Who's Afraid of Mike Huckabee?
There they go again.
Yesterday, the corporations that order the media around got their way. The best candidate, possibly America's last chance for redemption and reform, John Edwards, was pushed out of the race—the victim of the media's decision not to cover his campaign. Now they're doing it on the Republican side.
My readers know where I stand on Huckabee. Still, despite his flaws—and they are grievous—he has been notable for introducing elements of populism and actual Christian concern for the poor and suffering into the Republican primary race. Unlike McCain and Romney, he isn't a 100 percent corporate shill. Which makes him dangerous.
Here comes the Edwards treatment.
Consider this from today's New York Times: "With Rudolph W. Giuliani and John Edwards withdrawing from the race, the two parties have what is, in effect, clean two-way battles for the nomination as they roar into this week leading into Tuesday, when 20 states will vote.
Point one: Huckabee was always more viable than Giuliani. He did, after all, win the Iowa caucuses. Giuliani didn't win a single primary. And Huckabee polled higher than Giuliani all along. So Giuliani's withdrawal logically leaves McCain, Romney and Huckabee. Except that the media wants to get rid of Huckabee.
Directly next to the above quote are poll results that directly contradict the framing of the GOP contest as a two-man race. Huckabee, according the Times' own polls, is favored to win Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama. He's running second in Missouri. He polls no less than nine percent—significant by any standard—in every state.
I've been watching politics my entire life. Never have I seen the media engage so brazenly in using its coverage to choose which candidates receive the attention they need to survive the primary process.
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I'm afraid of Mike Huckabee!!!! I'm afraid of anyone who is that incompetent yet gets support from a large base of equally incompetent goons. You make a great point though. If the Repugs could have combined in one candidate the evils of all their candidates, that person would have already one the nomination, and would have looked like George W. Bush. They'd run Bush again if they could, because they are that intransigent to an outside world.
ReplyDeletethe fracturing of the Repug party base is an exercise in filleting evil into slivers, each one possessing too much humanity that they anger some part of the base of hatemongering that has become the GOP.
A colleague of mine was just relating to me a caricature of the fight in Kansas between ID and Reality....the tower of ID is set opposite the tower of humanity. You can't make this stuff up, Ted!
These people are opposed to any notions of humanity. That's why Romney, a robot, and McCain, who is a dead Bob Dole without a sense of humor, are leading the race.
Has'nt the media, pretty well been bought up by the right? So what's the suprise? The GOP doe'nt want this election. It's not in their best interest. How can they possibly hang the "Dumbicrats" with bushs mess if they win in 08? They need to lose so they can continue their tax and spend demicrat banter.
ReplyDeleteThe media, for some time now, has been pushing, pushing, pushing Obama for reasons that are a little murky. Whatever the reason, he has been rated by some to be quite 'liberal' whatever that means:
ReplyDeletehttp://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/01/31/study-obama-most-liberal-senator-last-year/
true, Dave. I saw a clip of Romney attacking McCain for being a "liberal". It's like he knows only idiots and bigots to vote for him.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I've heard it said the only thing wrong with George W. Bush is that he can't be elected a third time. But you have to admit, when Huckabee stands up there and starts getting his preacher on, he's the best speaker of the bunch.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, it is crap that the MSM discounts some candidates over others, unevenly skews coverage and debate time, and cherry picks the debate questions.
Neither GW nor McCain is popular with the conservative base. McCain is wining delegates due to the independants (see Ted's previous post). Duncan Hunter had popular conservative support, amongst those that heard of him. He couldn't get any media coverage.
ReplyDeleteThe media continues to cover the primaries incorrectly. they are focused on who has received the greater percentage of the vote; they should be counting delegates. Up until Florida, Romney was winning the delegate count
Well, the other Republican candidate they're ignoring (Ron Paul) happens to support Corporate deregulation- but...he happens to completely oppose the war in Iraq. This effectively makes him persona non grata. He's only in the debates because he has money and a few key allies.
ReplyDeleteI had this exact train of thought when Edwards and Giuliani left. Or rather, had been having it.
ReplyDeleteI already told people this was a travesty of a primary season. I have been up to this point a very involved Democrat - so much so I couldn't be involved with things like MoveOn due to McCain-Feingold-related restrictions.
I have to say for the record - this primary season and what it reveals about our mockracy is the sole reason I am switching parties (registration's in the mail) to the Greens.
When people discuss "debates" that aren't and primaries and caucuses so rigged they wouldn't qualify as reality TV, It's important to point out that that's what George Carlin called "our owners" showing they don't really need to play to public opinion as much as they used to.