Post-Election Message to the MSM

[NanceGreggs]

Post-Election Message to the MSM
By Nancy Greggs

After listening to the whiningly-delivered talking points by your alleged political analysts and commentators, I just wanted to set the record straight on a few points you’ve been blabbering about.

“The Democrats didn’t win – the GOP lost.”
No, the Democrats won, and won BIG – and they didn’t even have to cheat to do it. Get over it.

“The only position the Democrats had was being anti-Bush.”
It’s kind of hard to ignore the 800 pound gorilla in the middle of the room – especially when it’s an incompetent, ill-tempered, idiot of a gorilla who lied the country into an unwinnable war.

If the Republicans wanted their own president to be a plus for their side, instead of an albatross around their political necks, they should have put somebody else in the White House – like maybe someone who hadn’t proven himself to be a failure in every other job he’d ever had.

“The Democrats managed to outwit Rove’s political genius.”
If you call advising your pet project (GWB) in such a way that his approval rating keeps going lower and lower 'political genius', I guess you’re right. In that area of expertise, Rove is an undisputed genius.

“The Democrats are too disorganized to be effective in government.”
Take a few hours and re-run your own Katrina footage. Then come back and we’ll talk about organizational skills, okay?

“The Democrats have no message.”
Actually, they do – and the voters heard it loud and clear. If you spent more time listening and less time running off at the mouth spewing absolute gibberish, you might have heard it, too.

“The Democrats have no plan for success in Iraq.”
In case you haven’t noticed, it’s the president who has no plan for success – unless the plan was hundreds of thousands of casualties and hundreds of billions of dollars spent in order to achieve chaos and civil war, in which case the plan is succeeding beyond all expectations.

“The lack of progress in Iraq hurt the Republicans.”
Leaving millions of Iraqis worse off than they were before we arrived to liberate them isn’t a lack of progress; it’s an abysmal failure.

Fishing all day without a single catch is a lack of progress. Ramming your boat into the rocks and drowning your fellow fishing buddies is something else entirely.

“The Democrats don’t support the troops.”
Do you mean things like voting to cut military pensions and benefits while sending troops into combat without body armor?
Or do you mean giving them sub-standard food and fetid water while the no-bid company contracted to supply those things makes obscene profits?

If so, you’re right on that one. The Democrats do not want to give the troops that kind of support, now or ever.

“But do the Democrats know how to wage the War on Terror?”
Well, it starts with keeping the country safe. That means not posting the instructions for making an A-bomb on the internet, not waging wars that actually create more terrorists, and spending money on cargo inspections as opposed to personnel to confiscate skin moisturizer at airports.

And if I might answer a question with a question: Where is Osama Bin Laden?

“Voters ousted individual Republicans to send a message to Bush.”
No, voters ousted individual Republicans to send them this unmistakable message: “You’re fired.”

Bush didn’t single-handedly plunge the country into debt, hand over billions of taxpayer dollars to the oil and pharmaceutical industries, gut education and social programs, etc. He had a lot of eager help from his enablers – that’s why they’re packing up their offices even as we speak.

If the voters wanted to send a message to Bush personally, they would have sent him a postcard – using block letters and simple words, so that he could read it all by himself.

“Diebold was vindicated as an accurate voting mechanism.”
So accurate that days after an election in the most powerful nation on earth, we still don’t know who some of the winners are in individual races. Heck of a job there, eh?

“The Democrats wouldn’t have won were it not for GOP corruption and hypocrisy being exposed.”
Yeah, funny thing that. Given a choice between bribe-taking, money-laundering hypocrites and honest folk, the voters went with the party that wasn’t up to its eyeballs in criminal activity.

Of course, the Republicans could avoid such tragedy in future; e.g. getting rid of their pedophiles instead of urging them to run for re-election.

“The GOP failed to stress their past accomplishments strongly enough.”
No need, really. Every voter who had their job outsourced, their health coverage cancelled, or lost their home in the past few years, is well-acquainted with the GOP’s past accomplishments. No reiteration was necessary.

