McCain Campaign Whines that NYT Paid Heed to Their Letter
There’s something funny about the McCain campaign’s complaints about the NYT’s front page piece on Cindy today. They released a letter that John Dowd sent to the NYT on October 1. He writes:
I write to appeal to your sense of fairness, balance and decency in deciding whether to publish another story about her. I do this well knowing your paper’s obvious bias for Barack Obama and your obvious hostility to John McCain. I ask you to put your biases and agendas aside.
[snip]
I am advised that you assigned two of your top investigative reporters who have spent an extensive amount of time in Arizona and around the country investigating Cindy’s life including her charity, her addiction and her marriage to Senator McCain. None of these subjects are news.
I am also advised that your reporters are speaking to Tom Gosinski and her cousin Jamie Clark, neither of whom are reliable or credible sources. Mr. Gosinski has been publicly exposed as a liar and a blackmailer on the subject of Cindy McCain. Jamie Clark has very serious drug and stability issues and has failed in a number of attempts to blackmail Cindy. She is simply not credible.
[two long paragraphs on Gosinski]
Any further attempts to harrass or injure her based on the information from Gosinski and Clark will be met with an appropriate response. While she may be in the public eye, she is not public property nor the property of the press to abuse and defame.
[snip]
I ask you to let Cindy McCain carry on in her usual understated, selfless and dignified way. The fabrications and lies of blackmailers are not fit to print in any newspaper but particularly not the New York Times.
In short, this letter is primarily a thinly disguised (and, IM[NAL]O, legally suspect) warning against repeating the stories of Gosinski and Clark. Note, for example, that Dowd’s letter was written more than two weeks after the WaPo published a story heavily reliant on Gosinski as a source, which Dowd has apparently not responded to with threats of "an appropriate response." Nevertheless, Dowd wrote Bill Keller and tried to scare Keller away from reporting on Gosinski.
So, 18 days after Dowd wrote his letter, the NYT wrote their piece. Look closely at it. See what’s not in it?
Any reference to Gosinski or Clark. In fact, the totality of the discussion of Cindy’s addiction is,
Mrs. McCain busied herself with the American Voluntary Medical Team, a charity she founded to supply medical equipment and expertise to some of the neediest places on earth, like Micronesia, Vietnam and Kuwait in the weeks after the Persian Gulf war.
[snip]
In 1994, Mrs. McCain dissolved the charity after admitting that she had been addicted to painkillers for years and had stolen prescription drugs from it. She had used the drugs, first given for back pain, to numb herself during the Keating Five investigation, she confessed to Newsweek magazine. “The newspaper articles didn’t hurt as much, and I didn’t hurt as much,“ she wrote in an essay. “The pills made me feel euphoric and free.”
In other words, Dowd’s letter apparently achieved its intended objective–to dissuade the NYT from relying on two particular sources.
And look at the sources the NYT does rely on: "a friend," "[Cindy] has said," "friends say," "a former Arizona congressman who knows the couple [commenting Cindy’s willingness to do anything for the campaign]," "those close to Mrs. McCain," "some of Mr. McCain’s Washington friends," "fellow mothers at their children’s schools," "Diana Dunn, who socialized with the couple," "Lisa Boepple, a former chief of staff," "the friend from back home," "Peggy Rubach, a former aide," "Wes Gullet, a former aide," "G. Darrell Olson, a local jeweler," "Jill Hazelbaker," "friends." Plus a number of direct quotes from Cindy that appeared in other outlets. While there are a few sources who may not be friendly (I’m not sure whether McCain will be buying Cindy’s baubles from Darrell Olson this Christmas, for example), the sources for this story are by and large people close to the McCains and many of them portray Cindy as a very selfless person.
Yet still the McCain campaign is attacking the NYT for the story.
The McCain campaign pushed back with unprecedented ferocity, with an 11:47 p.m. “Statement on New York Times trash report on Mrs. McCain,” by McCain-Palin spokesman Michael Goldfarb: “Today the New York Times launched yet another in a series of vicious attacks on Senator John McCain, this time targeting not the candidate, but his wife Cindy. Under the guise of a ‘profile’ piece, the New York Times fails to cover any new ground or provide any discernible value to the reader other than to portray Mrs. McCain in the worst possible light. … It is a black mark on the record of a paper that was once widely respected, but is now little more than a propaganda organ for the Democratic party. The New York Times has accused John McCain of running a dishonorable campaign, but today it is plain to see where the real dishonor lies."
