A Message Problem?

I'm constantly hearing the talking heads on the cable shows (except Fox News, my cable box is allergic to that channel) repeating the meme that there's White House messaging problem. "Why do a significant portion of the population think President Obama raised taxes instead of the fact that he gave 95% of Americans a tax cut?" they ask. "What is the messaging problem with the White House?"

Well, when you are on the fence or don't really pay attention until a month before elections, you're going to get a thirty second blurb on your local news and now know the details on the issues. And the loudest noise makers get the coverage. Even if there are 3 million self-described Tea Partiers out there, that's one percent of the population. One percent.

But ultimately, when you are just flat out anti-Obama and decide to listen only to those who you agree with instead of looking for objective sources of information, why would you think any differently? When all you watch is Fox News Channel, when all you listen to is Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck, when all you read is William Kristol and David Brooks and Jonah Goldberg, why would you assume they were lying to you, especially when they're saying what you subconsciously want to hear?

The problem isn't with the message, it's with the messengers.

UPDATE (12:10pm): See what I mean?

Rush Limbaugh said Monday that President Obama has "switched from Messiah to demon."

The radio host said the president looked "demonic" in photos that were taken over the weekend and that appeared on the Drudge Report Monday.

"These pictures, they look demonic," Limbaugh said of the Obama photos. "And I don't say this lightly. There are a couple pictures, and the eyes, I'm not saying anything here, but just look. It is strange that these pictures would be released....It's very, very, very strange. An American president has never had facial expressions like this. At least we've never seen photos of an American president with facial expressions like this."

"I mean, I feel like I'm watching The Omen: 666 and all that," he would say later. "This is weird, weird, weird stuff."

Is it any wonder that polls show some people think Obama is the Antichrist? But it's a White House message problem, right? I'll be looking for Robert Gibbs to release a statement claiming President Obama is not Beelzebub, the Antichrist or Satan, you know, just to clear up the White House messaging.

Rachel Maddow Is My Hero

For far too long, there has been a double standard in Punditland between right wingers and liberals. It always seems to me that the blowhard, in-your-face, conservative pundits never care to actually have a debate and listen to the other side. Rather, their typical "debating" or interviewing style is to ask a question or make a point, and not let the other speaker get a word in edgewise.

Joe Scarborough is the quintessential talking head hack. He'll go on and on with his diatribes and then ask a convoluted question, and as a response to his question is given, he'll interrupt and try to make another inane, fact-starved point. He just looooves to hear himself speak. You can tune in anytime or check out any video online... he always does it.

Last night's David Gregory's Race For The White House was no exception, but Rachel Maddow gave The Scar the once over. And it wasn't the first time that poor Joe got his pee-pee slapped by Maddow, as when they were debating a couple of weeks ago about how much of a maverick John McCain is. Watch.



Now on to last night. This Gregory show has only been on for the last few weeks, but in that short time, Rachel Maddow has learned that you can't let Scar walk all over you. You can't let him talk over you and monopolize your limited debate time on these "make your point in a 15 second sound bite" shows. You can't be polite, because he never is.

Rachel gets about one sentence into her point when Scarborough interrupts in disagreement, to which Maddow responds, "Joe, let me make my point and then you can dismiss me."

GASP! The nerve of this liberal, lesbian bitch to speak to the almighty Joe Scarborough that way! Who the fuck does she think she is? The nerve of these producers to put on these goddamn progressives on MSM shows. Don't they know that they have to conform to the corporate agenda? Has the world gone topsy-turvy?!

So Joe just sits there, like a scolded schoolboy and decides to respond to Rachel on a completely different segment of the show... AND THEN WALKS OFF THE SET! Watch the exchange and then listen closely to the 2:47 mark when Joe (off camera) takes off his microphone. When they go back to the talking head in boxes look, Joe's box is gone. The show continues sans Joe.



Poor little Joe Scarborough. He doesn't like the rules, so he took his ball and went home. Maybe mommy will make him some sammiches. ...Douchebag.

UPDATE: From TRex -

Scarborough is being a complete bastard in this clip. I went back to watch it again and his preening, tight-lipped imitation of a puckered butthole would be hilarious if it wasn’t so extraordinarily revealing. At that moment, all of Scarborough’s cards are on the table. You can tell exactly what he’s thinking, something along the lines of, “Listen, you little dyke bitch, I used to be a Congressman and don’t you ever forget that you are here at our sufferance and you will not cut me off when I’m interrupting you.”

Asshole.