September 17, 2007

9/17: This Is How You Do It

Team Clinton's handling of the controversy surrounding MoveOn's "General Betray Us" ad is a case study in how she has stayed on the right ('correct') side of the netroots while still positioning herself well for the general election.

As Elizabeth Edwards takes heat for telling bloggers "Someone who's spent their life in the military doesn't deserve 'General Betray Us,'" Hillary Clinton is receiving plaudits for waiting until Rudy Giuliani attacked her and then turning the issue into Giuliani's support for Bush. Fire Dog Lake's Jane Hamsher was, perhaps, Sen. Joe Lieberman's (I-CT) fiercest critic in '06. But following Clinton's tale on the MoveOn ad she writes: "Bravo. Hillary seizes the opportunity to pivot and attack -- forcing Rudy into embracing George Bush and his horribly unpopular war. She sticks the landing. ... Democrats should take their cues from Hillary Clinton when asked about their efforts and seize the opportunity to wrap this war around the exposed necks of the GOP."

CLINTON: The Burkle Connection

Hillary Clinton continued to maximize the impact of her netroots friendly endorsements (think former Amb. Joe Wilson) with her blogger conference call roll out of former Gen. Wesley Clark's endorsement. Favorable reactions include:

• Open Left's Matt Stoller: "Wes Clark was the first, and maybe last, Presidential candidate I ever really believed in. ... He is the shift of the professional and military class towards the Democratic Party, a Jim Webb type figure with less of an economically populist capacity for messaging. ... I don't support Clinton, I don't support her policies, and I don't expect to support her candidacy in this primary. But if Clark believes that she can meet the challenges necessary to be a President who can help America, then that is something I have to take very seriously."
• MyDD's Jerome Armstrong: "Pretty big endorsement. I've long stated that a Clinton/Clark ticket would be the strongest were Clinton to become the nominee."
• Matthew Yglesias: "This seems pretty significant to me, at least in the little corner of the universe where I operate. ... Clark didn't say anything earth-shattering but it's a useful reminder/signal/whatever that a President Clinton would, in fact, expand her circle of foreign policy thinkers beyond the group of hawks who was with her in 2002-2003 and looked set to be the dominant influence in a Clinton administration."

The Plank's Michael Crowley notices: "In the past week or so Hillary Clinton has scored two interesting endorsements: Wesley Clark and Magic Johnson. The former NATO general and ex-NBA star could hardly have less in common, right? Wrong. Two words: Ron and Burkle."

CLINTON II: Meeting The Mandate Mandate

Early netroots reviews of Hillary Clinton's health care plan are positive:

• Open Left's Elliot Perry: "As a community/ political organizer devoted to progressive politics, I am admittedly dubious to the candidacy of Sen. Clinton. Largely because of her failure to get back in the batter's box ... Nevertheless, through her campaign for leader of the free world she's finally stepped back to the plate with a new plan ... it appears to be much like SB 840, which many of us have campaigned for here in California."
• TPM Cafe's Maggie Mahar: "Although the mandate will be controversial, I think it is key to creating a sustainable, affordable system that can offer high quality care to everyone. To achieve that goal, we need everyone in the same pool--young and old, sick and healthy, all making an equal contribution to the fund."
• Talk Left's Jeralyn Merritt: "Like John Edwards and unlike Obama, her plan will call for mandatory insurance for all Americans. It will be much more streamlined and less complicated than the plan she introduced while Bill Clinton was President."

DODD: You've Got Mail

Daily Kos' SusanG urges readers to pick up a copy of Chris Dodd's new book Letters from Nuremberg: "When current senator and presidential candidate Chris Dodd and his family stumbled across a treasure trove of letters from his father, Thomas Dodd, written home to his wife during his prosecution of the Nazis at the Nuremberg trials, he did the world a tremendous and timely favor by publishing. For if ever we could use a reminder of the necessity of keeping a steady and true moral compass when dealing with seemingly inexplicable human cruelty, it is now."

