On GMA, Sawyer allowed McCain to tout his "positive" New Hampshire campaign
SUMMARY: ABC's Diane Sawyer did not challenge Sen. John McCain's claim that he "ran a positive campaign" in New Hampshire. In fact, McCain ran a negative TV ad in the state and negative Web ads about one of his opponents, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
In an interview with Sen. John McCain (AZ) about his January 8 win in the New Hampshire Republican primary, during the January 9 edition of ABC's Good Morning America, co-anchor Diane Sawyer did not challenge McCain's claim that he "ran a positive campaign" in New Hampshire. In fact, McCain ran a negative TV ad in the state and, in the days leading up to the primary, his campaign posted three negative Web ads about one of his opponents, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R).
Explaining why he felt he had won the New Hampshire primary, McCain told Sawyer "I came back to tell them the truth and have lots of town hall meetings. We had over our 101st yesterday. Day before yesterday. And we ran a positive campaign." When Sawyer asked if "Governor Romney [is] authentic or not," McCain responded:
McCAIN: Well, I think it's clear that Governor Romney has changed positions on a lot of issues, but I think he's a very fine person. And works very hard. I think he's very sincere. But also I think that has to do with the fact that we ran a positive campaign, and obviously, there was a slew of negative ads. And, so, I think that contributed to the positives that we had going into the election yesterday.
In neither instance did Sawyer challenge McCain's claim that he "ran a positive campaign." In fact, as Media Matters for America documented, in a December 28 press release, McCain's campaign announced the release of its TV ad "Consider," which quotes a Concord Monitor editorial asserting, "If a candidate is a phony ... we'll know it. Mitt Romney is such a candidate." Time magazine senior political analyst Mark Halperin reported on his Time.com blog The Page that the ad was the "first negative ad by any candidate besides Romney." In a December 28 post on ABC News' blog Political Radar, Matt Stuart reported that Romney responded to the ad, saying: "It's an attack ad. It attacks me personally. It's nasty. It's mean spirited. Frankly, it tells you more about Sen. McCain than it does about me that he would run an ad like that." McCain's campaign has also posted three negative Web ads against Romney in January.
Additionally, the Nashua, New Hampshire, Telegraph reported on December 18 that McCain "launched an attack -- a direct mail campaign labeling New Hampshire primary front-runner Mitt Romney as a serial flip-flopper that 'voters can't trust.' " The Telegraph added that the "mailing is believed to be the first, campaign-paid flier in New Hampshire by any candidate critical of former Massachusetts Gov. Romney, who holds onto a solid lead in GOP primary polls here."
Media Matters has noted several media outlets, including the Associated Press, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, the Politico, The Washington Post, USA Today, the New Hampshire Union Leader, and CNN, quoted or paraphrased McCain saying that negative campaigns or ads don't work without noting McCain's negative ads against Romney.
From the January 9 edition of ABC's Good Morning America:
SAWYER: Good morning to you, Senator McCain. So "comeback kid," huh? How old do you feel this morning?
McCAIN: Well, I'm going to say the noun "kid" doesn't fit very well. So "Mac is back" is our -- is our phrase. Feeling very good, very grateful to the people of New Hampshire, and now, as you know, we're on to another state. I came back to tell them the truth and have lots of townhall meetings. We had over our 101st yesterday -- day before yesterday. And we ran a positive campaign.
SAWYER: Let me ask you about the exit polls and some of the things they seem to be showing. They show that among voters who say that they're voting for a candidate who says what he believes, you defeated Governor Romney, 53-13. That's massive. This is the question. Is Governor Romney authentic or not?
McCAIN: Well, I think it's clear that Governor Romney has changed positions on a lot of issues, but I think he's a very fine person. And works very hard. I think he's very sincere. But also I think that has to do with the fact that we ran a positive campaign, and obviously, there was a slew of negative ads. And, so, I think that contributed to the positives that we had going into the election yesterday.
SAWYER: You have stuck with the surge and stuck with your position on the surge in Iraq from the beginning, and as you probably know, one of the most viewed videos now on YouTube is the video of you saying -- interjecting when someone talks about being in Iraq for 50 years, and you say, "Could be 100 years." Explain that.
Amazing how this site has turned into a pro Governor Romney site.
snarky much?
She's at least semi pro in that catagory.
Oh yah, Mitt is a soggy meat patty!
