Elizabeth hits the nail on the head:
“Someone who’s spent their life in the military doesn’t deserve ‘General Betray Us,’” said Edwards.
Elizabeth Edwards said the group could have made its point by simply using Petraeus’ own previous words about purported good news in Iraq without insulting him personally.
Maybe it's time to launch a petition to get MoveOn to move on. If you're still on their mailing list, send them a message and unsubscribe. Joan Blades, Wes Boyd and Eli Pariser, you are killing us.
11 Responses to “Elizabeth Edwards smacks down MoveOn”
Mel, you have always been a class act and a wise person, and you came through big-time with this post. Some on this blog will not agree with your message, but those who do not have not have worn the uniform. These are not easy times, but this is America, the land of the free and the home of the brave. God Bless America!
Dear Mel,
Thanks for this post. I been gone from here since Monroe left town. Not because of that entirely. Regional is not my forte. Doug just drew me in.
The L-sphere is not real tolerant of the idea you are pushing.
But I think it's the right (left) idea.
It upsets me even though I stumbed upon it many decades ago.
The left actually can be as silly as the right. Only when the right gets silly, people die.
And before anyone attacks me for that, let me remind you that it was the LEFT that went after the painter.
Still, the MoveOn ad was Politics for Dummies dumb.
Unfortunately, there is really no good way to let MoveOn know that you're unhappy with their actions. They are truly a one-way organization. When I've tried to contact them about both good and bad things there is no response.
I thought about writing a letter and mailing it to them, but, alas, I couldn't find a mailing address for them anywhere on their site (without pledging to write a check).
Bottom line: MoveOn sucks.
It seems that the candidates and congress are continually describing issues in terms style instead of substance for misdirection. Is there really any doubt that Petraeus is just another Bush yes man ?
Move-On’s next ad should be "Petraeus Report – The Suspension of Disbelief" or better yet “Congress: Betray US”
The facts are that the Democrats were voted into the majority to end the war. They have not. They are hiding by the ‘support the troops” rhetoric and continuously refunding the war. For a time they were saying “we need to wait for the General’s report.” Whatever excuse is convenient for their inaction on ending/defunding the war.
Move-On is not the problem, Congress is.
MoveOn.org is in the Pogo mode of "We have met the enemy . . . and he is us." It has shifted the focus of the debate, and the shift and focus do not favor progress on the topic at hand.
Style vs. substance:
I think that politicians know that a large majority of voters'eyes glaze over when they start talking about "substance". You don't even get to talk about substance if you can't get the style part figured out. A little sad I suppose, but it ain't gonna change this time around either. Those voters who do care about substance will find out anyway on their own. They don't need a 30 second appearance on Good Morning America to help them out.
For Democrats to be able to talk about substance, and win, well, they need to hire Drew Weston. We have to condition people to be able to "hear" progressive values and accept them as positive. Right now, when you say "safety net" or something like that, people think it's an invitation to get robbed. We have a lot of work to do.
What is the greater sin, betrayal of trust or a lack of decorum. George Bush and the Whitehouse are trying to hide behind the the integrity of the uniform General Petraeus wore in his creative testimony to Congress. General Petraeus in stretching the truth to support the administration's position, is (at best) ignorantly or (at worst) willingly assisting them in this betrayal of trust. Some members of the conservative press who support the President and the Whitehouse, faced with answering the question, has the President betrayed the trust of the American people, is trying to change the subject. What's even worse is that Bush has threatened the safety of the troops by promising to abandon the troops in the field if Congress doesn't fork over the cash to continue the occupation. If the MoveOn add initiates a debate on the trustworthiness of the President, has the President betrayed the trust of the American people, then I'm willing to forgive them for a little impolite name play.
Jeffrey Feldman in "Frameshop: How Right-Wing Lie About MoveOn Ad Became The Story" has some interesting insights:
http://jeffrey-feldman.typepad.com/...ameshop-weekl.html writes:
Weekly Standard Lies About MoveOn Ad, Media Falls For It
Pay attention, America: this is how the right-wing uses the media to manipulate the truth and silence dissent against the Iraq war.
Even before MoveOn.org's ran it's controversial ad about General Petraeus in the New York Times, The Weekly Standard published an article by Peter Hegseth, Executive Director of the organization Vets for Freedom. The headline of the article accused the MoveOn.org ad of calling Petreaus a 'traitor' ("MoveOn.org Calls Petraeus a Traitor"). The only problem: the word 'traitor' appears nowhere in the MoveOn.org ad nor anywhere on the MoveOn.org page about the ad. It is Hegseth's article that introduced the word 'traitor' into the story--an outright lie intended to silence dissent against the war. Less than 24 hours after the Hegseth piece ran and the MoveOn.org ad appeared, the mainstream media picked up the Weekly Standard's lie and repeated it until it became the story.
Feldman writes:
The word 'betray' used by MoveOn in the ad implies many meanings, but does not directly imply 'traitor'--unless that definition is introduced.
Voilà! Another effort by U.S. citizens to question Bush's policy in Iraq has been silenced by right-wing, coordinated accusations that critics of the war seek to harm the country, this time by slandering the U.S. military.
And it is not just overt right-wing sources influenced by the Weekly Standard.
During an interview of MoveOn.org's Eli Pariser, last night (Sep 10, 2007), Hardball's Chris Matthew's repeated the false accusation several times, asking if it was acceptable to accuse Patraeus of being a 'traitor,' as if the MoveOn.org ad had done so--thereby repeating Hegseth's false spin.
In the 48 hours since it was posted Hegseth's lie about the MoveOn.org ad has been repeated all over the media, from Hugh Hewitt in the Los Angeles Times (Sep 10, 2007) to lesser-known sources such as Wake Up America.
Hewitt also repeated the Hegseth lie in a Townhall.com post, posting a statement to the widely-read conservative blog that is outright false when he stated that the Senate had used "MoveOn.org as their party’s attack dog to call David Petraeus a traitor"--despite the fact that the MoveOn.org ad did not call Petraeus a liar (full post here).
The problem, of course, is not just that a false statement in the original Hegseth article was published as if it was news on The Weekly Standard, but the uncritical way other media outlets picked up and repeated the lie.
To date, not one major media outlet has denounced the Hegseth pieces for lying about the text of the MoveOn.org ad.
I find the name calling interesting - especially since it came from the right - in terms of calling Petraeus a "traitor".
If he continues to perpetuate a lie that has killed thousands, then he has betrayed the principles of America's ideal of freedom. That he does it willingly knowing that it destabilizes the region and continues to turn the world against us and threatens America's national security does make him a traitor in my book.
Besides, people in the military don't take oaths to protect their elected officials. They take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States and he most certainly isn't doing that while lying his ass off to Congress who is letting him get away with it.
In my book, every asshole in Washington has betrayed us.
I got off their mailing list a long time ago. Glad I did, too.
One of the things I hate about working at night is I usually miss Keith Olberman. He puts it into words beter than I could, especially when he refers to W hiding behind General Petreaus' skirt, video here:
http://video.msn.com/...e498c8722cb2&p=News_Comment - Analysis&t=m5
I made a small contribution to MoveOn. Hint, it's a trap.