All the President’s Media
WITH DOUGLAS SCHOEN Unconventional Wisdom
Douglas Schoen is an author, political strategist, Fox News contributor, and former adviser to President Bill Clinton.
His latest book is Hopelessly Divided: The New Crisis in American Politics and What It Means for 2012 and Beyond.
T BY DOUGLAS SCHOEN
he singular element of the obama presidency that has received far too little attention is that Obama’s political base consists of both the left wing of the Democratic Party and
the media. Put simply, the media have yet to, and arguably never will, hold President Obama accountable as it has done with other presidents. Nowhere has this been clearer than on sequestration,
where the president and his team made it absolutely clear that whole aspects of American life would be seriously impacted by the automatic cuts that came into effect on March 1 — including airport security, nutritional programs, and law enforcement. But we have yet to see any obvious effect from sequestration. Indeed, the president engaged in fear mongering all across America in the weeks leading up to the sequester, a campaign widely supported by the media. Yet when nothing that he said was going to happen came true, we heard nothing from the press. But sequestration is just one small issue in a larger narrative. Take for instance Michelle Obama’s speech at Christmastime, wherein she called the White House the “people’s house,” and argued that it was the highest priority for her and President Obama to keep the White House open and accessible for the American people. But when sequestration came into effect, White House
officials did not cut staff salaries, or even the almost $100,000 per year it pays each calligrapher. Rather, White House tours were suspended at a cost of $18,000 per week. Are we to believe calligraphy is more important than the Secret Service? Another example is Benghazi. The death of four Americans, including an ambassador, and the ensuing cover-up, has not gotten nearly the attention it deserves. The press has gotten fired up about inconsequential
MAY 2013 | NEWSMAX 39
WITH DOUGLAS SCHOEN Unconventional Wisdom
matters like being barred from Obama’s golf outing with Tiger Woods. History gives plenty of examples of the press holding presidents accountable. The media served as principle investigators during the presidencies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Reporters had no qualms about echoing endless allegations during those administrations. The classic example of an active press is the investigatory work of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, The Washington Post reporters who helped bring down President Richard Nixon in the Watergate scandal. No one could say the press was passive during the Nixon era.
T
he irony here is that Obama has held fewer press conferences than any other president to date. He has systematically bypassed the national media in favor of local press interviews. He also has formed a PAC to push his agenda, which
offers donors high-level access to the president in return for $500,000 a year. This arrangement has provoked nary a protest from the media. To be sure, Obama’s election is certainly historic, and
it is something for Americans to be proud of. But what Americans should not be proud of is the free pass the media have largely given the 44th president.
THE LOYAL OPPOSITION By Sean Delonas
© 2013 NEWSMAX MEDIA
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