Journalism is a highly competitive industry and the Washington press corps is no different. Most of the time, disagreements among reporters stay inside baseball. But a recent Politico story claiming Vice President Joe Biden called Republicans “terrorists” has become an issue far from the Washington Beltway.
In Decorah, Iowa, Monday, Tea Party supporter Ryan Rhodes challenged President Obama’s claim that he was putting country before party by pointing out that Biden recently called Republicans “terrorists.” Obama flat out denied the incident ever happened. This inspired Washington Post “fact checker” Glenn Kessler to investigate whether or not the statement was ever made.
Biden’s comment was reportedly uttered in a behind-closed-door meeting for which there is no video, audio, or transcript. No other outlet has ever reported that the statement was made. Biden later told CBS News, “I never said that they were terrorists or weren’t terrorists.” Kessler looks at these facts and concludes: “Frankly, we are dubious that Biden actually said this. … On balance, then, we are going to give President Obama a rare Geppetto for his denial that Biden uttered those words. There is no firm evidence to believe Biden did.”
Judging by their twitter feeds, Politico reporters were livid that The Washington Post essentially called them liars. Martin Kady then composed a lengthy response article detailing how Politico reported the story. Kady notes that Politico confirmed the Biden quote with five different stories and gave Biden’s office three hours to deny the story. Kady writes: “For the record, POLITICO stands by the story and has done so since the moment it was posted on our website.”
It is odd that the newspaper that broke the Watergate story is so eager to take a White House’s denial at face value. But it is also worth remembering that Obama has been accusing Republicans of terrorist-like acts from the beginning. Just weeks after being sworn into office Obama told house Democrats at a retreat in Virginia: “They cannot hold the president of the United States hostage.” Obama has since outright called Republicans “hostage takers.” Both of these statements are on video. How far of a rhetorical jump is it really form “hostage taker” to “terrorist”?
Around the Bigs
CBS News, Obama: U.S. isn’t in danger of second recession: Obama told told CBS News Senior Business Correspondent Anthony Mason yesterday, “I don’t think we’re in danger of another recession, but we are in danger of not having a recovery that’s fast enough to deal with a genuine unemployment crisis for a whole lot of folks out there.”
The Washington Post, Obama to issue new proposals on job creation, debt reduction: Obama’s post Labor Day jobs plan appears to be largely recycled items from the past. The Post says “tax cuts for companies that hire workers, new spending for roads and construction, and other measures that would target the long-term unemployed” are all expected to be part of the plan Obama pushes on Congress. There may also be some executive branch-only action on mortgage relief too.
Gallup, New Low of 26% Approve of Obama on the Economy: Obama’s approval rating on the economy has fallen 11 points since mid-may and now stands at just 26 percent. A record 71 percent of all Americans disapprove of his handling of the economy. A majority of Americans dissaprove of Obama on every issue polled by Gallup.
The New York Times, U.S. Inquiry Eyes S.&P. Ratings of Mortgages: The Obama Justice Department is investigating whether, Standard & Poor’s, who just downgraded the U.S. credit rating on Obama’s watch, improperly rated dozens of mortgage securities in the years leading up to the financial crisis.
The Wall Street Journal, Downgrades Felt at Local Level: Since June 2010, S&P, Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have made 196 so-called super-downgrades on municipal bonds. Super-downgrades are defined as cuts of at least three notches on the letter-grade scales used by the firms. The downgrades will make it more expensive for localities to sell bonds in the future.
The Los Angeles Times, Northrop execs bail out of L.A.: Northrop Grumman Corp., the nation’s second-largest military contractor and last aerospace company headquartered in Southern California, is moving their headquarters to Falls Church, Virginia. Only 300 members of the corporate staff will be moving to Virginia. Most of the firms 30,000 jobs will stay in California … for now.
The Wall Street Journal, Michigan Courts Say Cuts Are Necessary: Michigan’s state court administrative office told the state egislature that it should slash 45 trial-court judgeships and four appellate-court judgeships, to cut costs. “These cuts are necessary,” Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Young Jr. said. “The public sector needs to take a page from the private sector here.”
Campaign 2012
New Hampshire: According to a Magellan Strategies poll of New Hampshire voters, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney leads Texas Gov. Rick Perry 36 – 18. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, trails in third with 14 percent Bachmann only managed 10 percent.
Bachmann: At a campaign stop in Greenville, S.C., Rep. Michele Bachmann told voters, “Under President Bachmann, you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again. That will happen.” The average price for a gallon of gasoline is currently $3.58 per gallon, according to AAA.
Perry: Under the header, “The cowboy corporatist rides to the rescue,” The Examiner‘s Tim Carney details Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s too-business friendly past: “After four years of bailouts, drug-lobby-crafted health care “reform,” corporate handouts in the name of “stimulus” and “green jobs,” and cash-for-clunkers boondoggles, does Perry really think what we need is more corporatism?”
Righty Playbook
RedState‘s Streiff defends Perry’s Gardisal mandate: “The fact is that Governor Perry was not acting as a loose cannon. The drug was approved for use by the FDA. The CDC was, and is, recommending that every girl age 9 through 26 receive the vaccine. The decision to make the vaccine mandatory was based on a desire to make the vaccine accessible via health insurance plans.”
The Weekly Standard’s reports that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, House Speaker John Boehner, Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, and Bill Bennett, are all encouraging House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan to run for president.
The Heritage Foundation posts video of Andy Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants (owner of Carl’s Jr., and Hardee’s), explaining how Obamacare, taxes, the EPA, and the NLRB are all making it hard for businesses to invest in the U.S. economy.
Lefty Playbook
Firedoglake‘s Jane Hamsher responds to a Huffington Post story about an Obama for America state director attacking the “Firebagger Lefty Blogosphere”: “If they’re doing this because they think it’s a good campaign strategy, do what you have to do. The qualifier, of course, is the if. … But if this is a brilliant political strategy on the part of OFA, someone is going to have to explain it to me. I know the goal is to attract the much-prized Independent for 2012. But who do they think is keeping Obama’s poll numbers afloat?”
The Washington Post‘s Ezra Klein says firedoglake should be honored to be attacked by Obama: “Firedog Lake is one Web site. They have readers. But they are not the state of Ohio. Time and again, however, we see evidence that they have gotten deep inside the White House’s head. … And if you’re the “professional left,” that’s exactly what you want.”
The American Prospect‘s Jamelle Bouie predicts Obama’s jobs speech will fail to inspire Republicans to pass his jobs plan.
