The Real Reason Why Rove Criticized McCain's Lies
From Karl Rove's criticism of McCain's attack ads as going "a step too far," it would be easy to conclude that even the most devious among us has a point at which his moral compass kicks in. But that would be a mistake. Karl Rove wasn't annoyed with McCain for lying but rather for his amateur way of doing so. Rove prefers lies within the deniable range -- the more of them the better. From a Rovian perspective, McCain went long when he should have gone wide.
Rove was giving all of us a peek into how effective political lies are told. When they're in the deniable range, whether they exist or don't is always arguable. The preponderance of evidence doesn't fall to either side. Here are some of the ones we're hearing now.
- Associating McCain's less than admirable behavior in times past, flip-flopping on issues and erratic behavior as all part of him being a "maverick." This is a lie of false association.
- Making Obama's proposed end of tax cuts for the rich appear as an indicator that he'll raise taxes on everyone. This is a lie of logical fallacy.
- Confusing people about the economic crisis by attributing it to greed, but everyone's greed, to both regulation and also lack of regulation, and to both Democrats and Republicans. This is a lie of strategic ambiguity. When it works, people are so confused they don't know whom to blame.
Karl Rove knows that varying the types of lies used and not taking them "too far" keeps most people from detecting their existence.
It isn't enough for Obama and Biden to accuse McCain and Palin of telling lies. Only driving home the harmful effects of their lies and thus removing them from the deniable range will prevent the masters of deceit from winning once more.
Dr. Reardon also blogs at bardscove.
P.S. For those of you who are interested in more ways lies are told, Paul Ekman's work is excellent. Ekman writes of two primary types of lies -- concealment and falsifying. For the former with relevance to McCain, be sure to see Sydney Schanberg's article, "McCain and the POW Cove-up," in The Nation.
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Obama is a confident leader.
McCain is a conniving politician.
NOW as for:
Carl ROVE - Has Already Fixed the 2008 Election – read & view video by: Greg Palast:
http://www
This election could very well be stolen, very much like the last two.
Obama – Biden 2008 & 2012
Don’t forget WAR generates MONEY – the RE-pugs would like nothing better than to always keep one going.
Right on, Kathleen.
Exactly right! With Karl you need to read the small print!
And close your eyes and nose to keep the filth out!
"Karl Rove wasn't annoyed with McCain for lying but rather for his amateur way of doing so."
I think you're absolutely right. I ALSO think there's a bit of professional/ego a$$ covering going on in the hopeful event McC@ain loses.... you know, "if he'd only listened to ME..."
Agreed. In my mind, rove was saying at a time when America is on the brink of possibly electing a blank man as POTUS, the "plausible deniability" standard for truth-telling is high enough. Given the psychodynamics of that reality, no need to to tell the blatant lies. Latant racial attitudes are a reliable political tactic for the McCain campaign.
Rove is the most despicable practitioner of sleaze politics in the last fifty years. At least Lee Atwater had the decency to apologize to the people he slandered before he died of brain cancer. On Rove's deathbed, I'm sure he'll be imagining all the people he could have destroyed with his lies and he will regret not having done so. Rove is the worst of the worst. I think the word evil is quite accurate and descriptive of this "man."
I have little doubt he lied to the grand jury in the Valerie Plame case but simply was not indicted because they were uncertain he would be convicted. The evidence strongly suggests he was behind what appears to me to be illegal firings of U.S. Attys and the prosecution of Don Siegelman. These firings were illegal because they were part of a criminal conspiracy to violate federal law by using the Department of Justice.
I don't believe the final chapter is close to being written on Karl Rove. I expect before it's over he will go to prison, where he belongs, along with numerous other high level Bush Administration figures. Many of those will be indicted for war crimes by courts in other countries because of the principle of universal jurisdiction.
Another thing that Rove said which I think we need to put into serious consideration. He accused BOTH campaigns of lying which was lapped up by my Pappi like warm milk. And he is the "average uninformed voter." THEY BOTH LIE, he said to me tonight. Rove knows what he's doing. Where are the handcuffs and a gag to shut him up once and for all.
