Absent any evidence, CNN anchors and reporters asserted that Kerry remark will have major impact
SUMMARY: CNN anchors and reporters stated
or suggested without evidence that the controversy over Sen. John Kerry's
remarks will have an impact on the midterm elections, despite the fact that
Kerry is not running for office in the election.
In the wake of Sen. John Kerry's (D-MA) October 30 remarks, which Republicans and some in the media have misrepresented in asserting that Kerry denigrated U.S. soldiers in Iraq, CNN anchors and reporters on The Situation Room, CNN Newsroom, and American Morning stated or suggested without evidence that the controversy over Kerry's remarks will have an impact on the midterm elections, despite the fact that Kerry is not up for re-election nor running for any other elected position.
In a November 2 analysis of a Democracy Corps poll conducted October 29 through November 1, the Democratic polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner stated that the responses during the final day in which the poll was in the field, which came "after two news cycles of Kerry stories," showed that the stories produced no difference in respondent opinions from the previous two days, and that the controversy over Kerry's remarks "has not helped Republicans," and that "independents show no interest in it." The poll, conducted in the 50 most competitive congressional districts currently held by Republicans, found that respondents favored named Democratic candidates/incumbents over named Republican candidates/incumbents 51 percent to 44 percent.
Even before any poll was released, however, CNN was promoting the Kerry remarks as a major factor in the election:
- On the October 31 edition of CNN Newsroom, anchor Don Lemon concluded a segment on Kerry's comments by noting, "You know, we didn't talk how this is going to affect the upcoming election next week. Because according to Kerry, the voters are tired of this back and forth between the Democrats and Republicans. ... We're definitely going to have much more on this issue coming up, plus how it's going to affect the upcoming election."
- On the October 31 edition of The Situation Room, co-host Wolf Blitzer wondered before a commercial whether Kerry's comments would "haunt the Democrats all the way to the election." Co-host Paula Zahn later asserted that "John Kerry's one-liner at a California college has launched another bitter Bush-Kerry battle, one that could affect next week's election."
- On the November 1 edition of CNN Newsroom, anchor Heidi Collins said, "It's hard to run with a foot in your mouth, especially when it belongs to somebody else. A Democratic candidate speaks out on the famous flubbed line flap." Anchor Tony Harris added, "He's not even up for election this time, but will John Kerry's gaffe affect your votes?"
- On the November 1 edition of The Situation Room, CNN senior analyst Jeff Greenfield said that "ever since Senator Kerry's botched joke," he had "been trying to think about one simple question: When have the ill-advised comments had a major political impact when the speaker wasn't a candidate?"
- Later during the November 1 edition of The Situation Room, while interviewing Slate blogger Michey Kaus and right-wing pundit Ann Coulter about Kerry's remarks, Zahn asserted that "there are some folks out there that think it will increase voter turnout," then asked Kaus, "Is John Kerry going to cost some Democrats some victories in tight races?"
- On the November 2 edition of CNN's American Morning, co-host Soledad O'Brien asked senior political correspondent Candy Crowley, "How much of a role, how much of an impact do you think [Kerry's remarks are] actually going to have on this election?" In response, Crowley asserted that the remarks "certainly might help Republicans in stirring up their base" by "remind[ing] them of John Kerry."
From the October 31 edition of CNN Newsroom:
LEMON: You know, we didn't talk how this is going to affect the upcoming election next week. Because according to Kerry, the voters are tired of this back-and-forth between the Democrats and Republicans. Last week it was the waterboarding incident with the vice president that people said was misconstrued. Now it's John Kerry's comments that people are saying are misconstrued. So, I think people are wanting to come together instead of fighting so much about it, whether what's -- what was misconstrued or not. We're definitely going to have much more on this issue coming up, plus how it's going to affect the upcoming election that's happening on Tuesday.
Fro the October 31 edition of CNN's The Situation Room:
BLITZER: Coming up: Will John Kerry's attempt at humor be forgotten in a few days, or a few hours, maybe? Or will it haunt the Democrats all the way to the election? We'll be right back.
[...]
