Secret Tape
Daniel Larison has a great post on this nonsense:
It seems that the only reason why anyone suspects that there is something “damaging” (i.e., something not reflexively “pro-Israel”) on the tape is that the Times won’t release it because of an agreement it made with its source(s), but if the Times were to break its agreement with the source(s) and release the tape it would then presumably be accused of violating ethical standards in order to vindicate its preferred candidate. This is a very odd case of a newspaper being accused of “suppressing” evidence after having published a report on the very thing it is supposedly suppressing. Had it acquired the tape and never reported on it, that would be one thing, but it did just the opposite. What is most bizarre about all of this is that from everything we do know about what Obama said, his remarks about Khalidi clearly implied that he didn’t agree with his colleague, which is why in classic Obama fashion he applauded Khalidi for challenging him and making him face his own biases. Presumably, if the Times had always been trying to follow the directive, “do and say nothing that hurts Obama,” it would never have reported on statements made at the party by other attendees. As it is, these other statements don’t count for much, and they have nothing to do with Obama’s views on Israel and Palestine. Perhaps Joe the Plumber can return to worrying about incipient socialism and leave foreign policy to others.
Might I also add that it seems we’re a pretty sick society where a person can be seriously accused of the being acquainted with someone (an Arab someone!) whose views on Israel are unpopular as if it were a hanging offense. Do I agree with all the opinions of everyone I’ve ever said something nice about? I’m not a libertarian, but I still think taking a class with Robert Nozick was a worthwhile experience and I have nothing but good things to say about the man.
46 Responses to “Secret Tape”
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October 31st, 2008 at 8:40 am
I demand that the International Republican Institute divulge its internal deliberation records with regard to John McCain’s decision to award Professor Khalidi over a half a million dollars.
October 31st, 2008 at 8:47 am
Khalidi would knock the socks off a TV audience, precisely because he’s so jarringly different from the prevailing stereotype about Arabs in general and Palestinians specifically. It’s too late for ad advice, not that my advice was ever taken, but Obama ought to put Khalidi on TV to explain to people what he does for a living, and also to thank John McCain for the generous funding.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:02 am
This would be a lot more believable if
– the LA Times hadn’t previously leaked things that were embarrassing to Schwarzenegger
– It hadn’t taken them 3 days to come up with the excuse that their source wouldn’t allow posting
Not to mention the really odd notion that someone would give a video to a media outlet and tell them “you can’t air this”. If they didn’t want it aired, the simplest thing would be to not provide it.
You want this story to go away? Have the LA Times post the video.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:04 am
I saw an interview with Mr Khalidi on Charlie Rose, and while I do not agree with most of the things he was saying, it’s hardly radical, and quite understandable considering he is of Palestinian descent.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:06 am
Please tell me you’re joking. You can’t be that ignorant. I’m hoping.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:11 am
Man, I am gonna get to see none of my favourite TV shows with all these secret Obama tapes coming out in the next few days. WhiteyGateTape, the fake African news agency phone call tape, Obama’s wipe them off the map tape.
Seriously, these wankers aren’t working off talking points faxes any more, it’s flip cards. Remember when Ayers was done months ago then died because nobody gave a toss ? Well they got to the end of the deck so his card came up again. And sure WhiteyGate never happened, but that card’s come up again so what other choice do they have.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:12 am
From Larison’s comments comes this win:
October 31st, 2008 at 9:17 am
Goldfarb’s whole shtick was moronic, anyway. For several reasons.
1) With 4500+ dead soldiers in Iraq, the Neocons Israel Lobby is not in all that great a favor with the general public any way.
2) US politicians are Zionist Occupied Territory for very pragmatic reasons: they’re scared shitless of several billionaires who back the Israel Lobby.
It’s all about the money, not the votes. There are not that many Jews in America ( 6 million?), most of them are middle class, and they are not all that much of a swing vote due to size and wide divergence of views among themselves.