EDWARDS: Speaking Of Betrayal

Elizabeth Edwards did her husband no favors on a 9/10 media conference call when she told participants: "Someone who's spent their life in the military doesn't deserve 'General Betray Us.'" Taylor Marsh blogs: "[T]alk about a gift to the wingnuts. Why do some Democrats always cave when things get tough? Mrs. Edwards couches it in terms of her military family. Well, I've got military in my family (one deceased) and the one thing you never do is stab one of your own in the middle of a nasty fight, and if you're looking at the media coverage on this lately it's clear we're in one. ... Whether you like or don't like the MoveOn.org ad, once it turned into a them vs. us battle leading Democrats need to understand the game, toughen up and close ranks. It's political fighting 101. "

Fire Dog Lake's Jane Hamsher links and types an open letter to EE: "Dear Mrs. Edwards, You're a smart woman. ... So here's the rule. You never repeat right wing talking points to attack your own, ever. You never enter that echo chamber as a participant. Ever. You never give them a hammer to beat the left with. Just. Don't. Do. It."

Open Left's Matt Stoller adds: "Part of building an effective movement is knowing when an attack is an attack on surrogates, and when it's an attack on ideas. Moveon and its 3 million members were standing up for integrity in military leadership, public debate, and Congressional oversight. There's a reflexive instinct to shy away from heated arguments among Democrats, so I'm sympathetic to those who threw Moveon under the bus, as I have been thrown under the bus by good people at certain points. It happens. It's politics. till, it's important to recognize this as an error, and not do it again."

OBAMA: Have You Been Obamitized?

The netroots are pleased Barack Obama finally fell in line with their call for no further Iraq funding without a timeline:

• DailyKos' founder Markos Moulitsas: "This is the rhetoric I've been looking for. Chris Dodd has been crystal clear on this. Now Obama has joined that club."
• Open Left's Matt Stoller: "Criticism Works. This is a step forward for Obama, who previously had not committed to a course of action. We'll see where he goes from here, and this can only help his campaign. It's also a step forward for the push to end the war."
• Talk Left's Big Tent Democrat: "Big props to Senator Obama. Hurrah!"

Reporting from the field, The Huffington Post's Mayhill Fowler describes her meeting with a Humboldt State student for Obama:

When I asked her why Obama, I got the expression, the shift in gaze to somewhere over my shoulder, that I often receive in reply to this question. Clearly, she had been Obamitized, so I knew generally what she was going to say. Her words also encapsulate much that I've found to be significant about the Obama Campaign itself. ... All the elements are here: the personal, almost mystical connection to Barack Obama, often beginning with that convention speech; the importance of the Internet for this presidential race; the Obama Campaign's emphasis on each volunteer's "story" (translation: the dignity and worth of every single American that the Democratic Party hasn't really believed in since the Depression); the sharing of stories leading to the transformative experience of Camp Obama; the acceptance of differences between Democrats and Republicans, balanced by an acknowledgement of common goals--core to Barack Obama's message and the man himself.

DEM FIELD: Edwards Did What Now?

IA Independent's Douglas Burns reports from Sen. Tom Harkin's (D-IA) Steak Fry: "Hillary pulled out the best line of the day ("The era of cowboy diplomacy is over. America is back.") Obama's team orchestrated some powerhouse optics. Edwards did that lawyer-leaping-from-the-John-Grisham-novel-to-face-the-forces-of-capitalism's-excesses-for-those-Americans-bogged-in-the-backwater thing."

MyDD's Todd Beeton reports from his couch: "John Edwards is echoing the rhetoric we heard from him at the YearlyKos debate: taking Washington back from the entrenched special interests, not replacing corporate Republicans with corporate Democrats and returning the power to the people. C-SPAN keeps cutting to supporters in the crowd who brandish signs and cheer him on. Seems as though his support is the most enthusiastic."

GIULIANI: Some Pictures Worth A Thousand Free Media Points

The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez posts photos of AG nominee Mike Mukasey swearing in Rudy Giuliani and comments: "I think it's a safe bet the Giuliani campaign is looking really forward to a few hours from now when the media has more than these photos from the Giuliani family scrapbook to use with AG stories."