ZAHN: And welcome back to CNN election headquarters right here in New York, where politicians should never underestimate the power of being able to tell a joke. John Kerry's one-liner at a California college has launched another bitter Bush-Kerry battle, one that could affect next week's election.
From the November 1 edition of CNN Newsroom:
COLLINS: It's hard to run with a foot in your mouth, especially when it belongs to somebody else. A Democratic candidate speaks out on the famous flubbed-line flap.
HARRIS: That was pretty good. He's not even up for election this time, but will John Kerry's gaffe affect your votes? All things political today in the Newsroom.
From the November 1 edition of CNN's The Situation Room:
BLITZER: Welcome back. The latest John Kerry vs. George Bush sparring over Iraq has a déjà-vu quality to it. But there is a big difference this time. Senator Kerry isn't running for anything, at least not officially. Let's bring in our senior analyst, Jeff Greenfield -- Jeff.
GREENFIELD: Well, you know, Wolf, ever since Senator Kerry's botched joke, I have been trying to think about one simple question: When have the ill-advised comments had a major political impact when the speaker wasn't a candidate? Well, I did find one, but you have to go back a ways -- a long, long ways.
[...]
ZAHN: But it is a two-day story, Mickey. And there are some folks out there that think it will increase voter turnout. Is John Kerry going to cost some Democrats some victories in tight races?
KAUS: It's not going to help, but there are some Democrats, like Harold Ford, who are having a great time distancing themselves from Kerry and using him as the -- sort of our Sister Souljah of -- of this year.
From the November 2 edition of CNN's American Morning:
O'BRIEN: A couple of weeks ago, we were talking about the scandal over Foley, now we've been talking about Senator Kerry and his remarks. How much of a role, how much of an impact do you think that's actually going to have on this election?
CROWLEY: It was interesting. I mean, here in this district, [Democratic congressional candidate Tammy] Duckworth was -- said she thought it was unfortunate, asked if Kerry should apologize -- this is before he did. She said, you know, I don't know. I just know that what we really should be talking about is what's going on in Iraq. Is there a plan? She definitely, obviously, felt negatively about what Senator Kerry had to say. Nonetheless, this looks like a hardened landscape across the country. People have made up their minds about Iraq. What this may do, and what Republicans certainly are trying to do, is whip up their base, remind them of John Kerry; certainly Republicans didn't like him in 2004. Republicans need, if they're going to win anywhere, is to get their base out. The base has been depressed about any number of things, about spending in Washington and about the Iraq war, about social issues. So the fear for Republicans is that that base won't come out because they're too discouraged. So something like Kerry's remarks certainly might help Republicans in stirring up their base. It probably doesn't hurt Democrats as much as it maybe helps Republicans bring out their solid voters.
Most people still don't know about Bush joking around, looking under tables, for the missing Iraqi WMD's. That story was an insult to what every soldier was fighting for, but was hardly aired. Unfortunately, the Democrats didn't even use Bush's joke in ads against him.
The Radio and Television Correspondent's Dinner tradition is that the President make jokes on serious subjects.
If you had any education, you would know that.
Kerry, on the other hand, didn't make a joke. He launched an attack and got caught on camera. Kerry has called an all-volunteer army a greater risk to cause war crimes. He has a long history of knocking the soldiers and loathing the military. He comes from the Seymour Hersch wing of alleging our military is nothing but baby killers.
If MMFA thinks three days of this will not help swing the election to the right they are lying to try to protect themselves.
Have you been looking at the polls today? 29% of the people disapprove of the way Bush has handled the war. 69% think Bush has no plan for Iraq. It's about IRAQ... Do you seriously think a verbal gaffe by John Kerry, who is not running for anything, is going to change the disgust that America has for Bush and his Iraq disaster? You've been watching Sean Hannity too long.
That's 29% approve of the war, of course, not disapprove. Just in case some wingnut tries to use that statistic against you.
Absolutely correct about the supposed impact of this. Polling on this is not favoring the repubs, and it's only putting the emphasis on Iraq. And when Tony Snow acknowledges that Kerry's apology was "sufficient" (or was it "adequate" I forget), even though Kerry did not apologize for insulting the troops, but instead for any appearance of such, it's over. Even the White House isn't trying to run with this non-issue any longer, even when Kerry didn't give them what they wanted.