But even if Goldfarb convinced the Israel Lobby’s billionaires that Obama was Adminejadad’s evil twin brother, it’s too late now for Big Money to do anything. McCain could get $400 Million tomorrow morning from Haim Saban and it would still be too late to do anything significant with it.
So I don’t see what Goldfarb is trying to accomplish –other than the usual deceitful trash-talking that more reflexive habit than reason discourse grounded in reality.
Like the other McCain guy who kept insisting Obama was going to raise our taxes even after the Fox News anchor pointed out to him that Obama had pledged to cut taxes for the middle class.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:18 am
Somewhat off topic but I’m sure that Mr. Yglesias will want to comment on todays’ column by his favorite columnist.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/30/AR2008103003636.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
Re James Robertson
Actually, the McCain supporters are probably better off having he LA Times refuse to release the tape. This way, they can make all kinds of insinuations whereas if the tape was released and it turned out to be insubstantive, they would be robbed of a talking point.
What the LA Times should release is the agreement between the provider of the tape and itself, which must be in writing. If, in fact, the Times agreed in writing not to release the tape and they went ahead and did so, they could be held civilly responsible.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:19 am
You’ve only just now noticed that we’re a pretty sick society?
October 31st, 2008 at 9:20 am
Correction to post 8: “that more reflexive habit ” should have read “that’s more compulsive lying (IMO)”
October 31st, 2008 at 9:44 am
I still think taking a class with Robert Nozick was a worthwhile experience and I have nothing but good things to say about the man.
Well. That would explain plumbergate.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:48 am
I think I actually met Khalidi, oddly. When I was looking at colleges and visited the University of Chicago, oh, a dozen years ago, it was decided (largely by my parents, iirc - I always wanted to avoid any attention) that I should talk to a professor in the history department, since I wanted to be a history major. Khalidi was, I guess, the undergraduate chair or some such, so I ended up talking to him. Seemed a perfectly decent sort, from what I remember.
October 31st, 2008 at 9:54 am
However, there is a much larger bloc of rabid evangelical dumbshits that looove Israel even though it is filled with filthy moneygrubbing Jesus-killing unconverted Jews. It’s all part of their bloodthirsty End Times pornography. So “Obama wants to destroy Israel” actually has another target than Haim Saban.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:02 am
“You want this story to go away? Have the LA Times post the video.”
Please. We weren’t born yesterday.
Based on the published description of the tape, Khalidi says bad stuff ’bout Israel, and Obama disagrees with Khalidi about Israel but pays him a personal compliment.
Anyone care to guess how this plays in a Republican attack ad? Tape of Khalidi saying bad stuff ’bout Israel. Tape of Obama complimenting Khalidi. The part where Obama disagrees with Khalidi edited out.
How, exactly, does that enlighten voters with useful information about Obama and/or cause the story to go away?
October 31st, 2008 at 10:16 am
It’s all about the money, not the votes. There are not that many Jews in America ( 6 million?) …
You know what else I heard? That the Jews secretly control the entire MSM, and the Government, and all the banks, and the Government, and Hollywood/entertainment, and … what was that other thing? … oh yeah - the Government!!!1!twelve!
Next time you’re on Wheel of Fortune, don’t forget to tell Pat you’d like to buy a Clue.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:20 am
2) US politicians are Zionist Occupied Territory for very pragmatic reasons: they’re scared shitless of several billionaires who back the Israel Lobby.
Of course, the idea that Israel is the only country in the Middle East approaching a free and functioning democracy might have something to do with it, too.
But now that Bush et al. have brought it to Iraq, democracy is a tsunami that will spread through the MidEast like wildfire
October 31st, 2008 at 10:26 am
Re SFAW’s comment “You know what else I heard? That the Jews secretly control the entire MSM, and the Government, and all the banks, and the Government, and Hollywood/entertainment,”
————-
Naw. It’s just SOME Jews. About 24 , I believe. Plus about 32 Goyim, including the odd Jack Mormom, G-d preserve us.
The other 5, 999,966 Jews spend a LOT of time making up excuses for their mothers-in-law. And struggling desperately to come up with the money for that monthly minimum balance on their wives’ Bloomingdale’s credit cards.
