August 18, 2005

8/18: Light It Up

Note: Because The Hotline is is taking off Fridays in August, the next edition of the Blogometer will be posted on Monday the 22nd.

Each time this week we've visited Technorati, the popular blog search engine, the "Top Searches This Hour" feature has placed "Cindy Sheehan" at the very top. At one point this a.m., "Sheehan" was also #5. The Blogometer is trying to remember the last time this happened, but no person or event -- not the fight over Terri Schiavo, not the 7/7 bombings -- stands out.

No doubt about it, the biggest story this a.m. is the vigils held nationwide in support of grieving military mother/newly-minted anti-war icon Cindy Sheehan. Supporters post photos and share their experiences from last night's events -- and so do the critics. The vigil is just the latest in a succession of mini-stories that have offered enough points of entry for bloggers across the political spectrum to stay interested, despite protestations from some that Sheehan has jumped the shark. Although the various tangents -- vigil, neighbor reactions, activist participation, Sheehan's public statements -- are keeping the Sheehan story afloat, the fact remains that the ongoing struggle in Iraq and the emotional pull of her loss made it a story in the first place.

Whether the Sheehan movement produces a lasting change in the political climate or dissipates at month's end, it has become the lastest instance of blogs giving life to a story that might otherwise have been marginalized. Following the OH 02 swarm on behalf of special election candidate Paul Hackett (D), it's also the 2nd time in a month that the liberal blogosphere has had a major impact on the Beltway media.

Also in today's edition: conservative bloggers take it upon themselves to investigate the Air America scandal, both sides debate what's to be done about Iraq, and the Weekly Standard intervenes in the liberal blogs' fight with the Dem establishment.

SHEEHAN VIGIL: The Price Of Solidarity Is Last Night's Vigil-ance

Eye on Williamson County attended the Crawford vigil, and gives a 1st person perspective: "My wife and son had an opportunity to talk with Sheehan afterwards to offer our thanks and encouragement. She was very gracious and hugged each of us." DFA-affil. Blog for Iowa reports on MSM reports, mostly from the midwest but on each coast as well. Another DFA-affil. blog in AZ reports 82 attendees at a Mesa vigil.

Suburban Guerrilla's Susie Madrak: "Tonight I went to one of the anti-war candlelight vigils, held at a Methodist church in Germantown. Celeste Zappala, whose son Sgt. Sherwood Baker was killed in Iraq, was one of the speakers. She stood on the altar, flanked by her two surviving sons and her daughter-in-law and spoke quietly to the 300 or so people in the pews. And when she gestured toward the baptismal font, saying simply, 'He was baptized here,' it seemed like there wasn't one person in the place who didn't choke up with tears. ... At eight o'clock, the church carillon rang out 'Amazing Grace' and the crowd sang along. And it was then I saw a driver hold up the little halogen light on his keychain as he drove past. We're not alone. Remember that."

Little Green Footballs calls the main vigil a "Moronic Convergence in Crawford." California Conservative spots an AP photo of a protester at the WH vigil holding the sign: "Bush Kills for Money." NRO's Eric Pfeiffer attended the WH vigil, and posts photos of the pro-Sheehan/anti-war crowd from MoveOn as well as the counter-protesting anti-Sheehan/pro-war crowd from Free Republic. Pfeiffer writes of the pro-Sheehan side: "The crowd was split between those observing a more traditional vigil and those who wanted to conduct another angry protest of all things Bush. ... Most of the protestors continued the chant of, 'Meet with Cindy,' while the chant leader segued into 'This war was for oil!'"

Conservative Gateway Pundit reports from St. Louis: "Last night the camera crews were out in force ... But, to their disappoinment, they went home empty handed. There were no pictures slapped on the front page or any page of the Post Dispatch this morning. There was no notice on the 10 PM news. ... No one showed up!"

Pandagon's Austin-based Amanda Marcotte announces she will be at the protest site this coming Sat., and offers advice to others who might do the same: "I think going to Crawford and showing your support with your presence is a great idea, but I do have to concur with the doubters that this is not a time to peddle other lefty agendas or tout your eccentricities. In other words, if you are going to go, for the love of god, dial down the hippie shit while you're there."

