Blog For Arizona

The Establishment Strikes Back

After considerable time with an ear to ground, nose to the grindstone, and a finger in the etheric winds of the internet, I have come the conclusion that Dean's poor showing in Iowa was the result of a well-planned campaign of misinformation, biased or suborned media, and collusion between Dean's rivals. It represents a troubling combination of the establishment candidates to misinform the people of Iowa, and "Gore" Dean in the press. The most galling aspect of the affair, of course, is that it worked, and it may work again if we don't know what to look for and strongly protest such collusion in the future.

Gannett owns the Des Moines Register and the Iowa City Press-Citizen and host of weeklies, locally owned Gazette Communications owns a consortium of print and broadcast outlets dominating Cedar Rapids' media, and a number of conglomerates and locally owned chains dominate the Iowa newspaper market. Curiously, the vast majority of newspapers endorsed Kerry or Edwards. This was not a cooincidence.

Even more curious was the bias commented upon by many observers of those newspapers' coverage of the campaign. The theme of Dean's 'unelectability' was played repeatedly and constantly, along with the false quote attributed to Dean that the caucuses were 'a waste of time'. Over and over, before it actually started happening in the polls, these papers reported that people were moving from Dean to Kerry and Edwards, until it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Finally, the letters pages were packed with positive letters for Kerry and Edwards, and nearly universal negatives were run against Dean, despite, according to one eyewitness account of a clerk working at the Register, sacks of a positive Dean letters coming in.

The papers played a significant roll in cutting into Dean's support. Such a coordinated effort of so many may have been the result of a deals struck in backrooms. I wonder what the cost of those deals to the American people will be if Kerry or Edwards become President? Losening of FCC cross-ownership rules seem like the most salient bargaining chip to me, given that the owners of these outlets know that Dean will put the public interest above their profits if elected.

The papers did not cover Kerry's undoubted use of push polling, or Edwards' reported use of it. In fact, I heard many Iowans say they voted for Kerry and Edwards because they waged a clean campaign; well, you would get that impression from the mainstream press, certainly. However, Dean volunteers have a videotape of a voter being push-polled by a Kerry caller. So much for the clean campaigning. I wonder what Iowa voters would think of this flier from the Kerry campaign in Arizona regarding Gen. Clark? This hit peice is unattributed, but I have it on very good authority it came from the Kerry camp. Clean campaign my foot; Kerry is an inveterate mud-slinger.

More than one Dean precinct captain in Iowa reports many of those from whom support was expected said that they had switched because they heard that Dean was unelectable (from the newpapers and those who read them). Iowa Democrats are clearly ABBs, and the meme worked its magic. Between Democratic officials pressing hard for the establishment candidates in the background, and the bought and paid for press bias, Dean took a double shot to his credibility among Iowa voters.

Gephardt knew he was going down before the voter's blow was dealt. Yet the vast majority of Gephardt 1's went for Kerry and Edwards, not Dean. This despite the fact that Dean was always the second choice of Unions supporting Gephardt. Again, one wonders if a deal was struck with Gephardt for a role in a future Kerry or Edwards Administration in exchange for pushing his supporters into Kerry and Edward's corners? Curiously, Gephardt has chosen not to endorse any candidate after dropping out of the race. One has to wonder if this is because he has a deal with more than one of the remaining candidates?

Oddly, Kuchinich put his small but crucial support behind Edwards with a deal to push Edwards over 15% in those precincts where it appeared he wouldn't make it. Again, an odd ideological match, but one which presents the possibility of significant political benefit later for Kuchinich. Populism and rising from poverty are major themes for both politicians, so their politics may fit together at some later date, despite Edwards' support of the war.

Finally, even as Dean was muffled by the need to respond to the constant vituperations of Gephardt, Edwards and Kerry nakedly stole themes from Dean's campaign; taking back America from the special interests, a movement of the people not just a candidate, the growing split in America between the privileged and the rest of us. They used these themes just as Iowans began to pay earnest attention to the race to convince them that these candidates do not represent politics as usual, while Gephardt and Dean where locked in a death struggle that dragged them both down.

I will be the first to admit it was a brilliant strategy. But if true, even in part, it is dirty as hell. Rife with backroom collusion, press subversion, and politically convenient alliances, it is telling that it took a coordinated effort of lies, half-truths, outright cooptation of Dean's message, and cynical collusion, to bring Dean down just to third place. The key fact, and saving grace, is that the candidates had weeks to accomplish their mugging. As the primary schedule accelerates, there will not be time for such dirty pool and media manipulation. When Dean pulls out a clean win in New Hampshire, Arizona, New Mexico or South Carolina, he will regain his mo' and ease many doubts.

Dean will be fine. He has the support of those who know that we must trust only those who truly represent us, not those who would stoop to trick and exploit the voters to keep their mealy-mouthed, corporate-sponsored, special-interest-riddled campaigns alive.

Finally, don't be defensive about 'Dean's scream', as it is being called by some wags -- be proud. We have a candidate who is so inspired by the support and love of his volunteers that he is moved by actual emotion and joy. Like David dancing before all Israel for the joy of being among his people, Dean is a genuine guy, who is comfortable with the expression of genuine emotion. This is what a human being looks like, people. We have become so accustomed to the phony fronts of politicians that anything real gets characterized as a abnormality by the chattering class. The punditocracy accept GWB's nice guy act at face value, after all. They are so used to phony that they think it's real. Why the hell would any Democrat want to listen to them?

posted by Michael Bryan @ 1/21/2004 06:21:00 PM