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Election 2008: USA Today’s transparent editorial [Karl]

A USA Today editorial tries a little too hard to be even-handed when it comes to asking for full disclosure for presidential candidates:

For a campaign playing out in the glare of the 24/7 news cycle, it’s remarkable what’s still not known about the three leading contenders to be the next president. On matters ranging from Hillary Clinton’s finances, to Barack Obama’s dealings with an indicted businessman, to John McCain’s health, voters aren’t getting all the information they need to make informed choices.

The simple reason for this is that candidates haven’t put it all out. Some of this data, such as tax and medical records, customarily emerge once the major party nominees are selected. But with important choices having already been made in the Republican Party, and an important one still to come in the Democratic race, it’s time for full disclosure.  (Emphasis added.)

As previously noted, the New York Times “maybe McCain has cancer” story was thin gruel:

For patients with a melanoma like Mr. McCain’s who remained free of the disease for the first five years after diagnosis, the probability of recurrence during the next five years was 14 percent and death 9 percent, a study published in 1992 found.

No spread has been detected in the three or four dermatologic checkups Mr. McCain has undergone each year since 2000, stress tests show no evidence of heart disease, and “his doctors consider him in very good health,” his campaign staff said in a recent statement.

McCain, having recently won enough delegates for the GOP nomination, plans o release his medical records in April, giving voters ample time to assess the issue.

The media has done numerous stories on Hillary Clinton’s failure so far to release her tax returns.  She reportedly plans to release them on April 15.

But as to both McCain and Clinton, the USA Today admits that such records are not generally disclosed this early in the campaign.  Throwing those red herrings into the editorial is a nice way to raise Barack Obama’s evasion of questions about his association with indicted fundraiser Tony Rezko without looking like you are singling him out for scrutiny, isn’t it?

To repeat from a link above:

If the press on Obama’s bus decided the daily story would be “Day ___ of Obama refusing to answer questions about Tony Rezko” (or Farrakhan or Wright) until Obama agreed to sit down with a reporter — preferably from a Chicago paper that knows the story – they might get Obama to budge, too.

USA Today’s editors could have its reporters do that, instead of figuratively wringing their hands in an editorial.  A little less pontification, a little more action, please.

(h/t Dan Collins.)

20 Replies to “Election 2008: USA Today’s transparent editorial [Karl]”

  1. happyfeet says:

    Obama’s so sleazy. It makes me uncomfortable, I don’t mind saying.

  2. Carin says:

    Changiness doesn’t need to answer to the little people.

  3. MC says:

    We gotta Wright all ’bout it. They’re not gonna.

  4. datadave says:

    I don’t follow this stuff as much as you might imagine, having an old poli-sci b.a. and all…which was totally useless. But can someone fill me in about McCain’s inflamed cheek or jaw on the side there that’s so cartoonish? war injury or cancer or what? And I don’t think the Rezko thing’s got “legs” but Hillary’s big money might do her in (?). But April 15th might be too late as Pennsylvania probably will go big for her. (?) Obama and Rezko…hey, it’s Chicago, everyone’s sleazy there. As I might have said I think it’s McCain’s to lose and I don’t care too much as for us average Smoes not much difference will it make as the elitists of both parties pretty much rule.

  5. datadave says:

    maybe a few commas and paragraph brakes would’ve helped…sorry

  6. Big Bang Hunter (pumping you up) says:

    – Even so happy, Geraldine has some ‘splainin to do. Oh….and she warned Obama that if he didn’t sit still for the house negro headwear she fitted him for, as a super delegate, (yes choosing her of all people as a super delgate absolutely proves how corrupt the whole process is), she would not vote for him, and that wouldn’t be of course because Hillerys a woman, and hes black, and shes an even more bitter harpie than she was in ’84 when she got her ass kicked. The woman is a leftwing ideolog femnazi equivalent of Wesley Clarke.

  7. Pablo says:

    maybe a few commas and paragraph brakes would’ve helped

    Do those stop the logorrhea?

  8. McGehee says:

    From what I’ve read, the swollen cheek, along with a scar on the back of Sidney’s neck, are left over from an operation to ensure that melanoma had not spread to a lymph node and thus potentially spread throughout his body.

