I caught a bit of the Campbell Brown interview with retired Lt. Col. John "Bill" Calhoun this morning on MSNBC. The Col. related his story that he saw Bush in Alabama, Brown barely managed to concel her contempt as she archly asked "Do you have anyone to backup your story?"
Is it any wonder others haven't come forward? I wouldn't.
On Hardball with Chris Matthews last night Dana Milbank smugly snarked that Bush was shirking his duty, lounging around in the office, reading magazines instead of flying jets, even though he knows perfectly well that the AL ANG didn't have F-102's. Jesuschristonabicycle Dana, got bias?
It's quite obvious that the media think they have the mother-of-all gotchas, and that they learned nothing from their excesses of MonicaGate. The gleeful wall-to-wall negative coverage of the past two months may well turn Bush into a sympathic character, an underdog. Americans enjoy the primary season side-show, platform looniness, in-fighting and scandals, but they have a fairness crunch point, and the media passed the fairness doctrine in election coverage weeks ago.
John Kerry shouldn't choose new drapes for the Oval Office just yet, there are many news cycles between today and November. Once the public is saited with the demonizing of GWB, the media will turn to the other white-meat in the campaign. For all the high-minded demagoguery, political correctness and faux outrage, the media serve one master above all: the corporate bottom line.
They must sell papers and feed the 24x7 cable news/scandal maw. Given our national appetite for the salacious and the huge sums to be made from that lust, someone will come forward for their 15 minutes of fame, and we'll be off on another hunt for a blue dress.
Stephen Green offers his thoughts on the Kerry Whatsit:
What it comes down to is, I’m sadly conditioned to believe, and expect the worst from, our politicians....The moral outrage isn’t that John Kerry may (or may not) have cheated on his prenuptually-protected second wife. The moral outrage is that we’ve saddled ourselves with a system of government where a pathetic creature like Kerry can survive, thrive, and set his sights on the highest office in the land.
We asked for it, we got it -- don’t act all surprised.
I'm not, nor are the phony issues in the current media cycle pertinent. My opinion of Kerry and vote is based on Kerry's own words and deeds, his public record of issue waffling, a lackluster Senate career and anti-military voting record, not oppo-research, flack spin, rumors, potential personal scandals or media cheeringleading.
Bottom line: in a post 9/11 world I do not trust Kerry to protect my family; there is no there, there.