Cleavage
Working with a new concept. How about: Obama's handlers aren't political geniuses, but just very disciplined, well financed fellows with a script? By this idea, as long as the script is "correct", in terms of responding to the given political dynamisms, they do all right. But when the dynamism changes, and they have to adapt, they stumble.
The illustration on point would be Iraq. It was supposed to be a quagmire, nobody foresaw the turn-around coming (nobody on the left). Barack would run as the antiwar candidate of superior judgment. But there has been a turn-around and his judgment stinks, and his attempt to reposition himself has been immensely clumsy, such that now nobody knows for sure just what his position is but neither the right nor the left trust him.
Certainly it was expected that if he won the primaries he would then tack toward the center. But there was no thought that he would have to tack to the center on Iraq, which would remain a disaster. Now that it's not a disaster, but his repositioning is, he's going to Iraq. But this is a seat-or-the-pants move, it wasn't in the script, and I doubt that the puppet masters have any idea how it's going to turn out.
I do though, expect that they know exactly what they're going to attempt: It's not that Barack is going to adjust his views to the reality on the ground, it's that with all the publicity, reality is going to be made to adjust to his views.
His Iraq speech of a few days ago will be his position --still a 16 month time table. His speech after he comes back will affirm that the reality he saw on the ground supports the prescient judgment made in that speech before he left. Never mind whether it does or not, the press will define what Barack says as what is real. After all, reality is narrative, and the massive media coverage will confirm that what he saw is true and that what he suggests is wise.
I presume this is their intent, to use the fawning massive media to define a reality that will work until November.
I don't think though that it will work, and not because of the counter arguments of the blogs or talk radio. I don't think it will work because I don't think New York likes Chicago. Chicago is trying to do this all on their own, I don't think New York will accept that Chicago is setting spin. After all, The Spin, is their business. Chicago just butchers hogs, and nothing else that anybody cares about. I think that even during the trip, and certainly after, there will be "discordance". The message will not mesmerize. There will be gaffes, and dishonesties pointed out. The New Yorker cartoon was not a critique of the right, it was a first mockery of the Messiah. It's time to take him down a peg or two, cleverly, of course. It's not that New York doesn't want a Democrat as president, it's that they want to make it clear who it is that controls that president's fate, his success or failure, --and it sure isn't Chicago.
The illustration on point would be Iraq. It was supposed to be a quagmire, nobody foresaw the turn-around coming (nobody on the left). Barack would run as the antiwar candidate of superior judgment. But there has been a turn-around and his judgment stinks, and his attempt to reposition himself has been immensely clumsy, such that now nobody knows for sure just what his position is but neither the right nor the left trust him.
Certainly it was expected that if he won the primaries he would then tack toward the center. But there was no thought that he would have to tack to the center on Iraq, which would remain a disaster. Now that it's not a disaster, but his repositioning is, he's going to Iraq. But this is a seat-or-the-pants move, it wasn't in the script, and I doubt that the puppet masters have any idea how it's going to turn out.
I do though, expect that they know exactly what they're going to attempt: It's not that Barack is going to adjust his views to the reality on the ground, it's that with all the publicity, reality is going to be made to adjust to his views.
His Iraq speech of a few days ago will be his position --still a 16 month time table. His speech after he comes back will affirm that the reality he saw on the ground supports the prescient judgment made in that speech before he left. Never mind whether it does or not, the press will define what Barack says as what is real. After all, reality is narrative, and the massive media coverage will confirm that what he saw is true and that what he suggests is wise.
I presume this is their intent, to use the fawning massive media to define a reality that will work until November.
I don't think though that it will work, and not because of the counter arguments of the blogs or talk radio. I don't think it will work because I don't think New York likes Chicago. Chicago is trying to do this all on their own, I don't think New York will accept that Chicago is setting spin. After all, The Spin, is their business. Chicago just butchers hogs, and nothing else that anybody cares about. I think that even during the trip, and certainly after, there will be "discordance". The message will not mesmerize. There will be gaffes, and dishonesties pointed out. The New Yorker cartoon was not a critique of the right, it was a first mockery of the Messiah. It's time to take him down a peg or two, cleverly, of course. It's not that New York doesn't want a Democrat as president, it's that they want to make it clear who it is that controls that president's fate, his success or failure, --and it sure isn't Chicago.
posted by mouse at 1:21 PM
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