Since the White House/Fox News feud began, comments, concerns and opinions have been circulating from the media, pundits and politicians. This weekend they intensified, with the Sunday news shows weighing in on the drama. Today, Fox.com: Politics headlined the latest White House strategy, "White House Urges Other Networks to Disregard Fox News", noting that Senior Obama officials took to the airwaves Sunday––the feud heats up!
As I was finishing my opinion piece on this saga yesterday, in the background was Chris Wallace, Fox News Sunday, and lo and behold, Wallace was addressing the White House’s attack on Fox News. Wallace opened his show by stating that they wanted to ask Anita Dunn about her criticism, but as usual, ACCESS DENIED! In fact Fox News Sunday has been denied access to any White House official since August. So instead, Wallace's guests included Terry McAuliffe and Karl Rove debating the issue. Karl Rove likened the White House's approach to handling criticism and questions to Chicago style politics, "if you don’t like the questions that are being asked…then you try and demonize…” Rove later added, “they called Fox News a White House enemy.” “That is over-the-top language––we heard that before from Richard Nixon." “And we have this White House prone to that kind of attitude and it’s not helpful. It’s demeaning to the president…”
Meanwhile, other Sunday news show hosts were prepared with their questions, yet they had access to White House officials. David Axelrod, Obama Senior Adviser, appeared on ABC's This Week. George Stephanopoulos played a statement by Rupert Murdoch in response to the "strong remarks" made by the White House, pointing out that the attention has “tremendously increased Fox News ratings.” Stephanopoulos opened up, “that does seem to be true, are you worried that your strategy is fortifying the enemy?” Axelrod reacted, “I’m not concerned. Mr. Murdoch has a talent for making money…” “The only argument that Anita was making is that they are really not a news station…” Axelrod added, "The bigger thing is that other news organizations like yours ought not to treat them that way." "We're not going to treat them that way." But Axelrod did says that they will appear on the Fox News shows––no date set. White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, appeared on CNN’s State of the Union, where John King asked, why––"I'm trying to get behind the curtain and understand why your White House has decided that it is in its interest to have this, boom, with our rival, Fox News." Emanuel replied by stating that they and the President don't see Fox News as a news organization, emphasizing that they don't want "the CNN's and others in the world to be led in following Fox, " calling them an illegitimate news organization––"in the sense of both sides and a sense of value opinion.”
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - duffy
Hope this backfires on the White House or the United States is in far dire straits that supposed.
2 - Christine
Me too, duffy!
3 - quimo
Consider the fact that Chris Wallace just appeared disguised on Glenn Beck's show to bash Dunn (his son went to the same school that Dunn spoke at).
Stupid move by Wallace, the "serious" journalist at Fox.
4 - Dave Nalle
Quimo, the article you link to is entirely speculative with no evidence to back it up. And even if it IS true, does Wallace not have the right to be a concerned parent or a concerned citizen?
Dave
5 - zingzing
paying attention to fox news is like paying attention to a petulant teenager. maybe you need to at some point or they'll blow some shit up, but for the most part, just ignore them and america will grow out of it.
seriously, if anyone on the right wants to be viewed with any legitimacy, get the fuck away from fox news. they're just using you.
6 - Ruvy
seriously, if anyone on the right wants to be viewed with any legitimacy, get the fuck away from fox news. they're just using you.
You're actually buying what a lying Chicago thief would tell you, zing? I thought you were smarter than that. You disappoint me terribly. Obviously, living in Brooklyn has taught you nothing....
7 - zingzing
ruvy: "You're actually buying what a lying Chicago thief would tell you, zing?"
i didn't say whether i do or not. i just say i don't trust fox news.
"I thought you were smarter than that."
no you didn't.
"You disappoint me terribly."
no i don't.
"Obviously, living in Brooklyn has taught you nothing...."
sure it has. i don't have a tv.
fox news is an abomination. (go ahead and make up a new catch phrase with that one.) obama may be struggling with the transition from one of the crowd into the president, and i expected nothing less, but i do believe he has my (and our) best interests at heart. he's not a socialist, not a communist, not a nazi, not out to destroy israel, not from nigeria, not muslim, not trying to kill grandma, not trying to destroy america and not a racist. (and those are just his "not" good points.) if the right would stop being such political dill pickles and actually try to reasonably figure out what he's trying to do, they wouldn't find it so objectionable as their ridiculous, paranoid fantasies have suggested. he's just trying to make america better for more people. but they keep getting in the way.
