DNC: Republicans Now Oppose Hard Work And Staying In School
The Democratic National Committee’s political hits on Republicans have taken on a fairly hard mocking edge this cycle, a combination of the large victory last fall and the addition of operatives like Brad Woodhouse and Hari Sevugan to run DNC messaging.
In this vein, Sevugan sends over a typical statement mocking the conservative, er, argument that Obama’s speech to kids will indocrinate them with socialism by reminding people that Obama intends to stress school and hard work:
“What this absurd episode shows is that the GOP can in fact come up with new ideas. For example, it’s now clear that the new Republican education platform will argue against personal responsibility, hard work and staying in school.”
White House press sec Robert Gibbs also was forced to address this at today’s briefing, another sign of the surprising traction and serious treatment this latest conservative claim is getting from the mainstream press.
Separately, MSNBC’s Chuck Todd addressed this today, rightly pointing out that this traction really does belie the claim of a liberal media. But he also added this: “The ability of some conservatives to create media firestorms is still much greater than liberals these days.”
This blog loves Todd, but still, this is an argument that’s very hard to comprehend, because Todd is pretty well positioned to, you know, have an impact on what becomes a media firestorm and what doesn’t.
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“The ability of some conservatives to create media firestorms is still much greater than liberals these days.”
Compare and contrast:
“From a Nexis search a few moments ago:
Total words about the Van Jones controversy in the New York Times: 0.
Total words about the Van Jones controversy in the Washington Post: 0.
Total words about the Van Jones controversy on NBC Nightly News: 0.
Total words about the Van Jones controversy on ABC World News: 0.
Total words about the Van Jones controversy on CBS Evening News: 0.”
IT’S COME TO THIS…. In 1988, then-President Reagan spoke to students nationwide via C-SPAN telecast. Among other things, he talked about his positions on political issues of the day. Three years later, then-President Bush addressed school kids in a speech broadcast live to school classrooms nationwide. Among other things, he promoted his own administration’s education policies.
President Obama wants to deliver a message to students next week emphasizing hard work, encouraging young people to do their best in school. The temper tantrum the right is throwing in response only helps reinforce how far gone 21st-century conservatives really are….
Even Joe Scarborough asked, “Where are all the GOP leaders speaking out against this kind of hysteria?” They are, alas, nowhere to be found. As John Cole explained, “The entire party has been taken over by crazy people.”
- Hat tip, Patrick Appel, at Sully’s blog.
This is possibly the best illustration of the conservative reflexive response to oppose all things that Obama does without taking but a few seconds to think through the implications of such mindless opposition.
sbj,
Talk about your straw man/non-sequiturs. What does that have to do with the subject at hand?
sbj, you are full of sh*t
http://news.google.com/news/story?pz=1&um=1&ned=us&hl=en&q=Van+Jones&ncl=dtGDFIGVnv2GrRM&cf=all&start=0
@sg: You are full of sh$t.
Hardly, I was quoting someone, and the WaPo article only went up 25 minutes ago.
SBJ, I guess they’re not batting .1000.
This school thing has nothing to do with indoctrination. It’s all about personality and charisma.
To wingers, Obama is the stranger with candy. Their kids might actually LIKE him, TRUST him, say HE’S NOT SO BAD. They might join the cult of the one.
And the fact that he can go in there and hypnotize their kids with his magnetic personality, the very day before he goes before a joint session and commandeers the television and tries to hypnotize all the grown-ups, well, it’s not to be borne, and it’s making their heads explode.
Maybe Van Jones is onto something.
Greg
Do you really like Todd or were you joking?
He was useful during the election for his interpretation of the polls. But since then not so much.
Lawrence O’Donnell and Rachel Maddow are the only ones worth watching IMO at MSNBC, and KO is entertaining occasionally.
I’ve enjoyed watching Greg get duly spanked by Glenn Greenwald and by Jeremy Scahill on the Bill Maher show. I was psyched when Todd got the job, because I thought he was insightful, but he’s let’s-not-rock-the-boat font of cya conventional beltway wisdom. and his questions are usually buffoonish, so what’s to keep him in his job?
Kathleen
Im sure you meant Chuck getting spanked. Scahill went right after him on Maher’s show and he hated it. One thing about that is it shows just how thin skinned most journalists are and they make their living calling other folks out.
[[This blog loves Todd, but still, this is an argument that’s very hard to comprehend, because Todd is pretty well positioned to, you know, have an impact on what becomes a media firestorm and what doesn’t.]]
I’m not sure why this blog loves Todd, because it’s beyond obvious that he couldn’t find his own, um, microphone with both hands,a flashlight and a map.
It belies no such thing. If there were anything like balance in the leftwing hack media Greg, there would be much more time spent on talking about the proposed lesson plan where the kids were to be made to write letters explaining how they would help the President. I guess you only learn that you have a right to oppose the President when you get to college. Even you can’t spin that.
SG, OMG, awful typo! I meant I’ve enjoyed watching CHUCK get spanked. Greg is perfect.
