In case anybody missed it, there's a full-scale, no-holds-barred air war going on right now. A massive one. Daisy-cutters, 2,000-pound bunker-busters -- you name it. Bombs are dropping faster than you can blink. Squadrons of B-52s -- AKA 'big ugly fat fellows' -- are prowling the heavens, pounding enemy positions, unleashing their fiery wrath, carpet bombing around-the-clock....the works.
What's that you say? Haven't heard of this? Thought the war was over, eh? Well Fuggedaboudit! Flick on the idiot box, kick up your feet, sit back and enjoy (Drum roll, please?) -- OPERATION ENRON!!! Yep, folks, it's Enron at dawn, Enron at noon, Enron at dusk. Enron 24/7. The media high command has declared an air war against the Bush administration; The White House, like the mountains of Tora Bora, has become ground zero for media strike bombardiers.
Kidding aside, never -- ever -- in my life have I seen anything quite like what we're witnessing right now.
Media bias is one thing. We've all seen it. We've all tasted it. Heaven knows we've all groused about it, perennially. Bernard Goldberg's bombshell has soared to near the top of the New York Times best-seller list, and for good reason.
But, Ladies and Gentlemen, what we're witnessing goes beyond simple 'bias' -- well beyond. This isn't bias, this is fraud. Wholesale fraud.
The media is perpetrating one of the greatest frauds ever: To wit, the fabrication of a pseudo-political "scandal" -- out of whole cloth.
This isn't "news" "reporting", this is orgy-making -- a veritable orgy of innuendo. It would take years to tally all the libel and slander, all the malicious rumor-mongering, all the baseless smears -- the torrent of lies, insults and calumnies spewed straight from the bowels of our "major media" these past two days -- alone.
Question: Why is the media doing this? That's simple: Because they can.
Any proof of administration wrongdoing? No, not the vaguest hint, not the slightest intimation of official wrongdoing nor impropriety -- and even the media jackals know it.
Any proof of malfeasance or criminal activity by anyone in the Bush White House? Nope. None has been shown, none has been presented. Nothing even remotely resembling an allegation, even. But heck, who needs proof, anyway? Washington craves a 'scandal', and Enron fills the bill nicely, thank you very much.
No proof of 'cover-up'? Then fabricate some! Of course, we all know Bush had nothing to do with the shredding* of documents, the massive cover-up by Enron's auditor. But oh, yummy, yummy -- how exquisitely delicious to find ominous buzz phrases like 'document-shredding', 'cover-up' and the name George W. Bush jammed together in the same sentence, eh? Who cares if they don't belong together? Who cares if Bush did absolutely nothing wrong? This is not about truth or fairness or facts or evidence: This is purely -- first and foremost -- about vengence. Avenging whom or what, you ask? Why, the media's darling golden-boy, William Jefferson Clinton, who eles?
But the haters have a major problem on their hands, and it's this: Signs are this phony "scandal" is headed in the opposite direction -- away from implicating current administration officials.
Indeed, think of how ludicrous this sounds: Democrats want to know -- not why there were -- but why there weren't any quid-pro-quo shenanigans. Why didn't you do any special favors on behalf of your big campaign contributor, Mr. President? Why didn't you bail out your rich oil buddy when he came beckoning and calling?
In other words, what the heck is the matter with you, Mr. President? Why, O why, didn't you do something wrong? Lotting the treasury to bailout fat-cats; seedy backroom deals, bribery, extortion -- that's what we do here in Washington! How dare you be so ethical, so squeaky clean, Mr. President?!?!
Bottom line: Democrats want to know why Enron's generous contributions didn't buy it any favors from this administration. How utterly UN-Clinton-esque can this President get, eh?
This is the first "scandal" in history in which no wrongdoing IS the scandal du jour. No special favors, no shenanigans, no quid-pro-quo -- now that's an outrage!
The Attorney General recusing himself? What?! This earthshaking! Explosive! How scandalous!
Why the AG recusing himself to avoid tainting the probe should be seen as "scandalous"? You go figure.
But that's the nub of the problem with Enron as political "news": Its string of farcical flaws and fallacies.
