Michael Barone

Coverage of UAW-GM Tentative Agreement Perpetuates 'Concessions' Myth
By Tom Blumer | October 26, 2015 | 11:28 AM EDT

Late Sunday evening, the United Auto Workers and General Motors reached a tentative four-year agreement shortly before the union's 11:59 p.m. strike deadline.

The agreement was expected, simply because the financial and political blowback of a strike at a company bailed out by taxpayers at a cost running into tens of billion of dollars back in 2009 would have been severe. Also expected: the press buying into and perpetuating the myth that the union made significant concessions to GM and Chrysler during the course of those two companies' respective corrupt bankruptcies.

Establishment Press Ignores DNC Chair's Rubio-Nazi Smear
By Tom Blumer | September 27, 2015 | 11:02 PM EDT

The left's strategy for smearing Republicans and conservatives is, from all appearances, to "throw anything and everything out there, not matter how false or outrageous, and see what sticks."

A major reason why this strategy works is that the establishment press ignores bogus leftist smear attempts which should be utterly embarrassing, effectively eliminating the strategy's downside. Take Debbie Wasserman Schultz's Monday press release on 2016 GOP presidential candidate Marco Rubio's fundraiser at the home of Dallas businessman Harlan Crow.

Barone, With a Message the Press Will Black Out: Wisconsin Is 'In Play in November'
By Tom Blumer | June 6, 2012 | 4:46 PM EDT

Alternate title: "Surprise (Not): Barone Exposes How Exit Poll Samples Are Typically Biased."

Early this morning, at the Washington Examiner, Michael Barone casually put out what is apparently a well-known fact in polling circles. I'm thinking that it's not at all well-known to the general public (bold is mine):

It Is Over
By R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. | October 21, 2010 | 12:20 PM EDT

The Democrats are about to be beaten by something that they do not in their heart of hearts think exists, a huge national majority. At this late hour, with the storm clouds gathering and the livestock getting restless, they see only sunshine. Yes, there is "foreign money" out there. Yes, the media have bungled broadcasting the purity of the Democratic message. And naturally, angry voices can be heard. Yet surely there is no majority gathering to unseat the party of decency and good deeds. Well, there is, and it is nothing like how the Democrats describe it.

That majority is amiable and sensible and believes in limited government. It is convinced that we face a catastrophic budget crisis and that measures must be taken against the spending and on behalf of growth. Furthermore, many of these friendly Americans would be delighted to give our president a ride home if they found him on a street corner, though they would be a lot happier if he did not live at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. They doubt he would ask them in for a drink. After all, to him they do not exist.

Many of these people are tea partyers. Now, they certainly do exist. Yet they are nothing like what the Democrats believe them to be. They are not angry and warlike. They are concerned about what the Democrats have done these past months, but they will retire them the old-fashioned way, through the ballot box.

Barone: 'Is the Washington Post Trying to "Macaca" Bob McDonnell?'
By Noel Sheppard | September 1, 2009 | 2:55 PM EDT

As most NewsBusters readers are aware, former Virginia Sen. George Allen's re-election campaign in 2006 -- and likely his entire political career -- was destroyed when media members spent months focusing attention on a word he uttered that likely nobody in the nation had ever heard of prior to that point.

At the forefront of such politically motivated obsession was the Washington Post which according to LexisNexis mentioned the word "macaca" along with Allen's name in 107 articles prior to Election Day 2006.

Now, according to the Washington Examiner's Michael Barone, the Post might be trying to do the same thing to the Republican candidate in the Virginia governor's race, Bob McDonnell: 

Michael Barone: If Bush Were a Dictator, New York Times Editor Would Be 'In Chains'
By Justin McCarthy | October 30, 2008 | 5:18 PM EDT

If President Bush is exhibiting dictatorial behaviors, the editor and publisher of The New York Times would be facing criminal prosecution. That hypothesis come from pundit and "U.S. News" columnist Michael Barone. Appearing on the October 30 edition of "Fox and Friends," Barone laughed off outrageous charges of a Bush dictatorship. He then noted that the true anti-civil libertarian measures are coming from the left, particularly Barack Obama and his supporters.Barone exemplified such actions by noting Democratic attorneys calling for libel prosecution of Obama’s critics, but not McCain’s. Barone added "that would represent the first time that we have criminalized political speech since the expiration of the Alien and Sedition Acts in 1801-1802." Barone also noted Obama’s co-sponsorship of the Fairness Doctrine, a backdoor way to censor conservative talk radio.Barone of course also alluded to the media’s love affair with Barack Obama and their concern about harming the senator’s "electoral chances."

Barone of U.S. News: Lou Dobbs Candidacy a Possibility
By Jeff Poor | December 14, 2007 | 12:12 PM EST

Lou DobbsThere are quite a few people already running for president, but one author recently suggested others might jump in: like CNN's own Lou Dobbs.