Romney is out.
Man, it feels good to say that.
Romney is out.
The divisive, hateful speech he just gave makes it feel all the more better. Of the four men who were still in the republican race this morning, there was no one more divisive than Romney. Of course McCain and Huckabee had played the liberals-will-be-the-end-of-US distraction, but no one had played it more willingly than Romney. Never was this been more evident than minutes ago when Romney announced that he was "suspending" his campaign.
Before I get started, though, I want to clear some things up. While it might not be evident in all my blathering about Obama and Paul, I have for quite some time liked John McCain. He was my choice in 2000, and I still have an (albeit withering) appreciation for him as a presidential candidate. And, if I were voting just based on foreign policy towards Taiwan, he'd be my only choice. I'm happy that he will likely be the Republican nominee.
Moreover, I am not writing this as a Ron Paul supporter. I've come to believe that Barack Obama, the "Left-libertarian," is the candidate that better fits my political views. That said, I have the utmost respect for Ron Paul and his candidacy. I commend his record, and I think it's a shame the media has treated him they way they have. It's on this principle, in the recent republican primaries in South Carolina, I voted not for Obama but for Ron Paul.
I'm writing this post because I feel that an interesting, new dynamic has been created by Romney's departure concerning the media's coverage of the campaigns. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has been let down by the way the media has handled their coverage of the presidential candidates' races over the last six months or so. I may, however, have been the only person who half expected it to be any different. Naively believing that it didn't matter so much that these news companies are businesses and must make money, I assumed that as it became more obvious that Ron Paul had an incredible grassroots support web, unlike that of any other candidate, that the media would start to pay attention.
You live, and you learn.
What happened instead is that the media watched and reported incessantly on its floundering golden boys.
FRED THOMPSON, ladies and gentlemen! The country, nay, THE WORLD is abuzz with the possibility of a Thompson presidency! Hear ye! Hear y--- What? He's out already? How many states did he w--- None? Damn.
Well no worries, America's Mayor! RUDY! On his way to the White H--- He's out too? No states? Who's still in? Huckabee? Is he the guy who used to be fat? Really? Him?
Well played, y'all.
All the while, this depressing spectacle of the campaigns' slow deaths was followed with morbid infatuation, like watching ants squirm under a magnifying glass. Here's Rudy doing the Macarena! Today, Fred Thompson ate a hamburger, because he loves America! Tomorrow, we'll be doing a four hour special round-table on Mike Huckabee's weight and whether he'd be able to keep off the pounds during four year in the White House, our special guest, co-host of the hit show Project Runway, Tim Gunn, will be with us discussing presidential fashion over the years. So please join us tomorrow at 8pm eastern for "Don't Huck it up: Dieting with Mike Huckabee."
Never once did I see a general update on Ron Paul's campaign (and I watch a lot of news, too much). I'm not saying it didn't happen, but I defy anyone to show me a news network that talked about Ron Paul's stumping across the country. The only times I ever saw Paul on the news was when he was defending himself about claims that he was racist or, the media's favorite by far, whether he really should really be running as a republican.
I'm sure many won't think this is important, but the truth is that most people still don't get their news from alternative media (where Paul has done well). They get it from CNN, FOX, or major newspapers. Without the daily coverage that the media's crushes garnered, Paul simply does not become a household name.
Making things worse was the fact that Paul's questions in the debates were fewer than those of his competitors, reaching a nadir in the Reagan Library debates in which Paul only got, if my memory serves me correctly, three unique questions (Huckabee only getting a couple more).
Yet, on February 28th, assuming the three candidates still remain, Paul will have an interesting opportunity. Sure, with only 16 pledged delegates, compared to McCain's 700+, I'm not holding my breath for a Paul candidacy, but there is the distinct possibility that the CNN debates at the end of this month could be the largest and most generous platform he will ever get, and he has a one clear advantage over his opponents.
If there are two things that Paul loves talking about, it's the economy and the war on terror. While I don't buy into the idea that McCain doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to the economy, he's certainly not as comfortable as Paul, and Huckabee's knowledge of foreign policy is about as good as, well, Bush's. He didn't know what the NIE was, even days after the declassified report came out, and he tried to beat around the bush on a question about Pakistan, turning it into a question about immigration.
Despite his pretty dismal showing in the primaries so far, support for Paul doesn't seem to be waning. He's still bringing in money, and I don't see him throwing in the towel. If that's the case, he may be due for more exposure in the coming weeks as a result of the vacuum created by Romney's departure. However, the media, I'm sure, still sees Huckabee as a more viable candidate than Paul, so he'll have to fight for whatever exposure that he does get.
Man, it feels good to say that.
Romney is out.
The divisive, hateful speech he just gave makes it feel all the more better. Of the four men who were still in the republican race this morning, there was no one more divisive than Romney. Of course McCain and Huckabee had played the liberals-will-be-the-end-of-US distraction, but no one had played it more willingly than Romney. Never was this been more evident than minutes ago when Romney announced that he was "suspending" his campaign.