Now back to the lab! See if I can change the Tweety Effect into the Tweaky Effect. This will help in the construction of a mad ediface which could theorectically smell defeet.
Sueeld, considering the possibility that McCain could eventually be running against H. Clinton in the general election, don't let the Pro_romney site interprtation of the McCain items prevent you from continuing the MMFA as Hillary campaign site message.
As long as you're throwing out specious nutty theories.
McCain will not be the nominee.
Is that a fact or opinion?
My opinion based on my watching how the Repugs work, they do not like McCain , the evangelical Church going crowd will not accept him. Huckabee is the real threat to our freedom.
Sueeld,
While I do agree with you about McCain, I do not with your opinion regarding Huckabee. Not that I'm a Huckabee convert. :-) There are parts I like and parts I don't. If I were voting in the primary right now, it wouldn't be for him.
However I do not see any of the candidates as threats to our freedom.
However I do not see any of the candidates as threats to our freedom.
The real threats to our freedom are Bush, Cheney, and their accomplices.
There's only one problem with your hypothesis. The church-going crowd is going through a schism right now, and are effectively eroding the Christian right base.
It just goes to show that the GOP courted the Christian Right without actually caring what they believed in. My favorite line:
"On one side are the true believers, the standard-bearers who--in the primaries, at least--won't compromise principle for expediency and are bewildered by their leaders' declining to get behind former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, the only Republican in the field who is "one of us." On the other side are the pragmatists, who are looking for a candidate who can also satisfy the antitax and neoconservative wings of the party."
HBL,
Secretly Hillary wants to run against McCain so she has her MMFA lapdogs attack him. By not talking about any of the other candidates Hillary is hoping McCain will win. He is such a Senate gentleman, it'll be easier for her to debate him and eventually win in November. It's because she wants him to win MMFA is discrediting him.
ps. Please, no applause. I can't take credit for this amazing insight. I saw this conspiracy theory numerous times with regards to Hillary.
pps. Happy New Year! :-)
I do not think Mccain is a gentleman, that temper of his remember is angry response to the disgusting Alan Keyes in the SC debate in 2000?
Haha. Except for the part about smearing McCain to help him win,you make perfect sense. One fatal flaw away from satire, AA !
Maybe it's an anti-Sawyer site. No wait, it's a pro-Olbermann site. No wait, it's an anti-O'Reilly site. No wait, it's a pro-Hillary site. No wait, it's a pro-NBC site. No wait...
I doubt its anti Sawyer, the women is brainless and is not someone to be taken seriously.
that's a little harsh, don't you think?
What happened to hating all the hate?
Yeah, Sue, you sound like an execration equestrian who has changed hate horses in mid-stream of invective.More or less.
Sorry, I just love this and can't resist...
I'm looking forward to a day when perhaps she will become a placated palomino.
I live for alliteration.
Thank you and carry on.
maybe a little livery of love would make things more stable?
What is hate about what I said? its not like I theatened to cut her achillies tendon? Or called her a racist or said she was like Adolf Hilter.
A pro-Governor Romney site! That makes perfect sense! Especially when you look at all the wonderful, complimentary things MMFA has said about Romney:
Wonderful things Vol.1
Wonderful things Vol.2
Wonderful things Vol.3
Wonderful things Vol.4
Wonderful things Vol.5
With such glowing praise of Romney by MMFA, I guess it's obvious who they want as the next president! GO MITT!!!
There were DEMOCRATS in the White House when we won WWII, when we set about occupying Japan and Germany post-war, rebuilding and installing workable self governance.
So, sure, it can be done. The question IS, what's the damn problem, McCain? You want to COMPARE this to WWII, and the results, so go right ahead. WHY can we not set up peaceful occupation, now the war is "won"?
All it can be, is lack of vision and leadership from our government's highest levels ... Incompetent Republicans. They are UNABLE to do what Democrat Presidents did in the past.
Of course, if you're going to argue that "it's DIFFERENT", or "IT'S A NEW WORLD", or "We didn't exactly occupy and reorganize Viet Nam into a great trading partner, either," then your POINT about being there 100 years is LOST. If IT'S DIFFERENT, then why are you making an inapt comparison?
It's one or the other, McCain. Either we can compare it to PostWar Germany and Japan, or we cannot. If you DO, then explain why we can't get to that peaceful reconstruction phase. If "it's different", then don't insult us with false comparisons you can't follow through with!