“The Republicans let the Democrats win as part of their strategy to retain the White House in ‘08.”
Yeah, it’s a lot like baseball -- where letting the other team outscore you in every game is part of the strategy to win the World Series.

Maybe you guys should forget about politics and focus on the things you’re actually almost competent at covering – like Britney’s divorce.

[stellanoir]

1. 2nd rec

Aaand like I said to a life long CIA operative. . . when they said "well we have to be concerned about security." I said, "Well it would help if we weren't pissing off the rest of the world.' That person nodded in agreement.

Thanks nance. You are the best.

[NanceGreggs]

2. Thank YOU, Stellanoir ...

... that's a GREAT quote!

[stellanoir]

3. ahhh that would be "quotation" love

Sorry, I'm a stickler for that sort of verbiage for really idiotic reasons.

The funnier part of the dialogue with that person was initially when they walked in. . . I said, "Is it as bad as I. . ." They interrupted and didn't allow me to finish and said, "Yes it is."

Then later on I said, "you know about the voting machines right. . .?" They said, "What that they don't work." It cracked me up. After years and years of studying and writing about this crap, that person surmised it in five simple words. That was killer. LOL

[understandinglife]

34. "Well it would help if we weren't pissing off the rest of the world."

Sooooooooooooooooo very correct!! :toast:


BE AMERICA. ---

[northofdenali]

4. K & R, Nance -

Great writing as usual. I've forwarded this to several folks. It should be posted at RNC HQ!!

[OnyxCollie]

5. K & R. nt

[JeffR]

6. Great, but they won't read it until

they got a copy faxed to them by Karl Rove. Whoever he is.

[SeattleGirl]

7. And how about this one:

"Conservative Dems were voted in, so that means that America is conservative."

No, that's not what it means. The group that is expected to grow the most when the new Congress is seated in 2007 is the Progressive Democratic group. Besides that, so what if some of the newly-elected Dems are more toward the center (which is just a different degree of Democrat; that doesn't make him or her a conservative)? Dems are all over the left side of the scale, from just left of center to far left of center. And that's okay, because that's a reflection of Democrats as a whole. So again, identifying someone as a "conservative Democrat" is not the same as saying that person is a Conservative. So, stop the lies about this. The DEMS won the election, NOT the REPUBLICANS. Get over it, and stop trying to twist the election results into something they aren't.

[NanceGreggs]

8. Hear, hear!

:applause:

[SeattleGirl]

9. Thanks, Nance!

Your list is right on, btw!

[NanceGreggs]

11. Right back at ya!

I keep picturing Wolf Blitzer years from now, in his walker, announcing that the Republicans have lost the White House for the fourth election cycle in a row as part of their 'political strategy' ...

[robinlynne]

10. well put. great post.

[greeneggs708]

12. Nice Try

But you are wrong on item number one.

Republicans did lose it. That is what America said. We want something different. And my only choice is the Democrats.

Now the workers, all of them, not just the netjobs did a great job to get the message out.

You want change, you better vote Democrat.

And BTW. The MSN really doesn't care about facts. I would hope we have all learned that lesson now.

So find away to get the message out other ways.

[NanceGreggs]

14. Yeah, you know it kind of figures ...

... that when there are only two horses in the race, the one that DIDN'T win is the same one that LOST. And yet you rarely hear horse-racing coverage that fails to point out the winning horse as such, but blabbers on and on about the one that came in second.

The Democrats (of whom we here at DU are a part) just toppled the corrupt GOP regime, kicked it in its ass, and threw it to the curb for the next garbage pick-up.

What makes you think kicking the MSM in the ass isn't NEXT?

[crim son]

13. As usual, you totally rock, NanceGreggs.

I've been hearing the same nonsense and have wondered why in hell the MSM is unable to acknowledge the truth of what happened on November 7th. It wasn't just the war; it wasn't just the economy; it wasn't just the Pretzel. It was the whole reeking, filthy package of idiocy +idiology that was rejected by the voters. When will the talking heads clue in? :shrug:

edited because my shrug wasn't shrugging and I do so hate that

[NanceGreggs]

15. Watch for a gradual change of 'financial heart' ...

... in the MSM in future - when the corporate sponsors who buy commercial time on their networks make it clear they want to cater to the MAJORITY viewpoint in order to sell their wares.