Before I get started, though, I want to clear some things up. While it might not be evident in all my blathering about Obama and Paul, I have for quite some time liked John McCain. He was my choice in 2000, and I still have an (albeit withering) appreciation for him as a presidential candidate. And, if I were voting just based on foreign policy towards Taiwan, he'd be my only choice. I'm happy that he will likely be the Republican nominee.
Moreover, I am not writing this as a Ron Paul supporter. I've come to believe that Barack Obama, the "Left-libertarian," is the candidate that better fits my political views. That said, I have the utmost respect for Ron Paul and his candidacy. I commend his record, and I think it's a shame the media has treated him they way they have. It's on this principle, in the recent republican primaries in South Carolina, I voted not for Obama but for Ron Paul.
I'm writing this post because I feel that an interesting, new dynamic has been created by Romney's departure concerning the media's coverage of the campaigns. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has been let down by the way the media has handled their coverage of the presidential candidates' races over the last six months or so. I may, however, have been the only person who half expected it to be any different. Naively believing that it didn't matter so much that these news companies are businesses and must make money, I assumed that as it became more obvious that Ron Paul had an incredible grassroots support web, unlike that of any other candidate, that the media would start to pay attention.
You live, and you learn.
What happened instead is that the media watched and reported incessantly on its floundering golden boys.
FRED THOMPSON, ladies and gentlemen! The country, nay, THE WORLD is abuzz with the possibility of a Thompson presidency! Hear ye! Hear y--- What? He's out already? How many states did he w--- None? Damn.
Well no worries, America's Mayor! RUDY! On his way to the White H--- He's out too? No states? Who's still in? Huckabee? Is he the guy who used to be fat? Really? Him?
Well played, y'all.
All the while, this depressing spectacle of the campaigns' slow deaths was followed with morbid infatuation, like watching ants squirm under a magnifying glass. Here's Rudy doing the Macarena! Today, Fred Thompson ate a hamburger, because he loves America! Tomorrow, we'll be doing a four hour special round-table on Mike Huckabee's weight and whether he'd be able to keep off the pounds during four year in the White House, our special guest, co-host of the hit show Project Runway, Tim Gunn, will be with us discussing presidential fashion over the years. So please join us tomorrow at 8pm eastern for "Don't Huck it up: Dieting with Mike Huckabee."
Never once did I see a general update on Ron Paul's campaign (and I watch a lot of news, too much). I'm not saying it didn't happen, but I defy anyone to show me a news network that talked about Ron Paul's stumping across the country. The only times I ever saw Paul on the news was when he was defending himself about claims that he was racist or, the media's favorite by far, whether he really should really be running as a republican.
I'm sure many won't think this is important, but the truth is that most people still don't get their news from alternative media (where Paul has done well). They get it from CNN, FOX, or major newspapers. Without the daily coverage that the media's crushes garnered, Paul simply does not become a household name.
Making things worse was the fact that Paul's questions in the debates were fewer than those of his competitors, reaching a nadir in the Reagan Library debates in which Paul only got, if my memory serves me correctly, three unique questions (Huckabee only getting a couple more).
Yet, on February 28th, assuming the three candidates still remain, Paul will have an interesting opportunity. Sure, with only 16 pledged delegates, compared to McCain's 700+, I'm not holding my breath for a Paul candidacy, but there is the distinct possibility that the CNN debates at the end of this month could be the largest and most generous platform he will ever get, and he has a one clear advantage over his opponents.
If there are two things that Paul loves talking about, it's the economy and the war on terror. While I don't buy into the idea that McCain doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to the economy, he's certainly not as comfortable as Paul, and Huckabee's knowledge of foreign policy is about as good as, well, Bush's. He didn't know what the NIE was, even days after the declassified report came out, and he tried to beat around the bush on a question about Pakistan, turning it into a question about immigration.
Despite his pretty dismal showing in the primaries so far, support for Paul doesn't seem to be waning. He's still bringing in money, and I don't see him throwing in the towel. If that's the case, he may be due for more exposure in the coming weeks as a result of the vacuum created by Romney's departure. However, the media, I'm sure, still sees Huckabee as a more viable candidate than Paul, so he'll have to fight for whatever exposure that he does get.
6 comments:
What makes you think the MSM will pay any attention to Ron Paul now? In fact I assume they will lock him out of future debates and consider the Republican race to be only among McCain and Huckabee, much like they've done to Mike Gravel in the Democratic race.
What makes me think that? Hope that there is even an inkling of integrity left in the MSM.
Sure, it's naive, but I've got to believe.
Thank you for your op-ed. It's good to know that the neglect of Paul's campaign is noted by others than just outraged Paul supporters.
My pleasure...
You are going to be sad seeing this, but Ron Paul is said to be signal a suspension of his bid.....
Très désolée....
http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0208/Ron_Paul_pivots_to_his_reelection.html
Err.... the link address seems to be cut off.
Try piece the two lines together.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0208/
Ron_Paul_pivots_to_his_reelection.html
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