Why McCain Skipped the Unity Conference
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Categories: Economic Fairness and Security, Civil Rights and Equality, Media Accountability, African-American Issues, News, Opinion, Front Page
Categories: Economic Fairness and Security, Civil Rights and Equality, Media Accountability, African-American Issues, News, Opinion, Front Page
O Johnny We Hardly Missed You
After moaning and groaning for a week about not getting enough media ink, the McCain campaign really blew it. Or did they? Whining and crying to the very media that is supposed to be shunning their candidate, McCain people missed an opportunity. Not just any old opportunity mind you but a chance to appear in room full of journalists in two hours in prime time.
McCain decided to skip the Unity Conference in Chicago.
The Unity Conference is a confab of journalists of color. The Conference is not a popular attraction for Republicans and don't take my word for it. Just ask George Bush who stumbled badly during his last - and final - appearance before the group in 2004. Mark Trahant of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and member of the Native American Journalists Association asked Bush to address tribal sovereignty in the 21st century and suddenly the emperor's clothes were gone.
Before regaining his footing, Mr. Bush fumbled and stumbled through a definition of sovereignty that would embarrass a 12 year old declaring "Tribal sovereignty means that, it's sovereign. You're a -- you've been given sovereignty, and you're viewed as a sovereign entity. And, therefore, the relationship between the federal government and tribes is one between sovereign entities".
But I digress.
The punditry have been offering up excuses for why McCain passed on spending two hours with 5,000 reporters who represent the very voters he needs to pull in. The favorite excuse was the cliché scheduling conflict. But the McCain camp knew better than to send their man to Chicago.
Candidates are often prepped for major appearances, with the hope of anticipating the range of questions they face. Facing the usual suspects that make up the campaign press corps everyday injects an air of familiarity that shields the candidate
The Unity Conference is not the imbedded press corps. These are serious journalists who focus on serious issues, not the press de jour that passes for the nightly news.
The range of questions McCain would have faced would have simply been too much for him. There is only so ways to say that the surge was a success without the risk of putting your audience to sleep. In fact, McCain even confused himself over the issue of the surge. In a broadcast interview with none other than that beacon of journalism ethics Sean Hannity, McCain complained again that Barack Obama would not admit to his claim that the surge in Iraq worked. McCain emphatically proclaimed that Obama would not acknowledge "his wrong view that the success had not succeeded". That's right John - nothing succeeds like success.
His attack of redundancy aside, the issue of whether McCain could have held up for two hours of questioning is a matter of pure speculation. The undeniable fact is that John McCain could not have withstood two hours of detailed policy questions. No amount of advance preparation could have gotten McCain ready to face this fire. But wait it gets worse. In dissing the Unity Conference, McCain has rightly earned the title of elitist.
After a week of righteous indignation over a perceived media bias towards Barack Obama - and continuing to label Obama as aloof and arrogant - McCain has painted himself with his own brush. Blowing off the Unity Conference not only exposes McCain's unwillingness to answer the tough questions, it displays a level of arrogance that could only be described as elitist.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama was still shaking off the jet lag from what most folks would describe as a busy week. Still, he made time to attend the Unity Conference - tired but unafraid.
Face it Senator - you didn't have what it takes to grab a media spotlight. Any politician worth their salt would jump at the chance for free media exposure. And all you had to do was answer policy questions that require more than talking points and clichés. The days of complaining about lack of press coverage should be over for you Johnny.
Copyright 2008 All Rights Reserved
After moaning and groaning for a week about not getting enough media ink, the McCain campaign really blew it. Or did they? Whining and crying to the very media that is supposed to be shunning their candidate, McCain people missed an opportunity. Not just any old opportunity mind you but a chance to appear in room full of journalists in two hours in prime time.
McCain decided to skip the Unity Conference in Chicago.
The Unity Conference is a confab of journalists of color. The Conference is not a popular attraction for Republicans and don't take my word for it. Just ask George Bush who stumbled badly during his last - and final - appearance before the group in 2004. Mark Trahant of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and member of the Native American Journalists Association asked Bush to address tribal sovereignty in the 21st century and suddenly the emperor's clothes were gone.
Before regaining his footing, Mr. Bush fumbled and stumbled through a definition of sovereignty that would embarrass a 12 year old declaring "Tribal sovereignty means that, it's sovereign. You're a -- you've been given sovereignty, and you're viewed as a sovereign entity. And, therefore, the relationship between the federal government and tribes is one between sovereign entities".
But I digress.
The punditry have been offering up excuses for why McCain passed on spending two hours with 5,000 reporters who represent the very voters he needs to pull in. The favorite excuse was the cliché scheduling conflict. But the McCain camp knew better than to send their man to Chicago.
Candidates are often prepped for major appearances, with the hope of anticipating the range of questions they face. Facing the usual suspects that make up the campaign press corps everyday injects an air of familiarity that shields the candidate
The Unity Conference is not the imbedded press corps. These are serious journalists who focus on serious issues, not the press de jour that passes for the nightly news.
The range of questions McCain would have faced would have simply been too much for him. There is only so ways to say that the surge was a success without the risk of putting your audience to sleep. In fact, McCain even confused himself over the issue of the surge. In a broadcast interview with none other than that beacon of journalism ethics Sean Hannity, McCain complained again that Barack Obama would not admit to his claim that the surge in Iraq worked. McCain emphatically proclaimed that Obama would not acknowledge "his wrong view that the success had not succeeded". That's right John - nothing succeeds like success.
His attack of redundancy aside, the issue of whether McCain could have held up for two hours of questioning is a matter of pure speculation. The undeniable fact is that John McCain could not have withstood two hours of detailed policy questions. No amount of advance preparation could have gotten McCain ready to face this fire. But wait it gets worse. In dissing the Unity Conference, McCain has rightly earned the title of elitist.
After a week of righteous indignation over a perceived media bias towards Barack Obama - and continuing to label Obama as aloof and arrogant - McCain has painted himself with his own brush. Blowing off the Unity Conference not only exposes McCain's unwillingness to answer the tough questions, it displays a level of arrogance that could only be described as elitist.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama was still shaking off the jet lag from what most folks would describe as a busy week. Still, he made time to attend the Unity Conference - tired but unafraid.
Face it Senator - you didn't have what it takes to grab a media spotlight. Any politician worth their salt would jump at the chance for free media exposure. And all you had to do was answer policy questions that require more than talking points and clichés. The days of complaining about lack of press coverage should be over for you Johnny.
Copyright 2008 All Rights Reserved