That was another giant mis-step by the GOP candidates in this election - referring to people who wanted out of Iraq as cowards, America-haters, cut-and-runners. If they'd checked the real math, instead of Rove's (THE math) on that topic, they would have realized they were dissin' the MAJORITY of voters who no longer saw 'staying-the-course' as a viable option.

At this point, one might say it's a good idea to LEARN from one's mistakes -- but the GOP hasn't done that so far, and there's no indication they will any time soon.

[greeneggs708]

18. Correction

There are plenty of media outlets that make money on war.

So don't expect the total mind-meld with NanceGreggs.

But hopefully we can win some hearts and minds by getting things done.

I think we can win Republicans by action.

But we do need to stop this infighting, like I am doing right now. And work on our new leaders to get on board.

And I believe there are some in the media that do want to tell the real story. Not the bosses, that is the problem.

You think you are going to ever get the facts of what is happening in Iraq.

Don't make me laugh. But maybe if the Dems open debates we may learn some facts.

Like when Kerry said, we are the terrorists. He was dead-on. Ask anyone that had been there, and not in the Green Zone and not sent where the army wants them to be sent.

This is ugly and we are destroying a Country and some people that have no idea why we are there.

But most of the concerns I see here, not all, is what did Rahm say today, and what will Hillary do in 08 blah, blah, blah.

BUT MAJOR LEAGUE HIGH FIVE IF YOU REALLY ARE TRYING TO CHANGE THE MEDIA. It may be tougher then fixing Iraq.

[NanceGreggs]

19. Yes, many media outlets have made money ...

.. on war, and have certainly done so on THIS war. Problem is the corporations have already glutted themselves at the trough, and are pulling out because there is no more money to be made.

In addition, the mainstream media is already feeling the pinch. Every day, more and more Americans turn to the internet(z) as their source of news. The only way the MSM can retain its audience -- and its commercial revenues -- is by offering REAL news, and in an unbiased format.

By way of example, what CNN is touting right now appeals to the tell-us-everything-about-Britney crowd. Unfortunately, THAT crowd is not likely to be interested in the best brokerage firm to handle their massive stock portfolio. It is also less than likely that anyone in that crowd is in a position to determine whether FedEx is the best delivery service for their multi-billion dollar business.

It's all about a VIABLE alternative - not just an alternative per se.

The Democrats offered the voters a VIABLE ALTERNATIVE on every issue - from the handling of foreign policy, to the conduct of the war in Iraq, to solving the problems here at home.

And make no mistake about it, the Democrats WON on the basis of offering something better, more constructive, and more sensible than anything the GOP had to offer.

If the voters who traditionally vote Republican didn't see something positive about the Democratic Party's agenda, they wouldn't have voted for them. They would have continued to dance with the guy what brung 'em.

You say the people you spoke to "didn't care" about what the Democrats stood for -- well, that begs the question: "If they didn't care to know what the Democrats stood for, why did they assume it was something different than, or better than, what the GOP stood for?"

Don't under-estimate the intelligence of the average American voter -- THAT'S exactly what the Republican party did, which explains why they are on the losing side of this election.


(This post is in reply to the one above, as well as your post at #16)

[RaleighNCDUer]

26. Don't under-estimate the intelligence of the average American voter

What the repukes did was to believe their own propaganda that their base WAS the average American voter, and shooting for the intelligence of their base they naturally underestimated the intelligence of the typical American.

They depend on the dumb, the scared, the fanatical, and the mean, and in this election they lost the scared, leaving them with just their base -- the dumb, fanatical and mean.

It was a democrat that said, all we have to fear is fear itself, as we fought our way out of a depression and through a war against the fascists, losing over 400,000 US military in the process -- but we were not afraid of the enemy. We knew they could be beaten. The neocons and republican machine wants us to be VERY AFRAID of a few thousand terrorists. It is insulting to the American character that we would fear them, when we have triumphed over the armies of millions who actually had the capability of destroying us.

