Now it can be told
Newsweek has an interesting peek at their "behind the scenes" access to the campaigns, reporting done with the agreement that none of it would be published until after the election.
For political junkies, and everyone interested in this truly historic election, from primaries to just a couple days ago, suffering the withdrawals from the end of the process is made a little more bearable by the prospect of dozens of books sure to be published detailing the backstory. With any luck, at least a couple will actually be good.
So here is perhaps the first of the "inside dope", so to speak, with some rather surprising insights, including the fact that the McCain campaign knew it was all over far earlier than might be imagined, and that Palin really did "go rogue" at times, that both campaigns sophisticated computer systems were victims of cyber attacks prompting FBI attention, and that the effort to portray Obama as a terrorist or worse resulted in a large increase in threats against Obama's life.
posted by The Inside Dope @ 11/06/2008
5 comments
5 Comments:
I enjoyed reading that (except the part about the Republican attacks leading to a sharp increase in death threats, which made me seethe).
I don't know whether to have more or less respect for McCain for this--it seems as though he did try to maintain some principles until the end, but he didn't have enough authority or control (or resolve) to have the campaign maintain the principled path until the end.
Aside from the fringe right-wing bloggers, who were spreading all manner of crazy anti-Obama slander throughout the campaign, Palin is the one who really pushed the association of Obama with "terrorists" in the fall. She gave the accusations the stamp of legitimacy. The increase in death threats to Obama was an entirely predictable response to this rhetoric. She needs to be made to answer for this. Her only possible defense is that she too stupid to realize the consequence of her actions. Though I believe she is pretty stupid, she knew enough of what she was doing here.
Palin is a wannabe banner of books, she's happy to divide the country into what she calls the "pro-America" part (which just happens to be rural, white and protestant) versus the presumably not "pro-America" rest of us, and she's ready to rile up crowds by implying her opponent is unknowable and unpredictable and might be manipulated by dark forces. It is not good that there was a huge groundswell of support behind her. That's why I'm happy to hear more humiliating leaks about her outlandish behavior. I truly truly hope that her political career will end with this defeat.
Why oh why do they keep saying Obama is our first “Black President”. He is not our first “Black President”! He is far from it. To be politically correct he is our first “Mulatto President”. Why does he denounce his white heritage? His father was black but his mother was as white as a sheet. Something is wrong with this man’s psyche.
Saul,
I've thought for some time that it was apparent that John McCain found the crap he had to say on the stump distasteful. I think I even noted it here that it seemed from his demeanor that he really didn't even believe the stuff he was saying. Sometimes it was almost like he was grimacing when he spewed the truly irresponsible and childish attacks he so often did.
But that said, I can't feel any sympathy for him. I can't let the fact that he really isn't like the slimy person we saw on the stump.
Why? Because HE CHOSE TO DO THIS. He conciously choose to sell out his principles and trash his sense of honor in pursuit of winning political gain.
I have no respect for that and feel that McCain got what he deserved for being so transparently phony.
Sure, politicians are always posturing on the trail. That's what a campaign is, after all. But there's only so far a candidate can pretend to be something he or she is not before it becomes almost pathetic.
It was instantly recognizable that McCain was saying things even he found repugnant and adopting positions and stances on issues that he in no way supported or believed.
Why? Well, some say it was to "excite the base" and shore up their tepid support. And his campaign managers no doubt instructed him on what they thought he had to do to win, which of course, was lie and scare people and drone on about his commitment to the country and burnishing his largely manufactured and unwarrented reputation as America's Greatest Hero Ever.
This is why you had the emergence of the "What happened to the "old" John McCain we actually respected" and "This isn't the John McCain I knew and respected" that appeared on everyone's lips.
So.... It's good that the creep on the campaign wasn't the "real" John McCain. I'm glad to realize that he has more intellectual honesty and honor and dignity and a bit of genuine, as opposed to phony "country first" belief.
But can I respect him for the fact that he felt the crap he did to win the presidency was crap?
Sorry. The fact he willingly and consistently tried to be someone he wasn't, up to and including abandoning his beliefs and long-held views in an attempt to bamboozle the idiots on the right into voting for him pretty much makes it impossible to give him any credit for the fact that the "real" John McCain isn't as bad as the one we've seen and heard the past year or two.
Nope Anon 8:44,
(gotta be Nico... the latent racist attitude and sense of white resentment is showing.)
The one with the suspect psyche is yourself, if you'd be honest with yourself.
The reason Obama is considered the first black president is .... wait for it..... because he's black.
You tell me. If you'd never seen or heard of Obama before in your life and he walked past you on the street, would you say, "There goes a white guy." ??
Hell no. He's considered an African-American because he is perceieved as an African-American.
You wouldn't look at him and say, there's a guy who's mother was white and father was a Kenyan.
Give it up.
Obama isn't a "mullato". (again another giveaway that it's Nico, as he seems stuck in time about 4 decades ago, using the term "negro", and now "mulatto" both of which disappeared from usage long ago for the reason that they're irrelvant.)
In your haste to imply some sort of anti-white greivance, you claim that Obama "denounces" his white heritage.
WTF????
Point me to where he's EVER come close to "denouncing his white heritage"!!
You can't just make shit up like that and then use it to make your point! (lookup STRAWMAN ARGUMENT)
He's NEVER said anything remotely negative about his white heritage, much less "denounced" it. What are you smoking, besides a huge amount of "I'm a latent racist who's really pissed and upset and scared that whites like me are losing our total dominance of our entire society and a black man is president"?
That drug makes you real stupid. Put down the pipe.
I don't know what you were watching or listening to to come up with such a ridiculous comment. (well, of course I do know... FOX, Rush, and Hannity. The people who actually make people stupider the more then listen to them.)
Again, show me where Obama "denounced" his white heritage. PLEASE.
Where the hell were you when his Grandmother recently died the day before the election? Did you not hear his incredibly moving and heartfelt tribute to her and how much he owed her?
Did you not see him spotlight his white uncle who fought in WWII at the Dem convention, having him stand up for recognition before an audience of millions?
The picture of Obama and his white grandparents has only been shown about 50 million times when Obama went to Hawaii, leaving the campaign in the home stretch just to go say his good-byes to this woman who essentially raised him. And several more million times when she died prior to election day. WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU???
Where do you imagine this stupid ass delusion that Obama is in any way, shape, or form "anti-white"??!!
Or are you, more likely, angry and worried because he's not 100% through and through, exclusively pro-white, and therefore trusted to not give much more than lip service to the idea of racial equality?
You know, it's hard to even take you seriously anymore.
I know where you're coming from. It's not hard to see, and it doesn't make you in any way a terrible person.
But I wish you were better than that. Those attitudes have got to go.
Does anybody really say "Mulatto" anymore?
That comment puts me in mind of when the iron curtain fell. Someone--I think it was George Will--said we should make sure Albania remains under Communist rule and then turn it into a museum (Turns out it might have been a good idea for other reaons.).
You, Mr. Mulatto-utterer, should volunteer to be a museum.
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