Politics and Press

UN : No Stronger than its Weakest Link

For the last 36 hours the UN Secretary General has been urging a “hybrid force” of African Unity and Blue Helmut troops be cautiously deployed in Darfur. This measured 3-step intervention was designed to end the Sudan government’s use of Islamist Arab janjaweed murderers as it slaughters the black muslims in Darfur and– more recently—in Chad.

This blog has taken an interest in the conflict and was hoping to applaud the Security Council’s endorsement of this too-modest but long sought relief from Darfur’s suffering. There are many who have been skeptical of China’s role in the Sudan and indeed in the entire African continent. Worry has been expressed that China would continue its refusal to permit any interference with the Sudanese –who supply China with oil.

A few hours ago the Chinese confirmed that once again it would frustrate the UN with impunity. The story is here. Read it and weep for the hapless peoples of Africa. In the words of the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson :

“The deployment of UN peacekeepers in Darfur should first have the consent of the Sudanese government.”

Of course the Sudanese government had already said that it would permit no such deployment. The Chinese are protecting their oil contracts and reminding the world that:

“As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China will continuously play a constructive role in solving the Darfur issue. ”

The world is at risk when the UN pretends to play a protectorate role but is neutered by its self-dealing impudence. The wrath of citizen activists– so recently unleashed on other member states who frustrate the UN’s peaceful intentions– should once again be inflamed and then directed at the Chinese who are behind the second African genocide in a dozen years.

That isn’t any more likely than that the UN–in its current form– will be a meaningful force for world security. Good luck Darfur. Good luck to us all.

International Broadcasting News

Al Jazeera International (AJI) begins broadcasting in English from studios in Washington, DC today with a staff that includes former “Nightline” anchor Dave Marash.  It is unlikely that AJI will attract a large listenership in the U.S. for reasons both ideological and practical.  The station will not be carried in the U.S. by cable giant Comcast and, in fact, it is difficult to find out just who will carry it. This is unfortunate since it seems worthwhile for Americans to have an opportunity to assess the network on its own merits and to learn something about the Arab world and its views on events. The U.S. administration, especially the Defense Department has been highly critical of its Arabic broadcasts and for its willingness to broadcast Osama Bin Laden videotapes. But a country that can put up with Rush Limbaugh and the O’Reilly Factor ought to be able to listen to Al Jazeera without losing its collective marbles.

In an unrelated story…President Bush has renominated Ken Tomlinson as Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors and for a term on the Board expiring in 10 months.  The Board oversees Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, Radio and TV Marti and several emerging broadcast initiatives in the Middle East. Tomlinson has been criticized for financial irregularities, but most likely these are in part a smokescreen for more substantive issues related to the declining quality of U.S. international broadcasting. More on the general topic of U.S. international broadcasting later.

LA Times Reporters Warn of Dems’ Seeking Action

Well, on the 12th of November the dust had settled and it was time to begin warning of the impending disaster of the Democrats believing they had actually won the election. In a piece of journalism designed to bring the great press critic A.J. Liebling back from dead, the LA Times warns: “…Some of the very activists who helped propel the Democrats to a majority in the House and Senate last week are claiming credit for the victories and demanding what they consider their due: a set of ambitious — and politically provocative — actions on gun control, abortion, national security and other issues that party leaders fear could alienate moderate voters and leave Democrats vulnerable to GOP attacks as big spenders or soft on terrorism….”

We just went through a period of Republican rule that has given us an untenable, counterproductive war, tax breaks for the very very wealthy, a prescription drug program that is a gift to big Pharma, a deficit that mortgages the country to China, faith-based initiatives aimed at eliminating the division between church and state, the demise of habeas corpus, illegal wiretapping of U.S. citizens, use of torture to get questionable information, a refusal to use diplomacy to attack serious challenges abroad, the loss of allies’ trust and faith in the U.S. – the list goes on.

And what do we have from the LA Times? Omigod, the people who won the election actually believe they won the election! They might actually try to use that fact to change the direction of the country. The Times article warns of attempts to reduce health costs, to force the executive to follow constitutional law and to find a way out of Iraq.

The Democrats won the election and it is their turn. And while they certainly have the capacity to screw it up it is very difficult to imagine a more incompetent, venal Congress that the one that is currently embarking on a lame duck flurry of unpleasant and unwanted actions.

We can expect more of this kind of thinking (sic) in the press; the view that the Democrats must be careful and not fulfill the promise of their victory. We need a more competent press and it is papers like the LA Times that need to serve that role.

Russell Feingold’s Presidential Ambitions: R.I.P.

Senator Feingold (D, Wisconsin) has announced that he will not be running for President in 2008. I imagine Hillary has just heaved a huge sigh of relief.

