Posted on 04/18/2012 4:16:12 AM PDT by Kaslin
Republican strategists should generally be wary of campaign advice from liberals -- and when it's from the media, generally becomes definitely. Washington Post political writer Chris Cillizza recently suggested Mitt Romney's general-election strategy should start with getting a "positive first introduction" to voters through the liberal media because "only the national media can provide that megaphone and serve as a sort of validator for him."
How hard did he laugh after he wrote that?
No Republican should think he could end-run the liberal media establishment entirely and not suffer damage. Ask Dick Cheney. On the other hand, no Republican can expect fairness from these people, either. Romney should enter the national-media coliseum fully aware he's designed to be food for the lions.
Exhibit A comes from ABC's Diane Sawyer. This is how Sawyer probed Obama just after the 2006 elections: "Do you think that residual resistance is greater for race or for gender? Is the nation secretly, I guess, more racist or more sexist?" In keeping with that line, Sawyer would be expected to ask Romney today if he felt his wealth would be used against him by those who begrudge success. Not even close. Instead, she implied Romney should be dismissed as a Richie Rich or Thurston Howell type who can't connect to the little people. On "World News," she hammered Romney with five questions about his wealth and his tax returns.
Sawyer announced "the Obama campaign is working overtime to paint the portrait of a man whose riches have put him out of touch." She then offered the Obama spin: "the speaking fees, the Cadillac, the story out now that there's an elevator for your cars in the new house you're planning in La Jolla. Is this a relatability problem?"
There's an obvious answer that Romney did not give. "Diane, you make $12 million a year. The ritzy Manhattan penthouse, the wealthy movie director husband, the estate on Martha's Vineyard. Does that make you too rich and elitist to relate to your audience?"
Romney's actual answer wasn't bad. "We don't divide America based upon success and wealth and other dimensions of that nature. We're one nation under God. We come together. This is a time when people of different backgrounds and experiences need to come together."
Sawyer simply replied by calling it "fairness" to resent the rich: "Do you still face a fairness question ... about envy, (as in) fairness is concern about envy?"
Romney adroitly tossed the fairness issue right back. "I think it's unfair that this president has been in office three and a half years and 93 percent of the people who lost their jobs have been women."
Sawyer hammered him about the tax returns: "Why not release 12 years as your father did?" She said Romney gave 23 years of tax returns to the McCain campaign during the vice-presidential vetting process in 2008, so why not release those?
Do you recall Sawyer even asking for this from John Kerry?
By contrast, Sawyer's last interview with the current president ended with her asking how much Kentucky would win by in the NCAA basketball tournament and she compared Obama to Lincoln, as she encouraged him to talk about his prayer life: "What about the famous quote from another beleaguered president, Abraham Lincoln, who said he had been driven many times to his knees because his own wisdom and that around him 'was insufficient for the day'?"
Obama replied: "I do a lot of praying." Actually, he does a lot more golfing on Sundays.
Sawyer asked Romney about Mormonism and whether he could "really talk ... about something that holds a lot of curiosity for people? ... do the people think you're reluctant to talk about being a Mormon?" Sawyer did not ask Obama, "Your mother was an atheist who married two Muslim men. Are you reluctant to talk about that?" Never mind Jeremiah Wright.
Sawyer even stooped to raising that stupid -- and 29-year-old -- story about Romney putting his incontinent dog Seamus in a car-top carrier on a family trip. "First about Seamus -- which as you know is out there forever -- would you do it again?"
One host on NPR actually called Romney "the Michael Vick of presidential candidates." Sawyer underlined the vulnerability: "You said it was the most wounding thing in the campaign so far." That's why she wanted to ask it.
So for the record: Bill Clinton was never asked by a TV anchor whether he raped Juanita Broaddrick in 1978. But they can ask Mitt Romney if he shouldn't have put the doggie in a car-top carrier in 1983.
If anyone can point to anything Sawyer has ever asked the Obamas that compares to this low personal blow, they should speak up. This is just the opening mud bath. It's going to get only worse for Romney as we get closer to November.
And he got his through marriage and his wife got it from old man Heinz !
Mitt must learn to ignore the stupid questions, brush them aside, and present the important issues voters care about.
If that seems rude to the interviewer....tough.
they should compare how rich romney is versus kerry, whom they supported.
As ZZ Top sings. Legs she knows how to use them...
Media Exhibit A:
Before the Primary
John McCain — The Maverick, The “Good” Republican
After the Primary
John McCain — An evil Republican with a pill-popping, drug addict wife (Cindy).
“And he got his through marriage and his wife got it from old man Heinz!”
Question: Why did our beloved President say there were fifty-seven states a while back?
Once again, just asking.
(And did you know Mr. Kerry served in Viet Nam?)
I've often wondered why this tactic isn't used more. The media is by and large hated for very good reason. Attack, attack, attack, put them on the defensive. If you go down at least do it swinging.
“As a Republican Strategist(retired) this is what I would tell Romney.
(...)
4. Every chance you get, attack the MSM. They are not on your side and people are waking up to the media bias. Keep hammering them over it in every interview. Newt did it and it works.:
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http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-TV/2012/04/17/Romney-Media-Does-Obamas-Bidding
“Romney Rips Media, ‘Vast Left-Wing Conspiracy’”
Communications String of Conspiracy Commerce ping.
(obscure Clinton regime reference)
Maybe a way to clear the table is to invite Harry Reid to appear with him in order to once and for all answer whatever “Mormon questions” the press may have. Reid would not do this, but having offered, he could then refer back to the standing offer and it would highlight the fact that this, like so many other things, is a nonissue if you run as a Democrat.
Brent Bozell does great work, but there is NO WAY anybody is going to hook me into a Romney narrative.
Forget it, Brent. You and the RiNOrati are not co-opting me, I don't care how many Promethean rocks Diane Sawyer tries to chain Mitt Romney to.
Mitt asked for it, here it is. Deal with it.
As for me, we still have 1000 GOP delegates to apportion, and here Romney is walking right out of the tent with stolen laurels. FUMR, you are not the "presumptive" nominee or any other kind of nominee.
Texas votes on May 29th. See you at Black Rock, Lib Boy.
Really? Did he get any medals?
Notice how most rich liberals didn’t get rich through their own personal effort.
She isn’t worth it-—but them, most of them are not worth it.
They have the biggest, most long-lasting, and most visible examples of ‘Not connecting with the American people’, IMO.
Let’s do a little basic math:
Diane Sawyer gets paid $12 Million a year===$1 million a month==5 nights a week for prox 4 weeks a month=20 nights. $1 million divided by 20 === $50,000 an HOUR. She is only on 1/2 HOUR a night, so she is basically paid $100,000 per episode of nightly news===where she is basically a “NEWS READER” !!!!!
SIGN ME UP!!!
Did I get that all straight???
She has the gall to go after ANY other successful American?
When will she be interviewing Buffett with the same harshness and intensity & BIAS???????
How soon will she be willingly be paying 30% taxes on $11 million of her earnings every year????
I am not holding my breath!!!
Hypocrites-—all of them!
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