Brooks' misguided love letter to McCain
By Steve Benen Tuesday Feb 26, 2008 5:01pm
I’m starting to think the adulation for John McCain among New York Times columnists is making the transition from odd to unhealthy.
Last week, Nick Kristof praised McCain for pandering and lying, but only because McCain is bad at it. Yesterday, apropos of nothing, Bill Kristol praised McCain for being patriotic. Today, David Brooks, demonstrating unusually flawed timing, praises McCain for keeping lobbyists at arm’s length, after a week’s worth of evidence proving the exact opposite.
You wouldn’t know it to look at them, but political consultants are as faddish as anyone else. And the current vogueish advice among the backroom set is: Go after your opponent’s strengths. So in the first volley of what feels like the general election campaign, Barack Obama has attacked John McCain for being too close to lobbyists. His assault is part of this week’s Democratic chorus: McCain isn’t really the anti-special interest reformer he pretends to be. He’s more tainted than his reputation suggests.
Well, anything is worth trying, I suppose, but there is the little problem of his record. McCain has fought one battle after another against lobbyists and special interests.
What on Earth is David Brooks talking about? To hear him tell it, Obama has manufactured a wildly irresponsible charge against McCain that has no foundation in reality.
More accurately, the only analysis that’s wildly off base here is Brooks’.
In just the last week, based on reports that Brooks has no doubt seen, we’ve learned that McCain, the “reform”-minded Republican who decries the power and influence of lobbyists, not only has more lobbyists working on his staff or as advisers than any of his competitors from either party, he actually has a corporate lobbyist doing business directly aboard his campaign bus. The WaPo added, “In McCain’s case, the fact that lobbyists are essentially running his presidential campaign — most of them as volunteers — seems to some people to be at odds with his anti-lobbying rhetoric.” Clearly, “some people” does not include David Brooks.
Better yet, his own newspaper uncovered evidence of McCain’s cozy relationship with a telecom lobbyist. Pressed for an explanation, most of McCain’s story proved to be false.
Indeed, Brooks notes some instances in which McCain challenged lobbyists, without noting that McCain took on the “reformist” mantle after having been caught in the Keating Five scandal, which drew a rebuke from the Senate Ethics Committee.
Worst of all, Brooks simply got some of his facts wrong. He notes McCain’s consistent opposition to ethanol, without noting that McCain flip-flopped on the issue before the Iowa caucuses. He notes McCain’s support for campaign-finance reform, without noting that McCain actually ended up opposing some of the provisions in his own legislation in order to pander to far-right conservatives. He notes that McCain led the Abramoff investigation, without noting that McCain may have used his power to shield fellow Republicans from scrutiny.
Everything in Brooks’ column, in other words, is wrong, misleading, or uninformed. It’s kind of embarrassing to read it, given that an editor signed off on a piece so detached from reality.
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Brooks is a prime example of ignorance on parade. His idiocy is painful to watch.
Gonna be a long campaign. So many lies are gonna be told by republicans. They figure one or two might stick. Its the way republicans win elections.
The problem is that Brooks is syndicated. Read that column today in the Sacramento Bee. And the Bee has the "good taste" to run him on the right side of the page, where they run the conservative columnists. And most readers know that. That's where we get a steady dose of hacks like Cal Thomas
and whatever-her name Lopez from the National Review, and some kook editor down in Arkansas....
of course, Brooks also gets big time exposure on the Sunday talk shows, where he's rarely challenged.
of all the pieces I think the worst is Nick K's.
whats the expression? if a lie is so outrageous its got to be true?
Don @ 3:
lets not forget Brooks and Shields on New Hour.
News Hour
Reality is a bitch for republicans. They try to deny it, cover it up or just ignore it. If all else fails, they try to create it.
note to the times publisher
before you start bitching about falling subscriptions....maybe you should make sure that your own columnists read the paper
boy, that was one ignorant piece
Gotta love this complete absolution:
"If this is the record of a candidate with lobbyists on his campaign bus, then every candidate should have lobbyists on the bus."
St. John the Triangulist will have a special place in heaven, but only if he doesn't get sucked in by the vortex as he prances along the gates of hell looking for Osama.
"And the current vogueish advice among the backroom set is: Go after your opponent’s strengths."
um... that advice has been around foreverish...
There's a typo in your headline... "Brooks'" should be "Bobo's".
Dude, who bought Yahoo? Look at the headline they used to describe the House's action today. The house repealed tax credits for the Oil and Gas industry, but how did Yahoo describe it:
House OKs new taxes on big oil companies
assholes.
