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NYT in Crosshairs for Report on McCain and Female Lobbyist [Drudge mentioned]
FOX ^ | 02/22/08 | Unknown

Posted on 02/22/2008 12:45:30 AM PST by Froufrou

The New York Times is in the crosshairs after publishing a lengthy and critical profile of John McCain Thursday that suggests that McCain had a romantic relationship with a female lobbyist.

The New Republic published a long article Thursday afternoon on its Web site detailing the story behind the story and claiming, “What’s most remarkable about the article is that it appeared in the paper at all.”

The New Republic lambasted The New York Times for giving the green light, claiming the piece was “filled with awkward journalistic moves” and that it stepped around the suggested trysts with lobbyist Vicki Iseman by focusing on the debate in the McCain campaign itself about the relationship.

With only anecdotal descriptions and no evidence of an improper relationship, focus has shifted from suggestions of McCain’s supposed improprieties to questions over whether the Times should have run the story.

The Times article described how McCain’s campaign aides kept him and Iseman apart during the 2000 election for fear they were giving the impression they were having an affair. It noted how McCain wrote to government regulators on behalf of a client of the lobbyist while he was Commerce Committee chairman.

The New Republic story reported that the idea for the McCain piece was hatched in November, when four reporters were thrown on the assignment. Over the ensuing months, the magazine reported that the story “pitted the reporters investigating the story, who believed they had nailed it, against executive editor Bill Keller, who believed they hadn’t.”

The Drudge piece sent the McCain article “into hiding,” but in the end, on Feb. 19, top Times editors and the paper’s attorneys gave the final draft a read-through and decided to publish, The New Republic reported.

(Excerpt) Read more at youdecide08.foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: bimboeruption; iseman; mccain; nyt
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1 posted on 02/22/2008 12:45:33 AM PST by Froufrou
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To: Froufrou
McCain and the New York Times deserve each other.

We should be thinking ahead for 2012
These candidates all have Rs
at the end of their names


Governor Steve Beshear 
Congressman Earl Blumenauer 
Congressman Rick Boucher 
Senator Barbara Boxer
Senator Thomas R. Carper
Congresswoman Kathy Castor 
Congressman Ben Chandler 
Congresswoman Emanuel Cleaver 
Congressman Jim Cooper 
Congressman Bud Cramer 
Congressman Henry Cuellar 
Governor Chet Culver 
Congressman Sam Farr 
Congressman Bob Filner 
Congressman Steny Hoyer 
Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur 
Senator Amy Klobuchar
Congressman Brad Miller 
Congressman George Miller 
Governor Ruth Ann Minner 
Congressman Jerrold Nadler 
Congressman James Oberstar 
Congressman John Olver 
Congressman Ed Pastor 
Congressman Ed Perlmutter 
Senator Mark L. Pryor
Governor Bill Ritter 
Senator John D. Rockefeller
Congressman Dutch Ruppersberger 
Senator Ken Salazar
Congressman John Salazar 
Senator Charles E. Schumer
Governor Brian Schweitzer 
Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter 
Congressman Heath Shuler 
Congresswoman Louise Slaughter 
Congressman Vic Snyder 
Governor Eliot Spitzer 
Congressman John Tanner 
Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher 
Congressman Gene Taylor 
Senator Jon Tester
Congressman Anthony Weiner 
Congressman Robert Wexler 

/s
2 posted on 02/22/2008 12:48:31 AM PST by DoughtyOne (We've got Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dumb & Tweedle Dumber left. Name them in order. I dare ya.)
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To: Froufrou

I smell a setup.


3 posted on 02/22/2008 12:55:03 AM PST by TigersEye (This is the age of the death of reason.)
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To: DoughtyOne; Tiger_eye

UR BAD.

I love the smell of a setup in the morning. Especially the Slimes!


4 posted on 02/22/2008 12:58:15 AM PST by Froufrou
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To: Froufrou

...“filled with awkward journalistic moves”...

Is that what they are calling bald faced MSM lies these days?


5 posted on 02/22/2008 12:58:34 AM PST by DGHoodini (Yippie! Clipboard Magic 4.01 works with Vista SP2 !)
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To: DGHoodini

Pretty much...


6 posted on 02/22/2008 1:00:03 AM PST by Froufrou
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To: DoughtyOne
McCain and the New York Times deserve each other.

I am no McCain fan but I believe in intellectual honesty no matter what or who the subject is.

Taking all the negatives of McCain and his "maverick" ways on global warming, tort reform, campaign finance etc plus his eight year love affair with the MSM and Keating 5 and dumping his first wife for his second etc. etc. and putting them to the side the fact remains that the NYT has clearly engaged in a smear of enormous proportions while displaying all it's pro-democrat bias for all to see.

1 - The NYT took four top investigative reporters and assigned them to look at allegations from 8 and 9 years ago.

2 - The NYT endorses McCain days before the delegate tsunami of Super Tuesday (both helped and hurt)

3 - NYT publishes article based on inuendo and anonymous sources in attempting to claim both immoral and/or illegal activity

4 - McCain campaign publishes 1500-word response that explains not just the legality of any action with regards to companies concern with inactivity that was required by statute (an up or down vote within 300 days) while publicists and allies call the article and the timing a "smear"

5 - The NYT claims today that the McCain campaign is trying to start a "war" with the paper.