I thought Rove was being disingenuous to distance himself from any ads he didn't personally approve but also to try to make a case that he's not helping Mc-Same in a serious way (see, I'm showing I'm a pundit not a spokesman). The proof is when Rove says something and the next day Mc-Same airs an ad using the same critique. Coinkydink? I don't think so. My money is on Rove coming up with the idea, telling Mc-Same and then saying on the air to pave the road for it. You can't get an ad on the air about a comment in 24 hrs. So where's it come from? Either Rove attended or directed whatever meeting chose the spot.
Rove knows how vulnerable McCain is when McCain attacked Obama for legislation to protect our children from Child Molesters. Of course McCain made it sound like Obama wanted to teach 5 year olds sex education in public schools before they even knew how to read.
McCain attacking Obama for protecting children from child molesters. Rove knows how to run with that and he is afraid the Democrats might figure it out.
Lying is something the Democrats know a good deal about, even if Karl isn't behind it. Barack Obama told voters in the primary that he had no ties to corporate interests but it turns out that he did; in the drug industry and in health care providers. He received funds from both Freddie and Fannie. Don't know how amateurish his lies are but they certainly turned me off of his candidacy. Obama never addressed his mansion's acquisition but there is a lot of evidence that he basically was given such a loan that he couldn't refuse it through Rezko.
Just think if one is going to talk about lying in a campaign both sides ought to aired.
Bet you buy that bs story about the mortgage guy being an advisor, too. O hasn't been charged with anything. Mc-Same has nothing but corporate lobbyists (and the Georgia one) behind his campaign AND was admonished for his role in the Keating 5 -- as in get rid of the regulators to help the S&L guys. Remember that?
The ease with which you absorb falsehoods when you clearly have the ability to use the internet to discover the truth would have appalled me a few short months ago. Senator Obama does NOT take money from lobbyists or PACS-- Senator McCain DOES, including from Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.
fec.gov opensecret
Obama HAS received donations from EMPLOYEES of Freddie and Fannie. McCain HAS received large donations from top management at Freddie and Fannie. McCain's Campaign is also run by recent Fannie and Freddie lobbyists (just quit in March 2008-- before they were campaigning while still lobbying).
Obama has NEVER said that he would refuse money from any American because of their employer. He said he would not accept money from federally registered lobbyists and PACS. He has kept his word.
Obama's loan on his house was given at an interest rate without any deduction as has been repeatedly reported. He also bought his house at the fair market value. Obama's house is not a mansion-- unless all decent sized homes on small lots are mansions. Rezko had nothing to do with Obama's home financing.
Chicago Sun Times
You have been spun and you could have so easily verified everything I have said. Yet, you instead chose to spread falsehoods. Why? Do you like this mess in which we find ourselves? I understand why folks who don't have access to, or fully understand how to use the internet get spun by this nonsense. But why someone like you?
thank you. i, hopefully lots of people need someone like you with information, references.
Can it be and wonder then if we elect another Republican to lead our Nation we shall have four more years of tears and fears? Great essay Dr. Reardon, that's why you're the professor, and a great one to boot.
BINGO! What you just said is so imortant for us to understand
A lot of people, sadly, are more interested in plausible deniability than truth. They will accept whatever they want to hear, providing they can avoid being confronted by any inconvenient truths. It's not that McCain lies, it's not that people know he's lying, but it's that people can't even maintain a pretense that what McCain says might be true.
McCain's Rovian wannabees are amateurs when we compare them to their Master.
Ironically, the reason that Rove criticized McCain is because the McCain camp is a bad student and dragging Rove's name through the mud by association. You know that everyday that people mistakenly say that McCain has taken a page from the Rove playbook that Rove just cringes. Rove thrived on the fact that his approach to politics was feared among opponents, much like the Blitzkreig. But if Georgia's army called its recent activities in South Ossetia a Blitzkreig, and the Argentinians in the Falkland Island War called their activities a Blitzkreig, and if Iraq's Republican Guard had called their action in the war a Blitzkreig, that term would know longer hold any mystique, awe, or fear.
No, Rove is not criticizing McCain because he now wants the truth to be told always in elections. This is purely for ego and legacy. Rove knows that his legacy won't be preserved for posterity because of Bush's legacy, so he needs to start preserving it himself. Don't be surprised to see Rove ask for a cease-and-desist order on the McCain camp for using patented Rove techniques.
But, like Avis, they try harder.
Didn't Avis have OJ as a spokesman?
As Larry The Cable Guy would say, "I'm sorry, Lord. I apologize for that." :-)
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