Iraq is the big issue, and it's not going away.
We KNOW what the venue was. Perhaps you could hire someone with a functioning sense of decency to eplain to you that to JOKE about the FALSE reasons he sent them to war is, well, inappropriate is far to tame a word to describe it insane, insensative. basically laciking in any human decency might cover it. If you REALLY think a botched joke by Kerry is going to swing this election to the right, you are as dumb as, well you probably DO think that. Sure the lying about a senseless war, the several high ranking republicans doing perp walks a major republican preying on underage pages, none of that really matters, Kerry botched a joke. You really do live in an alternate reality.
Here is a link for anyone who thought that Mr. Bush's skit at the Radio and Television Correspondent's Dinner was funny.
[link to www.icasualties.org]
I'd suggest looking at the date of the dinner which was March 24, 2004.
that's powerful. That's exactly why they didn't want Ted Koppel listing the names on NIGHTLINE.
On the day that you posted your defense of Bush's despicable act towards our fallen military personnel, five more Americans lost their lives, fighting in Iraq.
Below is part of a column by Tom Friedman, very well said and the reason I have said I hope the Democrats take control of the House next Tuesday.......
**********************************
Let Karl know that you're not stupid. Let him know that you know that the most patriotic thing to do in this election is to vote against an administration that has — through sheer incompetence — brought us to a point in Iraq that was not inevitable but is now unwinnable.
Let Karl know that you think this is a critical election, because you know as a citizen that if the Bush team can behave with the level of deadly incompetence it has exhibited in Iraq — and then get away with it by holding on to the House and the Senate — it means our country has become a banana republic.
Fortunately Dems can think for themselves. One gaffe will make no difference.
The Democrats should have used Bush looking for WMD's under his desk in ads. While this was a skit for the Correspondent's Dinner, it crossed the line of good taste. Bush invaded a sovereign nation BECAUSE of alleged WMD's. Troops & civillians died. This skit wasn't funny AND was an insult to our troops and their families.
They ALSO should have used that snippet from Michael Moore's movie where Bush addresses the crowd at a fundraiser ["This is an impressive crowd - the haves and the have-mores, some people call you the elites; I call you my base"] My wife, a Democrat, called the Kerry campaign and implored them to use it. The guy she spoke with [some underling no doubt] said it sounded like a great idea, he'd pass it on...IF he did, they OBVIOUSLY passed on it.
I think those would be good commercials. I would also like to see the clip that ran on Kieth Olbermann of Bush saying "We were never about 'stay the course', George" followed by a dozen clips of Bush and Cheney saying "We have to stay the course". That should be running in all states 24/7.
The Dems are on the verge of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. I'd switch to a third party if there was one that had a snowball's chance of winning an election.
Relax, Nerz, take a deep breath... we're doing fine. There are always ups and downs in the last days of campaigns. Keep your eye an the bigger issue, Iraq. John Kerry's gaffe isn't going to change anyone's mind about what a disaster Iraq is. The only people who are continuing to act outraged are the Sean Hannity types and you're never going to convince those people of anything rational anyway.
I watched "Hacking Democracy" on HBO last night. It raised my cynicism level by about 10 points.
and then went to vote this morning (on an absentee ballot card which was then inserted into an ESS model 100 voting tabulator). As I drove home I reflected on that documentary and all the Bev Harris (Black Box Voting.org) reports, and found that I have absolutely NO confidence that my vote is even going to count.
The FIRST thing our shiny new Dem house of representatives should do is reform the Help America Vote Act. Enact REAL voting protections that take the power away from CORPORATE interests, and put it back into the hands of "WE THE PEOPLE".
Printed receipts ARE NOT the answer. Computer software can be programmed to print out what you voted while actually flipping your vote to another candidate. The only way we can give the power back to the voters is to FORCE the voting machine companies to REVEAL their SECRET source codes, and enact real security measures to prevent diabolical interests from hijacking our democracy.
