One of the reasons I had to quit the whole news gig back in the early ’90s and turn to editorializing is that I got sick and tired of all the dodges, all the going out of your way NOT to say what you think. I’d rather just be straight-up with people, and opinion writing and editing lets you do that.
Still, I continue to have enormous respect for David Broder, even though (or perhaps because) he never fully made the transition. He’s still a newsman to the core.
Take his column that I put on today’s op-ed page. It’s premise is that those pesky Pennsylvanians who went for Hillary just a few months ago are "part of a mass movement to Obama." You see, being at heart a reporter, David Broder does this thing where goes out and talks to regular folks and finds out what they’re thinking. (And being an old-fashioned guy, he thinks of them as "voters" rather than "stakeholders".)
He backs up his premise reasonably well, to the extent that such a haphazard anecdotal approach is helpful. But apparently he doesn’t trust his own observations. Here’s how the piece started:
UPPER DUBLIN, Pa. — Last April, on the eve of the Pennsylvania primary, voters in this Philadelphia suburb were finding plenty of fault with both Barack Obama and John McCain. Many were preparing to — and soon did — vote for Hillary Clinton, helping her to a decisive victory in Pennsylvania.
This week, those voters are part of a mass movement to Obama, driven by much greater familiarity with the Illinois senator’s views, and a pronounced distaste for McCain and running mate Sarah Palin.
The striking shift in Montgomery County, often a bellwether, makes McCain’s task of recapturing Pennsylvania from the Democrats look almost like Mission Impossible…
Say what? "Look almost like…"?!?!? Mr. Broder, either it LOOKS like it or it doesn’t. We fully understand that if you go ahead and say it LOOKS like it to you, that’s your opinion. And you’re entitled to it; you’re the Dean of American political writers. I think you can go ahead and say what you think. If not now, when? You’re retiring at the end of the year. Take the plunge.
If it only "almost" looks like it, why bother us with it? What factor prevents it from looking entirely like it…
Anyway, stuff like this probably doesn’t bother anyone but an editor. I’ll go away now.
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Well, for it to look like Mission Impossible and not almost like it, wouldn’t there have to be some sort of evil criminal threatening to control the world?
Oh, wait, that’s George Bush. Never mind.
This from the guy who obfuscates into a gray oblivion. My god, man. When will you ever come out and say something directly. I’ve been waiting for an eternity to hear you genuinely take a side. Instead, you duck out with some “Independent” stance, and hope nobody realizes what an intellectual fraud you are. You cringe at having to endorse now that the party nominations are settled, already prefacing your decision by blaming it on Board meetings and your publisher. When will you take a useful position and stand by it? I wish you would rekindle an interest in news, because your editorials are intellectually dishonest.
Wow. It looks like John ventured way out on a limb. Aren’t you glad he said what he really thinks. I kind of sort of like Broder’s understatement and reluctance to be cocksure in his pronouncements in a political atmosphere that exudes polarization. As clearly as John thinks he sees Brad’s motives and tendencies, I don’t think a pronouncement of “intellectually dishonest” is accurate or fair. My own perception that Brad truly favors John McCain in this election is, and should be, tempered by the possibility that I might be wrong. It happened before, I think back in 1978.
Nah, he just ALMOST ventured out on a limb…
Uh-oh. The DOW is down big again. All kidding aside this is getting scary. Not sure how that affects tonight’s debate but I’m guessing the election is Obama’s no matter what happens tonight.
As Stuart Varney said yesterday, professional investors are frightened of the tax threats Obama is making. This is now an Obama Crash.
I hate to go out on a limb, because I’m not skinny, but I’m almost mostly somewhat certain I don’t care one iota what David Broder thinks about anything.
This election is like a hooker working a ghost town.
“…Every way you look at it you lose.
“So here’s to you, Joe Dimaggio,
“Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”
Thank you, Paul Simon. Like Brad found out tonight, apparenly, baseball can be both the escape and the bottom line.
Apparently.
Gotta give David Broder full marks. From today’s (10-17-08) editorial, he captured the essence of Barack Obama:
“Having broken his word …. [Obama} looks consistently self assured.”
Who exactly are you people?