Feingold joined Senator McCain in promulgating one of the great frauds on the American public in the guise of an Election Reform Bill. Maybe I was in a different country but I think I just witnessed one of the nastiest, most expensive midterm campaigns in American history. According to the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics the cost is estimated at over $2.6 billion.  The 2000 election, which included the presidential race cost over $4.2 billion.  McCain and Feingold trumpeted their success in getting their bill passed but strangely do not say much about it in the face of the realities of current campaign spending, much of it on repulsive, insulting TV ads.

Another highlight of the Feingold record was his near-successful effort to close Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) in 1993-4. Feingold was a freshman Senator who had run a campaign focused on trimming the federal budget and where better to start now that the Cold War was over?  (full disclosure: I was employed at the RFE/RL Research Institute from 1991-1994).  There is a long story here for future postings on  public diplomacy to this blog.  For now, it is enough to look at the sorry state of America’s public diplomacy program, the lack of a free press in Russia and many of its allied nations (Belarus, Uzbekistan, etc.), the emerging need for improved broadcasting to countries in the Middle East (incl. Iran, Afghanistan and Iraq) and the relatively low cost of surrogate international broadcasting as an historically effective tool of American foreign policy. Feingold never understood any of this and grandstanded his way through Senate hearings that included a mini-scandal related to salaries of some 14 managers of RFE/RL – and the fact that the then President of the Radios used company funds to have his piano tuned.

I suppose I am having a touch of schadenfreude here, but it is not in the interest of the United States to have as President a man who lacked basic understanding of the importance of soft power.

Chafee’s Senate Seat: R.I.P.

Soon to be unemployed Senator Lincoln Chafee illustrates the problem with being a moderate Republican in a moderate state during the Bush/Cheney regime. In an Op Ed piece in today’s NY Times, Chafee complains that he lost because Cheney and Bush embarked on an “aggressively partisan agenda that included significant tax cuts, the abandonment of international agreements and a muscular, unilateral foreign policy” in spite of his personal letter to Cheney after the 2000 election begging for collaboration, moderation, etc.

Chafee’s letter was written after a meeting with Cheney attended by several moderate GOP Senators. What is of particular interest here is that one of them, Senator Jeffords of Vermont, smelled a big enough rat to leave the Republican Party.  Chafee was shocked to learn that “we seemed ready to return to the poisonous partisanship that marked the Republican-Congress — Clinton White House years.”

On which planet was Chafee living? Bush and Cheney had track records and their weaknesses were not exactly a secret to everyone else in Washington and a lot of people outside Washington.

Chafee is, by most reports, a decent sort – but on the evidence of this Od Ed piece he had no place in the Senate – he helped it organize itself to do Bush/Cheney’s bidding and now regrets “not be[ing] able to participate in the difficult, but critical, healing process that must take place in our government if Democrats and Republicans are going to solve the serious problems facing this great nation.”

We needed good Republicans but did not have enough of them that would buck the craziness and nastiness of the administration. The best thing that could come out of this election would be the return of the Republican Party to its roots of integrity, responsibility and seriousness.  Until then we can hope that the Chafees of the country continue to pay the price for their party membership.

Lame Duck Or Wounded Elephant?

“It is only when the elephant has been attacked or wounded, that he becomes a dangerous enemy.” (from, The Bush Boys, by Captain Mayne Reid, [1856])

There is much talk in the press of checks and balances, and of the President’s expressed offer to cooperate with the victors in the election. Kiwi has suggested that one good test of this would be for the congress to pass legislation calling for an increased commitment to stem cell research.  Then see if he vetoes it.

But the most worrisome part of the current situation is foreign policy.  While there is a lot of talk about Baker-Hamilton dragging the president out of his fog of denial in Iraq, this President is a man who has commented that God chose him for the job and who is, by all reports, stubbornly committed to a foreign policy aimed at proving how big and strong we are.  This in spite of significant evidence that however big and strong we are it is not big and strong enough to handle Iraq, let along North Korea and Iran – short of using the very big and strong weapons.  But like that wounded elephant he has not much to lose now and if he chooses to bomb Iran – well, let the next guy (or gal) pick up whatever pieces are left.

We have had six years of the President telling us to be very, very scared.  Well, OK – now I am – well – at least worried.

TV Election Coverage Through a Jaundiced Eye

The current Low Post section of Rolling Stone’s online site has Matt Taibbi’s diary notes made while watching the election results on TV.  These are not for the young or the pious; they are for the news junkie who wonders why they fell asleep early last Tuesday night. Politicsandpress commented on the mindlessness of TV coverage in its earlier blog: “TV or Not TV”.  But Taibbi managed to stay awake long enough to provide greater detail.  Read and laugh and/or weep.