This is the same "propaganda organ" that Gov. Palin cited when (selectively but approvingly) quoting from a front-page article on William Ayers.
McCain aides also released what the campaign claims is a Facebook message sent by Times political correspondent Jodi Kantor on Sept. 29 to "a 16 year-old schoolmate of the McCains’ daughter, Bridget": “I saw on facebook that you went to Xavier, and if you don’t mind, I’d love to ask you some advice about a story. I’m a reporter at the New York Times, writing a profile of Cindy McCain, and we are trying to get a sense of what she is like as a mother. So I’m reaching out to fellow parents at her kids’ schools. My understanding is that some of her older kids went to Brophy/Xavier, but I’m trying to figure out what school her 16 year old daughter Bridget attends– and a few people said it was PCDS. Do you know if that’s right? Again, we’re not really reporting on the kids, just seeking some fellow parents who can talk about what Mrs. McCain is like. Also, if you know anyone else who I should talk to– basically anyone who has encountered Mrs. McCain and might be able to share impressions– that would be great. Thanks so much for any help you can give me.” [my emphasis]
Now, I agree the story isn’t terribly flattering. With regards to Cindy, it calls her on some apparent false claims made by and about her–though it never accuses her or the campaign of lying. Otherwise, it just makes her sound lonely and sad–but no lonelier than she appears standing on stage at rallies.
The real damage, I think, is how the story reflects on John McCain, whose mother-in-law used to call the local jeweler to arrange gifts from McCain to Cindy because he apparently "didn’t have time" to buy them himself. The story portrays McCain as someone totally unworthy of the devotion Cindy gives him. Frankly, I do think that’s useful news to tell voters.
But what I don’t get is why, if the McCain campaign wants to claim the NYT ambushed them with an attack piece, they at the same time provide evidence that the NYT backed off the specific topics the McCains wanted them to back off of.
Cindy McCain became fair game when she trots across the stage to the microphone and questions Obama’s patriotism supports the “paling around with terrorist” claims and berates Obama as if he is not supporting her son or other Iraqi soldiers. She is fair game.
Just wonder when they will start bringing up McCain ditching handicapped wife for the richer and younger Cindy. Cindy was a home wrecker. McCain and adulterer…onward Christian soldiers.
Folks are beginning to call into Washington Journals C-Span asking why does McCains service in another illegal, immoral and bloody war qualify him to be touted as a war hero? Sorry that McCain ended up in a prison…but I am not going to celebrate that war. How many innocent Vietnamese people did McCain kill?
Cindy & Sarah, stepford women behind McCain.
Shorter McSame Campaign: “Let us have cake! We must eat it too!”
Senator Lieberman has been hanging over McCain’s left shoulder again the last few days. That always worries me.
Cindy McCain seems to be to be a very sad, lost, insecure person. If she weren’t enabling a stupid man and an even more stupid and vicious woman who are capable of immense harm in the world, I’d feel sorrier for her.
Whatever her issues and problems, and I suspect they are many, I don’t want her anywhere near the White House, or representing me to the world.
Anyone know when will Cindy’s cook book be published? I’m all atwitter!
I suspect that they are attempting to squelch the stories of Cindy McCain’s drug addiction and theft of prescription drugs from her charity to feed that addiction…because they intend to raise Obama’s teenage drug use.
Ironically they use the “Cindy’s life including her charity, her addiction and her marriage to Senator McCain. None of these subjects are news” canard. Really! When the campaign itself has prominently displayed her marriage to John and presented her as some sort of “little sister” to Mother Teresa?
The problem they see is that McCain’s issues are far more recent, occurred well after she was a “mature adult”, and were so egregious that they reached a criminal level. In addition, John McCain used his influence as a political figure to get her off “light”.This could easily be contrasted with his attitudes on the non-violent drug sentencing and treatment programs that he hypocritically opposes.
In addition, the campaign makes overt claims that Gosinski and Clark are “blackmailers”. That’s a pretty serious, and potentially slanderous, charge. Of course one might think that they never hoped that the letter would every see the light of day…and that Gosinski and Clark might never “know” about the assertion. But I bet they are lawyered up now.
In fact, given the tone of the letter, one might think that it’s the McCain campaign that is threatening and blackmailing the NYT.
Cindy McCain, multi-millionaire heiress with a web of undisclosed secret investments she refuses to reveal, will be sleeping with the man who will have the responsibility for tens of trillions of dollars in taxpayers money. In the Keating 5 Scandal he was already shown to be influenced by his wife to “protect” her business partners. Today we know nothing about her associates and how Senator McCain has acted in relationship to her businesses and investments. She has kept them secret.
