When the liberal Democratic governor of the 10th largest state says we should suspend congressional elections, how should a newspaper reporting on it react? The Raleigh, N.C. News & Observer made it clear that its priority was to cover for North Carolina’s liberal Democratic governor, Beverly Purdue, when the paper ran interference for her rather than simply report the facts.
Around 2 p.m. this Tuesday, the News & Observer reported online: “Speaking to a Cary Rotary Club today, N.C. Gov. Bev Perdue suggested suspending Congressional elections for two years so that Congress can focus on economic recovery and not the next election.” The governor’s words: “I think we ought to suspend, perhaps, elections for Congress for two years and just tell them we won’t hold it against them, whatever decisions they make, to just let them help this country recover. I really hope that someone can agree with me on that. … You want people who don’t worry about the next election.”
The story went up with this headline: “Purdue Discusses Suspending Congressional Elections.” The writer added: “The comment — which came during a discussion of the economy — perked more than a few ears. It’s unclear whether Perdue, a Democrat, is serious — but her tone was level and she asked others to support her on the idea.”
This story, as originally posted, contained no indication of whether Perdue or anyone in the audience took her plan to violate the U.S. Constitution as a joke. Yet within a couple hours the News & Observer changed its headline to: “Perdue Jokes About Suspending Congressional Elections.”
Joke? Says who? Not Perdue. Not the reporter who posted the report. Not anyone who heard her make her remarks. The source of this “clarification” was a helpful “spokesperson” for Perdue, who “clarified” that she was “using hyperbole.”
Many commentators did find her remarks funny, but they were laughing at Perdue, not with her. Among those who “suspend” elections so they don’t have to “worry” about voters’ opinions are a whole series of good-for-nothings — Hitler, Fidel and others.
But the Raleigh News & Observer took its marching orders. Not only did it change “discusses” to “jokes,” but it also added a blog by its senior editor under the banner, “Gov. Perdue’s little joke,” lamenting that Perdue’s goofy remarks had been taken out of context and picked up by the Drudge Report, which it described as “one of the most popular web sites on the planet not involving porn.”
“There’s a big headline on Drudge: ‘Dem Guv Calls for Suspending Elections” below a pic of our Dem Guv greeting President Obama at the airport recently,” wrote Dan Barkin. “Which doesn’t precisely convey the levity in her remarks, but we’ll run our site and let Matt Drudge run his.”
Unfortunately for Perdue and her campaign volunteers at the Raleigh News & Observer, the audio of her speech was released shortly thereafter. Needless to say, no one was laughing, and Perdue did not sound like she was kidding — not in the least!
The reporter’s original description had been far more accurate. People laugh at jokes. They don’t “perk up their ears.”
People also laugh at politicians who earnestly say stupid things, and then later have someone “clarify” that they were joking. And at editors who try to save dopey liberal governors from embarrassments well earned.
Fred J. Eckert is a former Republican congressman from New York and a former U.S. ambassador under President Reagan. He is retired and lives with his wife in Raleigh, N.C.