It's why "Enron" will soon be running on fumes -- politically worthless, just like the company's stock. Absent some 'hook' -- proof of government cover-up, official malfeasance, etc. -- "Enron" inexorably reverts to its rightful place in the business page of the newspaper.
Already people are asking: Where's the beef?
*Ironies of ironies: The wholesale document destruction by Enron's auditor, Arthur Andersen LLP, raises an interesting dilemma, particularly in light of the close ties between Ken Lay and the previous administration. Clinton was known to personally intervene on Enron's behalf on a number of occasions. Generous campaign donations would follow. The documents destroyed may have revealed a nexus.
My intrepid prediction: Enron will backfire on Democrats. Americans will see them as grossly over-reaching -- the "hearings" as sheer vindicativeness, an unwelcomed extention of Campaign 2000. Their vicious and spiteful crusade will be seen as bloodsport -- a thinly veiled, all-out effort to cripple this President; the Democrats' ultimate goal is to assassinate him, politically, with constant, deadly attacks and smears.
But it won't work, because it can't work. The public will not look to fondly at their "Wanted: Dead or Alive" modus operandi at politics (again, figuritively speaking).
A political party whose sole obession, whose only mission is to bring down the President -- come hell or high water -- is a party destined, rightfully, for the ash heap.
Fate will deal the Democrats, tone deaf and blinded by hate, a cruel blow, indeed. So let them nurse their hatred -- let them beat the dead horse of Enron: They will only bring down the wrath of a people, of a nation, still smoldering over September 11.
Consider this thought I had, and please expound on it if you wish...(I tried my hand at editorializing but can't sit still long enough...)
The party out of power is generally referred to as "the loyal opposition." In the case of clinton, actual crimes were uncovered, although they could not link them all the way to Bonnie and Clyde, there was a THERE, there. In Bush's case, no crimes are even alleged.
Because of this, seeking to get clinton was the "loyal opposition" thing to do...opposing wrong-doing while remaining loyal to America. In this case, the Dems and the pundits have become the DISLOYAL OPPOSITION. Going after a President for pure political advantage, when there is no THERE, there, when in fact most of the quid pro quo points squarley at IMPOTUS, can hardly be considered "loyal."
In fact, similar to the "peaceniks" who reflexively railed against America in the first days of the al-Queda war, these people could be considered to be acting in a traitorous fashion, if indeed there is no quid pro quo, as your editorial points out.
FReegards...
As much as I want this to be true, I doubt it.
Recent history proves that "bloodsport" is defined my the media.
Thanks for that article JH2!
1. Both sides took lots-o-cash from Enron. Too much real digging would let the crazy Aunt out of the basement for a lot of Senators and Congress folk.
2. Clinton. Their fingers are still healing from paper cuts they suffered counting the cash they took. Lay could fry Clinton in a nano-second for the "favors" Enron got and Bill/Hillary knows it. They are probably more pissed about the media firestorm than we are. A couple of McAuliffe phone calls will squelch this pretty quickly.
3. Polls. Once the rabid medialites figure out that this assault has backfired, and would ultimately hurt their poster boy, they will conveniently switch gears to some other "breaking" story.
I imagine there are a lot of squirming Congressmen huddled together right now trying to pee on a forest fire. Mallox is the soup du jour for them. This isn't the 70's when the big three could conspiratorially dictate what was the important news. 24 hour Cable and the internet have relegated those outfits to has-beens; only they haven't figured it out yet.
Lay, while apparently greedy and self-serving, is not a dummy....and he understands Washington. He spread the bucks around efficiently on both sides. He has enough markers out to thump a house of cards. He knows it, they know it and somebody will soon be whispering this reality to the press.
All indications are that the Bush folks laughed in Lay's face when he came calling. Clinton couldn't get his pants up fast enough to assist Lay when he knocked. This Bush scandal will resemble a Roman candle; exciting anticipation, a little smoke, pretty colors, a loud boom and then ....nothing. Enron and Lay will be in the news for months, but when the press realizes their gaffe, they will leave Congressmen, and (gnashing of teeth) Bush out of this. Crickets....