A New York Times scoop! Republicans are very, very sad to find that cheerleading a disaster can have consequences.
The End of Imus
The drips continue:
Three advertisers — office supply chain Staples Inc., Bigelow Tea and Procter & Gamble — said late yesterday that they would stop placing ads on the show out of dismay over Imus’s comments. Any further defections could significantly erode economic support for a program heard in about 70 radio markets, including Washington. CBS Radio, which syndicates Imus, has not announced how it will fill the time slot when Imus’s suspension begins on Monday. MSNBC said it would program expanded news coverage during the time.
Imus has gone past the edges of propriety many times during his long career, but nothing has approached the storm that now swirls about him.
Not only are advertisers pulling out, but it is all the bobbleheads on cable are talking about. That is never good.
Personally, if I were Imus, I would hold a press conference in which I expressed contrition for my remarks, acknowledge they were truly inappropriate and hurtful, and then tell everyone to go fuck themselves, I am retiring.
Maybe I am on my own with that approach, but that exit certainly seems more dignified than grovelling for two weeks before being fired.
*** Update ***
You have to give Ana Marie Cox credit- she knows how to insert herself into a story:
I’ll have some more fleshed-out thoughts on the matter in the magazine this week, but for now, since many people have asked: No, I won’t be going on Imus anymore. Having said that, it’s not like they’ll be inviting me back.
I, too, will boldly proclaim that after his behavior the past two weeks, I will refuse to appear on Imus in the Morning.
The Great Patsy Hunt
Who wants the blame when Iraq and Afghanistan fall apart? Surprisingly, nobody.
Your Daily Republican Scandal
In what has become a daily event, a new scandal from this, the most corrupt administration of lifetime. And yes, I was alive for Nixon:
A federal panel responsible for conducting election research played down the findings of experts who concluded last year that there was little voter fraud around the nation, according to a review of the original report obtained by The New York Times.
Instead, the panel, the Election Assistance Commission, issued a report that said the pervasiveness of fraud was open to debate.
The revised version echoes complaints made by Republican politicians, who have long suggested that voter fraud is widespread and justifies the voter identification laws that have been passed in at least two dozen states.
Though the original report said that among experts “there is widespread but not unanimous agreement that there is little polling place fraud,” the final version of the report released to the public concluded in its executive summary that “there is a great deal of debate on the pervasiveness of fraud.”
It is a tried and true formula. For example:
Though the original report said that among experts “there is widespread but not unanimous agreement that there is global warming,” the final version of the report released to the public concluded in its executive summary that “there is a great deal of debate on the topic of global warming.”
or:
Though the original report said that among experts “there is widespread but not unanimous agreement that Ru-486 and Plan B are safe,” the final version of the report released to the public concluded in its executive summary that “there is a great deal of debate on the safety of Ru-486 and Plan B .”
or:
Though the original report said that among experts “there is widespread but not unanimous agreement that there are no real ties between Al Qaeda and Iraq,” the final version of the report released to the public concluded in its executive summary that “there is a great deal of debate over how deep the ties run between Al Qaeda and Iraq.”
or:
Though the original report said that among experts “there is widespread but not unanimous agreement that Terri Schiavo is permanently and irrevocably brain damaged and a vegetable,” the final version of the report released to the public concluded in its executive summary that “there is a great deal of debate regarding whether Terri Schiavo can get up and go for a walk next week.”
Do I need to go on?
You see, when you the only things you believe in are keeping yourself in political power and advancing an agenda, you don’t have to worry about facts, or data, or actual good government. You just say whatever best makes your case at the time, and hope to hell no one finds out.
*** Update ***
And no, these are not actual quotes, but merely me paraphrasing what was actually said in all those cases. Tomorrow, when I do not have insomnia and have had some sleep, I will look up the actual remarks. They won;t be much different.
Nor, I suspect, will the defense of this behavior. They will state some iteration of the following: “It is normal for an administration to parse scientific or other reports generated within the administration for political reasons. Every administration does it. Just like Clinton and second hand smoke.”
Bet on it.
Now Give Them Back A Few Years
The office of North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper will announce that he is dismissing all charges against three Duke Lacrosse players, ABC News has learned from sources close to the case.
The three players, Reade Seligmann, David Evans and Collin Finnerty, were facing charges of first degree kidnapping and first degree forcible sexual offense. The charges stem from an off-campus party on the night of March 13, 2006.
What else can be said.
The Party Never Ends
ABC NEWS HAS LEARNED THAT THE ARMY HAS PUT ON THE DEFENSE SECRETARY’S DESK A PROPOSAL TO EXTEND THE TOUR OF DUTY FOR EVERY ACTIVE DUTY SOLDIER IN IRAQ BY THREE MONTHS.
“Everybody” presumably includes disabled soldiers force-marched back into the fray, overextended Guard units and troops who have already been stop-lossed too many times to count. A sensible person would take a desperation move like this to mean that we don’t have any spare troops kicking around.
At the end of this three month extension our troops will be in the same place they are today, only three months more worn down. Reinforcements still won’t be coming. Don’t look to the National Guard.
When the three months run out and nothing has changed, what then?
***Update***
A uniformed reader reports that ABC may be full of shit about the “everybody” part. It wouldn’t be the first time.
What Do You Suppose Time-Warner Would Get For AOL?
Daimler-Benz plans to sell Chrysler. This might help explain why.
What Do You Suppose Time-Warner Would Get For AOL?Post + Comments (9)