenders, he's well aware that he's a national-campaign rookie with a lot of room for improvement, and for that very reason I'm completely confident that he will improve.
July 4, 2008 11:06 AM | Reply | Permalink
The fact that Obama stumbles a bit during exchanges with reporters makes me a little uncomfortable but I think it is because he tries to give considered, albeit occasionally awkward responses. If it seems a little strange, it might be because we are accustomed to hearing pols rattle off pat, manufactured, talking points.
On rare occasions, there has been a politician who could smoothly and concisely state a considered response, JFK comes to mind. Obama can't always do that. It appears to me that your choices are (a) have him continue what he has been doing, (b) stick to preconceived talking points, or (c) gag him until after the election. I choose (a), others may disagree.
July 4, 2008 12:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
I actually see the pauses in his speech as a sign of cautiousness. I live in IL so my familiarity with him goes back to before '04. He hasn't always talked like that. I think he has gotten burned so many times with gotchas and sound bites that he feels the need to consider everything that comes out of his mouth.
For all of HRC's complaining about the press (and she did have a point on occasion) they have been far more brutal to Obama especially lately. Between public-financing-gate, Clark-gate and now Iraq-gate it has been absolutely ridiculous. Nothing the MSM likes more than to build you up and then tear you down.
It isn't going to get any better between now & Nov. Not only is the press stupid, but they are self-important and mean.
July 4, 2008 12:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Happy Fourth, Greg and TPM-EC!
July 4, 2008 10:22 AM | Reply | Permalink
on the Iraq imbroglio, Josh's home-page post "Please, Please Reporters With Brains" is spot-on. MSM reporters and pundits seem constitutionally incapable of making the basic distinction between strategy and tactics or even listening completely to what a person says: they take a line out of context and run with it. But hey, it's an easy way to get their job done quickly ... They all pretty much suck the hairy moose dick. I too used to read WaPo religiously, for example, but I can stomach it less and less anymore ...
July 4, 2008 10:29 AM | Reply | Permalink
I think MSM needs to break out their dictionaries and look up the definition of "refine." I'm with Josh in being completely blown away by the collective stupidity of the media in the last month or so especially. I guess this is what happens when a candidate tries to speak intelligently on issues.
July 4, 2008 10:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
The noise about his war "flip flop" may distract from some of his real reversals. Today's Times editorial covers them, and I would add to the list his initial hanging of out Wesley Clark to dry.
Reflexively throwing supporters overboard because of a media snowstorm over comments that they make, regardless of the validity of the comments, doesn't show character or good judgment.
He has a strong case for his Iraq war stance and he can make the press look stupid, and himself more responsible and presidential if he answers as he did today. Let's hope that the focus stays on Iraq.
But he has to be really careful. Nixon ran on the promise that we would be out of Vietnam in eighteen months. If his credibility gets into Nixon territory he is through.
July 4, 2008 11:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
I think the general understanding about Clark is that Obama, busy campaigning, wasn't hanging on every story running in the media. So the response was delegated to Bill Burton who jumped the gun prompting Obama to clarify his own position when he became more familiar with the situation.
The problem is with Bill Burton who seems to have an itchy trigger figure (see: the RFK flap).
July 4, 2008 11:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
I agree that that's the understanding among those who have thought about it and who wish Obama well. Most people will only remember the skewering that Clark got and associate him with Obama. Now that it is old news, it's likely that the episode will be encapsulated as "Clark's defamation of an authentic hero" or "his attempt to swift boat McCain." Once it becomes part of the campaign lexicon the factual details will never be considered by the general public.
July 4, 2008 10:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Obama is going to be making a trip to meet with international leaders this month, including Iraq. He's been meeting with his newly assembled team of foreign policy experts. And no doubt, he's preparing for some debates on these issues. He's formulating his foreign policy and I imagine that he is finding it necessary to "massage" expectations a bit, in regards to the 16-month withdrawal timeline. Again, as a candidate, how he talks about this has to be done very carefully - this is a very delicate issue. Up to this point, he's been shown to be a smart politician.
July 4, 2008 11:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
I wouldn't worry overmuch. A lot can happen between now and November... 2012!
July 4, 2008 12:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Eh, 16 months, 1200 months, a couple here and there. Basically the same.
July 4, 2008 11:14 AM | Reply | Permalink
Happy Fourth of July!!!
I was not in born in the States. I was born in Poland. I'm a citizen though. F*ck Ya!!! The constitution is awesome.
July 4, 2008 11:14 AM | Reply | Permalink
It amazes me how explicitly the Republicans are trying to embrace Obama. I thought Gordon Smith was, but now McCain's trying to brag about how even he shares Obama's position. It's a sad spectacle, to say the least.
July 4, 2008 11:20 AM | Reply | Permalink
That's exactly why this mini-flap doesn't worry me much. They know damn well their candidate's real positions are highly unpopular. That will ultimately get through to the voters despite all the attempted obfuscation.
July 4, 2008 11:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
McSame needs to define himself if he is to ever define Barack Obama. We know who Obama is, but who is McCain, really? The Muckraking MSM wants us to believe McCain is some war hero adored for his love of country and service....blahh....blahh...bulls*&. McCain is a typical conventional politician with a military philosophical approach to life.
July 4, 2008 11:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
The primary season is when you challenge candidates. The election is when you support the nominee in order to defeat the Republican nominee.
This week the netroots going after Obama sent a signal to the media that it was now safe to define him as being untrustworthy, and that there would be no backlash from his perceived base, because it had begun the assault, and therefore would not be in a position to complain about the media defining Senator Obama as someone who could not be trusted.
