It’s amazing the way the media have gone from “Obama can do no wrong” to “Obama can do nothing right” following his defeats in Texas and Ohio last week.
The subject deserves a longer essay with links, but for the moment let me make a brief observation. After Super Tuesday, most political observers conceded that Clinton might lose every state until March 4, when Texas and Ohio would bail her out. That’s exactly what happened. Save for a brief, within-the-margin-of-error blip in Texas during the last week of February, she never relinquished her lead in either state.
What happened in Texas and Ohio wasn’t a reversal of fortune, a comeback, or “buyer’s remorse” on the part of Democrats having second thoughts about Obama. It was about Clinton winning two states she had always led in. (And Rhode Island made three.)
A number of observers have rightly called this the “anti-momentum” campaign. But the media, continually getting caught up in the moment, lose sight of that. Over and over.
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Except Clinton may not have won Texas. My head hurts.
Dan wrote: It was about Clinton winning two states she had always led in. (And Rhode Island made three.)Dead on correct. Not only that, it was the red phone ad getting played – and played up – at a key time in the campaign so she was able to stop what seemed to be a surging Obama [polls had him surging at least].
DK – this isn’t about either candidate. It’s about guilty consciences.When the Pew analysis came out, many reporters covering campaigns hung their heads. They knew it was true, they knew that the skewing was accurate, they knew their personal preference was on their sleeve for all the world to see. And it wasn’t some easily ignored right wing evil geniuses like the Pioneer Institute. No, it was their very own oft quoted Pew which had outed them.So they attacked.I don’t expect it to last – one or two nasty Obama stories, and they can go back to happily trashing Clinton again. They just had to write those stories to preserve their own mythological ‘balance’ in their own minds.If a real examination of Obama’s record and stances lasts longer then ten days, I will be thunderstruck.
I wouldn’t say that I’m digusted with the tactics of either Obama or Clinton; I’ve seen much worse in my lifetime and American politics has seen things that would be unimaginable today.What I would say is that it shows like never before that the campaign media are an almost hermetically sealed echo chamber unto themselves, and the actual voters are still susceptible to and influenced by retail campainging.There is also no doubt in my mind as a veteran of NH campaigns going back to Carter 76, that there is a contrary streak among voters, and that this set of primaries was set up to be too early, and the voters are reacting as such.Thanks for listening…www.bostonmediawatch.org.
It’s tough when your favored candidate is on the wrong end of the media lovefest idn’t it DK? All was right with the world when it was Hillary or Mitt Romney… God bless pack journalism – they’ll turn the tables on a candidate in a second in order to create some new drama.
Funny thing is, after this, Obama’s “Worst” Week, he’s increased his lead on Clinton.He’s won many more supers, He won Texas by Mark Penns account, offset Ohio with that win, Trounced her in VT which made up for RI, and then California certified it’s delegates, where he picked up 9 more.Not a bad “worst” week at all, when in reailty Hillary fell even further behind.