Bold Prediction: The Impending Obama Media Backlash

So here is the latest Bold Prediction, inspired by a late night and little caffeine - Obama is about to endure a media backlash.

Why a bursting of his media bubble?  Well, they (alright, "they") have finally admitted what was obvious in this Harvard study last fall and to Bill Clinton at Dartmouth - as some NBC talent put it, "it's hard to stay objective covering this guy".

However, while the press was non-objectively giving Obama a shoulder ride around New Hampshire, Hillary surprised and embarrassed the media and the experts by sneaking to victory.

So, having been caught out as having been both non-objective and wrong, what will the monolithic MSM do next?  We look for the MSM to engage in the customary self-recrimination, reflect on the manner in which they failed to inform the public, and devote themselves henceforth to doing a better job of presenting Obama fairly, i.e., more negatively.

It seems bold to predict that someone will do something conventional in this election cycle, so I Boldly Predict a notably more negative tone in Obama's press coverage.

We can anticipate a few weeks of "Who Is Obama, Really?" coverage to complement the "Hillary, the Comeback Queen who proved her resolution and resourcefulness on the mean streets of Portsmouth...".  Yikes.

MEANWHILE, IN THE DISTANT PAST:  Mickey offers four theories which attempt to explain ancient history yesterday and sends us here for more.

Comments

[Dennis D]

Its clear that many people respond to pollsters that they would support Obama. But in reality they would not vote for a black man.

[syn]

Obama attrack young people, his problem is that there are more old people in America than young.

Clinton will get the nomination, there are too many career Democrats whose lives are financially invested in Clinton, Inc.

Clinton will win the White House, there are too many entitlement boomers who are expecting America to provide for their every desire and need.

Elderly populations are expensive to maintain, expect a high Misery Index for sometime to come.

The American mindset is pre-1993 WTC bombing, maintaining their Happy is all that matters to them.

[bruhaha]

Dennis wrote:
"It's clear that many people respond to pollsters that they would support Obama."

But look at the results -- Obama got what the polls predicted! So your theory doesn't work in this case. It may be that "Edwards" supporters switched, or that certain groups came out in larger numbers than expected (weather?)

We probably won't know right away and ought to beware the easy answers and speculation, esp. ones based on such things as the predictable --and at this point quite unjustified-- cries of racism.

[Bruce]

For the nth time...Obama is half-white, not a "true" black man. More importantly, he has a shady past, involving Islam.

Lastly, he's very, very inexperienced (as well as being very, very liberal).

He's toast.

[Appalled Moderate]

Well, last night sure was interesting. My guess -- a lot of Edwards voters became Hillary voters, and Hillary's people were good at getting out their vote.

The presumption seems to be that, if Edwards pulls out, his votes generally go to Obama. I wonder about that. Edwards is the candidate of those who tend to think working with Republicans is like working with Satan. A lot of those folks are going to respond better to Hillary's rhetoric about the Republican Attack Machine (tm) than they will to Obama's "working with people" rhetoric.

I think Other Tom may get his wish -- a long Democrat primary battle which will, by the end of it, leave a lot of people disgusted.

As for the Republicans -- I continue to have no idea.

[Jane]

Obama is half-white, not a "true" black man.

Oh dear. Now you have to be a "true" black.
I guess like our "first black President".

[Jay]

Obama is a joke.....an empty suit that appeals to dumb, young people about "change".

Change to what? His anti-American, pro-abortion, pro open borders, lack of immigration enforcement, anti English language as our national language. How does that promote "unity" B. Hussein O.?

How about that madrassa you attended in Indonesia, the world's largest muslim nation? The guy is barely, I repeat, barely an American.

[capitano]

Its clear that many people respond to pollsters that they would support Obama. But in reality they would not vote for a black man.

I know it's hard to believe but not everyone is obsessed with race. I would suggest the opposite -- they don't support Obama because he has no meaningful leadership experience, his policies will destroy the economy, and/or his silly statements on foreign policy scare them to death should he ever become commander-in-chief.

But even while exercising some semblance of good sense, they are so conditioned by political correctness that to avoid being labeled racist, they lie to the pollsters.

[anduril]

Obama himself has written about his search for an identity as a black man--he deeply felt the disparity between his skin color and the identity that American society gave him v. his upbringing by a white mother with typical white liberal views. This is understandable in an intelligent and sensitive young man, even moving. I prefer not to vote for anyone who is conflicted about their basic identity--Bill Clinton would be another example in a different context.

"Black" as a cultural term is common among blacks and is, as generalizations go, factual: it may not capture all the nuances of black society in America but it does correspond to a reality that cannot be ignored or denied. It is realization of these realities that accounts for Obama's tepid support until recently among blacks--not just Clinton payoffs to black "leaders."

[Joe Chudzinski]

So, if we don't vote for Obama, we automatically are racists? This is bull_ _ _ _!
I am tired of this racial blackmail!

[clarice]

When I went to law school there were only 2 women in my class. The other one is in charge of Hill's outreach to women. This segment has always figured heavily in Hill's plans and she's been working this side of the street for years. She knows how to appeal to them and get them to the polls.