SHEEHAN DEBATE: The Quotable Sheehan

Last p.m. and this a.m., Drudge Report splashes the banner: "CINDY UNLEASHED: 'THE BIGGEST TERRORIST IN THE WORLD IS GEORGE W. BUSH'" He includes several more Sheehan quotes from a 4/27/05 speech at SFSU. Among other excerpts from the "foul mouthed tirade": "If George Bush believes his rhetoric and his bullshit, that this is a war for freedom and democracy, that he is spreading freedom and democracy, does he think every person he kills makes Iraq more free? ... If he thinks that it's so important for Iraq to have a U.S.-imposed sense of freedom and democracy, then he needs to sign up his two little party-animal girls. They need to go to this war." Liberal Norwegianity responds: "So who, exactly, is it that has a problem with these words? They sound remarkly dead on to me. I just wish some more of our political leadership had the balls to unload a 'foul-mouth tirade' of their own."

TAPPED posts the letter from almost-2nd Lady Elizabeth Edwards supporting Sheehan.

Booman Tribune and Corrente are just a few of the liberal blogs linking to an letter by an Iraq vet incensed by the cross desecration, from the Operation Truth veteran blog. Power Line reports: "Gene Allen is our man on the scene in Crawford this week. ... Gene reported that Bush supporter Rowena Jhant had sought to straighten the crosses." Power Line posts a photograph of her doing so.

At Blue Oregon, lefty Todd Barnhart posts an open letter to Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR). Barnhart mentions a personal family tragedy he has in common with Smith, and asks him to "explain to [Bush] the pain Cindy Sheehan has suffered."

SHEEHAN FALLOUT: Hard Count

WSJ's Opinion Journal publishes an op-ed by Ronald Griffin, whose son Spc. Kyle Griffin was killed in Iraq in '03. He leads: "I lost a son in Iraq and Cindy Sheehan does not speak for me." He concludes: "Honor their service. Never dishonor them by giving in. They never did." The piece merits positive mentions from conservatives Cori Dauber, Dean Esmay, and others.

Conservative Betsy Newmark: "As he says so well, parents of fallen soldiers hold different views and how can one mother speak for all of them? Just as how could a few New Jersey widows speak for all the families who lost loved ones in Vietnam? We can't drive foreign policy by what grieving parents advocate. That is what makes being president so very difficult."

Liberal Ana Marie Cox, in a post unrelated to the Griffin op-ed: "Is that what the debate has come to? Which side can corral the saddest crop of widows, parents, and orphans? Call it a harms race. Better: an ache-off. We hope the grimly absurd image of two competing camps of mourners illustrates why it is we've been somewhat reluctant to weigh in on Sheehan's cause: Grief can pull a person in any direction, and whatever 'moral authority' it imbues, we can't claim that Sheehan has it and those mothers who still support the war don't."

AIR AMERICA: Or, How They Learned To Stop Complaining And Investigate For Themselves

A dearth of MSM coverage of the Air America financial scandal -- known variously on conservative blogs as Air Scamerica or Air Enron to name 2 nicknames -- leads syndie columnist Michelle Malkin and radio talker Brian Maloney to publish joint reports on the case. The 1st -- "Inside Air America: An Investigative Blog Report" -- went up last p.m. at Malkin's eponymous blog. They write: "According to court records" they obtained, "another major creditor has been demanding that Air America pay up." They refer to Multicultural Radio, which is "accusing" Air America and parent company Piquant LLC of "engaging in a 'sham transaction' and 'fraudulent conveyance' of assets in order to avoid paying its debts." So far they have declined to pay, "despite a court order and scathing words from a New York judge overseeing the case." Malkin posts scanned excerpts of the records in JPG form. She follows up with a summary of comments from influential conservative blogs, including Power Line, Captain's Quarters, PoliPundit and Hugh Hewitt.

• At his Radio Equalizer blog, Maloney announces that "Part Two: Beyond Evan" will appear there on Thurs.
• Conservative-friendly New York Sun, which has done most of the MSM reporting on the radio org's finances, is the 1st to pick up on the report.
• The Philadelphia Inquirer has a story on the "blogswarm" around Air America, featuring comments by Malkin and Maloney.
• Low-circulation NYC weekly Bronx News has a report on its own editor, Michael Horowitz, who was the very 1st to report on the Air America situation.

IRAQ: How Much OF This Is Sheehan Fallout?

Lefty Matthew Yglesias notes he has not been a fan of Sen. Russ Feingold's (D-WI) "misguided" CFR legis. or "lonely stand against the basically unobjectionable" PATRIOT Act, but for endorsing "the view that we need a timetable for withdrawing from Iraq ... for now, I'll be a fan. Not that I expect this will make a big impact on national policy." MyDD's Scott Shields: "The decision to boldly make a stand on troop withdrawal should win Feingold a good amount of national attention, if not flat out support, especially coming right now as Cindy Sheehan has forced the debate on Iraq to the fore."