I always look forward to reading a new piece written by David Brooks since I will then know what not to believe.
“I have some news,” he said at a town hall-style meeting in Tyler, Tex. “Al Qaeda is in Iraq. It’s called ‘Al Qaeda in Iraq.’ My friends, if we left, they wouldn’t be establishing a base. They’d be taking a country and I’m not going to allow that to happen.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/27/us/politics/27cnd-campaign.html?hp
Uhhhh, what about Al Qaeda in Pakistan? Isn't Iraq ruled by Shiites? What the **** is wrong with this country? The dark cloud of cognitive dissonance seems to get darker every day? What happened to the hunt for Osama? What happened to the hunt for the US Military Grade Anthrax Terrorist? Can anyone please answer me? War on Terror? There is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there? Al Qaeda in Iraq, 1-3% of the Iraqi Resistance. I am so *** **** angry at my Government. Al Qaeda in Iraq is mostly Military Propaganda on the U.S. home audience.
McCain the Liar @ 2:
I'm surprised the Right Wing Noise Machine has been so quiet.
Hmmm... I didn't think that I heard that from the Democrats. I thought I saw that printed in your own fucking paper! Get a goddamn clue, you jackass.
How many times do they have to be wrong about everything before Kristol, Brooks, and Kristof lose their alleged credibility?
Do you think this guy ever reads the NYT?
The Myth Of Maverick McCain is one of the great legends of modern politics. It has a war hero, romance, betrayal, and greed. What more could you ask for?
Get your free Pocket BARACK-itizer here.
America over the last 30 years seems to have morphed into one of the most anti-progressive countries in the Western Hemisphere.The venomous negative spin directed against Liberal ideology is almost unprecedented.The AP is rife with what can only be called far right convictions.Digby is certainly correct in assuming that in order for meaningful "change"to take place,the question/problem of the corporate media must be solved.Until then,I'm not holding out a lot of hope.
Hahahaha......stop it.....yer killin' us with yer McIntellectual thinkin'!!!!!!!!!!!
David Brooks is an intellectual embarrassment to our species. The fact he can make a living off his writing is equally embarrassing.
St. John: "Pay no attention to the men behind the curtain. They're not lobbyists. I'm against lobbyists."
Don't you just love how this election has quickly turned away from issues and turned into one big party about "he said this nasty thing about her" and "this guy said something nice about this other guy, but something nasty about this guy" and "he does business with that guy but won't talk to the other one."
Yup, it's high school again.
pinkobait @ 20:
Doesn't help people add to the right wing noise either instead of figuring out a way to drown it out.
Save Our Troops @ 24:
I's all been turned into made for TeeVee. Let's see who can vote who off the Island.
All you need to know about how out of touch with reality Brooks is by simply going here.
It's tough being David Brooks these days. He's a conservative Republican New York Times columnist who is pretending to me a centrist, meanwhile defending a maverick Republican who has sewn up the nomination while pretending not to be a maverick.
Very troubling for Brooks. He has to ignore McCain's real record, which reveals friendly contacts with the same lobbyists he supposedly won't deal with. But...the Republican hierarchy wants us to believe these lobbyists aren't compromising anyone's integrity, this in spite of all recent history regarding DeLay and Abramoff. So Brooks has to defend a man who has really been playing the approved Republican game all along, yet do so in a way that compliments him for not playing that game.
I wouldn't want to be David Brooks at this time in history.
"McCain has fought one battle after another against lobbyists and special interests"....giving money to politicians other than McHelpmyself.
Matt Neffer @ 27:
In 1982, Moon was convicted by the U.S. government for filing false federal income tax returns and conspiracy.
All In The Family
You think the rightwing is only in the US? Seems our military is copying.....
How friggin' retarded is that? I mean, come on. The local police department can track pedophiles on the internet, but the military is a worried that a "TERRIST" is monitoring social networking sites? No wonder Bush and the rest of the military can't find OsamaBinHidin...he's on Facebook dammit!!!
a bonobo monkey @ 12:
So, where does this 'bobo' thing in relation to brooks come from....?
been wonderin about that.
Sounds like these journalists don't read the news.
Robert Lockwood Mills @ 28:
I find the guy so boring my heart would probably cease beating if I had to listen to him for any longer then 15 secs.
David Brooks: all the substance of Limbaugh, without the entertainment value.
