Jon Stewart took the media to task to for blowing the Wisconsin recall completely out of proportion, and proclaiming the results an Armageddon like event.
Part 2:
Stewart had two points. MSNBC and Fox News were over the top partisan, and the cable news networks blew the significance of Wisconsin way out of proportion. The Daily Show host played clips of Fox News gloating that Walker’s win was the death of all unions, and Sarah Palin claiming that Walker’s recall means that, “Obama’s goose is cooked.” Over at MSNBC, he featured clips of the network’s total state of denial, and Rachel Maddow’s over the top proclamation that if the Republican money machine stays unchecked, the GOP will run unopposed forever. (Maddow is usually solid, but that is one prediction that she can’t say with any certainty will definitely remain true).
The truth is that with Mitt Romney sucking the air out of the 2012 election, the cable news networks went into full over the top mode with the Wisconsin recall. There is no national significance to what happened in Wisconsin. There is a broader point about how Citizens United has changed the landscape that Democrats must learn from, but with the Wisconsin polls showing voters favored Obama over Romney, while voting at the same time to keep Walker, there is no national meaning to the results.
Sure the left wanted to win and their state of depression over the results yesterday was understandable, but I would happily trade losing the Walker recall for a second Obama term. What the cable news networks don’t do anymore is look at the big picture. They are masters of hyping every single election as a titanic struggle for the fate of the universe. In reality, Wisconsin was a unique case. It was never going to have much meaning for November, because presidential elections aren’t the same as recalls. After Barrett lost so quickly, MSNBC was stuck in the position of having to explain to their viewers why Wisconsin wasn’t the end of the world.
Wisconsin was important for the people who live in Wisconsin. For everyone else, it was another political sideshow to take in. If the presidential election was interesting, maybe Wisconsin would have been kept in perspective. Stewart was right for pointing it out. Wisconsin was disappointing for the left, but it was not the end of the world. It is time for the left to pick their chins up off the ground and keep their eyes on the real prize in November
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Sarah Jones
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 12:44 pm
Of course, LOD had a reason for saying it was a win for Obama based on the exit poling, but that isn't as funny or easy as saying both sides are the same. I agree with his overall point, but he tends to fall into false equivalencies for the humor.
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A Walkaway
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 12:50 pm
I disagree about the Walker recall being unimportant, and I firmly believe that it bodes ill for President Obama and the 99% unless we can break the power of the 1% (and the mainstream media). It's a mirror of this area and suggests that more people have drunk the kool-aid than people think.
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Jason Easley
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 1:12 pm
Polling completely disagrees with you. The point about the money should be a lesson learned, but a lot of voters in Wisconsin support Obama but voted for Walker. This is exactly why you can't draw broad national conclusions from a state recall election. It is much easier to bombard and out spend successfully in a 4 week campaign compared to a six month campaign. The strategies are completely different.
Also, Democrats bear the blame for nominating the same candidate that Walker beat in 2010. By giving him such a ready made opponent it allowed the GOP's money machine to attack Barrett for months.
How would the cash advantage have played out if Democrats wouldn't have telegraphed their nominee? What if they would have nominated someone new weeks before the election, instead of Barrett?
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Carrie
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 1:20 pm
The hysteria was a bit much. Republicans apply this to nov at their own risk but there's no stopping stupidity.
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dan
Jun. 8th, 2012 at 12:35 am
This is right on the money. Democrats trotted out the same tired horse with no rebuttal to Walker and no alternate plan. He 'lost his focus' on the labor and collective bargaining issue and was seen even in Democratic circles as the 'lesser of 2 evils'…
I BEG Mayor Barrett to NEVER run for governor again. He's an embarrassment.
If the democrats can interest someone like Feingold to run againt Walker in the next election, perhaps they'll have a shot.
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Reynardine
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 1:26 pm
A gruesome death cannot be undone, but a good forensic autopsy can help determine what- and maybe who- caused it, and prevent future such deaths. The Wisconsin recall died a gruesome death that cannot be reversed, but its autopsy must be accurate, dispassionate, and thorough to prevent further occurrances of this kind.
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momly
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 1:45 pm
I wonder what would have happened if the recall vote had taken place right after Walker shat on the unions? Why did it take so long to get to the vote?
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Cheryll
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 9:18 pm
Momly,
By law we couldn't do the recall until a certain period of time had passed. Sorry I can't tell you the specifics… I don't remember. I think it might have been the recall (gathering signatures, etc.) couldn't begin until he had been in office for a year.
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Steve
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 1:52 pm
The fact that Obama refused to visit WI (he was just miles away in MN) tells me Obama figured Walker would win and Obama did not want to be seen with Barret. That suggest that Obama thought it might have influence on the presidential election.
The cable news overhyped something? NO!
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Reynardine
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 6:22 pm
There is another possibility, but I’ll let you figure it out.
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Anne
Jun. 7th, 2012 at 10:04 pm
Walker's victory is definitely the result of hugely outspending his opponent, aided by other GOP governors and the Koch brothers, among others. I understand that part of the reason is that the unions he didn't touch were instrumental in his defeat of Barrett. He has obviously been successful in his divide and conquer strategy. But sooner or later, his policies will also affect these other groups adversely, and they will have only themselves to blame for returning him to power. A lot of people on the right seem to think that only liberals will be negatively affected by the policies of Walker and his ilk, and it seems that only resulting personal catastrophies will wake them up. Plus, it seems counterintuitive to support Obama as president and Walker as governor, when Walker's regressive policies have a much more immediate and direct impact.
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