They've tried to keep us in a panic ever since 9/11, but panic will subside and reason prevail, eventually. Now we need to undo the damage the repukes have done to our democracy while we were panicked.

[NanceGreggs]

31. You're so right.

What amazed me in the weeks leading up to this election was that the GOP had so obviously lost their grasp on the realities of every situation.

Their mis-steps were many, but they were things that simple common sense would have led one away from -- or so you would think.

The boogey-man scare - how many times can you jump out of the closet and yell "BOO!" before everyone KNOWS you're about to do it, yet again? The fear factor gets lost as soon as it becomes predictable, not to mention without consequence.

The Fundie vote - the Republicans promised this group all kinds of things in order to get their votes, starting back in the 2000 campaign. How could it NOT have occurred to them that after six years of promises with no results, those people would walk away?

The one that REALLY amazed me was continuing to refer to anyone who wanted out of Iraq as a cut-and-runner, a coward, an anti-American traitor. Had they actually looked at the numbers (instead of Rove's fuzzy math), they would have realized they were hurling those epithets at TWO-THIRDS of the voters!

The GOP campaign fell apart not just because they have so obviously wreaked havoc with their every policy while in control of the government, but also because simple common sense seemed to allude them right to the very end.

Surprising - but I'm not complaining!

[IWantAChange]

27. Let's hope they don't because capturing the White House in '08

is the real prize. It's the only position that can recapture our dignity and standing in the world community. The MSM has an enormous influence on the election imo - their moving toward 'majority America' bodes well for Democrats in my humble opinion.

[bluescribbler]

39. Learn from their mistakes???

First they have to recognize that they've made mistakes. So far, I see no evidence that they're capable of such introspection.

:shrug:

Great rant Nance, as always. :toast:

[greeneggs708]

16. Screw The MSN

You are smart enough to realize they are lying sack of feces, right.

Now. I am giving you my report from the front lines. Three days a week, on the phone in a Red State.

And I am telling you. No one gave a crap about what the Dems stood for.

I would tell them what we stood for, they would say, yeah, yeah, all politicians say they will solve everything. Is your candidate a Repulican?

I'd say, no, a Democrat.

They say, then, I'm voting for him. Most didn't know his name.

I am giving you the facts, deal with it. They all wanted something different, that is it.

Even Repulicans I talked to said, I am sick of this war and this economy, I am not voting Repulicans.

So understand, all you that think America just turned into Abbie Hoffman.

They expect something done, and all your, aren't we great we are liberals bs, is going to be spit out if the Dems don't clean up this mess.

[crim son]

17. I agree with much of what you say.

And no doubt the vast majority of those who previously voted for the Pretzel were voting against him symbolically by choosing democratic candidates down the line. You make a mistake if you believe that DUers are so simpleminded as to think that the whole country is suddenly ready to unrestrainedly embrace the GLBT community and board up the christian churches. That mistake might be something you want to deal with.

NanceGreggs is right: the media will go where the money is. It's just a matter of time.

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[JeffR]

20. No-one here is naive enough to think that everyone just turned into Abbie

but if that day ever comes, I will die happy beyond words. Until then, the struggle continues. Please feel free to steal this post, if it's of any use to you.

[Joe Chi Minh]

38. Well, I've got news for you. Do you think John Kerry was mobbed

by vast crowds everywhere he went, when he was running for President, it was because he wasn't the other guy? Think again!

You do underestimate their intelligence. Believe it or not, most American people have heard about Roosevelt's New Deal at some time or other, and John Kerry's undertaking to renew it.

"Yes, we'll have some of that, Mr Kerry. Thank you!", is what the people are bawling out loud and clear. Why do you think the largest caucus in the Democratic Party are the progressives? Because they're not George Bush?!!!!

[Mythsaje]

21. Excellent, Nance...

And you've just prompted my next rant.