L.A. Confidential @ 30:
Reagan must have said to Bush, now there's a guy with Balls. This Moon guy. He'll fit right in with the program.
Rusty Shackleford @ 35:
Limbaugh's another one I find boring as hell. I mean seriously we've really come to this? Where this lunk is propped up as some kind of intellectual giant?
Brooks is in need of oxygen. He's had his nose deep into repug butts for years now.
Don't care about this weiner.
Timmeh, on the other hand, has become a veritable Manchurian Broadcaster, awakened by his master's signal (Cheney, or is it Rove?).
Punkinhead needs a lot more heat than he's getting. He needs to feel the heat Tweety's been getting of late.
Remember, Timmeh was actually a part of the WH propaganda unit. He was their go-to guy outside of Fox.
HE STILL IS! Make him go away, but make him pay first.
If we don't bring better heat against these winger journamalists, Barrack's tenure is going to be filled with non-stop sniping from wingers who don't realize that they're already dead.
It's hard to kill zombies, but really we have to do something about them. They're just so unsightly, what with their constant demands for fresh brains to eat, and shuffling around in the way all the time. Not to mention the constant fucking moaning.
And they wonder why they’re losing subscribers. Geesh.
Misguided Love Letters, Sheesh, you mean just our Mr. Brooks? What about Brooks and Shields. Or Tucker and Mathews, they have gravitas don’t they ? Tucker has such unique mammal mammary song about him. Using those loud echolocations that try hard to siren doubt to his arguments. Tuckers debates usually blow out in squally charges trying to deliver shape and direction to his usually biased and flawed political analysis.
So, as one watches Tucker speaks pompously and excessively. Does a little blow to boast. Perhaps. Sort of like Obama, who really comes across as a total blow hard but is idolized for his big ears, polytonal voice that captures ones imagination with a deep sense of security. Were there is a blank screen an empty space, a vision of change because Obama really has not seen anything but good ideals that go to Washington to die. Yet embraces all the experience in the death pit like John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, Biden, Dodd, and the best turn coat of any corrupt Republic the Independent Joe Lieberman. Ta Da.
Whats my point, just havin fun, gee as they repeat McCains rally were that lady says "How do we stop that Bitch" meaning Hillary. Playing it over and over than interviewing why does Hillary think we are biased? Why does everyone think Hillary is hated as a Bitch ? We are not biased, play that clip again.
I expect this fresh pressed horseshit from Kristol not Brooks, but he does have that mancrush on the saint. I guess he'll have a duel with Tweety to be his bitch.
24% Have Favorable Opinion of New York Times
Just 24% of American voters have a favorable opinion of the New York Times. Forty-four percent (44%) have an unfavorable opinion ...
The Times recently became enmeshed in controversy over an article published concerning John McCain. Sixty-five percent (65%) of the nation’s likely voters say they have followed that story at least somewhat closely.
Of those who followed the story, 66% believe it was an attempt by the paper to hurt the McCain campaign. Just 22% believe the Times was simply reporting the news. Republicans, by an 87% to 9% margin, believe the paper was trying to hurt McCain’s chances of winning the White House. Democrats are evenly divided.
Just who are those remaining 22%-ers who still think this was a legitimate story?
rend @ 4:
I can't stand to read Kristol, but Nick's REALLY sucks. It was painful to read. What editors in their right minds sign off on these pieces?
myshadow @ 32:
I don't know its origin, but it makes me laugh and it really goes a long way to describing Brooks the man in action.
Poor Bobo, it's hard being a smug monkey clown warmonger.
a bonobo monkey @ 45:
He wrote the "book" Bobos in Paradise.
My friends, the special interests ARE the media
Rusty Shackleford @ 46:
Wow. Um... thanks?
I did not need to know about that tripe. He seems completely incapable of anything but the lowest kind of de-humanizing stereotyping... oh... right, cuz he's a stereotypical neo-con.
My bad.
Pink Shirt and tie?????
Well - we know McCain is willing to bend over when he wants something bad enough - maybe a New York Times columnist falls into that category.
*
debg @ 44:
Editors in their "Reich" mind.
*
ConcernedCanuck @ 21:
#381, thanks, eh?
;-}
Peter G @ 29:
#382, thanky!
