Campaign Watch

Politico: GOP Faces Discord & Division, No Matter What Happens
By Ryan Robertson | November 6, 2012 | 12:45 PM EST

Whether Mitt Romney becomes the 45th president or not, Politico's Jonathan Martin insists that the Republican Party is on the verge of a looming crisis. Sticking with the same overgeneralized racist narrative, it is basically a 'fact' at this point that the GOP's conservative ideology and a lack of diversity will ultimately lead to its downfall.

Conversely, the Democratic Party is poised to dominate in future elections. Nevermind that we heard this before in 2006 and 2008, with Clinton acolyte James Carville forecasted 40 years in the wilderness for the GOP. No, Martin insists that demography is destiny, and the GOP is bound to shrivel electorally as older white conservatives die off the voting rolls:

NBC's Lauer: 'Swift and Unanimous' Agreement Romney Ohio Ad 'Campaign Politics at its Cynical Worst'
By Kyle Drennen | November 6, 2012 | 12:27 PM EST

In an interview with senior Romney advisor Ed Gillespie on Tuesday's NBC Today, co-host Matt Lauer ripped into an ads run by the Governor's campaign in Ohio about the auto industry: "The reaction was swift and unanimous, Ed. They were painted as misleading by independent fact-checkers. Ohio newspapers said they were an exercise in deception, a masterpiece of misdirection, and Chrysler and GM called them inaccurate and campaign politics at its cynical worst." [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump]

Lauer jabbed: "How could this happen to the guy who is the son of a car-maker and the guy who is supposed to have the business resume?" Gillespie defended the ad regarding Chrysler expanding Jeep production in China: "...the ad is accurate. The head of Fiat came out and said that they were going to open production in China for Jeep. That's what the ad says, and that's accurate."

On Eve of Election, CBS News Finally Releases Libya Excerpts of Obama Interview
By Matt Vespa | November 5, 2012 | 6:06 PM EST

On Monday afternoon, Human Events writer John Hayward stumbled upon Fox News' Bret Baier's discovery of bias by omission from CBS News.  It seems out that a key portion -- regarding Benghazi -- of a 60 Minutes interview was cut out to protect the president and his re-election campaign.  

The original interview conducted by CBS’ Steve Kroft on September 12, 2012, left out an exchange where Kroft asked the president if this was a terrorist attack.  He refused to say – outright – that the Benghazi attack was the work of terrorists.  Now, with Election Day less than twenty-four hours away, CBS has graciously released the unexpurgated version of the interview.

Expert: Romney's Plan for Managed Bankruptcy Would Have Saved Industry, Taxpayers Millions
By Matt Vespa | November 5, 2012 | 5:24 PM EST

“Bin Laden is Dead and GM is Alive!”  That slogan emanating from Vice President Biden, which has resonated in states, like Ohio, which could decide this upcoming election.  But Gov. Romney’s call from late 2008 to send Detroit into managed bankruptcy would have saved the auto industry as well, according to expert Edward Niedermeyer. 

Niedermeyer wrote today in The Wall Street Journal that:

Toledo Blade Asks: 'Could Mr. Romney Take Our Coffee?'
By Ryan Robertson | November 5, 2012 | 2:45 PM EST

In the quadrennially important swing state of Ohio, one of the Toledo Blade's featured front page stories on Sunday wondered if Mormonism would shape Romney's policy. Following an endorsement of Obama last week in which there was no mention of the president's beliefs, religion editor Timothy Knox Barger's penned a 2,500 word piece that resorted to scare tactics and conjecture.

Among them was a seemingly legitimate concern that Romney might try to impose a ban on certain things that he's known to abstain from himself -- like coffee for instance.

NBC's Gregory Gushes Over 'Indelible Images' of Obama During Sandy; Is it an 'October Surprise'?
By Kyle Drennen | November 5, 2012 | 12:18 PM EST

On Sunday's NBC Meet the Press, moderator David Gregory urged both Obama campaign advisor David Plouffe and Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor to agree that Hurricane Sandy provided a boost to the President: "The indelible images of this week had to do with Hurricane Sandy and an impact on this race because of the President's time and the images that we saw..." [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump]

Gregory added: "Governor Christie in New Jersey, who as we heard gave him [Obama] such high marks...was this the October surprise, these political foes, together in leadership, and Christie giving the President such high marks?"