The Netroots laid the foundation for what the Media is now running with. Check out the editorial in today's NY Times.
The Netroots have made it safe for all others to define Obama as untrustworthy, and not worth taking a chance on. Where that will hurt the most is in the swing centrist states where he was just starting to introduce himself to the voters. Thanks to the Netroots already giving the MSM media the green light to profile Obama as a fraud, those voters will now be far less likely to even consider taking a chance on Obama.
The damage has been done, and the Netroots crowd fired the first salvo that knocked the Obama campaign down for the count.
Senator McCain appreciates all that the Netroots did for him this week.
July 4, 2008 11:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
Excellent comment, I agree completely.
The Netroots failed to restrain itself with its own candidate. It just couldn't make the policy case without the hysterical character attacks...
July 4, 2008 11:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
I agree with you, but I think we could all use--on both sides--a little less handwringing, a little more movin' on.
BTW, from the NYT editorial: "We knew he ascribed to the anti-gun-control groups’ misreading of the Constitution as implying an individual right to bear arms."
Is the word "ascribed" used appropriately in this context?
July 4, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Terrific point. I think part of this sadly stems from the fact that the Obama campaign is fueled by the grass roots that when they disagree, they feel the need to say so. Which in general is a good thing but not in this case. a) The first rule of support - do no harm. b) the only people who have a right to harangue Obama over FISA right now are people who live in IL. He isn't the president yet, he is a senator. c) I don't recall people getting this up-in-arms over things they disagree with in the primary or other Dem candidates for that matter. I think the expectations and standards we are holding Obama to are a bit high and unrealistic. d)People need to look at the candidate as a whole. If you begin to disagree - alot then I can see the uproar but on one or two points, it is a bit of over reaction.
I strongly disagree with Obama over FISA and as an IL resident, I have told him so. I will also continue to point out in my own commentary that I disagree, But I will not give the opposition ammunition and I will not jepordize his chances of winning based on one, albeit important issue.
July 4, 2008 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
And in other news, Jesse Helms is dead.
Wondering if any of the corporate media will try to eulogize him into something he wasn't: great.
July 4, 2008 11:33 AM | Reply | Permalink
God truly has blessed America this fine Fourth of July.
July 4, 2008 12:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
im surprised mccains flip flop numbers arent higher, he obviously flipped on nearly every single issue this year alone
http://sensico.wordpress.com/
July 4, 2008 11:39 AM | Reply | Permalink
There's nothing remarkable about Krauty's dishonesty.
I wish it were remarkable that this bozo gets any air time, but the MSM, alas...
July 4, 2008 11:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
Somebody please tell me that I am wrong about "flip-flopper".
Postulate: Flip-flopper is a term invented by Karl Rove and company to attack John Kerry when they couldn't criticize anything of substance. A vapid attack against people who may adjust positions as new information becomes available or the situation changes, somehow this imbecilic meme has made it into the mainstream political vocabulary as though it had independent legitimacy.
July 4, 2008 11:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
Republicans have plenty of time to define Obama. Right now, they're just doing what direct mail guys always do: small scale testing to see what works best. Once they have data in hand, they'll settle on a theme or two and bring the house.
As for Obama himself, the netroots are what they are. For somebody who captured his party's nomination by touting a "new kind of politics", it wouldn't hurt for him to walk his talk a bit more than he's been doing lately. His own flip-flops on campaign financing, FISA, etc. set him up for the fake story on Iraq.
July 4, 2008 12:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
"The primary season is when you challenge candidates. The election is when you support the nominee in order to defeat the Republican nominee."
Right, liam. This is the key point. While TPM has strongly encouraged free-wheeling abuse sessions of the candidate on here ("What, we can't have an opinion about the Constitution?!!"), the management may be less proud of itself after Election Day.
July 4, 2008 1:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
As a reflection on what the Fourth of July is supposed to be about, I suggest everyone read this oped and thrust it in their Senator's face:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/43123.html
July 4, 2008 1:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ooh, bad righting. I was too busy being disgusted by the content to notice. Perhaps Billy-boy means that O ascribed the idea of an individual right to bear arms to the anti-gun-control groups' misreading of the constition? No, the sentence still makes no sense. Can anyone make sense of what this guy says? It's a lot more interesting than dealing with his het-up drama-queen act.
July 4, 2008 2:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Heh heh heh. This was in response to Pinky, and I actually wrote badly myself by substituting "righting" for "writing." Now, however, I think I was right in my own writing: Krauthammer gives the right a bad name.
However, there's no excuse for calling him Billy. So I can't take credit for the pun, given that it was due to caffeine deprivation, not wit.
July 4, 2008 2:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Three cheers from Paul Krugman in his column today, Rove's Third Term...
Some of the MSM appear to have been chastened by their misrepresentation of Clark's remarks. Also, Obama seems to be backing away from having overly backed away from those remarks.
Something so many of us hope is true.
Literally true today, whereas on the days he does write, it's only figuratively true.
July 4, 2008 2:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
leading republicans are beginning to complain that the mccain campaign hasn't yet settled on a way of "defining" -- a.k.a. "sliming" -- barack obama
i noticed that as well...one minute he's the next jimmy carter, the next minute he's arrogant.
'jimmy carter' and 'arrogant' in one man? the mind boggles.
July 4, 2008 5:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
i was not in born in the states. i was born in poland. i'm a citizen though. f*ck ya!!! the constitution is awesome.
it used to be...
July 4, 2008 5:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
Am I the only one that can't see any posted comments?
July 6, 2008 9:22 PM | Reply | Permalink