Israel, in contrast, is owned by roughly 19 families, I believe. Who don’t like to pay taxes either — that’s why they have the common US citizen paying several $Billion/year to support the IDF.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:33 am
Re SFAW’s comment “now that Bush et al. have brought it to Iraq, democracy is a tsunami that will spread through the MidEast like wildfire”
———-
The only thing Bush has “spread” is bullshit among the moronic part of the American electorate.
That’s how he managed to kill 4500+ of our soldiers, crippled thousands more for life, and piss away $1 Trillion of our money grabbing oil deposits for Dick Cheney’s friends.
We don’t have “Democracy” here in America — we have a deeply corrupt oligarcy that just stole another $1.5 Trillion of your wages. That’s on top of the $5 Trillion Bush stole from you prior to August of this year.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:39 am
You want this story to go away?
Hell, no! It’s KILLING McCain. Not only does his own involvement with funding Khalidi’s group neutralize the attack on Obama, but the fact that both McCain’s group and Ayers’ group funded Khalidi’s work kills several of McCain’s old attacks, too.
Shoot shoot shooot
Shoot shoot your foot
October 31st, 2008 at 10:41 am
But now that Bush et al. have brought it to Iraq, democracy is a tsunami that will spread through the MidEast like wildfire
Any minute now, SFAW. You keep waving that purple finger, because if there’s one thing people in the Middle East think when they see news from Iraq, it’s “I want my neighborhood to be like THAT!”
October 31st, 2008 at 10:42 am
The only real guilt by association accusation that will ultimately stick in this election cycle is John McCain’s subordination to George W. Bush’s will. Not only on economic matters, but in his abhorrent voting record on veteran’s issues, and spineless acquiesence on torture. Slice it twenty three ways till Tuesday, on social intolerance, fiscal and foreign policy, all around anachronistic know nothingism and governance based on the lower intestinal tract, a plurity of Americans are fed up far more than they care about people Obama once met or whether or not his tax policies will hurt the only sector of America that literally made out like bandits for the past 8 years.
October 31st, 2008 at 10:45 am
Which should concern Americans most? Barack Obama’s associations with people like Ayers, Khalidi, Wright or John McCain’s associations with lobbyists?
October 31st, 2008 at 10:50 am
It’s a shame for the Turks that they have to sit quietly and twiddle their thumbs whenever anyone wants to push the ‘Israel is the only functioning democracy’ line.
Or maybe the argument that Turkey is not a real democracy due to its continuing military occupation of Kurdish areas that wish it would leave?
October 31st, 2008 at 11:21 am
Five more days of this shit. I would like to go to sleep and wake up in five days.
Not that they’ll stop after the election, but they can just be shown the finger and told to shut their cake holes at that point.
October 31st, 2008 at 11:26 am
I got the feeling that America’s voters are about to show the neo-Khans one helluva big purple finger.
October 31st, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Though it would explain why they gave it to a newspaper.
October 31st, 2008 at 1:05 pm
We’re a pretty sick society. And if the interweb hadn’t come along, Matt Y. would be working for TNR and keeping his mouth firmly shut.
October 31st, 2008 at 3:31 pm
In a not so disimilar comparison, I happen to be taking Nadine Strossen’s constitutional law class - both semesters. I voluntarily registered for the class.
No one would ever accuse me of being a rock ribbed ACLU backer and a supporter of each of Strossen’s views, but she’s still Nadine Strossen, a wonderful woman and a world class academic. To not take her class based on a personal ideological bent would be exceedingly stupid.
Of course, I’m sure if I ever ran for office in this environment, some neocon fringe right-winger would decry me for even being in the same room twice per week with her. Couldn’t have that. Maybe that will end after this election.
…well, probably not, but a guy can dream.
December 4th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
Ah, the ’60s. That time in the classic Jungian nightmare cycle when a rigid culture, unable to contain the demands for greater individual freedom, broke free of the social constraints of the previous age through extreme deviation from
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