Republicans brag about dirty tricks,

[Len Colby]

The University of Pennsylvania’s journalism school concluded that National Republican Campaign Committee consistently resorted to deceptive and factually incorrect attack ads.

http://www.factcheck.org/article460.html

In one of those ads they alleged that a Democratic candidate billed a call to a phone sex line to taxpayers. The truth which even the Republican’s don’t dispute is that he or an aide accidentally dialed the wrong number the 1st brief call was immediately followed by a longer one to the same number in a different area code. See the ad here and watch Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-NY), chairman of the NRCC, defend such tactics.

Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) said of the White House / GOP intentional distortion of Kerry's “stuck in Iraq” remark: "A fundamental premise of politics is: We can make this work if people just never figure it out." and "Well, it's pretty standard fare in political discourse. You misconstrue what somebody said. You isolate a statement, you lend your interpretation to it and then feign moral outrage."

In other words leading Republicans think it’s OK to lie to achieve your political objectives and aren’t ashamed to admit it. This however had gotten very little play in the supposedly “liberal media”.

It is interesting to note that when a Democrat (Kerry) flubs a line (stuck in Iraq) the media did very little to make it clear he (as even Armey admitted) meant something else but when a Republican (Bush) made a similar mistake (“Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”) the press quickly pointed out the obvious, that he had misspoken.

The Democrats unfortunately are incompetent in the PR game. Armey and Reynolds made their admissions BEFORE the elections but the Dems apparently DIDN’T make anything of this (I can’t be sure since I’m not in the US). Obviously if the Democrats had made similarly deceptive ads and leading Democrats bragged about it Rove and his clones and their spin machines (not to mention Ann Coulter et. al.) would have had a field day.

[Guest Stephen Turner]

The University of Pennsylvania’s journalism school concluded that National Republican Campaign Committee consistently resorted to deceptive and factually incorrect attack ads.

http://www.factcheck.org/article460.html

In one of those ads they alleged that a Democratic candidate billed a call to a phone sex line to taxpayers. The truth which even the Republican’s don’t dispute is that he or an aide accidentally dialed the wrong number the 1st brief call was immediately followed by a longer one to the same number in a different area code. See the ad here and watch Rep. Tom Reynolds (R-NY), chairman of the NRCC, defend such tactics.

Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) said of the White House / GOP intentional distortion of Kerry's “stuck in Iraq” remark: "A fundamental premise of politics is: We can make this work if people just never figure it out." and "Well, it's pretty standard fare in political discourse. You misconstrue what somebody said. You isolate a statement, you lend your interpretation to it and then feign moral outrage."

In other words leading Republicans think it’s OK to lie to achieve your political objectives and aren’t ashamed to admit it. This however had gotten very little play in the supposedly “liberal media”.

It is interesting to note that when a Democrat (Kerry) flubs a line (stuck in Iraq) the media did very little to make it clear he (as even Armey admitted) meant something else but when a Republican (Bush) made a similar mistake (“Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.”) the press quickly pointed out the obvious, that he had misspoken.

The Democrats unfortunately are incompetent in the PR game. Armey and Reynolds made their admissions BEFORE the elections but the Dems apparently DIDN’T make anything of this (I can’t be sure since I’m not in the US). Obviously if the Democrats had made similarly deceptive ads and leading Democrats bragged about it Rove and his clones and their spin machines (not to mention Ann Coulter et. al.) would have had a field day.

This is a lesson that Blairs New Labour learned very well, previous Labour Administrations, particularly those with redistibutive tendancies, found themselves under constant pressure from the right wing press (thats the huge majority in Britain) These attacks usually focused on Labours ability to Govern, with particular venom reserved for matters economic, but often slided off into crude personal insults. Tony Benn, the left wing minister for communications in Wilsons 1974 Government was a particular favoite for this treatment, often openly being described as "Looneytunes" "Mad axeman" and the like, once, simply because he wanted to issue a postage stamp without the Queens likeness on it for a limited period to celebrate ordinary British people, He remarked at the time, "Oliver Cromwell chopped a Kings head off, I cant even get a Queens head off a stamp."Contrast with the treatment meted out to the Conservative and racist Enoch Powell, who in 1968 whilst talking about race relations in Britain warned of "A river of blood running through the country if immigration wasnt halted, and all Afro-Caribeans "Sent home" The press at the time hailed him as a British hero, a plain speaking prophet. as a result of this attacks on immigrant areas increased by over 200% And the Police asked for, and were granted the infamous SUS laws.

But, as I said, New Labour learned well from their history, and decided to appear as all things to all men, a ploy that we now see unravelling before our eyes.

[Len Colby]

Bumped for Tim.

[John Simkin]

Bumped for Tim.

I think you are wasting your time. He is more interested in talking about Alger Hiss.

[Charles Drago]

Sort of a Hiss and Herrs thread?

[Evan Burton]

Sort of a Hiss and Herrs thread?

LOL!!!!!