[Bruce]

He is stridently anti American, internationalist, who routinely prefes foreigners to the American point of view. As said above, he's an empty suit, nothing more.

He symbolizes the "Oprah-fication" of modern politics. He's the Princess Diana funeral nonsense we saw in England.

He has Islamic sympathies. "Nuff said.

[anduril]

IMO, a particularly telling statistic from the exit polling (and I don't have numbers right now) is that Hillary did much better than Obama among lower income groups. This, to me, suggests that she has a better grip on the people that the Dems need to win an election, whereas Obama's noisy support may be skewed toward movement liberals--a fringe element in American elections.

[Jane]

He has Islamic sympathies. "Nuff said.

That should make him fit in nicely with a lot of liberals.

[Sue]

I think people are misunderstanding what is being said about the race issue. I think people who said they were going to vote for Obama or did vote for Obama did it because they didn't want to appear racist, but never had any intention of voting for him, black or white. Just as in 04 they told pollsters they voted for Kerry when the end numbers didn't match. They didn't want to admit they voted for Bush.

And that brings me to another question that struck me last night. Where are all the cries of a stolen election? The exit polls don't match the end results and no one is crying foul? Hypocrites to the end.

[steveaz]

Tom,
"We look for the MSM to engage in the customary self-recrimination, reflect on the manner in which they failed to inform the public[...]"

Just like the MSM's "introspection" over the war in Iraq? The best they've delivered on the topic so far is the ridiculous drivel that the press didn't push hard enough to stop Bush's "rush to war."

If that's what passes for self-recrimination, then they've shown they can't be trusted to look hard at their own reflection in the mirror.

Baghdad Bob dies hard, huh?
-s

[anduril]

My last post on this--promise! Clarence Thomas, Condi Rice and Colin Powell are poster children for black views on "blackness." It's not just a question of party identification, per se, although that's a big part of it. It is this stereotype of "blackness" that Obama has had to fight against, and within which he has sought to find an identity. It's a very human story, but disquieting when it comes to choosing a president.

[GMax]

Sue I said that last night. You should read me! JK

[Sue]

GMax,

::grin::

[GMax]

I dont see what talking about "blackness" has to do with NH and before that Iowa. There really are very very few blacks in NH outside of kids in college. In Iowa he got white liberals to buy his act. In NH, not quite as much.

We can start seeing how blacks respond when there is a significant mass of them as voters. Its huge in SC for the Dem primary, and very large in Michigan ( which unfortunately is an uncontested primary for the Dem ). Stay tune, you will get to see if Obama is black enough.

For me, I remember the old joke about a guy asking Sammy Davis Jr. something and saying " You know, you used to be black."

I would say that in America today, if you want the reality to be that you used to be black, it is available to you. But for the same reason that high performing black students are pinged on as "Acting white", there is a attitude in a lot of the black community which is designed to simmer resentment and separate and divide.

[anduril]

For anyone who's interested, you can read about Obama's half brother here:

http://isteve.blogspot.com/2008/01/
ive-discovered-obamas-estranged-half.html

(sorry, you'll have to reconstruct the url.

There's a lengthy quote from Obama's autobio, with a very interesting ending. He's nothing if not insightful about himself.

[clarice]

I think our problem is we're too rational and voters aren't. I've studied all the theories Kaus proposed and have decided only one really explains last night:Voters are really uninformed,many decide at the last minute, and no one knows exactly what rings their bells.

Instead of paying attention to pundits, we all ought to spend more time at pool halls and diners listening to voters.

[anduril]

Oh, wait, did I break my promise?

[GMax]

This one is for Syl. John Fund on the case before the Supreme Court today on voter ID:

Supremes to hear Indiana Voter ID law arguments

[SN]

FDLers are poison politcially. Obama's African church in America is poison politically. The votes went from one to the other?

I don't think Hillary won that way, but she is on the fringe.

Obama is not addressing foreign policy when it is important. His identity is fringe African church in America and he seems to bring out the worst of that continent; he can't explain why this is happening, but he is part of that church that might have allot to do with it. You have to ask some Congressmen, Oprahs, etc. from Chicago, but they also go to church. So, is the problem the church or exclusionary Africanism?

I thought Plame was a perfect example of the FDL fringe. They helped, got a free dinner and some cash but were really not wanted or needed and were poison in the end. I think Hillary has figured that out.

[Semanticleo]

Can anyone provide docs which illustrate, rather than suggest, that Obama is a stealth
Muslim? 'Nothing substantive' is MY Bold Prediction.

[Other Tom]

TM, I think you've nailed the upcoming media approach right down to the ground. One more thing: there'll be lots of the usual navel-gazing and pretended flagellation about NH, ultimately culminating in the usual self-congratulation about what a wonderful institution they are.

I confess I'm really depressed. Although my track record at being wrong is nearly unblemished, I think Hillary now looks to be the nominee and, I'm afraid, the next president. I really don't think the bloody fight between the two Dems will materialize--both Clintons are too smart to let it play out that way. Four or eight more years of listening to Bubba loom darkly on the horizon.

Mencken said something to the effect that in a democracy the people get what they want, good and hard.

