Dances with Pundits

Today, Jake Tapper of ABC reports, the President lunched with:

Mike Allen – Politico

David Brooks – New York Times

Chris Cillizza – Washington ost

Gail Collins  – New York Times

Howard Fineman – Newsweek

David Gergen – Media Whore

Mara Liasson – NPR

Josh Marshall – Talking Points Blog

John Meacham – Newsweek

Cynthia Tucker – Atlanta Journal Constitution

Andrew Rosenthal – New York Times

With his Journo List and the use of the National Endowment for the Arts for propaganda purposes, we have never seen a president waging all out propaganda warfare in this country. To Obama, Obama is the Message. As we see Paul Krugman advocate Weimar monetary policy, it would seem that much of the punditocracy have lost all critical perspective, and perhaps some of their common sense as well.

The President has used these lunches and dinners to communicate his message, which is then interpreted the pundits. No one discussed the religious aspect of yesterday’s massacre, I’m sure, just as no one questioned the foreign policy fiascos that are racking up like frequent flyer miles as the president’s strategies on Iran, Pakistan, Palestine, Honduras, and Central Europe go awry. No one, I am sure, brought up the monstrosity of the Health Care bill before the house tonight.

No, these are party line affairs meant to co-opt his friends and neutralize or win his opponents. The hard questions go unanswered as they build up day by day. The announced unemployment rate is 10.2%. The structural rate including those who have given up on their searches for jobs is closer to 14% or 15%. In parts of the country unemployment is above the levels of the Great Depression.

As the President and his staff have, in an unprecedented manner, waged war against Limbaugh and Fox News, everyone had a nice lunch and oh so interesting conversation. Thomas Jefferson said ” were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without government, I should not hesitate for a moment to prefer the latter”. He also said “the force of public opinion cannot be resisted when permitted freely to be expressed”.  Obama’s co-option of the message is unprecedented, and if anyone should be wary, it is these very pundits.