Conservative Riding Sun compares WWII-era Japanese propaganda aimed at U.S. soldiers (via 2Bangkok.com) and New York Times columnist Bob Herbert's 8/10 column. Riding Sun writes, their similarities are "eerie." Both depict U.S. wartime leaders as living comfortably while soldiers on the front lines face death.

The question of whether the Iraq war is a "noble cause," asked recently at TPM Cafe and Eschaton, finds one answer liberal-leaning at Democracy Arsenal, which posts the lyrics of a country song by Iraq war vet Luke Stricklin. Lyrics highlighted: "Really don't care why Bush went in to Iraq / I know what I done there and I'm damn sure proud of that." Democracy Arsenal: "Perhaps it is not wise for the United States to commit so much blood and treasure to the struggle for democracy in Iraq. Perhaps. But it most certainly is noble." It finds an audience on the center-right, with links from OxBlog, Instapundit and The Moderate Voice.

Conservative Belgravia Dispatch writes, Zarqawi might win, unless "we can provide security in this country by decisively beating the insurgents. Can we? Who is convicingly explaining how? My confidence is waning. Perhaps we could start holding towns, really holding them, like Ramadi. ... We can and must have a plan to do better. The rough status quo is becoming increasingly untenable in my view."

MIDTERMS '06 I: Did Hackett Just Let A Blogger Announce For Him?

Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), in a post at his netroots-oriented GrowOhio blog, announces he will not challenge Sen. Mike DeWine (R). He adds: "This site is nearly two months old, and I often stop by to read comments ... I plan on taking an active role as our online community continues to increase in size and capability." Jerome Armstrong says Hackett is available: "It's either Tim Ryan or Paul Hackett. Very conflicting rumors on Ryan out there, as for Hackett, he's in it if it's available."

Kausfiles: "According to the Rasmussen robo-poll," Pres. Bush's "disapprovers disapprove much more vehemently than the approvers approve ... Doesn't this imbalance of fervor mean something in low-turnout elections, such as the upcoming 2006 mid-terms? Specifically, doesn't it mean the anti-Bush forces should do very well in 2006, in a mirror-reversal of the 1994 mid-terms?"

A few on the left pick up a New York Times report from this a.m., "Bad Iraq War News Worries Some in GOP on '06 Vote." The Left Coaster: "Democrats should ... make the GOP explain why the war and privatization are such good ideas, and make the GOP run on Iraq and Social Security next year." NDN Blog: "More than 2,000 coalition troops killed, turmoil on the ground, no exit strategy -- And now they're starting to worry?"

Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum: "Over a third of Americans now favor an immediate withdrawal from Iraq, a number that's been growing steadily, but none of the 'serious' public faces of the party -- people like Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and John Kerry -- are ready to join them. Not one. I can't think of a single exception." Although Iraq could be "bad news" for the GOP in '06, but it "could cause an even bigger crackup" for Dems: "The dovish left is losing patience with establishment hawks, and if this continues we can be sure that Karl Rove will do his best to hammer" home this disconnect with voters. Liberal Steve Clemons, at the Washington Note: "I was stunned to learn this weekend that subscriptions to The Nation are surging. And while it's not precipitous, TWN has been told that subscriptions to the New Republic are falling. ... In the foreign policy arena, TNR has moved -- sometimes dramatically -- to the right, where the journalistic space is crowded, and perhaps The Nation has absorbed part of the Bush-frustrated centrists while maintaining its liberal base."

9/11: Ready, Willing And Able

Captain's Quarters has another update in what he's calling the "German Connection" -- about Iraqi intel officials arrested in Germany in 2/01, and speculates they may have had contact with the 9/11 hijackers. He adds: "Far from insisting that no such cooperation occurred, [German] intelligence showed that Iraqis and Islamists had bridged together on occasion through neo-Nazis and other extreme right-wingers within Germany. This assessment, mind you, came out more than a year after 9/11, when the American political bureaucracy kept insisting that no such connection existed." Just One Minute follows up: "However, finding follow-up has been difficult. Needed -- eager German-speaking Googlers! The hope is that the German press may have more on this. The prosecutor's name, Kay Nehm, may be a starting point."

NETROOTS: Who Sets The Standard?

