"Before we get to our main topic, a brief tribute to my man Chuck Todd, who went on Chris Matthews's panel show and guaranteed that, in the unfortunate event of a Romney administration, his phone calls would be returned. "Dan, we know that this is, it feels right out of the 2004 Karl Rove playbook. In fact I think Charlie Cook wrote earlier this week that Karl Rove ought to get royalties from the Obama campaign on what they're doing. Essentially, they're Swiftboating Romney." First, we have the shout-out to "Charlie" Cook, one of those inexplicable Beltway green-room Magi who get cited because they'll show up on camera every time some teenage booker blows a dog whistle. Then, we have my man Chuck completely misapplying the term "swiftboating," as though it now simply means a tough, but successful, campaign tactic, and not organized and highly paid slander. I'm out now before somebody cites Glenn Kessler in rebuttal and I am forced to throw the laptop out the window." Charlie P. Pierce writing for Esquire
This hackish groupthink from Halperin, Charlie Cook, Chuck Todd and the others is a perfect example of the double-standard -- the false equivalences that the "liberal" cable news media has invented in order to pander to screechy right-wingers who insist they're in the tank for Democrats, President Obama, etc, etc, etc... Right out of the Karl Rove playbook, he said. Interesting. We all know Karl Rove was behind the swift boat attacks. But where was the corporate press in 2004 with that very same -- and legally incriminating -- reporting?
(h/t Ashby)