So in the end the NYT is trying to say that McCain is picking on them by refuting an anonymous-sourced article with allegations/impressions of an affair and favoritism that was published just as he is securing the nomination and a month after endorsing McCain. Get it?

So again with all feeling aside, even if one thinks it is justifiable payback to McCain and the Republican Party, anyone that denies what it is but a smear (based on the facts presented) is either intellectually challenged or dishonest.

7 posted on 02/22/2008 1:14:40 AM PST by torchthemummy ("The law of unintended consequences has not been repealed." - Fransam)
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To: DoughtyOne

"Our wives deserve a purple heart for sleeping
with scores of other men over eight years, as a quid pro quo,
just to get this fabricated gotcha-story into print."

8 posted on 02/22/2008 1:31:38 AM PST by Diogenesis (Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum)
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To: Froufrou

THE REAL REASON THE NYSLIMES BROKE THE STORY WAS TO GET MICHELLE “FINALLY PROUD” OBAMA OFF THE FRONT PAGE. it worked!


9 posted on 02/22/2008 2:52:54 AM PST by W04Man (DON'T BLAME ME, I was With Fred)
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To: W04Man
THE REAL REASON THE NYSLIMES BROKE THE STORY WAS TO GET MICHELLE “FINALLY PROUD” OBAMA OFF THE FRONT PAGE. it worked!

I think that was an added benefit to the timing but the main priority was to muddy the water as early as possible after the nomination seemed statistically secure. Who knows? The timing and the lack of any real evidence a month after endorsing McCain seems so...obvious as to their overall motive.

The NYT claims that they were not satisfied with the story until Tuesday. My question to the NYT would be "what were the final pieces that fell into place within the last few days that allowed you to feel confident the story was ready to go to press?" They can't answer that because the story had been long since completed and it was just a question of when to drop the smear.

10 posted on 02/22/2008 3:47:53 AM PST by torchthemummy ("The law of unintended consequences has not been repealed." - Fransam)
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To: DoughtyOne

Steve Beshear has a (D) next to his, unless he has switched parties overnight.


11 posted on 02/22/2008 4:38:34 AM PST by ukwildcats91
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To: Froufrou
The New Republic lambasted The New York Times for giving the green light, claiming the piece was “filled with awkward journalistic moves” and that it stepped around the suggested trysts with lobbyist Vicki Iseman by focusing on the debate in the McCain campaign itself about the relationship.

As most of FR knows, I'm absolutely no McCain fan. But this was a well-timed Clinton hit-piece, pure and simple. It was designed to do two things: 1) deflect attention from Hillary's floundering, and 2) smear McCain just after he ties down the GOP nomination.

Despite my strong feelings against McCain, this is despicable, and have no doubt that either McCauliffe or Ickes were the ones who called up the Slimes and told them to run with the story.

12 posted on 02/22/2008 4:55:05 AM PST by Virginia Ridgerunner ("We must not forget that there is a war on and our troops are in the thick of it!"--Duncan Hunter)
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To: Froufrou
“All I can conclude is that this is the largest liberal newspaper in America trying to unfairly attack the integrity of the new conservative Republican nominee for president,” said McCain adviser Charlie Black. “There is no other good explanation for it.”

Anybody else catch this piece of return BS?

13 posted on 02/22/2008 4:57:29 AM PST by Virginia Ridgerunner ("We must not forget that there is a war on and our troops are in the thick of it!"--Duncan Hunter)
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To: Virginia Ridgerunner

I can’t discount any of your sentiments, not one. And I did not notice the strategically placed ‘conservative’ nominee!

Like you, I am no fan of McCain, but I darn sure will vote for him if he is, in fact, the nominee. Until then, I’m voting for Huckabee.

I believe Dick Morris when he says the attempts to derail Obama by voting for Hillary are a gross mistake.


14 posted on 02/22/2008 5:23:27 AM PST by Froufrou
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To: Diogenesis
"Our wives deserve a purple heart for sleeping with scores of other men over eight years, as a quid pro quo, just to get this fabricated gotcha-story into print."

If they slept with that many men, I don't think it would be their hearts that would be purple.

15 posted on 02/22/2008 5:33:53 AM PST by SERKIT ("Blazing Saddles" explains it all.....)
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To: ukwildcats91

There’s a sarcasm tag at the end. I was confused at first, as well.


16 posted on 02/22/2008 5:48:42 AM PST by mplsconservative
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To: mplsconservative

And in MY confusion failed to look past Beshear’s name. The coffee kicked in too late.


17 posted on 02/22/2008 7:17:08 AM PST by ukwildcats91
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To: ukwildcats91

Here, let me pour you another cuppa Joe. I’m not awake until cup number three. :)


18 posted on 02/22/2008 7:19:53 AM PST by mplsconservative
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To: Froufrou

LOL


19 posted on 02/22/2008 8:42:28 AM PST by DoughtyOne (We've got Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dumb & Tweedle Dumber left. Name them in order. I dare ya.)
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To: torchthemummy

And John McCain sold out the Republican party for the last ten years. Cry me a river...


20 posted on 02/22/2008 8:45:13 AM PST by DoughtyOne (We've got Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dumb & Tweedle Dumber left. Name them in order. I dare ya.)
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