Slate Writer: White Guys Voting for Romney 'In Defiance of Normal Americans'
By Matt Vespa | November 4, 2012 | 3:23 PM EST

Remember when liberals scoffed at the fact that Romney could win more than 60% of the white vote? Not only has Romney successfully tackled that hurdle, and liberals are apparently mad about it. Tom Scocca of Slate Magazine wrote on November 2 about the “tribal appeal” that Mitt Romney has with whites and why “white people think” he’ll be a better president. I’ll give you a hint: It’s R _ C I S M.

After proudly declaring his support for President Obama (and how Slate will traditionally list all its staffers' votes for the Democrats), Scocca insists they are not in a liberal bubble. He channels the insufferable and dismissive tone American liberalism has successfully monopolized over the past years.  He claims “White men are supporting Mitt Romney to the exclusion of logic or common sense, in defiance of normal Americans.”

MSNBC's Wagner Spins Sandy's Death and Destruction As A 'Good Week' For Obama
By Matt Vespa | November 2, 2012 | 3:39 PM EDT

There's nothing like a hurricane to put the wind in the sails! Barack Obama is having a great week.  At least, that’s what MSNBC host Alex Wagner said last night on The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell.  In fact, Wagner, who is a former "cultural correspondent" for the progressive Center for American Progress, said that Obama is having a “really good week.”  Never mind that, as The Washington Free Beacon aptly noted today, ninety-eight people have died and almost $30-50 billion dollars in damage has been inflicted on the country as a result of this storm.

NBC Touts Bloomberg Helping Obama, Wonders if Christie Hurting Romney
By Kyle Drennen | November 2, 2012 | 11:21 AM EDT

Appearing on Friday's NBC Today, special correspondent Tom Brokaw strained to explain why New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg endorsing President Obama would be helpful: "[It] may not move the needle, for example, in Colorado, but in Ohio and in places where they're trying to get white men, they can say, 'Look, this guy has got the endorsement of the Mayor of New York.'" Why would someone in Ohio care?

Co-host Matt Lauer noted that the endorsement "wasn't a very warm hug," prompting Brokaw to argue: "It wasn't a warm hug, but it was tough on Romney about not being the guy that he was when he was Governor of Massachusetts."

NBC: Obama Shows 'Empathetic Side' After Sandy; Romney 'Trying to Balance' Storm and Campaign
By Kyle Drennen | November 1, 2012 | 3:50 PM EDT

On Thursday's NBC Today, chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd depicted the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy as a boost for President Obama and a struggle for Governor Romney. Todd touted Obama receiving praise from "the GOP's convention keynote speaker" New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and how a trip to the storm-ravaged state was "a chance to show his empathetic side."

At the same time, Todd proclaimed that "Mitt Romney spent his Wednesday full-time on the trail in Florida, trying to balance campaigning and showing sensitivity for the storm victims." The headline on screen summed up the framing of the report: "President Tours Destruction & Gov. Romney Resumes Campaign."

Liberal Democrat Fundraiser Loaded with Rape Jokes, Racism, and Nazi References; Networks Ignore
By Matt Vespa | November 1, 2012 | 12:49 PM EDT

Stop you if you heard this one: A slip-and-fall lawyer turned liberal Democrat politician running for Congress attends a fundraiser wherein numerous comedians crack jokes predicated on rape. You haven't heard it? Maybe that's because the broadcast networks have failed to pick up the story.

Yes, the same media outlets that made sure Richard Mourdock and Todd Akin were household names are conspicuously silent when it comes to reporting on the rape jokes made during a fundraiser for the bombastic ex-Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) this week. 

MSNBC Relishes Opportunity to Spin Christie's Praise of President's Handling of Storm
By Ryan Robertson | October 31, 2012 | 11:53 PM EDT

Hurricane Sandy has come and gone, leaving nothing but devastation behind in its wake and with just days until the election. So it's not that surprising that MSNBC is spinning New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's gratitude to the president for, well, doing his job as some sort of campaign gold for Team Obama. 

Take Tuesday night's edition of The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, as guest contributors Joy-Ann Reid of The Grio and Steve Kornacki of MSNBC's The Cycle were brought on to comment on the compilation footage of a weary Christie, speaking warmly of the president. Without hesitation, they scoffed at the idea Gov. Romney could win the election now;  politicizing a tragedy in the process.