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June 28, 2005

6/28: I Ate The SCOTUS, Say Haven't You Noticed?

Yesterday's SCOTUS rulings all came down just around our deadline, so we're a bit late in catching up this a.m. Because the Blogometer focuses primarily on politics, we don't want to wade too deep into the actual decisions. Yet we were interested in seeing which decisions attracted the most blogosphere buzz. We did a Technorati search for relevant keywords such as "Kelo" or "Grokster," and picked up the relevant posts from the 1st 5 pages of search results -- but only blogs with 100 or more inbound links (a usually reliable way of measuring popularity).

But overall, how big were these stories? Using the Trend Tool at Ice Rocket -- which graphs the blog mentions for a given set of words or phrases -- here and here we found (expected) huge spikes for the subjects of most of the 6/27 rulings. Kelo, which came down last week, spiked then, but has remained topical. The 10 Commandments, Grokster and Kelo cases all rated mention on at least 1% of blogs -- not bad at all. Because the Brand X (telecom) and Castle Rock (restraining orer) cases received relatively little attention, we excluded them from further discussion.

Yet the case involving Time's Matt Cooper and the New York Times' Judith Miller rated quite low in the trend search, though this was one of the livelier discussions (as you'll see in the "Trackbacks" section below). For one thing, the case lacked unique search terms. But it's also possible the story was interesting only to the highly-trafficked elite, Beltway-oriented bloggers. In any case, we look at all these cases below.

What else is going on right now? Bloggers anticipate Pres. Bush's Iraq speech coming this p.m., talk about the lack of a SCOTUS vacancy, testify before the FEC today, and another blogger submits to our "Blogger Spotlight."

TRACKBACKS: When One Swarm Just Isn't Enough

Where the blog swarm is headed, who's taking part, and what they're saying:

BUSH: Speak Now Or Forever Lose Your Standing In The Polls

NC Dem chair Jerry Meek posts an open letter to Bush at MyDD. It concludes: "While we are unwavering in our support for our men in women in harm's way, their Commander-in-Chief's leadership is lacking. Yes, Mr. President. Welcome to North Carolina. North Carolinians are eager for honest answers."

At GOP-leaning PoliPundit, Lorie Byrd outlines a list of things Bush must accomplish in the speech. Among them: "Explain that war, by definition, is not pretty, or predictable, and that success is not always immediately recognized"; "Make it clear that there will be no freakin' timetable for withdrawal"; and "Explain how important a free and democratic Iraq in the heart of the Middle East is to the war on terror."

Lefty Eric Alterman quotes from a Pew Survey (PDF) finding bad poll numbers for Bush and the Iraq war, commenting: "The lesson here, of course, is that the mainstream media is well behind not only the rest of the world but also the US public in their relatively rosy assessments of the respective catastrophes that are the Bush administration and its horrific, counterproductive, and possibly illegal war."

Talking Points Memo: "I'd actually be curious to hear from pollsters out there what the lowest ratings for a president has ever been on any significant issue. I mean, how much lower than thirty percent does it go? With the possible exception of Nixon at the very end of Watergate, how often has a president been under, say, 25% on any issue of significance?"

Conservative Captain's Quarters, which has announced it will live-blog the speech: "[British P.M. Tony] Blair works best with the press corps, while Bush does better giving prepared speeches. Thankfully, it appears that both men now realize that they have to remain in front of the press corps and their political opposition in order to maintain political support for this long-term effort. Unfortunately, especially here in the US, people have shortened attention spans and a predilection for instant gratification that does not lend itself to long-term strategic thinking."

FEC HEARINGS: Mr. Atrios Goes To Washington

Duncan "Atrios" Black: "There are also those who continue to want to draw the distinction between "journalists" and "other people." As someone who's about to go testify to the FEC and argue that what I do doesn't differ in any important way from what other players in the "legitimate" media do I find this very troubling. Journalism is not what people are, it's what they do."

The AP interviews Black DailyKos' Markos Moulitsas about their testimony.

Via the FEC, the schedule for the 6/28 and 6/29 hearings.

SCOTUS: No Vacancies

Right-leaning Real Clear Politics: " For the last couple of weeks we've been conducting an informal survey of some of the top Supreme Court watchers and legal minds in the country to get their impressions on the impending nomination battle." 70% thought Bush would nominate someone new for the chief role. RCP lists the buzzworthy judges in order of likelihood:

1) J. Michael Luttig; 2) John C. Roberts; 3) Michael W. McConnell; 4) Alberto Gonzales; 5) Emilio Garza; 6) J. Harvie Wilkinson; 7) Samuel Alito, Jr.; 8) Janice Rogers Brown

RCP's T. Bevan notes, "most of the surveys were conducted prior to the buzz of a possible O'Connor retirement instead of Rehnquist. Obviously, the dynamics of a nomination would change dramatically if this were to occur."

Centrist Kausfiles: "[I]sn't a bitter confirmation battle what Bush needs right about now? It would a) buy him some time on Iraq by helping push the daily carnage out of the lead position and by giving ambitious Dems something else to attack him for; and b) allow everyone forget about the Social Security/private accounts fight long enough to let it be abandoned without too much embarrassment. It's the perfect palate-cleanser!"

