On Saturday, December 29, 2007, a brouhaha erupted at Memeorandum regarding Ron Paul being excluded from a scheduled NH GOP debate on January 6, 2008, to be broadcast by FOX News.
Of course, the fever swamps emptied of their slugs, complete with ranting about the “unfairness” and “bias” of FOX News, Paul made several accusations and even went so far as to say Fox was afraid of him and the Paultards came out in force to defend their loony dictator wanna-be, based upon his money raising capabilities.
However, the more responsible bloggers, such as Spree at Wake Up America and Little Baby Ginn at Death by 1000 Papercuts, were urging caution in judgment until more facts could be brought to light, in particular the referenced to but unsourced “AP Source”.
As well they should have.
Because, you see, it was all a hoax. Untrue. Never happened. Publicity stunt to keep Paul’s name in front of people. Fake.
The full article clarifying the SNAFU (?) is at Left Coast Views, laid out very clearly by columnist William Westmiller.
Fast forward to today and my reading through Memorandum again.
What do I find but a main headline “Yep, It’s an Outrage” by Josh Marshall at TPM.
Lo and behold, it’s a complete re-hash of the original false report, again complete with slams against FOX News. Two days and a full clarification later. Here is his final sentence from his completely off-course (does the left ever steer straight?) rant:
So, it’s all about Fox News. Paul’s out because he’s not a Fox News Bush-clone. Say whatever you want about the guy, Fox News shouldn’t be able to silence him because they don’t like his views.
THIS is where the left gets their news? No wonder they’re always angry–they’re two steps behind and completely incapable of being relevant due to their constant lagging!
Alas, were it just one “reporter” from an “allegedly reputable” blog, it might be forgivable. But it’s not just one. We also have “Sir Yes Sir” by Digby at Hullabaloo with this:
The Republicans don’t like what Paul is saying and they told their boy Ailes to shut him down. They aren’t even trying to hide it.
Comments from Hullabaloo:
Hell, he ought to be glad that they are not running specials 24/7 to convince the populace that he is Satan. Is he not racist enough? Nah, that can’t be it. Do his policies actually benefit anyone other than millionaires? Nah, that can’t be it. Does he question the unerring authority of lip-service to the Bible and all the kooks that stand under it? Nah, that can’t be it. Seriously why is he not one of them? Is it because he has snowed stoners and small-businessmen into giving him money for his upcoming Texas think-tank to remove handicapped parking spaces from the mall? Tossing good money after bad is a revered Republican ritual. He’s one of them and the fact that the jackboots are being used to kick his carcass only proves it that much more. We all know the 11th commandment but did you know that the 12th is stab any bastard in the back you can and blame it on someone else? Republicans, outratfucking ratfuckers – it’s a family tradition!
So why is saying FOX is “as dangerous as the KKK” considered the epitome of “divisive, bitter and intemperate left-wing rhetoric”?
“The New Hampshire Republican Party has notified FOX News of our position, and we are in ongoing discussions with FOX News about having as many candidates as possible participate in the forum scheduled for January 6.”
And, the comments:
It is time to stand up to the giants who control information. Their manipulation of events allows them to big play makers and determine how elections turn out. Fox position of Ron Paul is tantamount to censorship, a power that information media should not have in this democracy. Supposing another information outlet such as CNN, the Clinton News Network, decided that they did want to report on events of the 7 democrat candidates they don’t support, or hired news analysts and pundits who used to be part of Clinton administrations, how fair would that be?
SHAME ON FOX. SHAME ON CNN. SHAME ON ANYONE WHO DOESN’T BELIEVE IN FAIR ELECTION. ISN’T IT FOX WHICH ANNOUNCED BUSH VICTORY OVER AL GORE.
and:
Fox is a threat to our democracy, our Constitution, our Republic. Ron Paul and supporters are really turning into a force. Let’s hope it’s strong enough to overcome corporate media.
and my favorite:
Thank you to Jason George and the Baltimore Sun. You guys are an example of journalistic integrity.
The fact the Fox news is trying to whitewash Ron Paul’s message is an outrage.
Jesse Benton, Paul’s spokesman, said it was a “big mistake” not to include his candidate, especially given Paul’s recent success in fundraising. He said the campaign has been trying to reach Fox News to explain the decision, but its calls had not been returned.
“There very well might be some bias,” Benton said. “Ron brings up some topics that aren’t very popular with Fox News, as in fiscal responsibility and withdrawing from the war in Iraq…that does leave us scratching our heads a little bit about whether it was deliberate. Based on metrics, I don’t see how you can possibly exclude Dr. Paul.”
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200712311708DOWJONESDJONLINE000250_FORTUNE5.htm
Follow the links to read the rest of the drivel.
My question is this–ARE THESE PEOPLE STONED OUT OF THEIR GOURDS? HAVE THEY BEEN STONED OUT OF THEIR GOURDS FOR THE PAST TWO DAYS?
This is a completely old, completely debunked issue, a non-issue resolved two days ago! This is what counts as current, relevant news on the LEFT?
These people need a clue–maybe we should pass the hat and buy them one? I hear they’re on sale right now at WalMart during the Christmas clearance.
Sheesh.
Cross Posted at Grizzly Groundswell here.
Filed under: Irrelevancies, Lagging Behind the News, Miss Beth, Ron Paul | Comments Off on Proving Once Again, the Left is Not Only Behind the News, But Short on Facts
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