It’s now time for Cindy McCain to come “clean”.
Yes, Dowd didn’t exactly start off fair and balanced in his first address to the NYT. The irony is that, even when the NYT caved to specific demands, the story still came out sounding as damaging as it does. I guess that’s why Dowd is still annoyed.
The Facebook message brought me up short, though. If that’s true, that is a weird thing to do to a sixteen-yr-old, imho. NYT reporters don’t have more common sense than to play stalkers on Facebook?
I try not to pass judgement on personal lives, and who knows what Cindy does when she gets back to one of her pads. But McCain treats her dreadfully in public, really dreadfully. Whatever her private remedies, it must be humiliating to live through that day after day on the road. I sure wouldn’t do it.
ny times reporters have no common sense or institutional memory
look at this dreck
I find it hard to believe that this idiot could write a whole article about “Evidence” from the bush crooks without a SINGLE mention of the Niger forgeries
this stupid fucker is impressed by PAPER WITH WORDS ON IT
i caught a few minutes of an ABC profile they did on obama and mccain a couple week back. two striking moments during the mccain piece.
the first was an interview with john & cindy side by side on a couch. cindy is recounting the time of her addiction, basically excusing john for not realizing what was going on and his face & body immediately tighten and he defensively says of course he would have figured it out. she reaches out her hand and puts it on his leg and he stops talking, though his faces is still all uptight. she continues her account. it seemed a well-practiced dynamic between the two.
the other was footage of mccain and his first wife carol entering a formal event shortly after his release, the two dressed in evening wear. he hobbles along on his crutches, and she can barely walk her limp is so severe, her body dipping down and up with each step. i knew of her injuries and long recovery from the auto accident, but seeing her barely able to walk gave me knew admiration for what she went through.
and then he ditched her for a younger richer model who was a homewrecker. Real family values there.
Homewrecker Cindy and Adulterer, innocent Vietnamese killer John. If they are hitting below the belt they have to expect it back at them
Lots of responses (over 4000) to Michelle Bachman’s lunatic tirade on Hardball over at Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
You have to wonder what is happening up in Minnesota when a woman like Bachman is elected. I have always considered the majority of voters in Minnesota as progressives or moderates. Bachman must have pulled the wool over their eyes.
I used to live literally across the street from the District that the lunatic Bachman represents (Minnesota’s 6th District).
I wasn’t aware of the community’s “strangeness” prior to my moving there, but it didn’t take long to find out.
I used to joke to my relatives, that my neighbors were so far gone into Fundie Fever, they used to get down on their hands and knees to pray prior to mowing the lawn.
Seriously, one particular community in the 6th is Blaine. Everytime Junya and Deadeye came to Minnesota, they always headed right for Blaine.
Blaine, where burning witches (makes for a helluva Halloween), speaking in tongues, and the usual insistence in a 6,000 year old world is de rigueur for the community’s populace.
If you’ve seen Michelle Bachman, she’s got those “crazy” Fundie Fever eyes. Lot’s of folks in Blaine are the very same way.
The idea of the news side of the NYT being a “Democratic organ” under Keller provokes a snort of disgust in these quarters. It has been difficult to find the Democrats’ “side of the story” in most of their articles for the past few years, and when it can be found, it is in a secondary “s/he said” quote at the end of the final column. Let’s see if Keller himself can find a spine at last and stand up to the wingers whom he has coddled for far too long. (Who designed this maneuver to shove the NYT even farther into the wingers’ camp anyway, Rove?)
Every dishonest half-truth gambit the McCain campaign undertakes is calculated to exploit the gap between citizens playing close attention and the rest of the country. They care only about reaching the rest of the country.
Do you think the editor or the authors Jodi Kantor and David Halbfinger would comment on the effect of Dowd’s letter in their decision to exclude information from these sources, or the reason for it?
—-
In other news, Cox and Althouse have a good discussion about the McCain campaign’s “narrow margin” tactics and Greenwald digs in to give it some perspective.
I’ve been wondering about Cindy’s clothes and hair styles. I usually take note of what she’s wearing. She always looks well ‘turned-out; as my mother would say, “She looks like she just stepped out of a bandbox.” I notice, not to be critical, but because I try to envision her closet. She has not, to my knowledge, worn the same thing twice. I wonder what is going on in her head that ‘compels’ her to wear a different outfit every day. Why would a person want so many clothes? And who besides me would notice???