and if he was trying to take over america, it wouldn't be this difficult. he'd just say "it would be much easier if i were a dictator," or something along those lines. (and then, according to you, he'd make it happen somehow.) but he hasn't. he plays by the rules. and that's where he'll meet the challenge. if he's going to get anywhere, he'll have to use and abuse those rules. politic his way around them. figure out how to stay in bounds while getting away with it. that's the way we have politics set up in america. bush just walked all over the rules. obama, thus far, seems content to follow them. and that's why he struggles.
he has a good lot of people behind him. but he's got a bunch of people who will criticize him for sneezing the wrong way. he could bring back jesus or produce atlantis and the right would bash him for it. you know it, i know it. he is relatively far left for a president. and he is... well, we'll just leave that one be. there's a lot of "bash obama because he's obama" bullshit out there. as much as there was "bash bush because he's bush" (which has a more poetic rhythm to it, you must admit). but at least obama isn't starting cultural/religious wars and thinking "i'm the decider" is a smart thing to say.
blar blar.
8 - zingzing
"but they keep getting in the way." of course, that refers to republicans. or right wingers. but you take it whatever direction you want to.
9 - Ruvy
zing, [Personal attack deleted by Comments Editor]
So, you bought Barry Soetoro, hook line and stinker. Let's talk about honesty for just a second. In 2004, the Sunday Standard in Kenya carried this headline... Kenyan-born Obama all set for US Senate. When a local boy makes good, the folks at home crow, no? Why should the Sunday Standard lie about bragging about a home-boy made good?
You can bet your bottom East African Shilling that you could not get the editor of today's Sunday Standard to admit his paper ran such an article. "Accidents" of the strangest kind can happen. But find the actual paper article, and you start to unravel the legitimacy of this faker Soetoro. When the prick coughs up a legit Hawaiian long form birth certificate, and opens his records up to scrutiny, then I'll believe him. But he won't. He is not a US citizen.
zing, not too far away from you is a bridge I can sell you - you in the market for bridges? [Personal attack deleted by Comments Editor]
10 - Jordan Richardson
you bought Barry Soetoro, hook line and stinker
Yeah, and you buy the WorldNetDaily the same way. They've already been outed as lying sacks of crap and already have stories from people faking birth certificates for the god damn US president, for crying out loud. How badly do these people want their little "theories" to be true? Bad enough that they're willing to fudge the evidence.
And you're right in line with them.
Face it, you already have your mind made up anyways. You've said that he has to open up his records to "scrutiny" in order for you to believe him, but for the time being you're going with the idea that he's not a US citizen. Bravo, you're deciding on little to no evidence that the guy's not a US citizen. You are a fear-driven individual with no apparent understanding of how the internet or new media works or how easy it is for a non-story to get wings these days. You probably also believe that a certain Nigerian prince is going to deposit some money in your account (or shoebox).
Why should anyone open up anything to you or people like you for "scrutiny" when it's not the facts you're interested in?
It's theories like this and little articles like this (the fucking White House vs. a television network? Really? Seriously?) that just keep me laughing and laughing and laughing through the day (sometimes I yell when I'm laughing).
The least I can do is thank Dave Nalle, Ruvy, Christine, Arch Conservative, etc. for a good hearty laugh when I need one.
So, in all sincerity, thank you for proving that, to get somewhere in today's world, you don't need facts or figures or even common sense to run the risk of being credible. You just need a computer and an opinion.
11 - Ruvy
Gee, thanks, Jordan. Always good to know that you're entertained at least. Half of writing is entertainment. Ask any sports writer. Just like "95% of life is just showing up" [Woody Allen]. Hey, when the world collapses around you and your realize that the crazy Jew from Samaria was RIGHT, I'll have my laugh. And not just at you.
Have a great morning! I've had a great one!
12 - pablo
Ruvy,
I supplied the archived link to Kenya's Sunday Standard story about Obama being born there on the "Political Dogma Over Scientific Fact - That's the Republican Way" story, comment 53.
Jordan Richardson might do well to stick to music reviews. Speaking of which I scanned his music blog and didn't see a single section for The Grateful Dead or Reggae! I guess the word hip is not part of his lexicon, particularly where good fucking music is concerned. :)
13 - Clavos
seriously, if anyone on the right wants to be viewed with any legitimacy, get the fuck away from fox news. they're just using you.
That's how I like my sex: illegitimate and being used.
