Speaking of “Real Americans”

Here's a passage from today's New York Times article about presidential vacations:

That does not mean, of course, that Mr. Obama will not be hassled from afar.

During his Hawaiian trip last summer, the Republican National Committee carefully tracked his itinerary, sending out pictures and news accounts of his whereabouts on Oahu. This year, the themes of criticism could well come from the words of previous Republican presidents.

“Most Americans don't sit in Martha's Vineyard, swilling white wine,” George W. Bush once said when asked why he chose to relax in the broiling Texas sun as opposed to the cool Atlantic breezes. And Lyndon B. Johnson disparagingly referred to the Vineyard as the “female island,” upon discovering that his aides chose Martha's Vineyard for their vacation instead of joining him at his ranch in Texas.

The media's willingness to accept - even participate in - such ridicule is a pretty good clue that they are not, in fact, “liberal.” Try to imagine the Times presenting in a neutral light a similarly disdainful description of Texas by a Massachusetts politician.

Lyndon Johnson, by the way, was not a “previous Republican president.”