Media Criticism

The recent passage of higher funding amounts for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program or SCHIP seems like a slam dunk for both parties. Democrats are able to put another aspect of their 2006 midterm campaign (improving health insurance to the uninsured) to bed and Republicans in the affirmative are able to put aside their stingy reputations for a good case. This bill is akin to a bill that promises computers to poor people or provides holiday decorations for every American. It is a slam dunk in a normal universe.

We do not live in a normal universe, however, and evidence of that comes with a threatened veto by President Bush. His proposal of $30 billion for the program was doubled by Congress in an effort to actually cover a large group of children. President Bush has forgotten that he has spent billions in support of the Iraq War, a missile defense shield, Leave No Child Behind and so many bad programs that waste American dollars. It is tough to become principled when you have been a rogue in a big boy’s suit for the last seven years.

I hope that some Republicans in the House realize that there is a political benefit to this program in 2008. House members are up for re-election every two years which means every step they take is scrutinized by activists. Conservative Republicans may not like increasing federal influence in health care but they do love children based on their pro-life tendencies and they do love to get re-elected. Support of SCHIP would affect their constituents and this bill is not some liberal boondoggle that would hand out morning after pills or free copies of Abbie Hoffman’s Steal This Book. It is time for a few Grinches to open their eyes to better government instead of rigid conservative dogma.

Alright, my title is misleading because Fred Thompson could have burped out that he was running for president or gone on Carson Daly to announce his candidacy. His appearance on The Tonight Show was another bob-and-weave performance by Thompson who has been content with staying above the fray for the last few months. He joked with show business colleague Jay Leno about how tough it is to get on his show and how America needs a person like him.

I think the reason why I am so annoyed with Thompson is that he has capitalized on the media’s rabid interest in speculation to perfection. He has done what other candidates with the same amount of juice should have done which is wait as long as possible to avoid the grinder of primary debates that have taken place on both sides. Fred Thompson is so damn savvy it makes me sick!

In all seriousness, I take issue with the growing interest in Thompson. He may as well have worn a mask and hid in the shadows for all of the details he has provided on how he will improve the country if elected president. The media defines the buzz around a candidate in proportion to their enigmatic approach to actually announcing their candidacy. Reporters have been beaten over the head with rejections by Al Gore, toyed around with by Newt Gingrich and allowed to peak into the life of Fred Thompson without any possible repercussions because he has not been a candidate until today. Prepare for an enema of questions by the media, Fred. Just think of how nice it was to work as a voice over actor on Racing Stripes.

The overall question is whether Fred Thompson will add any value to the election. The public already complains that there are too many choices. One more white conservative lawyer on the Republican side does not seem to be the tonic for the public’s annoyance. I think Thompson will get crushed in the front-loaded election cycle and will leave much more quickly than he entered. For all those people who say that Ronald Reagan was an actor and look what he did, Fred Thompson is no Ronald Reagan. I may despise what the Reagan Administration did to this country but he was a committed politician for a long time after he left acting. I look forward to Fred Thompson playing a district attorney in Dick Wolfe’s new series, Law and Order: Dead Careers Unit.

On the CNN Political Ticker today, there is a story about the Republican Party’s love affair with new French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Candidates like Mitt Romney and John McCain have praised Sarkozy’s approach to immigration and a variety of other issues in an effort to show their international acumen. The Ticker notes that Democrats have cautious interest in the new French leader but that political moderation in Europe is akin to American liberalism.

I think it is hilarious that Republicans who only months ago were still sounding the call against France are now embracing Sarkozy and the people he leads. Republicans may have felt they were arguing against Jacques Chirac but they pointed out the unemployment and laziness of the French people, not their leader. The fact that they have turned on a dime and fallen in love with Sarkozy belies their position on Iraq since the French president opposes the underlying premise of the war. The Political Ticker points out another interesting wrinkle in the ongoing hypocrisy of the Republican Party and the ambivalence of the Democratic Party.