Thanks

[tavalon]

22. Out of the ballpark, again!

Damn, I don't know what your day job is, but I sure hope it's journalism or some sort of writing because you are a fabulous writer.

[Dangerously Amused]

23. Biting and Brilliant. As Always.

Well done!


And thank you.

[erpowers]

24. Great One

You are right. I think many Democrats have been disappointed on how many in the media have reported the election results. It is amazing that the Democrats made extreme gains at both the state and national level, but the msm continues to either say the country is still conservative or the country is centrist.

I believe the Democrats won on many issues including the war in Iraq and GOP corruption. However, I think people also went to the polls and voted Democratic in order to gain a better economy, a better education for themselves and for their children, and for better pay.

[Aviation Pro]

25. Dead on....

...listening to C-SPAM this morning (and the usual right-wing nutjob Congressional guest), I couldn't help but wonder if the MSM got the message that their enablers were handed their collective asses. Oh, well, I guess when their broadcast licenses come up for renewal they'll sing a different tune.

[lazyriver]

28. Love the fishing analogy n/t

[Silent3]

32. I've got to second that!

That fishing analogy looks like excellent material for a sig line. :)

[NanceGreggs]

35. WOW!

Thanks, K4K! That is quite an honour!

:hi:

[erpowers]

29. More Proof You are Right and the Media is Wrong

USA Today has a front page story discussing a new USA Today Gallup Poll. The poll points out that 61% of the people surveyed want Democrats to have more of a say than Bush in terms of the direction of the country. In addition, while the Bush's rating are still low at 33% the Democrats rating are high at 57%. Finally, 63% of the poll respondents said they believed the Democrats would not weaken the country's national security. Yes, the media keeps getting it wrong.

[LilyLibber]

30. Allow me to take a moment...

and shamelessly fawn over you and your stellar writing skills. :applause: You hit the nail on the head every single time - and this is certainly no exception! Brilliant! :woohoo:

[understandinglife]

33. Ditto!

:thumbsup:


Never Forget: George W. Bush willfully violated National Security to cover-up his willful launch of a war of aggression and illegal occupation of Iraq .... and, now he willfully provided nuke-making instructions to terrorists -- if you doubt it, just check 'the google' ....

[Jack Rabbit]

36. “But do the Democrats know how to wage the War on Terror?”

You forgot, Nance, that it would be a good idea to lose the publicized color coded alert levels that let would be terrorists know what days our guard is more likely to be dropped.

[Joe Chi Minh]

37. Pity you couldn't post this all over the country like dictators have

statues and billboard posters of themselves erected everywhere.

It says everything, or virtually everything, that needs to be said to them, about what a bunch of headless chickens they've been these last 5 years - all the while posing as super-competent, Can-Do, Marlboro Men.

To them, knowledge and understanding were as fearful as freedom is to a battery hen when it's released. Somehow, I don't think they and their MSM myrmidons are going to suddenly develop an appetite for knowledge and understanding, either.

[glitch]

40. Either they aren't smart enough to process this or hope we aren't. K & R nt

[Bobbie Jo]

41. K & R...Well Done! n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

42. This IS funny

[puebloknot]

43. Factual and Funny!

I don't know a thing about you (except that you can write), but I picture you as someone with short curly hair -- like the terrier I used to have who chewed up my rugs, my books, and my sunglasses, and who came to love the Tabasco Sauce that was supposed to cure his errant ways. :)

Growl on!

[NanceGreggs]

45. Actually ...

... my hair is long, and straight as pins.

However, I have been known to chew up a few rugs in my time, and my errant ways have yet to be cured by Tobasco Sauce -- or anything else!

[puebloknot]

46. Whew! I was afraid...

...there was going to be a run on Tabasco Sauce by the Repugs.

Another weapon of mass destruction bites the dust! :)

[NanceGreggs]

47. ...

... :rofl:

[Imagevision]

44. getting rid of their pedophiles instead of urging them to run for re-election...

Gregg Nance, you're somewhat of the "Jon Stewart" of DU, Smart-Factual And Funny
you just keep getting better...!

[Norrin Radd]

48. Smackdown! n/t