MCCAIN: Irony Free

Power Line's John Hinderaker introduces video from the first days of John McCain's 'No Surrender' tour: "Much has been written about McCain's comeback. The comeback is real, but McCain has little money, and it is easy to write off his chances. Still, there are very few men who can play the hero--be the hero--without the slightest trace of irony, and John McCain is one of them. If he goes down, it will be with both guns blazing. No retreat, no surrender. And that's a message that lots of Americans like."

Hot Air is a big fan of McCain's call to "throw MoveOn.org out of the country."

ROMNEY: His Bluntness

Townhall's Hugh Hewitt promotes Mitt Romney's letter on Iran's Pres. Ahmadinejad visit to the UN: "Iran's president routinely predicts the destruction of Israel in terms that can only be understood as advocacy of genocide. He should be banned from the U.N.'s podium, and Mitt Romney has sent a letter to the U.N. to that effect. Romney demands what ought to be automatic and obvious: The indictment of Ahmadinejad for the advocacy of genocide. This is blunt but necessary talk, and all the presidential candidates should echo Romney's call for resolute action now."

THOMPSON: When You Come To Tax Policy Fork In The Road, Take It

Fred Thompson's first video response to blogger submitted questions addressed tax policy. The Captain's Quarters reader asked: "Between the Flat and Fair tax, which do you feel would have a better chance or being enacted and would a Thompson administration make reforming--not applying Band-Aids or allowing more bad re-writes of the same terrible rules--the tax code a priority?" Thompson answered: "Yes."

RedState's Haystack comments: "This is a really good beginning...check the front porch, baseball hat setting." Some of Captain's Quarters readers were also impressed: "I'm leaning more and more in Fred's Direction. If he keeps this up, he may, just may get my vote." Some were not: "I was disappointed with Fred's answer. He acknowledged the problem but did not offer any ideas or solutions of his own to the problem."

At The Brody File, Brody posts his 700 Club story that will air 9/17. And at AmSpec Blog, Jennifer Rubin picks up on New York Timesreporting on Thompson's "sparse" schedule. Rubin later hears from Thompson spokesman Todd Harris: "Thompson will have fundraising events in Texas, Tennessee and Florida and public events in Florida, Michigan and DC."

Rubin later updates: The actual schedule was just released and is sparse. No discrete public "events" until a speech to the NRA on Friday in DC. ... Not clear is whether they don't have the advance teams yet to set multiple events and a substantial schedule or whether in fact they have a candidate that needs to,well, let's say 'pace' himself."

ATTORNEY GENERAL: All About FISA

The roll out of Judge Mike Mukasey's nomination for AG may have begun as early as 9/11 when NRO's Andy McCarthy posted a NRO item titled: "Judge Mukasey Would Make a Stellar Attorney General." When Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol broke the story 9/15, he cited McCarthy's article and blogged: "While it's unfortunate that the first thing many conservatives will hear about Mukasey is that his home-state senator Chuck Schumer has praised him, that shouldn't disqualify him. ... The most contentious fights over the next year are likely to be on war-on-terror issues. And as Andrew McCarthy (no liberal softy on such matters!) explained on National Review Online, Mukasey is first-rate on these ... Judging also by what Mukasey has written and said outside the courtroom about the Patriot Act and related matters, we can be confident he'll be effective at making the case before Congress and the public for tough legislation and sound policies on national security issues."

AmSpec's Philip Klein, Captain's Quarters, and The Corner's Peter Wehner all are inclined to support Mukasey. Wehner blogs: "Judge Mukasey is outstanding in every important respect. He oversaw the trial of Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman and in doing so enhanced his reputation as one of America's finest trial judges (after establishing a reputation as one of American's finest prosecutors). Nominated as a federal district judge by President Reagan, Judge Mukasey has written persuasively and insightfully in defense of the Patriot Act; was respected by those who worked with him; and is the embodiment of legal excellent. He would be an outstanding attorney general."

Lingering opposition to Mukasey comes from three sources: positive statements about him from Alliance for Justice pres. Nan Aron and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY); conservative frustration that Pres. Bushdidn't want to fight for prospective nominee ex-SG Ted Olson; and a political asylum case titled Dong v. Slattery.