    Can’t fault the treatment he got. Then again, my then-indigent mother got top-notch treatment for her variety of ailments too, including at least two different kinds of cancer. Just sayin’.

  9. Karl says:

    Yes, the aforementioned NYT article leads with it:

    Along with his signature bright white hair, the most striking aspects of Senator John McCain’s physical appearance are his puffy left cheek and the scar that runs down the back of his neck.

    The marks are cosmetic reminders of the melanoma surgery he underwent in August 2000. Mr. McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, sometimes tells audiences that he has “more scars than Frankenstein.”

  10. McGehee says:

    What — dogmadave doesn’t read the links!?

    Shocking!

  11. datadave says:

    thx, Karl. Nothing wrong with surviving cancer. A friend of mine had colon cancer at 48 and he’s doing fine, now at 2 years later. McCain’s mother is in awesome good shape and in her 90s. Those links before went back to PW’s prior posts so I missed the NYTimes one.

  12. Karl says:

    dd,

    Actually, the PW link that would have linked to the NYT was broken. My fault.

  13. J. Peden says:

    Then again, my then-indigent mother got top-notch treatment for her variety of ailments too, including at least two different kinds of cancer. Just sayin’.

    The dirty little secret here is that anybody in the U.S. can and does get top-notch care once they enter the portal, which anyone can do by simply walking into an E.R., where you have to be evaluated, and then treated according to the standard of care.

    Otherwise it’s malpractice city for you, boy.

    I want to see just one valid example where a person is diagnosed and not treated, except owing to ignorance.

    Too much socialism, though, and it’s going to at least starve the health care system.

  14. nishizonoshinji says:

    dick morris speculated on FOXnews that clinton will only release her 2007 returns.
    on account of bill’s income from “speaking tours” [read collectin baksheesh] in UAE and Nigeria is on the 2006 ones.
    it is speculated bill took in at least 10 million, an also the contributions to clinton memorial library from Saud wud be on it.
    bilary will argue it wasnt really runnin for president in 2006.

    O has already released his 2006 returns.
    didnt morris work for the clintons once upon a time?
    w/e did they do to him that he detests them so thoroughly now?

    i dont think the rezko traumadrama is gonna be the hamstringing u guyz are hopin for, the public is pretty innurred to corruption.
    just like the whitewater indictments that never got delivered…..the public attention span for this kinda stuff is short.
    barring some spectacular disclosure, it will just fade-out long b4 the general.

    however, appearance IS gonna be the killah the first time O and mccain stand next to each other on terebi.
    the contrast will be brutal. if u read survival of the prettiest, perception of physical symmetry is related to both health and virility/ferility.
    thus the interest in mccains lump.
    melanoma is some serious shit. out here in the west they call it the “rancher’s disease”, since sunexposure is an environmental trigger.
    ppl die from it frequently in mccains generation.

  15. nishizonoshinji says:

    also….clinton gets favoable treatment from the media.
    both texas and california were portrayed by the media as big clinton wins, but only in the aftermath was it disclosed that O won more delegates in cali and just as many in texas, 91 to 91 so far.
    O will likely have more delgates total from texas too after the official results on the 29th.

    i think….the media wants clinton in the race as long as possible.
    better story, better sales.

  16. B Moe says:

    appearance IS gonna be the killah the first time O and mccain stand next to each other on terebi.
    the contrast will be brutal. if u read survival of the prettiest, perception of physical symmetry is related to both health and virility/ferility.

    You aren’t taking into account that people who view things this superficially usually don’t bother or forget to vote. Thank God.

  17. Cowboy says:

    Amen, B Moe!!

    Anyone who looks at two candidates and thinks to himself, “Hey, that one looks kinda lumpy,” then votes for the other should probably do us all a great service and stay home.

    Of course, being largely asymmetrical myself, I find this all very distasteful.

  18. Rob Crawford says:

    Why do people still respond to the illiterate TTP?

    Ah, well, I’ll get my shot in — focusing on appearance makes it clear nishi’s vote is following her genitals, not her brain.

  19. Big Bang Hunter (pumping you up) says:

    – Say what you want. If you’re not a hard left loon, you have to be enjoying watching the various identity groups tearing each others throats out. In fact, some of the loons are enjoying it even more than mainstream America is Methinks. Its the nature of the beast,

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