January 9, 2010
Flensing the Body Politic
I normally eschew political kiss-and-tell books, especially those by journalists, because they are almost uniformly self-serving to the authors, biased in favor of the author's predilections, and impregnated with unprovable slanders and gossip by unnamed sources with axes to grind. I believe I shall purchase John Heileman and Mark Halperin's Game Change, however, because early snippets suggest the sources are factual, the methodology take-no-prisoners regardless of political persuasion, and, most importantly, the reveals salacious.
Here is Harry Reid on record saying Obama could win because he's "light-skinned" and doesn't speak with a "negro dialect." Reid has already apologized for the statement, therefore I'm reasonably satisfied with the accuracy of the book to this point.
There is Bill Clinton, begging Ted Kennedy for the Camelot endorsement after Obama's Iowa win, saying "A few years ago, this guy would have been getting us coffee."
(And Great God, how racist liberals are in private. One would almost believe they only care about minorities for their votes, or something.)
Yonder are the megalomaniacal John Edwards, his harridan wife, and his psychotic bitch fling imploding before our eyes in a torrid fuck scandal, which scandal the entire country was aware of even as not one outlet would report on it, other than the National Enquirer.
This book looks like it's going the distance. I must read more. As an aside, I note the only thing on Palin I've read so far, that she kept calling Biden O'Biden during debate rehearsals, was already copped to in her book, so that's a nonstarter. And McCain advisor Steve "The Tumor" Schmidt was a primary source for this work. I therefore feel confident the dozens of AP and Big Three and WaPo and NYT resources devouring this book haven't discovered anything of import on my favorite thrillbilly.
I do notice there has been no advance grease on Obama in this thing. I attribute this to media blackout. It's like the Luftwaffe trying to find a light in London during the Blitz, is shedding light on this guy. (I was going to offer the metaphor of no light being able to escape a black hole, but that would be racist, like Harry Reid).
In short, I look forward to dining on the entrails of some of our more infamous public figures, iffen the stories do not all leak out before my copy arrives. I am as the vulture to their Prometheus, tiny of brainpan but convinced I am ordained by the gods. Which conceit, coincidentally, got John Edwards uncomfortably close to being President of the United States, now that I think about it.
Yes, but the real question at this point is, "Would you swap Obama out for John Edwards?"
Posted by: vanderleun at January 9, 2010 10:31 PMIf the book was funny I might be able to slog my way through it, but come on, a book that reveals that politicians are scumbags? This is not news, except for those that think that Baracky is the fucking second coming.
If I am going to read about politics I will hold on to my tattered Parliament of Whores, still the best book on that den of thieves in DC. More relevant today than in the past.
If only the blogs and on-demand publishing had been around in ol' Ben Franklin's time.
I'd love to read a write-up of his adventures.
OH! And imagine reading about Jefferson's little fling with Miss Sally.
Funny. They managed to screw around. Find time for adventure. Invent and patent various devices. And still found time to author and sign the Declaration of Independence.
Oh how today's ruling class must make them spin in their graves.
Posted by: jmflynny at January 9, 2010 11:52 PMJohn Edward's Two Americas schtick was a kinder, gentler class warfare. It's hard to say that he'd be noticably better than Obama. Fucking us slightly less internationally, and slightly more domestically.
The silver lining would be the schadenfreude of seeing two Dem Presidents in a row that can't keep their dangly parts in their pants.
Posted by: Cincinnatus at January 10, 2010 12:21 AMAnd imagine reading about Jefferson's little fling with Miss Sally.
Which most likely didn't happen. Sally's kids are the children of a Jefferson, but not necessarily Thomas. Prolly his shiftless brother.
Posted by: dicentra at January 10, 2010 1:25 AMWEll, Dicentra, so the right-wing fascist consipracy would have you think. If the National Enquirer had been around during those days, we would know the real story!
Or, You know, at the very least, we could watch Perez Hilton tearing apart the whole powdered wig thing.
Posted by: jmflynny at January 10, 2010 2:22 AMBoy, I'll take mine straight up. Fresh ground beans of course, and a shot of BBBC on the side.
Go on...get after it.
Posted by: Yabu at January 10, 2010 9:31 AM(I was going to offer the metaphor of no light being able to escape a black hole, but that would be racist, like Harry Reid).
To the contrary V-Man. It is a perfect description of the lack of light (transparency) in this blackest and darkest of administrations and Congress. Well said.
Posted by: WolfDog at January 10, 2010 10:16 AM"-- tiny of brainpan, but convinced I am ordained by the gods."
I do believe that a certain amount of conceit is a part of every political persona, just part of their basic makeup, and I can accept that. After all, they can say, "I have been elected because people want ME to be their leader!!"
But the 'ordained by the gods" part tends to burn me quite a bit. No more ordinary citizen, no more guy next door, no longer someone you could run into in their home town.
They have stepped up, become an elected official, and, therefore -- in their minds, evidently -- have also magically become more knowledgeable and know better what the people need than even the people themselves. You can almost see them glowing when they speak, they are so special.
And when I say that, John Edwards comes to mind. Never thought he was anything but a complete, in-your-face, slimy, fake, phony.
Wonder when he'll run again?
Apparently, I'm in the minority who thinks this latest mouth-fart from Reid is his action least deserving of apology.
I don't see racism there (though he may be a racist, for all I know), any more than I see idiocy (though I know him to be an idiot). He was proving himself to be master of the obvious. No, we don't want politicians throwing gang signs during their campaigns. Obama knew how to properly play the campaigning (if not the governing) game. BFD. Where's the offense?
The book will be interesting, but for reasons other than Reid's truly innocuous comment. But I second the emotion of Cocklebur - this has all been done, surely far better, by PJ O'Rourke.
Posted by: Patton at January 10, 2010 4:59 PM