Dean Barnett, one of the 1st righty bloggers tapped by the Weekly Standard to write online columns, offers advice to liberal bloggers by way of a response to liberal Bob Brigham of Swing State Project. Brigham was the subject of his most recent commentary; in the initial version, Barnett had mixed up DLC with DCCC. Brigham fisked the piece, calling it "shitty ass." Writes Barnett: "Brigham can't tell the difference between a mistake and a 'f---ing lie.' I know his response was just a manifestation of the angry young blogger shtick, but it's tired. All the obscenities, all the rage -- what do Brigham and his ilk think they accomplish?" More Barnett: "I were a young left wing blogger, I'd know pretty damn well what prejudices might be working against me and work to show that those prejudices are unfounded. What are those prejudices? I would say the maturity and propriety of left wing bloggers are in question. So if I were writing a left wing blog, I would bend over backwards to not fuel those prejudices and to show that in my case they don't apply."

At TPM Cafe, Rick Heller notes the Barnett piece "argues that Paul Hackett's gained the support from the liberal blogosphere despite stances on the issues more centrist than liberal, because of the vigor of his attacks on the President. ... Could this be the recipe for party unity -- moderate in substance but highly partisan in style?"

SSP's Tim Tagaris reports on Brigham being at the PLAN kickoff (see 8/17 Blogometer): "He said it was one of the most amazing experiences of his life, and he would blog about it right now but he is out to dinner with Governor Brian Schweitzer and Jon Podesta (he loves name-dropping)." Weekly Standard's Jon Last, at Galley Slaves: "And you can guess who was giving advice to whom."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Newt-Wittmann '08!

DLC's Marshall Wittmann: "Now that Casino Jack Abramoff has performed his first perp walk, the reality of the corruption of the Republican establishment may begin entering the public consciousness." He speculates that ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich might actually make a WH'08 bid. Although "far-fetched," he notes, "initial polls demonstrate he still has a following among the GOP faithful. And he is perfectly situated to run against the 'betrayal' of the 1994 Republican revolution that has fallen into a big government, big money, big corruption abyss. ... Run, Newt, run!"

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Liberal Bloggers' Least-Favorite Liberal?

The Left Coaster's Steve Soto criticizes Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen for "easily" dismissing the Plame outing and absolving reporters for getting it wrong about Saddam's WMD: "This is a perfect example of what I call the 'stenographer mindset,' where many coddled, lazy, and scared Beltway media types appear to care more about maintaining access and their perks than they do in actually questioning what they are being told by our government." Soto, AMERICAblog and others pick up on a Cohen quote about the leak from an NYC panel, carried by E&P: "This is not a major story. It's a crappy little crime and it may not be a crime at all." Hullabaloo's Digby writes, as one of the "liberal elite pundits, whom everyone assumes speak for 'reasonable Democrats' are the first link in a chain that defines Democrats as being without conviction or belief," Cohen is a "large part of what ails" the left.

Arianna Huffington quotes an anonymous source "familiar" with the New York Times and the Judy Miller situation. The source: "The thing you've got to understand ... is that every big decision that comes out of the Times comes directly from the top. Nobody does anything there without Arthur Sulzberger's approval. It's the larger, untold story in all of this -- that he now runs the newsroom."

L.A. Observed collects reports from various news source on the Los Angeles Times' financial woes. For one, advertising is down 11% from last year, which is even "worse" on the "internal politics scale, since advertising volume at the corporate rival (oops, I mean sister paper) Chicago Tribune was up 6.7%." Righty Hugh Hewitt: "That Robert Scheer, he sure is good for revenue. Ditto for Michael Kinsley. If I was [new Times editor Dean] Baquet, I'd start a 'Survivor' style contest: Which byline gets tossed? At least that would make the paper interesting for a few weeks."

SCOTUS SPECIAL: Another Memogate?

What the blogs are saying about John Roberts:

Conservative Generation Why takes issue with the speculation surrounding the recent Washington Post report about Reagan-era Roberts docs that have gone missing (see 8/17 Blogometer). He quotes Reagan Library archivist Sharon Fawcett and the Post: "[T]he folder was evidently lost later when all of the Roberts documents were transferred to new, acid-free folders and reorganized in anticipation of their disclosure to the Senate and news media. [Fawcett said it] is 'very difficult to believe it's anyone other than ourselves responsible for this loss.'" And comments: "So really, this story has nothing to do with the review by 'two lawyers from the White House and the Justice Department in July.' Just another insertion of irrelevant facts to pin something on the 'Bush people.'"