Diebold and others cry about trade secrets and proprietary information. BULLS**T! This is OUR democracy, there is no place for anything secret. It is RIDICULOUS to think that EVEN our elected election supervisors cannot look at the computer software to see if it can be hacked.
If there is an issue of trade secrets, it can be solved legislatively. The government can buy any applicable patents or liscenses from the voting machine companies, or they can offer exclusive contracts in exchange for access to the source codes. Or they can simply UN-PRIVATIZE the whole process.
This is supposed to be OUR democracy, not Wall Street's. It's time to TAKE IT BACK.
The Kerry flap is losing steam. The news shows are simply repeating themselves now and I doubt seriously if it will have any significant imapct on the elections. It wasn't a good thing, for sure, because it momentarily interrupted the Democratic momentum. The only people who are still worked up about this are Sean Hannity viewers who already are voting Republican. The Democrats are still going to comforatbly take the House; and the Senate will still be close. A "major impact" would be if the Republicans kept the House... and that ain't gonna happen.
they'll steal the election using the voting machines, and blame it on Kerry's comments.
I think the Republicans could 'swiftly' add this comment to their last round of attack ads and keep it alive.
Of course they have Kerry to thank for that. His supposed apology just gives the Republicans more fodder.
I had to laugh when I read what Taranto wrote:
Kerry's apology isn't really an apology at all. Here's a shorter summary of it:
1. What I said wasn't really what I said.
2. I'm sorry if you misinterpreted what I was saying by taking it at face value.
3. Republicans suck.
Why it is so hard just to say, "I'm sorry for what I said"?
----
Unless something comes along to bump that off the lead, Kerry is a gift that just keeps on giving.
You're beating a dead horse and you're waaay off base. The difference vetween American voters and Bush is that voters believe in accountability. That's a part of the real world they live in; if they screw up they have to pay for it. The Iraq war has been a series of major screw ups and yet no on has been held accountable for it. This election will be America'a way of holding the White House accountable. They can't vote against Bush but they can vote against his minions... and somebody is going to pay for Iraq. America is disgusted with the Iraq fiasco. John Kerry's gaffe is a fart in the wind.
The difference vetween American voters and Bush is that voters believe in accountability.
Is this the SAME American voters that the left said were just plain STUPID after 2004?
"Is this the SAME American voters that the left said were just plain STUPID after 2004?"
I think most would say that shorter attention spans and bumper-sticker politics helps to manipulate and misinform voters, not that those voters are just plain stupid. Not sure what the point is...because that's the supposed portrayal, voters really won't figure out that the war is the fault of the Republicans and hold them accountable? The facts about the war haven't changed, but public approval has, and that's the difference here whether the electorate is stupid or not.
Incidentally, I don't usually care about grammatical errors, but since the topic is stupidity of voters, it sounds like you went to the GWB school of Mangled English. "Are these the same American voters..."
I know, I want the preview function back too.
For Kerry to "apologize" two days after-the-fact just played into the Right's hands. Although the omitted word "us' would have made the line more pointed, the reference was still clear. One military poster on NEWSHOUNDS made the great point that the absence of the word "serving" (in Iraq) made it clear that Kerry meant Bush and no one else.
Has anyone noticed that now every single news story about the incident-- both local and national-- claims that Kerry apologized "yesterday" for "insulting the troops?"
That's the received opinion, and few pundits have been refuting this false notion-- the only one I saw who tried was Colmes, albeit weakly against Ann Coulter tonight.
That's what happens when you play nice and reasonable with these people. Never allow them to define the issues, because you'll lose.
>>"Why it is so hard just to say, "I'm sorry for what I said"?"<<
Ask George W. Bush why it's so hard for him to say he's sorry---not just for the lies he's told, but for what he's done to our country, to Iraq, and to our standing in the world.
Address your question to Mr. "Pills" Limbaugh, who never apologized for falsely accusing Michael J. Fox of faking his symptoms.
Ask it of Mr. Henny-Penny Rumsfeld, who said he doubted our adventure in Iraq would last even six months.