Must be why I like Fox, eh?
14 - Clavos
...but i do believe he has my (and our) best interests at heart.
For a New Yorker, you're quite naive, zing.
...not trying to destroy america...
Destroy? No, or at least he (and you) doesn't think so. Remake into his vision? Yes, and ultimately that will destroy it.
...he is relatively far left for a president.
That he is, and it's not a good thing.
15 - Christine
Looks like the BC feud heats up too! Thanks for the compliment, Jordan. I have to admit, BC makes me laugh too...for real!
16 - STM
Ruvy: "Why should the Sunday Standard lie about bragging about a home-boy made good?"
Because it's Nairobi and people sometimes get their stories mixed up, especially when English isn't their first language and they're speaking to Americans.
But if you go the Standard's website, search for Obama, and you'll find a story about five stories down on the first page saying his father (who had the same name) was born in Kenya, but the President was born in Hawaii.
See what I mean ... it's never what you think, Ruve. Nothing's cut and dried :)
17 - STM
I notice that unlike the story I saw, the one you've presented there isn't archived. It's a supposed screen shot. It's not out of the actual newspaper: No newspaper has that much white space between paragraphs. NO newspaper.
I reckon it's a fake.
18 - Christine
STM: I think it depends on what browser you use? But then again, what do I know?
19 - Baronius
This has got to backfire on the White House. Any nonpartisan/media support for the President will look like partisan hackery; any such support for Fox News will make the White House look ridiculous.
There are only two possible reasons that the White House would pick this fight. One, terribly thin skin (particularly regarding the ACORN expose). Two, they don't intend to win; they're just trying to change the narrative. They need to get the talking heads off the subject of Obama's ineffectiveness or they need to fire up the left wing of their party. In other words, it's a bid for time.
20 - Jeannie Danna
Hypocrisy x100 Karl Rove likened the White House's approach to handling criticism and questions to Chicago style politics, "if you don’t like the questions that are being asked…then you try and demonize…” Rove later added, “they called Fox News a White House enemy.” “That is over-the-top language""we heard that before from Richard Nixon." “And we have this White House prone to that kind of attitude and it’s not helpful. It’s demeaning to the president…”
I'm glad the White House is finally shooting back at all these so called journalists.
21 - zingzing
clavos: "For a New Yorker, you're quite naive, zing."
and for a mexican, you're quite american. you're also naive. there, i said it. makes it true.
"Destroy? No, or at least he (and you) doesn't think so. Remake into his vision? Yes, and ultimately that will destroy it."
oh, fiddlesticks. he's not trying to "remake into his vision." do you not see how impossible that is? are you so paranoid that you reach back to child-like fears? "remake" america... the president doesn't have that type of power. no one does.
"That he is, and it's not a good thing."
says you.
22 - zingzing
ruvy: "So, you bought Barry Soetoro, hook line and stinker."
i don't know who that is.
and stop it with the birther shit. no one cares. it's nonsense.
23 - zingzing
pablo: "Jordan Richardson might do well to stick to music reviews. Speaking of which I scanned his music blog and didn't see a single section for The Grateful Dead or Reggae! I guess the word hip is not part of his lexicon, particularly where good fucking music is concerned. :)"
grateful dead are certainly not hip. (or good.) and reggae, sad as it is, passed its peak 25 years ago.
24 - Baronius
Zing - Slightly off-topic, but your comment about birthers reminded me of something I heard on Mark Levin's show yesterday. A caller wanted to know what Levin thought about the FEMA camps.
Levin: Where are the FEMA camps?
Caller: (pause) Well,...
Levin: There aren't any! You're an idiot! Get off the line! We've got enough real things to worry about!
25 - Cobra
Fear of a Black POTUS.
When you boil down all of the clamor & nonsense, that's really all it amounts to.
Conscious minorities get it. We always have.
Conscious minorities in America know that deep down, no matter how much we achieve, what degrees we attain, what professional accolades or awards we earn, or what status we rise to...
We will still be considered LESS, ILLEGITIMATE & UNWORTHY by a large portion of White American society. The only caviat to that segment, is if those minorities faithfully & unwaveringly adhere to the White Conservative Policy script, and pledge allegience to the White Male Power Structure.
Is it changing? Somewhat. Population demographics are changing so rapidly that change is unavoidable, but my main point is resounding and unimpeachable.
The evidence is smeared in blood throughout the sum total of American History, and I defy anyone here to prove me wrong with facts.
--Cobra