The hard-bitten, hard-drinking cynical reporter has been a staple of American mythology for well over a century. H. L. Mencken is its epitome. The reason it is so persistent is that there is a kernel of truth to it. At the Washington Post Gary Abernathy is overwhelmed with cynicism at the goings-on in Washington:
Some newspapers must be tempted to assign their theater critics to cover such farces while saving their news reporters for more serious events. There is irony in the fact that while President Trump was once a TV star, his appeal for many is that he alone seems forever off script. His spontaneity and impulsiveness, reckless as they often are, place others’ rehearsed recitations in even starker relief.
Why were Democrats furious with Barr for his four-page summary of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report and Barr’s pre-release news conference? Because he set the narrative. They wanted to set the narrative! They wanted to write the script! How dare he steal their thunder.
The New York Times recently reported, “As Speaker Nancy Pelosi urges caution on impeachment, rank-and-file House Democrats are agonizing over the prospect of trying to oust President Trump, caught between their sense of historic responsibilities and political considerations in the wake of the special counsel’s damning portrait of abuses.â€
I read the story and laughed out loud, falling victim again to my acute pessimism. The notion that anyone in Congress is “agonizing†over “their sense of historic responsibilities†was comical to me. Try as I might, I detect no authentic outrage over the Mueller report by seasoned Democrats such as Pelosi (Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.), House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (Calif.) or House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (N.Y.), whose feud with Trump is personal and goes back decades. There is simply applause to be earned from a grateful Democratic base.
Is it possible to be too cynical about today’s politics? It’s hard for me to see how.
The part about writing the script reminds me of a couple of other current events.
One is that there is the view in the UK that the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal would have passed if the Attorney General’s opinion on the backstop had been framed differently, perhaps even just reversing the sequence of findings.
The other is whether the prosecutor in the Smollett case should have her handling of the case investigated by an internal investigator with the County, or with an independent investigator from outside the County. I have a strong suspicion that there would likely be little difference btw/ the underlying facts that come out, just that the County will likely sugarcoat it.
There is such a thing as drafting privileges; not sure how the Democrats would get them.
The more experienced Democrats were not outraged since they knew exactly what would happen, but then we all knew the outcome. Barr would write the besets, most positive summary he could possibly write. If it was left up to him to decide on the obstruction issue, he would not prosecute however strong the evidence. Thats politics. Why waste energy on false outrage.
Steve
Attorneys general are basically the hitmen of whatever administration they serve. I have written that about the Obama Administration and Bush Administration. It has been true for my entire adult life. I see no reason it should be any different during the Trump Administration.
That having been said I think that the voluble outrage in the hearings and in the media is over the top even by political standards.
Yeah, I think the outrage is over-the-top. The fact that Barr’s summary and testimony was biased toward the President is treated as some huge, earth-shaking deal. But we have the Meuller report and can judge it on the merits.
The problem is, for me at least, is that I won’t bother to read it and I have little trust in the interpretations of others.
“That having been said I think that the voluble outrage in the hearings and in the media is over the top even by political standards.”
Sounds the same as usual to me. They held Holder in contempt and there was talk about impeaching Obama. This is just the new normal. And since I didnt really answer your question, it is difficult to be too cynical.
Steve