;}
my friends, insane mccain has many friends, one of them is brooks. mccain's friend brooks is probably secretly mccain's boyfriend. mccrazy has some other friends but Cunningham is not one of them. but how could someone not be mccamnesty's friend? if you listen to his speeches its like everyone is his friend dude
brooks is an agent of kharzarian republican PNAC hack (as is mccain, leiberman and clinton) and agent for mossad --they are doing everything they can to keep their control of the whitehose and exectutive powers:
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/11302007/watch.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjMRgT5o-Ig
The current McName List – In alpha order:
(347 total as of 12:01am pst Tuesday 2/26)
and
Tuesday’s McAKAlist contributions:
my friends, insane mccain has many friends, one of them is brooks. mccukoo's friend brooks is probably secretly his boyfriend. mccrazy has some other friends but Cunningham is not one of them cuz he hates mcloony's fuckin guts now. but how could someone not be mccamnesty's friend? if you listen to his speeches its like everyone is his friend dude
It's 'elect the potato 2.0' directed by karl rove, produced by dick cheney and starring crazy mcgrampa.
Cafferty: Someone is lying. The New York Times dropped a bombshell on John McCain this morning with a front page story that could cost him the White House. It’s great reading: an improper relationship with a lobbyist, a woman named Vicki Iseman, his inner-circle convinced they were having an affair, all happening while he was Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee and she was representing telecom companies who had business before McCain’s committee. The two of them together at fundraisers, in his office, aboard private corporate jets … It got so bad that his closest friends and advisers finally stepped in to save McCain from himself.
From 1990 and the Keating 5 scandal we have, “But McCain owns up to his mistake:”
”I was judged eventually, after three years, of using, quote, poor judgment, and I agree with that assessment.”
He already has “poor judgement” on his resume now we can add “liar, ethically and morally bankrupt, abuser of power, etc). So, he learned nothing from his involvement with Chuckie K. and the boys 18 years ago; what makes anyone think he is anything better than a seller of snake oil??
McCain is InSane in the membrane.
Brooks: "And McCain is a Republican, so he would never, ever cheat on his wife. Except, well, dumping the first one for Cindy, but that doesn't count because -- well, it happened a really long time ago."
You mean John McCheating is cheating... again? That's just shocking.
Here's McCain's book on his family and his family values, which clearly involve cheating on the first wife--and the second. In case you want to add a relevant tag:
http://www.amazon.com/Faith-My-Fathers-Family-Memoir/dp/B0006VYG5S/ref=p...
He also wrote his own version of War and Peace only his was called War and Piece. It is a vivid recollection of his time as a POW (Penis Out Wandering).
Brooks is full of shit. Charly Black on down. McCain's campaign is run by lobbyist on a daily basis. What the fuck is Brooks talking about.
Maybe it's penis envy. What else is there?
Well it's nice to see him at least matching the shade of his lipstick to his tie color.
Don't look now, But I think Robert Scheer is on Mc Cains side as well.
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080227_what_the_times_didnt_tell_a...
Question for Matt Neffer (#27): Are you any relation to the Bob & Ray character from radio years ago, known as "Matt Neffer, Boy Spot-Welder"????
The msm is bought and paid for just like the polls are. They are totally owned by there pay masters. I don't care what any of them says, it is exactly what their owners tell them to say!
I never listen to or believe anything any of the corporate whores have to say!
All ignorant all lies all the time. In America we no longer have news we have faux news from places like fox,abc,cbs,nbc,msmbc, all faux sites all liars all paid to lie!
Brooks was one of the first pundits to see Obama's potential, and urged him in the strongest terms to get into the race.
Now, he will lead the Republican assault on him.
Propaganda technique: The Big Lie.
McCain has certainly opened fault lines in the ranks of Republican muses, hasn't he? George Will tore him apart today. David Brooks defends him, but turns logic inside-out in the process. Limbaugh can't stand him, and Coulter said (s)he's voting for Hillary. Bush 41 is supporting him, but Kristol never mentions him. Fox Network doesn't like McCain, but likes his enemies even less.
One thing is clear. McCain supports the war in Iraq, and would bomb Iran in a heartbeat. And none of the people named above will be serving in the military any time soon.
BoBo is a terrible writer. Most of the time his column is incoherent, the rest of the time he tortures logic to make a fallacious point. I just heard that William F. Buckley promoted his career when he read a satire on Buckley that BoBo wrote in college. I can't judge the piece, not having read it, but as much as I disagreed with Buckley's politics, his taste in other things was impeccable. Apparently it's been downhill ever since for BoBo.
Mc Cain hates lobbyists, except for the lobbyists he loves. His BFF's.
David Brooks comes from the Dick Nixon school of 5 o'clock shadow.
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