[MayBee]

I think people who said they were going to vote for Obama or did vote for Obama did it because they didn't want to appear racist, but never had any intention of voting for him, black or white.

But his poll numbers actually match his votes (more or less). It was Hillary people were embarrassed to admit they were voting for.

As for cries of stolen election, I have no idea. It's another of those ideas that have fallen by the wayside (see also, disenfranchisement: Democratic Party primary voters, MI and FL)

[Other Tom]

Who is claiming that Obama is a stealth Muslim? I think stealth empty suit might be more apt. What, exactly, has this guy done?

[MayBee]

I think Hillary now looks to be the nominee and, I'm afraid, the next president.

Yes, I'm afraid of all those boomer women that are sitting at home just dying to vote for a woman for president. They don't go to rallies or volunteer for campaigns or probably ever talk about politics. But they are surely out there, just as surely as there is someone watching "The View".

[Other Tom]

Tradesports: Hillary 59.5, Obama 38.5. Reality bites the futures market.

[LT]

Just what we need...an affirmative action chief exec.....

[Sue]

But his poll numbers actually match his votes (more or less). It was Hillary people were embarrassed to admit they were voting for.

Obviously I'm not saying it well, because that is what I meant. Just as Bush's people didn't tell the truth with the exit polls in 04.

[clarice]

Phil Agee died in Cuba..(probably because of rotten health care IMO.)

[Rick Ballard]

"What, exactly, has this guy done?"

I believe that Hussein's actual accomplishments match up very well against those of the Red Witch. He's much smarter, a much better speaker and has broader, if not deeper, appeal.

Is he any more of an empty suit than Edwards?

[GMax]

Maybe its not the voters that are the problem with the exit polls, but the methodology and consistency to which the methodology is followed. In other words, operator error or a flaw in the design of the sampling. If you have young people taking the exit polling for example, and they decide that its a "two fer" and they decide they can get paid and also talk to hot babes or hot hunks, or the takers are shiftless and lazy and just make up stuff on a bunch of the voters for some reason, you have junk for exit polls.

[MayBee]

Is he any more of an empty suit than Edwards?

Edwards an empty suit? Please! If he is elected, nobody will ever be turned down for any medical procedure they want, or their family wants them to have. And Christopher Reeves will walk. And nobody will struggle like his parents managed to do.
Edwards' suit is only empty because he has transcended human trappings.

[SACIA]

Kenya and the US:

http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/2007/11/27/american-political-strategist-dick-morris-stirs-up-kenya-election-scene/

This guy may have been a Carville, which explains everyone's problems and Obama's. The US did say it's not for the current government, but the opposition after meeting with the President.

Agee was the guy who figured out Plame and her watch after Ames was arrested.

[MayBee]

Sue:
I think people who said they were going to vote for Obama or did vote for Obama did it because they didn't want to appear racist, but never had any intention of voting for him, black or white.
...
Obviously I'm not saying it well, because that is what I meant. Just as Bush's people didn't tell the truth with the exit polls in 04

I admit I am confused.
Obama's people, it seems, did tell the truth.

[Jay]

BHO is not likely a muslim today but he was one when he was a child in Indonesia. Islam does have a rule that if a muslim leaves the cult, I mean faith, the penalty is death. Don't believe me, look it up.

He nevertheless does have muslim sympathies. Even more importantly, he harbours strong anti-American views and pro UN, pro internationalism.

[PeterUK]

Obama - Empty rhetoric.

[PeterUK]

New Hampshire polling fiasco

[Sue]

Obama's people, it seems, did tell the truth.

The polling showed Obama up, in some polls by double digits. The exit polling showed Obama up by 5 points. Someone lied to the pollsters. I think Clinton's people lied about who they intended to vote for or who they actually voted for. My guess as to why they lied is two-fold. Racism or embarrassment. They didn't want to appear racist, when they probably weren't anyway, or they were embarrassed to admit they supported Hillary. I know I would be embarrassed to admit that one. ::grin::

[Rickter]

Melanie Phillips at UK Spectator, says Obama is our Princess Di. Link on my name.

[PeterUK]

"Edwards' suit is only empty because he has transcended human trappings."

Yes,even his hair is devine.

[MayBee]

The polling showed Obama up, in some polls by double digits. The exit polling showed Obama up by 5 points. Someone lied to the pollsters.

I don't know though, because Obama actually got the percentage of voters he was expected to get-- the people that said they'd vote for Obama really did.
The Hillary surge seems not to be made up of people that said they would or did vote for Obama.

[clarice]

MayBee what a wonderful description of him..Oh, and if we elect him everyone will be middle class and middle class will have everything they want including free college for their kids. It'll be paradise on earth.

[Sue]

Okay.

[Rick Ballard]

"Empty rhetoric."

In comparison to the Red Witch and Silky, Hussein shines brighter than the sun. Even the 'perfect' vacuum in space is filled with trillions upon trillions of photons. In comparison to his competitors, I believe that Hussein is far more substantive and shows a much deeper understanding of a general political pysche attuned to a plea for 'change'.

I believe that 'new' and 'free' will soon enter his rhetorical lexicon to great effect.