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The Independent Record’s Fascinating Editorial on Max Baucus

by Pogie on January 3, 2010 · 2 comments

in Independent Record, Max Baucus, The Media

If anyone has spent any time on this site, they know that I am hardly a fan of Senator Baucus. That being said, the recent juvenile attacks that he was drunk on the floor of the Senate demonstrate the depths to which Republicans will sink to smear any Democrat, even one as conservative as the Senator. One would think, though, that a newspaper absolutely uncommitted to investigative journalism wouldn’t keep a pathetic story like this alive.

That assumption was wrong. Today’s editorial in the Independent Record is just a stunning example of argumentative gymnastics designed to justify publication and continued promotion of this salacious and no-doubt click enhancing story.

Let me see if I can paraphrase:

  1. Golly, there’s lots of talk on the Interwebs about this video. Sure, it’s driven by Matt Drudge, a known provocateur for the right, but golly, there’s lots of talk about it.
  2. There sure doesn’t seem to be any real evidence that the claims are true.
  3. Gee, right-wingers are going to be pissed if we don’t talk about it. We better talk about it. And, after all, the Democratic Party ran an ad seven years ago that was mean. That makes it fair. And balanced.
  4. It’s really the irresponsible voices on the Internet that are poisoning discourse, not the reasoned publication of the experts in the rarified atmosphere of newsrooms. Darn Internet!

Maybe the IR would be better served examining why the Lee Newspapers in the state sat on a truly newsworthy story about the Senator rather than spending their time promoting right wing hit pieces to appease some online critics who see a left wing conspiracy in every news story.

Popularity: 5% [?]

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Juxtaposition in the News: The Ethical Senator and the Mayor

by Pogie on December 5, 2009 · 1 comment

in Max Baucus

There’ve been a couple of interesting stories in the paper the past few days about ethical decision making by political leaders.

Senator Max Baucus:

A spokesman for Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, said early Saturday that the senator nominated his girlfriend, a lawyer who worked for him at the time, for a United States attorney position last March.

Miles City Mayor Joe Whalen:

Miles City Mayor Joe Whalen has offered to resign after receiving three traffic tickets.

In his offer of resignation, contained in a letter sent to the Miles City Star newspaper Thursday, Whalen said he was cited on Dec. 2 for driving with an expired registration, an expired driver’s license and no proof of insurance.

I suspect we’re in for a long couple of weeks of half-hearted legalistic justifications and rationalizations for what was clearly an unethical, disappointing act by the senior Senator. One has to wonder if the members of the world’s greatest deliberative body ought not spend more time thinking about their personal lives and ethical obligations.

Popularity: 10% [?]

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Dennis Rehberg: Slow Reader or Thinker?

by Pogie on November 24, 2009 · 1 comment

in Denny Rehberg, Jon Tester

Rather than engage in substantive debate, Representative Rehberg has called for a thirty day waiting period after every stage of the health care debate. For the past few months, I’ve assumed that this was nothing more than the garden-variety talking point conservative obstructionism that has characterized Rehberg’s tenure in Washington, but today, I am less certain that’s the case.

It may just be that Representative Rehberg isn’t a terribly quick thinker. It’s not just health care. Today, at a town hall in Townsend, he told the crowd that he still hasn’t made up his mind about another major piece of legislation for Montanans, Senator Tester’s wilderness bill:

U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg said Tuesday he is still evaluating a plan from Sen. Jon Tester that aims to both expand wilderness and increase logging in Montana.

Let’s see. Senator Tester only introduced the bill 4 months ago. Aren’t four Rehberg units enough time to come to a decision?

Slow thinker? Panderer? Definitely not a leader.

Popularity: 8% [?]

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Watch Where You Post “Anonymously”

by Pogie on November 23, 2009 · 1 comment

in Lee Newspapers, The Media

The Lee Watch blog, a great source of information about Lee Enterprises, has a pretty frightening post up about the dangers of posting online when you assume your identity is safe.

It seems the St. Louis Post Dispatch’s “social media editor”  (who says papers are hurting for money?) Kurt Greenbaum decided to out a commenter who left a lewd comment on his thought-provoking journalistic masterpiece, “What’s the Craziest Thing You’ve Ever Eaten?”.

Greenbaum claims to have contacted the employer of the commenter who, with Greenbaum’s help, was able to track down the culprit, who resigned once confronted. Assuming Greenbaum’s triumphant tale is true, it’s troubling to imagine that an editor at a newspaper would act like this. Having some experience with with the subject, however, it’s certainly not surprising.

It raises a number of interesting questions, certainly. How bound are newspapers or any site to follow their privacy policies? How foolish would an anonymous source have to be to trust someone from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch? What in the hell does a newspaper need a social media editor to do?

Careful out there. Kurt Greenbaum is watching.

Popularity: 9% [?]

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Rehberg Calls For Honest Debate; Nose Grows

by Pogie on November 22, 2009 · 0 comments

in Denny Rehberg

It seems that someone in Representative Rehberg’s office got off Twitter long enough to write an impassioned, if misguided op-ed piece for the Billings Gazette. Rehberg’s so angry that the League of Conservation Voters ran a critical ad that he felt the need to respond with a series of misstatements and lies.

Rehberg’s angry that the League of Conservation Voters is spending money to influence the public:

Since 2000, LCV has spent more than $6.8 million peddling influence among elected officials. They’ve also spent untold millions on “issue ads” like this one, including approximately $150,000 to run these ads in Montana.

To clean up Montana politics, I’m certain Rehberg will soon be giving back the $33,000 he received from Oil and Gas interests in 2006, the $50,000 he received in 2006, not to mention the thousands he’s received from electric utilities over the same period of time.

Rehberg writes:

Second, we need to clarify what legislation we’re talking about. The ad refers to the American Clean Energy and Security Act, but this legislation is more commonly known as the “cap-and-trade bill” or the “cap-and-tax bill.”

Actually, it’s only on Fox News and the Wall Street Journal’s editorial pages that the bill is called that. It may be a first in American politics: Rehberg is claiming that an opponent is being dishonest by giving the real name of the bill.

Finally, Rehberg claims that the bill will cost jobs:

At a time when our economy is hemorrhaging jobs, the nonpartisan Heritage Foundation warns that cap and tax will cost more than 8,600 jobs in Montana alone. In places like Sidney or Colstrip, real Montanans work real jobs that depend on traditional sources of energy.

Calling the Heritage Foundation non-partisan is about as credible as Rehberg’s claims to be a working rancher, and their stats are terrible and misleading.

Once again, Representative Rehberg is showing his true colors: he’s a mouthpiece for conservative business interests, not working Montana families. As he closes his piece with a plaintive “ let’s do it honestly,” one’s tempted to ask why Rehberg would start now.

Popularity: 8% [?]

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