Letting Off a Little Steam

Scott McClellan: Truth teller or dirty rat?



Whatever the truth is McClellan’s sent the political pundits on MSNBC and Fox into the kind of feeding frenzy you usually see reserved for Hollywood, say, when Britney Spears has one of her meltdowns. Keith Oberman is ecstatic. Sean Hannity is outraged. The political pundits are stampeding like a herd of paparazzi.



On Fox Dick Morris tried three times, patiently, to explain to Hannity that McClellan’s kiss and tell memoir was much ado about nothing; Morris’s answer to Hannity’s outraged questions was the same each time, Well, there’s nothing new here – but he might as well have been talking to a post.



Then, in the midst of all the rhubarb, Senator Bob Dole charged onto stage like a wounded elephant. Elizabeth should have taken his computer away – Dole emailing Scott McClellan just to tell him man-to-man that he’s a worm and a ‘miserable creature’ skulking in the shadows was not the old war hero’s finest moment.



Worse – at least on MSNBC – Senator Dole’s broadside backfired. It sounded like the Republican Establishment was in the grips of a panic. One critic said the Republicans, who rode into power thirty years ago on Reagan’s coattails, have, suddenly, awakened to find they’re facing their own political demise. It was hard enough to lose the House to Nancy Pelosi two years ago. But now they have one fact clearly in focus: That may be a trend – not an anomaly. They just lost three bi-elections. They are faced with losing a score of House and Senate seats this fall. And when Obama says change he’s not talking about neutering lobbyists he’s talking about kicking people like them out of office.



Given the heat building up in the Republican pressure cooker in Washington these days, Scott McClellan’s memoir had the effect of a safety valve – it turned out to be a way to let off a little steam.



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Carter Wrenn

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Letting Off a Little Steam

Scott McClellan: Truth teller or dirty rat?



Whatever the truth is McClellan’s sent the political pundits on MSNBC and Fox into the kind of feeding frenzy you usually see reserved for Hollywood, say, when Britney Spears has one of her meltdowns. Keith Oberman is ecstatic. Sean Hannity is outraged. The political pundits are stampeding like a herd of paparazzi.



On Fox Dick Morris tried three times, patiently, to explain to Hannity that McClellan’s kiss and tell memoir was much ado about nothing; Morris’s answer to Hannity’s outraged questions was the same each time, Well, there’s nothing new here – but he might as well have been talking to a post.



Then, in the midst of all the rhubarb, Senator Bob Dole charged onto stage like a wounded elephant. Elizabeth should have taken his computer away – Dole emailing Scott McClellan just to tell him man-to-man that he’s a worm and a ‘miserable creature’ skulking in the shadows was not the old war hero’s finest moment.



Worse – at least on MSNBC – Senator Dole’s broadside backfired. It sounded like the Republican Establishment was in the grips of a panic. One critic said the Republicans, who rode into power thirty years ago on Reagan’s coattails, have, suddenly, awakened to find they’re facing their own political demise. It was hard enough to lose the House to Nancy Pelosi two years ago. But now they have one fact clearly in focus: That may be a trend – not an anomaly. They just lost three bi-elections. They are faced with losing a score of House and Senate seats this fall. And when Obama says change he’s not talking about neutering lobbyists he’s talking about kicking people like them out of office.



Given the heat building up in the Republican pressure cooker in Washington these days, Scott McClellan’s memoir had the effect of a safety valve – it turned out to be a way to let off a little steam.



Click Here to discuss and comment on this and other articles.

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Carter Wrenn

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