Ask Mr. Dick Five Draft Deferments, Face-Shooting, F-world-in-the-Senate-saying Cheney, who proclaimed "we now know Saddam Hussein has reconstituted nuclear weapons."
Want a list of more sorry-a$$ Republicans that should but will not say they are sorry. There's a million of them.
I'm sorry, AA, is this really coming from the same person who kept saying that Rush apologized for his comments about Michael J. Fox?
Was that not you?
Did you think about that for even a second before you posted this stupidity?
"Why it is so hard just to say, "I'm sorry for what I said"?"
While the transcript and the context show Kerry was not insulting the troops, you want him to apologize for doing so, even when he apologized for making a stupid mistake and the way it came off. You essentially want him to lie to appease his opponents, really. But when Rush says he would apologize if he was wrong, and then later goes on to say he meant every word and wouldn't change anything he said, well to you that's an apology. So in that case, there is no gaffe, no slip of the tongue, nothing out of context or misrepresented at all. Kerry should throw himself to the mercy of the people for a botched joke about a vastly unpopular president, pretending that he really meant to insult the troops, but Limbaugh has fully atoned when he said he would apologize if he was proven wrong while mocking the sick for political purposes, and then reiterates his original comments afterwards! This part is the best, though;
"2. I'm sorry if you misinterpreted what I was saying by taking it at face value."
Yes, like "entirely an act" can be taken at face value as "faking". But Rush never said "faking", so it's all OK, right? According to you, everyone was misinterpreting what he said to come up with "faking", when all he said was it was "entirely an act". I mean, the distinction between the two is just obvious! And I'm sure that nothing in Rush's apology could translate to "Democrats suck", either. Right.
I'm going to be laughing about this one all day.
What issues or scandals or gaffes they BELIEVE will have a MAJOR "impact" on elections. Sometimes they get it right. More often than not, DESPITE their obsession with a particular story, it does not resonate with voters.
I seriously DOUBT Kerry's "botched joke" will sway voters one way or the other. Just like the Foley scandal also ran out of steam and won't carry much, IF any, weight with how voters cast their ballots.
Iraq, and LOCAL issues will likely be what brings people to the polls.
I do think ANY future Kerry Presidential bid is in the crapper because of this. And that pleases me a great deal. The guy is a moron, IMO. He's also my State Senator and I hope this current controversy carries over so we can rid ourselves of him here in Massachusetts as well.
Kerry should be even more vociferous in his speaking out against Bush. He can parley this setback into a powerful advantage if he plays his cards right, and he'll regain his own spin on the "gaffe" if he fights hard to make his valid point-of-view continuous and consistent.
Kerry's hardly a moron. He's much smarter than Bush or most of the Repub.'s, and he shouldn't hide it. These people are now in a vulnerable position, and it's time to play hardball with them.
There was nothing wrong with his joke-- it was fine the way it came out. The problem is that Kerry's dealing with liars and haters who can and will do absolutely anything. Why cower and let them win?
He wouldn't be in this perdicament.
>>"If Kerry were so smart He wouldn't be in this perdicament"<<
If right-wingers like you didn't make-believe that Kerry insulted the troops, there would be no more story.
about Bush. Kerry has long, long history of similar remarks about the military.
He never even said the words George Bush in his so called "botched joke" about George Bush.
He just got caught on tape with an elitist slip of what he truly believes.
He could have ended it in 3 seconds and said I'm sorry. Instead, he followed the moronic advice of many of the lefties on the board and tried to be even more aggressive and made the problem even worse. Or he could have been a man and just called the military uneducated stupid baby killers. Then at least he would been aggressive with his true feelings.
"Or he could have been a man and just called the military uneducated stupid baby killers.
- Leatherhelmet / Friday November 3, 2006 12:38:14 AM" EST
This is what you think of our military you psychopath!
To believe otherwise and blinded by stupidity KNOWS it was a botched joke. No one in their right minds would insult troops at a campaign event. You are a sad joke.
kerry "just got caught on tape". sure, like he was unaware he was at a public event.