So I guess Eisenhower did an awful job with overseeing post war Germany and Japan during his eight years, because he was a Republican. I think what you fail to realize is that today's moderates were yesterday's liberals. JFK would be a moderate by today's standards as wold Truman and without the "Great Society" many of LBJ's positions would be considered to far right for you.
Chris,
Heck, looking at his tax reform, JFK would be a conservative.
JFK would be a conservative.
AA, while many conservatives have tried to portray JFK, as an early supply-sider, keep in mind that his tax cuts were something like 90% down to 60% on the top brackets, and by the accounts of most of his contemporaries, his proposed cuts were decidedly demand-side.
You know, if you ever got some decent candidates on the right, you wouldn't have to keep going back in time and trying to steal liberal ones. ;0)
Comparing today’s political climate to yesterday’s world is sooo Chris Matthews. It’s like saying an extravagant home bought for $350,000 in 1952 would be considered “affordable” today.
The political spectrum will always be moving to the left in relation to times past, so the argument is mute. If you Republican weren’t so hung up on traditions and (mis)guided by past history, maybe you’d understand that. Now do you understand why liberals would rather be called progressive(s) (as in moving forward)? We learn from the past, but try not to live there.
Nice rant.
Now what was that quote about learning from history?
Thanks for the laugh !
ACHRISPAGE:
I'm always delighted when Rightwingers start claiming great Democrats of the past for their own.
Do not fear. As you age, we will be electing MORE and MORE Democrats you can claim as you enter your golden years.
I have no problem sharing!
And, oh yeah, Ms. Sawyer? Thanks for being a great public advocate for us, holding those politician's feet to the fire, and informing WE THE PEOPLE when they make false claims.
It's tough to keep up with the TRUTH, but you get paid the big bucks to be a reporter and journalist, doing that research that we common folks don't have the time to dig up. Doing your job, you KNEW when McCain said he ran a positive campaign in New Hampshire, he was LYING, right? You stood ready to run the clips of the NEGATIVE ads he ran, to contradict him in his claim, right? It's important that we voters know when a candidate is prone to lying about his record, right?
And you do this FOR US, as a public service in the interests of an informed population and DEMOCRACY. The FREE PRESS, doing its job as a watchdog for the public interests. The country sends its thanks, Ms. Sawyer!
Actually, Sawyer, thanks for NOTHING. Kissy-facing McCain could be handled with a twenty dollar bill on any downtown streetcorner. At least those girls are honest about their trade.
Fine Tex, what's your ratio of positive/negative campaigning to where one has run a "positive", "negative", or "<insert phrase for running both here>".
DEX:
Try again, English this time.
Good one, try reading.
What's your personal litmus test for how many times a candidate has to say something negative about another candidate, either by running an ad or directly speaking, before they are no longer running an overall "positive" campaign? Is it like 1-3 negative ads for an overall positive campaign, 4-9 for a "middle-of-the-road", 10+ for "negative"?
DEX:
Luckily, we have a current "guideline" going.
Barack Obama is, I would say, running a positive campaign. No doubt, he's said things or run ads that you might consider 'negative'.
So, LIST 'EM. That will be my count for the number that it's OK to produce and still be considered positive. OK?
The whole "negative" vs. "positive" campaign argument is superfluous. Every candidate needs at some point to sharply criticize his/her opponent, and none will publicly characterize it as "going negative". And of course the other end's gonna respond that's it's a negative characterization of him or her. Debating that nonsense is a waste of time.
So what if McCain avows that he's run only a positive message? Whether it's true or not has absolutely no bearing on the issues which are supposed to be debated, and the non-issue essentially is just a media canard designed to make their coverage of the campaign more 'sexy'
When you think about it, the mainstream press follows every move by (ugh) Brittany and the Hollywood crowd, you realize they are not interested in the issues.
I'm sure it's just technical difficulties, but the only link MMfA is providing that doesn't bring up some email server login is one that McCain's camp repeated a claim made by a newspaper. I don't think that makes his campaign "negative."
Yes - you can copy the shorcut to a text editor (notepad, wordpad); then remove all the %stuff;add a couple of forward slashes; and then the links are valid.
Of course, it would be better if the links were initially valid.
Now, let me get this straight. Were you thinking that Diane Sawyer was going to act like a journalist? Please!