Roger Simon's "One-Term President" article was SATIRE. The media is taking it seriously.

[jenmito]

He was on Morning Joe this morning and explained that it's satire and the fact that he said half of those who read it didn't understand that and either did the other half (or something like that) makes him feel it was a good article. He read parts of it (or it was read back to him) and he said it should've been obvious that it was satire. Here's some of it:

"Honest to goodness, the man just does not get it. He might be forced to pull a Palin and resign before his first term is over. He could go off and write his memoirs and build his presidential library. (Both would be half-size, of course.)

I am not saying Obama is not smart; he is as smart as a whip. I am just saying he does not understand what savvy first-term presidents need to understand:

You have to stay on message, follow the polls, listen to your advisers (who are writing the message and taking the polls) and realize that when it comes to doing what is right versus doing what is expedient, you do what is expedient so that you can get reelected and do what is right in the second term. If at all possible. And it will help your legacy. And not endanger the election of others in your party. And not hurt the brand. Or upset people too much."

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/41134.html#ixzz0wzXOwzNW


Yet, there was Chris Jansing on MSNBC a couple hours later, reading from it, treating it seriously, discussing with pundits how Obama is not taking Simon's advice and that may be why his poll numbers are falling. Incredible.

[WI_DEM]

1. Again! Did the media do this when Bush was at 25% or St. Ronnie and Clinton

lost congress and were in the 30's with their approval ratings. This is pile on Obama season.

[jenmito]

2. I doubt it. And they take his words out of context and then claim he changed his position,

when he had the same position both times. The media just clipped parts that made their narrative work.

[Drunken Irishman]

4. I think both Clinton and Reagan benefited from a slower media.

The internet was just in its infancy (at least for public, home use) during Clinton's first term and no one was online during Reagan's two terms (well, most people, anyway).

There wasn't endless chatter during the 80s because there really wasn't endless 24 hour news. Sure, you had CNN - but back then, CNN actually acted like a reputable news source. Even then, most Americans in the 80s still didn't have cable television. They got their news from two sources: the newspaper or the nightly news.

Well the nightly news came about once every night and wasn't much different from our nightly news today. You don't hear the constant approval rating talk on nightly news because there just isn't enough time to warrant such discussion.

That generally happens on the internet and on cable news. 24 hour news. Well their brand of news, anyway.

Most of the programming seen on CNN, MSNBC and FOX can't be considered news. Even Keith Olbermann isn't news in its truest meaning. It's opinion-based news, sure, but it isn't news.

So I doubt the media was hung up on Reagan's ratings like they were with Obamas. Mostly because there just wasn't as many avenues as there are today. It's unfortunate.

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

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[SemiCharmedQuark]

5. They must have chaged the definition of "freefall" or you're having fevered delusions

Keep that dream alive, smalll...keep that dream alive.

[Pirate Smile]

6. Yesterday, Jansing started to say Barnicle called the President a political pyromaniac.

The person she was interviewing had to correct her and say Barnicle called Gingrich that, not the President. She still thought she was right and not the other person.

The fact that she didn't get that it was Gingrich's Nazi comparisons that were being called political pyromania says A LOT.

[jenmito]

7. I missed that...

but I'm not surprised one bit. There are other examples of Jansing that say a LOT about her, and none of it is good.

[Marsala]

8. There was obviously some sarcasm, but it was too similar to typical Villager advice

So I thought it was like a Maureen Dowd piece - snarky but not actually total satire.

[jenmito]

9. I disagree...

it was obvious sarcasm. Especially how he started by saying Obama should "pull a Palin."