Friday, February 24, 2012

Know Your Enemy

Writing for the Atlantic, Megan McCardle finds her recent mail from the Obama campaign to be amusing:

I just received a new mailer from BarackObama.com.  Even before the primaries are finished, Obama is apparently kicking off the campaign against his now-inevitable opponent: the Koch brothers.
They're at it again, those Koch brothers. So what are they doing? Let Obama-Biden tell you. You may want to look away though, because it's really nefarious:


Friend --
In just about 24 hours, Mitt Romney is headed to a hotel ballroom to give a speech sponsored by Americans for Prosperity, a front group founded and funded by the Koch brothers.
Those are the same Koch brothers whose business model is to make millions by jacking up prices at the pump, and who have bankrolled Tea Party extremism and committed $200 million to try to destroy President Obama before Election Day.

I have it on good authority that the Koch Brothers also throw turds in the punchbowl and were the men who shot Liberty Valance. Bet the weasels are twirling their Snidely Whiplash mustaches, too. They'll get you, my pretty, and your little Veep, too!

McCardle is interested in this, especially since we've never had a tag team president before:

I know it's customary to whine about the permanent election, but I confess, I'm excited to see this one unfold.  Sure, it was historic to have our first black president--not to mention the first president who was a professor at my alma mater--and I don't mean to take anything away from that.  But it would also be a pretty big landmark to have our first joint presidency.
I gotta tell you -- it's not a sign of strength if your campaign has to go all Emmanuel Goldstein on a couple of plutocrat dudes who aren't even running for president, especially when the Obama campaign certainly has the full support of other plutocrats. But hey, it's hard to escape unless you have scapegoats.

10 comments:

Gino said...

the kochs are ivolved with wealth generation/creation.

soros: manipulating other people's paper.

i know where the moral high ground is on this one.

W.B. Picklesworth said...

What made me laugh out loud was the accusation that the Koch brothers are driving up prices at the pump. "Don't look at me," Obama says, "I'm just the president. I haven't had anything to do with energy policy for the past three years."

Bike Bubba said...

Actually, I think we're in at least our second joint Presidency, though Clinton doesn't admit inhaling. Didn't Obama admit that he was a pothead in his autobiography?

Maybe third. Washington's diaries detail how he grew hemp--some of the entries seem to indicate more THC than fiber.

And it seems that the residual THC is causing Dear Leader problems even now...

Brian said...

Fourth. W smoked, too.

The Kochs are a dog whistle to which some people predictably respond. Both sides have 'em. And they're all dumb.

Gino said...

Brian: dog whistle? damn thats good. borrowed, or did you come with that on your won?

Anonymous said...

Gino,
The term "dog whistle politics" has been in use in the U.S. since the early 90's. We picked it up from Australia, where it is widely used. It's the use of 'coded' language that resonates with a segment of the populace (usually a parties base), but not with the public at large. So it works like a dog whistle; some hear it, but most don’t.

Regards,
Rich

Gino said...

didnt know its been around that long. first time i heard it was now.
thanks Rich.

Mr. D said...

didnt know its been around that long. first time i heard it was now.
thanks Rich.


Of course you don't know about dog whistles, Gino -- you're a cat person!

Brian said...

Yeah, as Rich pointed out, I didn't make that up. But I also couldn't have told you where I picked it up.

Mr. D said...

But I also couldn't have told you where I picked it up.

That's how a dog whistle is supposed to work. :)