Group blog PrawfsBlawg opines about the available Roberts memos: "What mostly strikes me about the Roberts memos so far is that they speak to just how young he was ... this is a young, brash, bright, energetic lawyer -- sometimes cocky, sometimes witty, sometimes a little arrogant. In other words, much like many other young lawyers before him and since, feeling the first flush of their talents at use, but perhaps not so cognizant of the limits of their knowledge and not yet fully chastened by experience. This is a Roberts with substantial technical skills and (usually) a nice, light touch in his writing, but as yet not fully seasoned by that practical wisdom that is so essential to the compleat lawyer."

SCOTUS SPECIAL CONFIRMATION: Judge Wedge

Conservative Confirm Them comments on the Washington Post story analyzing tension between different wings of the Dem party: "The Roberts hearings will give full throat to the Democratic moonbat coalition -- what with Senators Leahy, Kennedy and Durbin on the committee. And then there's 'slow Joe' Biden, who'll be grinning frantically as he seeks to garner activist support for his nascent presidential bid while simultaneously trying to avoid coming off as a left-wing lunatic. Not to mention obnoxious non-pareil Chuck Schumer. Talk about a parade of horribles ... Red State Democrats watching from home will be, figuratively, shrieking in anguish."

Volokh Conspiracy's Orin Kerr wrote, in response to the AP story on the ABA rating of Roberts as "well qualified" that "it would have been really funny if the ABA had rated him "Over Qualified" instead, but I guess the ABA isn't known for its sense of humor."

SCOTUS SPECIAL COVERAGE: Product Of His Environment?

NewsBusters' Lisa Fabrizio takes umbrage at an AP report on Roberts' IN hometown: "Described alternately as 'insular,' 'Mayberry-like,' and 'nearly all-white,'" the writers have raised serious questions about the racial integrity of John Roberts' boyhood town. ... While conveniently ignoring the fact that most towns were not integrated when Roberts grew up, that didn't stop our intrepid reporters. They next noted ominously that some properties in the town had racial restrictions dating back to the 1920s! But after conducting what appears to be exhaustive research on the deed to his parents' house, they were forced to conclude that 'the Roberts property did not include a racially restrictive covenant.' Better luck next time." NRO's Media Blog, on the same dispatch: "Translation: It's hard to know whether Roberts' upbringing in Mayberry made him a racist. Some say it's possible he's an intelligent man capable of grappling with policy issues independently of where he grew up."

BLOGGERS VS. BLOGGERS: Breach Of Netiquette

A few weeks prior to the 3rd anniversary of the Carnival of the Vanities -- the original blog "carnival," i.e. a weekly blogger-submitted/edited collection of links to interesting posts, hosted at different sites each week -- WILLisms hosts this latest. But Dodgeblogium is troubled: "The host does not seem to get the spirit of [the Carnival] and has instituted a rating system which is pretty nasty. Expect fireworks from this one. I expect it is deliberate. Will probably increase his hits significantly. He doesn't take construction criticism very well either. How pathetic." His post rated a 5 out of 10. WILLisms features a picture of Carly Simon in concert, and adds the tagline: "You're so vain. You probably think this carnival's about you." A vigorous debate follows in the comments to his post.

Lefty Lawyers Guns and Money's Scott Lemieux and has been debating Donklephant's centrist Justin Gardner, along with others, about whether Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds is in fact a "centrist" or "center-right" or what. Start here and scroll down through the numerous comments that follow.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Groupier

QandO's Jon Henke: "One of the most frustrating things about blogging is the difficulty of getting the widespread attention that particularly good posts deserve -- and, the other side of that coin, having to wade through tons of other stuff to get to the really good stuff. It's frustrating as a blogger and as a reader. So, for what it's worth," he starts up a new Yahoo Group, titled "Blogosphere." Henke: "We'll see if it becomes useful. Frankly, though, it would be very helpful to open up my email and find interesting stuff."

LEST WE FORGET: Fun In The Sun

Bored by the late summer doldrums, IMAO's Frank J. offers a few modest proposals for enlivening the news: "Random Special Governor Election! Look at the surprise of one governor as he is randomly picked to have a special election in one month! Watch as the other party scrambles to get a candidate! Excitement!" And: "Get Out of Supreme Court Free Card! The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court will set out a jar of jellybeans. Whichever politician comes closest to guessing how many jellybeans are in the jar will be able to have any case he or she wants automatically thrown out of the Supreme Court!" Also: "Bribes Are Legal Tuesday! Only on the first Tuesday in August, it's legal to bribe your Congressman. Better rush to the bank!"

Posted by at August 18, 2005 12:21 PM