The latest SCOTUS rumors from RedState's Erick Erickson: "My 'Deep-Throat' source appeared this evening. Here's what I'm hearing. The President is upset about it, but realizes the reality of a Gonzales nomination and he will not make that play. That is not to say he won't in the future, but contemplating either O'Connor or Rehnquist, Gonzales was asked to participate in compiling the list and he is not on it. The rumblings from the base were too great. I am also told that, for the same reason, McConnell is now out. He would have been a perfect fit, but several of the movers and shakers have gotten cold feet about him."

NRO's K.J. Lopez, at Bench Memos, this a.m.: "Rehnquist isn't going anywhere. Subtle signals: He wore a Nike hat to court yesterday. Message? He's in good shape and will keep running."

RedState's Mike Krempasky, on what he'll do if Bush does nominate Gonzales: "I'm taking up golf."

2006 MIDTERMS: What Do You Do?

Lefty Daily Kos: "The war will be the issue in 2006. I've already talked to several Democratic candidates who think they can get elected talking about social security and health care. Rubbish. That's what Democrats thought in 2002 and 2004, and the war intruded both cycles. Given the way things are going over there, 2006 promises to be no different." He offers 2 approaches to exiting Iraq. 1 calls for a direct withdrawal: "The future belongs to a free democratic Iraq, but it is a future they must fight for themselves." The 2nd avoids withdrawal: "We must have accountability in order to win this war. Those responsible for so many catastrophic mistakes must replaced by more competent, more effective, people."

Conservative PoliPundit's Alexander McClure: "It looks like Republicans will have a primary in Nebraska between [ex-AG] Don Stenberg and a state Republican official. I am not happy with either man as our nominee, feeling that either would fall short against Nelson. The White House needs to rectify its mistake in thinking that Ben Nelson would contemplate joining the GOP or supporting GOP issues. It's time for Governor Johanns to return home to run for the Senate."

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall: "It's always nice to get a nod. But even without it, we're still happy to see the St. Petersburg Timespicked up the story we broke back on the 21st about Katherine Harris's special $32,000 one day haul from Mitchell Wade's MZM, Inc." Wade is the contractor implicated in potentially unethical dealings with Rep. Duke Cunningham (R-CA).

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Still Lounging Around In His Pajamas?

TVNewser highlights a quote from CNN pres. Jonathan Klein's interview with the Dallas Morning News. Says Klein, of FNC: "They sound a little nervous. And guess what, they should be. Because we haven't even started trying yet." TVNewser's Brian Stelter: "Which begs the question: When will they start trying?"

GITMO: Heard On The Hill

Right-trending Roger L. Simon notes a comment by Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) following her visit to Gitmo with a cong. delegation: "The Guantanamo we saw today is not the Guantanamo we heard about a few years ago." Simon writes, "the amazing thing in Ms. Tauscher's statement is that she admitted she had only 'heard' about the problems in Guantanamo. The use of that word would just be another of the many embarrassing howlers of our time if it weren't so tragic in all it implies about the reactionary behavior of our supposedly 'liberal' mainstream media and our supposedly 'liberal' Democratic Party over those same last 'few years.' Their unrelenting criticisms were all (or mostly) based on hearsay."

BASEBALL: A Soros Subject

In a Roll Call story yesterday, Reps. Tom Davis (R-VA) and John Sweeney (R-NY) appeared to threaten MLB with tougher scrutiny if billionaire Dem donor George Soros' bid for the Washington Nationals is accepted. Said Davis: "I don't think they want to get involved in a political fight." Davis and Sweeney find few defenders in the blogosphere.

  • Libertarian Radley Balko: "Let's not mince words, here. This is absolutely unacceptable behavior from a public official. Perhaps it's to be expected from a guy like Davis. But it's despicable. Davis is making a public threat to sanction a private industry for doing business with a political opponent."
  • Liberal MyDD: "I wonder how long it will be before we have to start swearing loyalty oaths to Dick Cheney before we are allowed to watch the World Series..."
  • Conservative Michelle Malkin: "Well, well, well. It took George Soros for hypocritical Republican politicians to finally oppose tax-subsidized sports stadiums and antitrust exemptions for baseball. Mark this down as a milestone moment when I side with the likes of Soros and Democrat Rep. George Miller."

The DCCC's Stakeholder blog had a big hand in pushing the story, picking up a not-insignificant 34 trackbacks for the post.

WHITE HOUSE '08: The Truth About Klein

John Hawkins of Right Wing News interviews Ed Klein, author of "The Truth About Hillary," the latest book on Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY).

  • Klein says the "entire mainstream media -- NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN and MSNBC -- have blanked me out. This is my 5th best seller in a row. I've been on all of those networks for all my books up 'til this one book. I've been a constant guest on the Today show, the Good Morning America show, you know, the Chris Matthews show, etc. Suddenly I'm anathema and the reason I am is because the Clintons, Hillary in particular, have threatened all these mainstream media outlets. That's a good reason in my view for the conservatives to get behind this book."
  • Hawkins: "Do you think that could be a security liability for the United States? Let's say a foreign intelligence agency gets Frank Gifford style pics of Bill Clinton having an affair and then asks Hillary to look the other way on something or face maybe a 6 month feeding frenzy in the press when it breaks? Do you think that could be a security liability for the US?" Klein: " I hadn't even thought of that. That's a great question. Yes, absolutely..."

