By Dan Kennedy • The press, politics, technology, culture and other passions

Dan Wasserman’s paean to punditry

We all love Dan Wasserman (and I’m loving his new blog, Out of Line). But this is what happens when you get immersed in the spin. Wasserman’s Boston Globe cartoon today makes sense if you listen to the pundits, who have been salivating over the prospect of open warfare between the Clintons and the Obamas all week. It might even make sense if you talk to disgruntled Clinton delegates.

But what, pray tell, have the Clintons actually done to undermine Barack Obama at the convention? Both Hillary and Bill gave emphatically pro-Obama speeches. Delegates have cheered the Clintons. Delegates have cheered the Obamas. HRC released her delegates to vote for Obama, then moved that Obama’s nomination be made unanimous.

Is it all choreographed? Of course. Or to be more precise: It’s a television show. At least according to some news reports, the two families don’t like each other. But they’re playing their parts. And though the Clintons may not be heartbroken if John McCain wins this November, since that would give HRC another chance to run in 2012, they don’t want to be blamed for Obama’s defeat, either.

Bottom line is that not a single thing has taken place at the podium, or in any of the Clintons’ or the Obamas’ public utterances, to support Wasserman’s take. At best, he’s channeling unhappy Clinton fans. At worst, he’s suffering from pundit overdose.

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5 Comments

  1. Tim Allik

    It’s all but certain that Dan did the cartoon before the Clintons gave their two speeches. Isn’t that analogous to a reporter writing a story about an event before the event actually occurs? I’d love to hear from him about it. Overall, I respect his work very much and understand how demanding a job that must be.

  2. ms. kitty

    Check the spelling in your headline, Dan. Paean, not Pean. Unless I missed something punny.

  3. Dan Kennedy

    Ms. Kitty: I looked it up, and got “pean.” But now I see that American Heritage prefers “paean,” though “pean” is correct, too. So I’ve changed it. Thank you.

  4. Nial Liszt

    The ol’ Classical Latin “AE” dilemma: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86

  5. ms. kitty

    I thought you might be making a fabulous pun that I was just too dense to get!

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