From HuffPost:
Today, the Arizona Republican's presidential campaign went to war with the Grey Lady. Asked to respond to an article that brought to light the fact that McCain campaign manager Rick Davis had earned nearly $2 million in lobbying fees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (based, almost primarily, on his access to McCain) at the same time that he was attacking Barack Obama for his own ties to those very institutions, aides to McCain went off.Lie #1: if they are "first amendment absolutists," they why have they not permitted the press to have unfettered access to Sarah Palin in the 24 days since announcing her nomination? When will she give a press conference? Why, also, have they restricted access to McCan't to the point where it the term "Straight Talk Express" is a joke? In fairness, McCain did back the Media Shield Law.
"We are first amendment absolutists on this campaign and the press and everyone who wishes to cover this race from a blogosphere and media perspective is constitutionally protected to write whatever they want," said Steve Schmidt, the campaign's chief strategist. "But whatever the New York Times once was, it is today not by any standard a journalistic organization. It is a pro-Obama advocacy organization that every day attacks the McCain campaign, attacks Gov. Palin and excuses Sen. Obama. There is no public vetting... there is no level of outrage directed at his deceitful ads... This is an organization that is completely and totally 150 percent in the tank for the Democratic candidate.... Everything that is read in the New York Times should be evaluated by the American people from that perspective. It is an organization that has made a decision to cast aside its journalistic integrity and advocate for the defeat of one candidate and the election of another."
Lie #2: Uh, the New York Times endorsed McCain for the Republican nomination, proving that it does have the vision and the integrity to be balanced and fair. (Unfortunately, they were also wrong when the editorial board wrote: "Senator John McCain of Arizona is the only Republican who promises to end the George Bush style of governing from and on behalf of a small, angry fringe." His Palin pick erased that credibility pretty damn quick.) By the way, was there an endorsement for a Democratic candidate on Fox News or in the Wall Street Journal?
Lie #3: Newspapers and media outlets across the country endorse candidates for public office all the time. When they endorse Obama (and they haven't yet), the Times would be continuing a long-held tradition. What the Times has done, however, is solidly advance the notion that McCain has been abandoning truth in favor of winning the election.
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