Timeline of a Smear

Nothing like seeing the Republican Noise Machine (RNM) at work. Of course, we’ve seen the RNM do its thing before (think of the Swift Boat ads and of all the so-called scandals that we’ve seen in recent years), and we’ve also seen how the mainstream media predictably becomes a lap dog at the hands of the RNM, which is exactly what occurred in the early phase of the Schiavo “GOP Talking Points Memo” fiasco. But, even if one is familiar with the tactics of the RNM, there’s nothing like having a case study to look at; and now, thanks to Media Matters, we have a rundown of the RNM at work, see TIMELINE OF A SMEAR.

On Hyenas and the “GOP Talking Points Memo”

The great Billmon takes Republican shills to the shed over their continued denial of the Schiavo “GOP Talking Points Memo”:

[T]he conservative response has either been to change the subject (always a smart move when you’re dead fucking wrong) or to continue nitpicking the details — i.e. the memo was written by a “low-level” staffer, Martinez is just a freshman dork Senator, not a member of the “leadership,” and (my favorite) even if the memo is real, the MSM couldn’t have been sure it was real when they reported it, so they’re still a bunch of lying liberal SOBs.)

Let’s dispose of these fallacies quickly:

• A Senator’s legal counsel is not a low-level staffer. He or she is usually the senior legislative aide in the office, and, if the Senator is the chairman of a committee or subcommitee, has a great deal of influence there as well.
• Yes, Martinez is a freshman dork Senator, but he’s not just any freshman dork Senator, he’s a former cabinet secretary with very close ties to the Bush family who was specifically recruited to run for Senate by the president’s brain. He was also the chief sponsor of the Schiavo special legislation and the leadership’s designated point man in the Schiavo debate.
• The original stories — both in the Post and on ABC News — simply reported that the talking points where being circulated among Senate Republicans, which, as we later found out, was confirmed by GOP sources. The stories made no specific claims about the origins of the memo. Now that we know exactly where it came from, the original reporting seems to have been confirmed in all particulars. It’s true that Mike Allen later wrote a story claiming the memo had been distributed by Senate GOP “leadership,” which gets us back to debating who is or is not in the leadership. To which, my considered and thoughtful response to the right is: “Boo fucking hoo. You lost. Now get over it.”

Billmon’s entire post is worth reading, as he unmasks these Republican shills with great style and gusto.