Quick poll: Who would enjoy watching Greg get spanked?
“Blog loves Todd.”
Was anyone else reminded of The Day of the Dolphin’s, “Fa loves Pa?”
I learned more about socialism during kindergarten than by anything Obama has said. But I think I found the best way to beat the RNC.
Obama: Breathing is good.
RNC: NO IT ISNT. IT’S A SOCIALIST PLOT!!! EVERYONE STOP BREATHING OR YOU’LL DIE!!
I think so far this is a win for the DNC and the WH, the town hall upsets seemed to come from a valid place (people unsure about gov’t involvement in health care) whereas the state already is very involved in schooling so it makes total sense to have the President of the country that they are living in address them while they are there. If these people don’t want their kids addressed by the president they should consider moving somewhere with leadership they like.
I’m fairly certain that staying in school, working hard to get good grades, setting personal goals etc. is a socialist mantra. NOT
I will concede sbj that we could spank greg for loving todd
I think the love spreading should be left to the OB/GYNs
It must be Friday, we’ve gone off the rails. I wonder if some parents will actually keep their kids home from school rather than have them watch the speech. I’ve never seen such phony outrage.
I received a note home from my daughter’s principal. Apparently the speech will be taped on Tuesday (due to some other previously scheduled school activities) and will be shown on Wednesday. Any child whose parents do not want them to see the speech has to submit a note/e-mail to their teacher. They will be sent to the library to read or study instead.
Next up will be the wingers complaining that pictures of the current president hanging in classrooms is some sort of socialism indoctrination. Watch for it.
Next up will be the wingers complaining that pictures of the current president hanging in classrooms is some sort of socialism indoctrination. Watch for it.
LOL. Sob……………
Who the hell is Van Jones? Is that some kind of cabover conversion manufacturer? Those old Chevy’s with the heart shaped windows? You’d think they’d come up with a more modern sounding name.
SchrodingersCat — the picture of Obama is probably in the school library. mwahaha.
You all should have thought about this “respect for the President” thing before you spent 8 years demonizing Bush as a Hitlerite, genocidal, treasonous dictator.
Obama is a radical leftist whose stated objective is transformation of American society and government in his Alinsky-ite image. No, I don’t want him speaking to school children. Even if MSLSD’s (thanks to bilgeman for that one) in-house “conservative” thinks it’s fine.
sbj, your impotence is not my problem.
sbj,
The irrational anti Obama stuff looks an awful lot like racism by proxy. Every single one of the non-issues that has thrown the wingnuts into a tizzy are just laughably untrue. It would be laughable, that is, if it wasn’t a dodge for bigotry. Those who fear a black man in the White House know that they can’t use the N word without being shouted down as racist, so they trot out “socialist,” “Communist,” or my favorite, the not so subtle “he’s Kenyan.”
This garbage needs to be called out as the vile racist garbage that it is.
“the proposed lesson plan where the kids were to be made to write letters explaining how they would help the President”
By staying in school, working hard, and getting good grades?
Lemmee guess: you’re scared of your own shadow, right?
“Obama is a radical leftist whose stated objective …”
I don’t know which is more pathetic, the ignorance or the insecurity.
Poor quivering inbred!
When somebody is going to call out CNN? Today I was listening to Suzanne Malveaux on Sirius and I almost threw up (literally). During her interview with Tom Ridge, she even tried to excuse the controversy in his book as a mistake from the editor(can you f believe this?) and she immediately shifted to the town-hallers, some of them overtly racism, to give Ridge ammunition to criticize the government by saying :” People are really mad at the Washington”.
IT’S TIME TO BOYCOTT CNN FOR REAL!!!!!!!
Senator McCarthy would be proud……….
?? How did I get a double link, and why isn’t there a Preview option on this blog?
oddjob:
“Since when do I have to contact parents for airing a presidential address?” asks some teacher
Since always. They’re not YOUR kids.
If you don’t like it, hit the bricks, sister, and we’ll have someone in here to fill your job before your chair gets cool.
Who the HELL do these bureaucrats think they ARE?
Bilgerman,
Did you whine and moan when Reagan addressed school children in school? Did you do likewise when Bush I did the same? What is the difference? Were they “indoctrinating” children?
Wow, Bilgeman, you’re either joking, which I doubt or you’re channeling old “Tail Gunner Joe”. But hey, I guess everyone needs a hero.
When will the DNC start playing offense and actually throw the first punch… Dean never had a problem with that. I will be donating my money to his org in 2010 if the DNC doesn’t start fighting harding and throwing some first punches. Also, they need a new ad adgency, their recent ads are not strong enough.
Don’t forget, guys, by all of the latest polls, a majority of people do not trust this liberal government or Obama. The “firestorm” really started with the advance release of “suggestions” for young students, including answers to questions which could be and were interpreted political in nature. As proof of this, an offer the fact that these controversial “suggestions” were instantly removed.
This controversy did have a positive effect in that it most certainly prevented any possible political misuse of the presidential address. If Obama was planning to interject political messages, he most certainly will not do so now.