A quick thought re: Sen. Evan Bayh's All America PAC campaign blog. Indeed, it has had one since April. The blogroll comprises a dozen or so links to well-known liberal blogs, but not to Blogging for Bayh or the just-launched Evan2008.com blog.

MISCELLANY: Did We Miss Live 7, Or What?

As promised, Power Line reveals the exciting news: 5 bloggers will get to fly on a Richard Branson plane to the G8 conf. with the Live 8 crew in early July. Ex-Dean manager Joe Trippi has more details. Technorati has a Live8 blog, and Live 8 has its own blog as well. Technorati has created a couple "badges" which bloggers can place in their sidebar. One counts the number of Live 8-related posts; as of this a.m., it was 9,199.

Right-leaning Pirate Ballerina catches up with Ward Churchill in Portland, OR, where he appears to be defending the fragging of U.S. soldiers by fellow soldiers. Said Churchill: "Conscientious objection removes a given piece of the cannon fodder from the fray; fragging an officer has a much more impactful effect."

Blog Soup interviews one of the USC grads behind the faux blog-magazine/real blog Blogebrity.

BLOGGER SPOTLIGHT: Bill Of The Right

Today the Blogometer talks to righty Bill Ardolino, who writes INDC Journal.

What is your full name?

Bill Ardolino

What is your age?

29

Where did you grow up?

Florida

Where do you live now?

DC

What is your occupation? Have you ever worked on a political campaign or for the mainstream media?

Marketing Manager. [Re: campaign or MSM experience:] No (unless you count marketing analysis for a newspaper).

When did you start blogging and why?

Jan 04. I had something to say and was particularly frustrated by unsuccessfully challenged media bias.

What has been your favorite post, or favorite story to write about, in that time?

INDC Presents: National World War II Memorial Dedication Weekend Parts One and Two. And of course, Are the CBS National Guard Documents Fake?

Describe your typical blogging schedule. And what is your average output?

At this point, whenever I feel like it. Prior to the election, it was like a second full-time job.

Who is your favorite political blogger? Favorite non-political blogger?

It would be both impolitic and impossible to name merely one.

Who is your favorite mainstream media columnist?

Tie: James Pinkerton and Charles Krauthammer

What is your favorite television news program, either network or cable?

"Special Report with Brit Hume"

What MSM-produced websites (i.e. newspapers, magazines) do you visit on a daily basis?

The Washington Post

What non-MSM websites (i.e. blogs) do you visit on a daily basis?

Too numerous to list.

How often, or do you ever, read a newspaper in its dead-tree (i.e. print) form?

No more than once per month.

How do you see the new media and old media affecting and influencing each other in the next five years?

I see the mediums competing and coalescing. Competing as blogs continue to serve as a natural foil to and check on paid, ivory tower reporting and analysis, yet coalescing as a few MSM outlets begin to recognize the profitability and efficiency of utilizing open-source journalism to augment their traditional model.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Chicken Soup For The Chickenhawk's Soul

Conservative Jay Tea from Wizbang: "The big theme running around the anti-war blogs nowadays is a revival of the classic 'chickenhawk' accusation. I've always believed that one should limit one's arguments to the issues, not the individuals. I always try to refrain from gratuitous personal attacks when discussing matters of grave import. ... That belief stands in stark contrast with the 'chickenhawk' argument, which tries to shift the discussion from the message to the messenger. It tries to move the topic from 'is this a good idea?' to 'who the hell are you to say anything?' It is an attempt to silence the opposition by assailing them personally, by punishing them for daring to have a dissenting opinion. But it is even more fundamentally dishonest than that. It is a wholesale attempt to shift not only the topic of the argument to one side's proponents, but the entire burden of the argument on to them as well. The anti-war advocate, by converting the argument from a philosophical one to a personal one, is freed from the onus of having to marshal facts and citations for their position."

LEST WE FORGET: Mmmm, We Sure Could Go For Some Tasty Scrapple Right About Now

Right-leaning Scrappleface -- which posts Onion-esque fake news dispatches on current events -- takes on the SCOTUS rulings: "In a pair of rulings on the constitutionality of the 10 Commandments on government property, the Supreme Court today said the commandments may be displayed on public land if that property has been seized from private owners for 'public purposes' under eminent domain. The 5-4 decision comes on the heels of last week's court declaration that so-called "private" property is actually government land temporarily under private management until its eventual seizure..."

NOTES AND ERRATA: Take Back The Statement

Yesterday's Blogometer asserted that the Take Back the Memorial blog was started by the 9/11 Families for a Safe and Strong America. That was incorrect. The blog was actually started by Lime Shurbet blogger Roger Shurbet, who was inspired by the 6/8 Wall Street Journal op-ed we mentioned yesterday. Hat tip: Michelle Malkin.

Posted by at June 28, 2005 12:23 PM



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