Vanden Heuvel on "coordinated campaign to distract attention from ... architects of a torture campaign which has made" U.S. "less secure"
May 17, 2009 12:40 pm ET
Please upgrade your flash player. The video for this item requires a newer version of Flash Player. If you are unable to install flash you can download a QuickTime version of the video.
"What we have seen over this last week Liz, and we may live on different planets, is a coordinated campaign to distract from the true architects of a torture campaign which has made this country less secure."
I don't know who Liz is, or what different planets are being referred to there, but I live on the planet Earth, and I can honestly say that I have rarely if ever seen such a coordinated and overtime campaign to absolutely SATURATE the media, especially cable television, with this campaign about "torture memos" and now "torture briefings"...
Again, a campaign to distract from these things?
LORD I have never seen so many Republican media hacks OBSESS relentlessly on any issue, like they obsess and prattle on 24/7 about torture...
Distract from?
To distract from something is to talk about something else, or point in another direction, or change the subject of conversation...
What other thing are Republican media hacks, led by their king Dick Cheney, talking about?
What other direction are they pointing at, or what subject are they changing the conversation to?
We may live on different planets I guess, I don't know, it depends on what planet it is you think you live on... me, I live on the planet Earth, where at present the news media and cable television especially, are so obsessed and so saturated with "torture memo" and "torture briefings" noise, that rather than think I was being distracted from those things, I instead feel like my nose is being rubbed in them 24 hours and seven days a week... I feel as though someone is drowning my eyes and ears in "torture memos" and now "torture briefings" crap...
Someone's distracting from these things?
Not on the planet Earth they aren't!
As a matter of fact, it is the 24 hour seven day a week absolute saturation and immersion of the media and cable television into "torture memo" and now "torture briefing" noise, that is distracting from everything else!
[And as a curious added note, truly, I'm wondering why the above headline to the item omitted the words "the true" from the statement of the woman being quoted.]
I believe you that it's Liz Cheney, and I agree about a 'media blitz', and that just all the more adds to what it is I'm noting here, and refutes what the woman above said, about there being a "coordinated campaign to distract attention" from this issue...
At present Liz Cheney is a Republican media darling, on every imaginable cable show, and this ABC show too it appears...
Now what kind of campaign is it that makes Liz Cheney a household name all of a sudden: a campaign to distract from torture and "torture memos" and now "torture briefings", or a campaign to emphasize those things?
And the word 'emphasize' is an understatement there, as the Republican media is truly running hog wild full blast maximum overdrive with this noise, and for good reason: because if they didn't attack and distract your eyes and ears with this nonsense presently, then you might actually be paying attention to the good things that President Obama is doing presently, like regulating the robbed banks and financial services companies, and regulating emissions, and maybe expanding the Medicare program to cover more Americans, and many more things too, all good and some historic even... Congressional Democrats too are involved in these good and historic changes... and it all could and should be increasing the already high approval ratings the President and Democrats in Congress are enjoying, it should all be increasing their political capital right now with the American People...
But no, we have Republican noise 24 hours and 7 days a week about torture and "torture memos" and now "torture briefings": it's all intentional I say... and I say also it's baiting the worst and most destructive and reactionary element of the Democratic party, and it's working, they're taking the bait and frothing along on this matter, like as if they were the hand puppets of the Republican party and the Republican media itself...
Just look at this example, where I guess Liz Cheney provoked some woman into nearly losing her mind on this issue: that's the whole point!
And as far as that other character, the strange looking bald guy, he appears not to need any provocation at all, as I'm pretty sure he already lost his mind some time ago.
You know we have seen in recent years, the Republican party and their Republican owned and operated media, try and dictate certain supposed National Policy issues, dictate them to whoever it is who will watch and listen, and to whoever it is they can bait into going off and going on about these issues, for the purposes it seems to drag political discourse in a direction towards where they (Republicans) can appear to be on the side of Law and Order, and National Security...
Illegal immigration for example: the Republican media has recently obsessed about hordes of illegal immigrants crossing our borders and squatting in the U.S., more than hordes, millions upon millions and even a billion or so of them, all streaming across the border illegally, to live in the U.S. illegally, to commit the crime of being an illegal immigrant... and all for the purpose of trying to get Democrats to take the bait, and take the side of someone who, as a natural and necessary matter of definition in this subject matter, has the word ILLEGAL in front of their name... that, in addition to otherwise distracting you (and Democrats too) from all other issues, is why Republicans have tried hard to steer our discourse toward illegal immigration...
But it didn't really work, did it... I mean, Democrats didn't really take the bait and side with illegals... sure, they took up the matter of immigration, but they didn't actually side with someone who has ILLEGAL in front of their name, and that was good, that made sense, and so Republicans were frustrated at trying to bait Democrats into appearing against Law and Order and against National Security.
Now how about same-sex marriage: haven't Republicans constantly over the past couple of years, tried to bend the political discourse of the the American People toward that issue, for the obvious purpose of aligning Democrats on one side of that issue, and in the process alienating them from what is called "Red State America", which is a sizable portion of the American People indeed... haven't Republicans and their media tried that, and worked overtime on that issue and obsessed about it?
But again, to no avail, as I say Democrats have not taken that bait either, and as illustration of that point, I'd ask you rhetorically how President Obama feels about the issue, or even former President candidate and now Secretary of State Clinton, how they stand on that issue? If you pause in answering, and if you are unable to answer for sure, then that is my point, that they have successfully not taken the bait, and not aligned themselves in any high profile way, with that issue... and so again Republicans were frustrated.
Well they aren't frustrated any more, because they finally found the issue that Democrats will run with, and will make for the appearance of being against Law and Order and against National Security: the issue of torture, or more exactly (and stupidly) "torture memos" and now "torture briefings"...
Eureka! Republicans have found it!
They have finally found the issue that apparently will stick, and that can bait Democrats into taking a 'knee jerk' stance right alongside (of all people) terror suspects!
Terror suspects!
That's far better than mere illegal immigrants, and it's world's better than aligning Democrats simply with people who want to exchange legally binding and legally recognized nuptials!
And disagree as much as you like, but do yourself the pride, of at least appearing sensible and alert and having eyes and ears that work, to see and hear and be aware of the facts... agree with me, that it is indeed Republicans and their media, who are going hog wild and obsessing every chance they can get, about torture and interrogation : aren't they?
They are.
Just look over Media Matters' many citations on this issue over the last three weeks... there must be near a thousand such citations... at the top of virtually every one of the them, you will see the names and/or faces of limbaugh and hannity and beck, and coulter and o'reilly and scarborough, and everyone at Fox... just use your eyes, it's easy to do... look close, and you even see Dick Cheney too, on the airwaves and keeping alive the issue of torture... now does that make sense?
Do you have sense enough to see even those facts?