54 Days Out: The Lowest Day

Jesse Lee is the Online Rapid Response Manager for the DNC, this is the first daily update on the day's happenings which will continue through the election.

Yesterday Mark Halperin, no liberal community organizer, called it "a low point in the day ... and one of the low days of our collective coverage of this campaign."

First we had the farce surrounding the putting of lipstick on pigs. Mike Huckabee ruined Sean Hannity's day by dismissing it, and ABC News has a virtual encyclopedia of debunking and mockery on the Republican "crocodile tears."

Senator Obama responded today, saying "I don't care what they say about me, but I love this country too much to let them take over another election with lies and phony outrage and swiftboat politics."

Then there was the too-despicable-to-link-to ad which McClatchy flatly called "a deliberately misleading accusation." Joe Klein went further: "I just can't wait for the moment when John McCain--contrite and suddenly honorable again in victory or defeat--talks about how things got a little out of control in the passion of the moment. Talk about putting lipstick on a pig."

Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton responded this time:

"It is shameful and downright perverse for the McCain campaign to use a bill that was written to protect young children from sexual predators as a recycled and discredited political attack against a father of two young girls - a position that his friend Mitt Romney also holds. Last week, John McCain told Time magazine he couldn't define what honor was. Now we know why."

So what's this all about? Let's go back to Mark Halperin, who explains the McCain strategy on flooding the zone with deceptive charges:

Speaking of which, we're watching today's McCain-Palin rally right now here at the DNC and she just gave the "thanks, but no thanks" line again. Ding!

Comments

[Spesabsquemetu]

Ethics in Journalism - Part I

Mark Halperin:

“They’re saying this on the stump as a core part of their message, it’s in their advertisin­g….If the core part of their message is something that every ..journali­sm organization in the country has looked at and says: ‘It’s demonstratively false’, again, we’re not doing our job, if we treat this as just one of many things that’s happening. We have 60 days to do this, and we had better be doing it, and if she (Palin) doesn’t cooperate, the public should be told.”

To all journalists with a conscience, heed the words of Mr. Halperin, or be exposed as unworthy of your profession.

[scinla]

This proves we're stuck in the MUD!! none of us has a voice in this game other than our Vote. And no one is talking about Congres as the sit on their butts with important issues at hand. 9% approval--way to go Polosi and Reed. Ihope the winner changes something in Washington. Make them listen!

I decided to go with PushDC.com to make sure I'm being heard in Washington. At least I know they'll make someone listen to what I (and we) care about with todays issues.

We ahven't relly seen the lowest day yet, there'll be plenty more ahead

[mergina]

I have a feeling they are going to get a lot lower before november.

[PumaAnn]

O tanked in February. Of course, it's not going to work.

[greejambri]

You got it wrong, AnninCA, Hillary is the one who "tanked," just like McCain/Palin are going to tank. I see you're still sick on those sour grapes.

[Charmed]

Excately what kind of Christian is this woman....s­he's still lying and she knows we all know that she's lying...Oh yeah, she's catering to a certain crowd.

[WASanford]

Jessie if you don't want a fight, then why are you standing in the ring? And what are you doing with those boxing gloves on your hands? Can't you see the other guy is coming at you with his bare knuckles?

[piperflyer]

HuffPost's Pick

Why is it so hard to see that a pacifist will not fight. I was raised in the Mennonite church and our mantra was "non-resis­tence." We did not go to war. We did not fight. We worked things out. But there was a story I remember that bears a replay: An old pacifist Mennonite was milking his cow when the bossie put her foot in his bucket. He calmly lifted the foot out and rinsing the bucket began again to milk. This happened twice more and finally the old farmer took the cows head in his calloused hands and said: "thou knowest I will not harm thee, because I am a peaceful man. But what thou doest not know is that on the morrow I will sell thee to my Baptist brother-in-law and he will beat the crap out of you.

The desire to please everyone is keeping democrats from pleasing anyone.

[PumaAnn]

I do not see O as a pacifist. I do see him as exactly like a lot of passive-ag­gressives.

I can't stand them.

[WASanford]

piperflyer, you said it all with "We did not go to war." The problem is...This is a war and If you're not going to do battle then you will lose it. We will have another president who will send our soldiers into battle on a whim, just like Bush did. We will have more voodoo economics, we will have more rich folks getting richer while the rest of us become poorer. We will have to live with an ideology that amounts to fascism. An ideology that was responsible for the death of millions of human beings in the first half of the twentieth century.

I'm not damming anyone who doesn't want to fight, just those who will stand in the way with their hands in their pockets doing nothing while the American people are exploited into penury.

[Terriac]

The McCain campaign has sunk to a low that I didn't want to believe that even they would sink to. They have been out there lying -- yes, lying, as my mother used to say, "with their bare faces hanging out." They put out ads that are slimy and deliberately deceptive and misleading. They go into paroxysms of feigned outrage at the slightest little thing. They are really taking low-ball campaign tactics to a whole new level. It looks like they may have finally pushed the envelope just a little too far. The media, if they want to have any self-respect left at all when this thing is over, has to come out and decry this crap and call them out on it. It is so painfully obvious what the McCain camp is doing that you have to be a complete and total idiot, or in absolute denial, not to see if. If we as a country don't want our campaigns to be run this way, we have to stand up in unison, both progressives and conservatives, and demand, "Enough." We deserve not be played for fools. And that is exactly what the McCain camp is doing. To every single one of us in this country. Let's not let them get away with it.

[Airmid]

So.... just as a reminder that Americans *can* think....

can we flood the internet with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGCRncVOkS0

[piperflyer]

Dear Airmid,

In the time you took to preach to the choir (writing your little note above) you could have been preaching to the diabolical oppressors from the other side of the aisle. I hear a lot of harsh talk today here at Huffington, but it's all huff and puff. Don't tell me what needs to be done, I hear what you are saying. Tell the world. Get off this site and preach to those who don't want to hear what you are saying. They may shut you off, they may offer scorn, they may laugh and jeer, but if what you believe is true, opposition is part of the work we have to do. Leave the choir alone to sing whatever it sings.

[Henry]

I think it is about time to take the RovNik strategy at "shattering" them at their base. This is not too complicated, they have been lying through their teeth and they have been bearing false witness.
It's the 10 Commandments stupid, they are leading with their glass jaws. Time to see some broken glass.

[MyLeftIsRight]

Yes, let's see some broken glass - and not in the CEILING! Palin seems to think that she's got a lot of women on her side just because she's a female! Well, she's going to have more than female plumbing to think she will take away my choices and legislate her "marality" for the whole country! Can you imagine these two in the White House? What would they do every time Putin said "Boo" ? Would they cry to the media that Putin is being unfair....­.or would McSame just nuke them? Think about it!

[MyLeftIsRight]

Oops! I meant to type "morality", but you probably got it anyway. I am so upset at the media that I can't see (or type) straight. What a bunch of overpaid, self-centered jerks!