Spanking Jumbo*

There is little to add to the words from all quarters about the election.  But a few random thoughts;

Much of the press’s analysts (sic) began almost immediately asking what the new Democrat-controlled party will do about Iraq. Their thinking (sic again) seems to be that since they don’t like what Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld have done it is time to put up or shut up.  The problem with this approach is that the war is the President’s – he bought it and owns it. Journalists should not have to be reminded that in the United States form of government the President manages foreign policy and serves as Commander-in-Chief.  This is simple high school government class stuff and the likes of Chris Matthews et alia need to get out their old textbooks.

My Kiwi friend reminds me that the Congress can have an enormously positive impact in two important domestic policy areas: stem cell research and cost of drugs.  I would add health care costs in general and tax reform for the middle class, and environmental issues.  One problem will be that the GOP Congress created so many messes that just managing the agenda will be a challenge.

Some journalists have referred to the possibility of the new Congress holding hearings on issues related to the war, energy policy, and environmental issues as “vengeance”.  The checks and balances that have served the interests of the American people for over two hundred years require such hearings. For example, shortly before the election the administration eliminated the office of the inspector general for the Iraq War.  This must not stand and the Congress is where it can be revived in spirit if not in fact.

The long overdue firing of Rumsfeld will mean little as long as the president continues to live in his fantasy world. Gates is, by most accounts, a smart guy who will work with James Baker and Lee Hamilton to extricate us from this Dubya disaster but the president really needs to face the reality he created and to work with the new Congress to find an honorable way out of his dishonorable war. At his press conference yesterday the president continued to operate in his state of denial although he talks less and less of “victory” and more and more of the need for the Iraqis to take over. We shall see.

Finally, this political upheaval presents opportunities to rebuild relationships between the U.S. and its long-suffering allies.  There is no need to pile on here – only to recognize that the U.S. has lost prestige, honor and friends during the Bush years and we can hope that this election is the first step on the long road back

* With apologies to Matt Taibbi, author of “Spanking the Donkey” the best book on the press and the politics of the 2004 presidential campaign.

Kerry Healey: Lessons Not Learned

The race for governor of Massachusetts was characterized by nasty, not-so-subtly racist ads by Kerry Healey. I commented in this blog at the time that channeling Lee Atwater at his worst was not an especially effective approach in Massachusetts and that the lesson that Atwater learned, that “…you can acquire all you want and still feel empty. [that] It took a deadly illness to bring me eye to eye with that truth, but it is a truth that the country, caught up in its ruthless ambitions and moral decay, can learn on my dime.’ Healey did not learn this lesson, suffering a devastating defeat (21 percentage points!).

In this morning’s Boston Globe the youngsters who ran her campaign (Tim O’Brien and Stuart Stevens) defended their approach while seeking to shift blame to the Massachusetts Teacher’s Union, the candidate herself and her mentor (Governor in Absentia) Mitt Romney. From the Globe: “her advisers defend their approach, saying that Healey was in the race to win. Running an upbeat, positive campaign from that point would have amounted to surrender.
“It’s actually quite liberating, because once you understand that, your direction was very clear,” said Tim O’Brien, Healey’s campaign manager.”
There are no regrets expressed by Healey’s campaign staff on the quality of their campaign – only a lackluster blame of the voters who when offered raw meat, refused to bite.

TV Or Not TV: Election Coverage

Regardless of the results, watching election returns on TV can be detrimental to good mental health. Last night saw us bouncing between MSNBC, NECN (New England Cable News), CNN, and Comedy Central. One “serious” national channel – MSNBC – included a cast of thousands led by Chris Mathews and Keith Olbermann. I mostly avoid cable news stations and I was reminded why last night. Mathews is a self-centered, egomaniacal, know-it-all screamer who turned the elections into a melodrama all about him. Trying unsuccessfully to bully Howard Dean into taking responsibility for ending the Iraq War was not the least of his rants, but one of the more telling ones.  He actually believes that Dean must demand that all U.S., troops pull out of Iraq tomorrow or he has lost his credibility.  This was a theme last night – “all right, mister know-it-all, you won so what will you do to get out of Iraq”.  Hmmm – I thought the president was in charge of foreign policy. Thought he got us in on a whim and a lie, so silly me thought it was his responsibility to find a way out.

The inaptly named Wolf Blitzer led CNN’s efforts  - no more need be said. Simply awful.  Expounding the obvious made into another kind of melodrama.

NECN actually did a better job – quieter, more thoughtful, less self-serving, and no posturing by R.D. Sahl and his colleagues.

As for Comedy Central – Stewart and Colbert were fun for about 15 minutes and then committed the cardinal sin of comedy – they became boring.

Our friend Mackenzie Brothers comments regularly on the fatuousness of American politics and the American press.  He lives in Canada and is in Europe this fall and I am happy for him. But he would have had something to say about the way we report on what would be the most important decisions made in a democracy if they were made and reported on seriously.