The Corner's Kathryn Jean Lopez posts a description of the Dong case: "Mukasey denied political asylum in the United States to a Chinese man who had fled the communist nation. The man claimed political persecution by Chinese authorities after he and his family violated China's one-child, forced-abortion policies. ... The man's wife was forced to undergo an abortion, and he claimed he would be severely punished for helping his wife try to defy the communist policies if he was deported to China. Ruling against the man, Mukasey reasoned that, under the law, he should uphold the Board of Immigration's denial of asylum."

Lopez later updates with thoughts from a 'conservative Senate aide': "As to the asylum ruling, that sounds awful, and I can't imagine what it was like for the family. But if conservatives are concerned based only on the thumbnail sketch mentioned in the press and because abortion was involved, then we need to rethink our whole position on upholding the rule of law. ... Conservatives can't argue for an unbiased nominee only when he rules our way. We can't say that upholding the law trumps personal opinion, and then be upset when upholding the law trumps our personal opinions."

IRAQ: Show Us The Polling

The netroots are pushing back hard against suggestions from Penn, Schoen, and Berland's Doug Schoen that "Democrats should continue to strike a bipartisan tone and refocus the debate to other international and domestic issues." Schoen explains at The Huffington Post: "The electorate has had it with the war in Iraq -- close to two thirds want an orderly withdrawal of troops to begin immediately. That being said, the American people understand that to withdrawal completely and unilaterally without a clear strategy for pacifying the country is risky."

Open Left's Brklyngrl responds: "If Doug Schoen has data showing the American public prefers that Democrats work with Republicans even if it means not ending the war (which it does), he should show it to us. Otherwise I'm going to be forced to conclude that he's lumping a bunch of unrelated findings together to arrive at the conclusion he himself prefers."

Fire Dog Lake's Jane Hamsher adds: "Is he completely witless? Democratic approval ratings in Congress plummeted after they rolled over on the supplemental and the public perceived that they were ineffectual in doing what they'd been elected to do - stop the war. Scratch the bit about the gum, I think you have to have a certain IQ to be ambulatory. Has anyone ever actually seen Doug Schoen walk?"

Moving on to specific strategies for ending the war, Digby seconds Mark Kleiman's suggestion that Dems force GOPers to keep filibustering Sen. James Webb's (D-VA) amendment requiring troop deployment times do not surpass their time at home. Digby writes: "The Webb Amendment is powerful. It will support the troops in the most direct manner possible, making it law that they be allowed to have a reasonable break between deployments. The military families will all support it. ... Forcing the Republicans to filibuster something that gives the troops a break seems like excellent politics to me. I'd be interested in hearing from some of you legislative mavens out there about this. Why wouldn't it work?

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: It's True, Breeders Do Like Sports

Planning on where to catch the Eagles/Redskins MNF game, Matthew Yglesias muses: "The logical candidate would seem to be Nellie's, a newish sports bar that just opened up this summer. Nellie's is, however, not just a sports bar, but a gay sports bar. Now, all else being equal, I guess my inclination would be to avoid the local gay sports bar and head for the local conventional sports bar, except . . . Nellie's is the only sports bar in the neighborhood. So what I'm wondering is what does one do under the circumstances to keep the gay sports bar gay? After all, breeders like sports, too, and it (a) sounds like a great place to watch a game and (b) has a "somewhat remote location from the vortex of DC's urban gay culture" so isn't going to just turn into a heterosexual sports bar?"

LEST WE FORGET: We're Gonna Go Ahead And Not Pick Up Ishtar On DVD

The Huffington Post's Toby Barlow notices some similarities between the second Iraq war and the Warren Beatty bomb Ishtar, including:

• Like George Bush, the film maker and the stars were at the height of their popularity going in.
• Both had a hot female sidekick whose name is kind of hard to spell. George Bush had Condoleezza Rice, Warren Beatty had Isabelle Idjani.
• Both were very expensive productions involving shooting in the sand.
• Both were critical disasters with the media and both were flops with the public.
• Despite initial high hopes and great enthusiasm at the outset, both have just tiny cult followings today. The War in Iraq has Bill Kristol; Ishtar has, um, me. (Because to be fair, it's actually a pretty great movie. If it's ever released on DVD you'll see what I mean. Vincent Canby even put it amongst his best films that year.)

Posted by Conn Carroll at September 17, 2007 12:48 PM