Change I’m Still Looking For
Nice to see the same old crap going on in the nation’s capital.
From the Los Angeles Times’ Peter Nicholas yesterday:
At least one Democratic political strategist has gotten a blunt warning from the White House to never appear on Fox News Channel, an outlet that presidential aides have depicted as not so much a news-gathering operation as a political opponent bent on damaging the Obama administration.
The Democratic strategist said that shortly after an appearance on Fox, he got a phone call from a White House official telling him not to be a guest on the show again. The call had an intimidating tone, he said.
The message was, “We better not see you on again,” said the strategist, who spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to run afoul of the White House. An implicit suggestion, he said, was that “clients might stop using you if you continue.”
White House Communications Director Anita Dunn said that she had checked with colleagues who “deal with TV issues” and that they had not told people to avoid Fox. On the contrary, they had urged people to appear on the network, Dunn wrote in an e-mail.
But Patrick Caddell, a Fox News contributor and former pollster for President Carter, said he had spoken to Democratic consultants who said they were told by the White House to avoid appearances on Fox. He declined to give their names.
Caddell said he had not gotten that message himself from the White House.
He added: “I have heard that they’ve done that to others in not too subtle ways. I find it appalling. When the White House gets in the business of suppressing dissent and comment, particularly from its own party, it hurts itself.”
Nicholas added:
The White House’s critical stance toward the network leaves some Democrats troubled.
Don Fowler, a former Democratic National Committee chairman, said in an interview: “This approach is out of sync with my conception of what the Obama administration stands for and what they’re trying to do.”
And then there’s that piece from “First Read” on the MSNBC website this morning. Referencing the Obamacare bill that passed the House, Domenico Montanaro, Mark Murray, Chuck Todd, and Ali Weinberg wrote:
As mentioned, 39 House Democrats — most of them from conservative-leaning congressional districts — voted against the bill, while just one Republican — Cao of Louisiana — voted for it. Well, liberal MoveOn has announced it will launch a $500,000 ad blitz, which will start in the middle of the week, targeting Dems who voted against it, such as Mike Ross (AR), Jason Altmire (PA), Glenn Nye (VA), Rick Boucher (VA), Larry Kissell (NC), and Health Shuler (NC).
Republicans. Democrats. One monster. Two heads. Who like to eat their own.
This is the stuff horror flicks are made out of…
Sources:
“Democratic consultant says he got a warning from White House after appearing on Fox News”
Peter Nicholas
Los Angeles Times, November 8, 2009
“Republicans aren’t the only ones eating their own”
Domenico Montanaro, Mark Murray, Chuck Todd, and Ali Weinberg
MSNBC (First Read), November 9, 2009
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