MSNBC Pre-Spins Midterm Disaster: Dems Didn't Tout Obama's Successes
The liberals on MSNBC have already begun to pre-spin the reasons behind a possible Democratic disaster in Tuesday's midterms: It's because the party didn't tout Barack Obama's "accomplishments." Host Ronan Farrow on Monday complained: "But, if these Democratic candidates are just flouting the President and at a time when he faces a tough environment on the hill already, sort of adding to his woes, do they risk alienating Democratic voters with that kind of divisiveness?"
Former Obama campaign press secretary Bill Burton appeared on Farrow's show to scold, "...Maybe if we can go back in time and think about how Democrats were going to position themselves around the country, they could have done things to help elevate what good things were happening in Washington."
Huffington Post journalist Howard Fineman whined, "Ronan, there is no positive message coming out about any Democratic accomplishments and surely there have been some." [MP3 audio here.]
Farrow lamented that liberal candidates "are possibly passing up an opportunity to have a positive narrative out there about Dems in general."
It was left to former Rick Santorum director of communications Hogan Gidley to quip of Obama: "He is what's pulling Democrats out to sea to die a slow, cold, watery death."
A partial transcript of the November 3 segment is below:
1:09:44
RONAN FARROW: Howard Fineman, what does that say about the Democratic Party right now, that there are so many people, Mary Landrieu, Jeannne Shaheen, Alison Grimes, that have been aggressive in saying, "I'm not tied to this president."
...
1:11
FARROW: Bill, does this risk back firing right now? I want to get your take in a second on this, Hogan. But, if these Democratic candidates are just flouting the President and at a time when he faces a tough environment on the hill already, sort of adding to his woes. Do they risk alienating Democratic voters with that kind of divisiveness?
BILL BURTON (Founder, Priorities USA) Well, I think the thing they have to worry about is inflicting – self-inflicted wounds. Because, if the Republicans are saying how terrible the President is and you've got Democrats out there saying the President is not that great, then what you've got is a President whose numbers are more and more depressed hurting Democrats on the ticket everywhere. As a result, I think that maybe if we can go back in time and think about how Democrats were going to position themselves around the country, they could have done things to help elevate what good things were happening in Washington. How ObamaCare helped.
HOWARD FINEMAN: Ronan, there is no positive message coming out about any Democratic accomplishments and surely there have been some. As the President himself was saying on the road, you know, the economy, not for everybody, but in general, the economy has done pretty darn well in the last six months. We look a lot better than Europe does. We look a lot better than most of the rest of the world. That's a tough message to sell. But, if you don't sell any message, as everybody knows, an attack unanswered is an attack accepted.
FARROW: It's a really important point, Howard, that they, actually, are possibly passing up an opportunity to have a positive narrative out there about Dems in general right now. Hogan, you were going to say?
HOGAN GIDLEY: It's not new. I was comms director for Elizabeth Dole when she got swept up in North Carolina against Kay Hagan and George Bush was so unpopular we refused to do one with him, but we did one with Dick Cheney. And that tells you how unpopular Bush was at the time. At that time in North Carolina, Elizabeth Dole, like many Republicans, got swept up in the tidal wave that was President Barack Obama. But at this point, he is no longer a tidal wave, but an undertow. He is what's pulling Democrats out to sea to die a slow, cold, watery death.
...
FARROW: Hogan Gidley rendering his race analysis in terms of the ending of Titanic.
— Scott Whitlock is Senior News Analyst at the Media Research Center. Follow Scott Whitlock on Twitter.