>>"Nobody believes it was a joke about Bush. Kerry has long, long history of similar remarks about the military."<<
Even right-wingers like you KNOW it was a joke about Bush. But you guys are so very, very apt at denial of reality and pretending. "Mission accomplished", Brownie's "heckuva [Katrina] job", Mark Foley's problem has been "taken care of", and on and on. You fashion your little make-believe worlds the way you want. Thankfully, the rest of us recognize it for the sham that it is.
You sound like Tony at the press conference not being able to insert "us" anywhere in the quote. People are not as dumb as you and Bush want them to be.
I notice Bush never gets in this predicament even though he has said MUCH worse things. And isnt even in Kerry league intellectually. So maybe there is some other dynamic at play here. Didnt Bush say basically that Social Security WASNT a federal program? Didnt he say he NEVER stops thinking about how to hurt America? Didnt he say so many dumb things there isnt even CLOSE to enough space to cover it in under the 750 word limit? I didnt notice any firestorm controversy lasting days like this when Bush does the same dumb thing.
Kerry is not a moron. Bad choice on my part to describe him THAT way. I should have said he's shallow, snooty, pompous, pretentious & arrogant.
"Kerry should be even more vociferous in his speaking out against Bush. He can parley this setback into a powerful advantage if he plays his cards right, and he'll regain his own spin on the "gaffe" if he fights hard to make his valid point-of-view continuous and consistent."
Kerry needs to emphasize that it was a speech condemning Bush and the joke was about Bush's stupidity. He needs to play up Bush's lack of intelligence and have the president and his echo chamber explaining why Bush is not stupid. I think America needs to have a "Is Bush Stupid" debate.
Regardless of the "Botch" his chances of getting the nomination ended in '04 IMO. I can't think of anyone who believed he could get on the ticket after running such a wimpy campaign last time.
The Bushbots welcome a distraction from all the awful and costly lies. But, to them 3,000 dead soldiers are merely a comma in history.
Jeter, I would disagree strongly with the "shallow" part but I can understand how Kerry strikes people as you described. My perception of him is that he's a decent man with a strong sense of right and wrong. The way his charcater was destroyed by the Swifties is IMO one of the lowest points in American political history. Kerry didn't desreve that. He volunteered to serve his country; he volunteered for combat duty; and, even when you read the Swifties' revised history of Kerry's military service you learn that Kerry was VOLUNTEERING for dangerous missions. What Kerry testified to when he returned from Nam is no different than what my friends who went to Nam told me... long before I had even heard John Kerry's name. Our fighting men were put in a nightmarish situation that reduced many of them to rely on their baser instincts. Viet Nam is a low point in American history and considering the numbers of lives lost and ruined our American soldiers were the real victims. You either believe that Kerry is motivated by self-serving ambition or you believe that he is a do-gooder who angered many with his honesty. I choose the latter and on that we will always disagree.
At first, I was po'd that Kerry would make such a gaff so close to the election...
But ...despite what the MSM says. For the first time in a long time, we all heard Kerry actually standing up and say that these guys are lying and deflecting. He was angry. Which, is how he should be. He has opened the door for others to follow suit (Olbermann, etc) Regular folks get it. Except for the loud-mouthed hard core... people aren't fooled by this one I think.
And, I agree with what some others had said. Kerry should keep at it. Get even angrier. Enough is enough.
The neocon response to this incident... that snide, arrogance that we all know so well... in the face of the bloodiest month we've seen yet in Iraq... in the face of a full-blown civil war... in the face, yet again, of the American people. If you are a thinker on any level, you understand that it's Bush and Cheney, et al who are the one's who don't care a wit about the troops, who insult them at every turn, who use them as props, who have under-equipped them (with no plan and lacking equipment)... If you can think for yourself. The choice is obvious. Who really insults the troops -- heck, blames them for the failures of the Bush admin on a regular basis...
Stop measuring the drapes Repugnicants, the Kerry Cycle is over. Breaking News: Leader of 30 million far right wingnuts is outted by male prostitute as a meth sucking sissy who pays for gay sex once a month.
The Sensational MMFA headline is not corroborated by the evidence in the body of the article. The reporters were mainly asking questions, not making assertions.
Otherwise, the headline seems quite reasonable.