That always struck me too as more that just a bit excessive. I betcha that Cindy always charters a 2nd jet to trundle around her wardrobe.
Cindy is not a clothes horse. She’s the entire herd!
LOL Marcy – I’ll tell you why if you really want to know! The McCain campaign is seeking to paint the McCains as victims. Check, mission accomplished. Poor crazy-eyed Cindy. She loves to dress up and look “expensive” for the cameras while maintaining a straight posture and looking very first lady-ish.
The McCain campaign is full of idiots who have no clue that there are people who won’t buy in to their crap.
Furthermore, the campaign isn’t aware that people like you with BIG BRAINS actually read, analyze and debunk (and successfully, I might add) everything they do and say as B S.
With that, I have a question: how would you like to rate yourself in a sparing match with Rove in his attempts to save this campaign for a *forever* GOP majority?
I think you’d win!
I think, and I’ve heard some commentators say, that the folks around McCain (read neocons) only have one arrow in their campaign quiver- attack. When a particular attack fails, the only option that occurs to them is to attack something else. When all attacks fail, they’re done…
Ot
On Michelle Bachman
Read this section of the post over at Huffington Post
“What makes the incident even more bizarre is that Bachmann is in a close congressional race and just this past week offered warm words to the Illinois Democrat. “If the presidency would somehow go to Barack Obama, I would welcome him to the 6th District as well,” she said after a debate. “As a matter of fact, I would put my hand on his shoulder and give him a kiss if he wanted to.”
Bachman “IS IN A CLOSE CONGRESSIONAL RACE”
LET’S HOPE THAT THE VOTERS IN HER DISTRICT THROW HER UNDER THE BUS. MAYBE FIREDOGLAKE SHOULD BRING HER OPPONENT ON TO THE SITE FOR A LITTLE DISCUSSION AND FUNDRAISING.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…..35735.html
Firedoglake could help give Michelle Bachman the big shove.
Thanks ew.
digg
John McCain, not Cindy, has been acting very strange. He is always sticking out his tongue. One blog suggests McCain could be using Haloperidol – a drug for bipolar disorder. http://adoredbyhordes.blogspot…..fects.html
McCain is a person whose reality is being torn apart by Faustian bargains. I doubt anyone could juggle such dissonance and still keep their head together.
W suffers no dissonance as he is saved.
I keep asking why no one is talking about McCains war record. I feel bad that this man ended up in prison and tortured. But I will not celebrate the illegal, immoral, unnecessary and bloody war in Vietnam (or Iraq). I did not support it then and I will not celebrate it now
John Dean hits the nail on the head again
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20081017.html
Leen,
I served in the Navy myself for 31 years. I am younger than John McCain and though my early time of service does bracket the closing days of Vietnam, my actual experience in Vietnam is very marginal.
There is always someone to call any war ”illegal, immoral” and certainly any war is ”bloody” by definition. Men that serve this country go where they are told to go by our leaders who are elected by the people of this country. I would consider any who do not, to be themselves ”illegal” and ”immoral” not to mention unpatriotic.
Your ability to write as you and others do in this blog was paid for by the blood of those patriotic and honorable men and women.
Now as for John McCain. Yes he strayed in his marriage. Sailors and soldiers have that tendency because they are away from home a lot. He has admitted it, and accepted responsibility for it publicly. I have seen him do it on TV twice. Another aside, his first wife was injured in a car accident and picked up a lot of weight, and was not the same person when he came back from pow prison. Nor was he. I myself can’t claim even those considerable reasons for my own divorces and I think there are many others like me who weren’t sailors and yet parted ways with wives or husbands.
Now if you wish to say John McCain should NOT be president because he seems too damn cranky and rigid in his responses to the world today, then I will agree with vigor. I would not want him for my Commander in Chief and so will vote against him.
However Leen, irregardless of who becomes the next President, if they notify this old sailor that I am being activated again, I will stuff my sea bag, and only ask where and when I am to report.
kispena,
I have heard it all my life, and I believe it. The ”rich are different from the rest of us” so don’t bother comparing your style to theirs.
While I feel a great deal of compassion for young people who were either drafted or join the military to serve in a war based on a pack of lies or false pretenses, I do not buy or believe that the reason I can give my opinion here is because U.S. soldiers who participated in the slaughter of millions of innocent Vietnamese people or that the deaths of millions of Iraqi people as a direct result of the invasion of Iraq was about our freedom. That is just complete and utter hogwash.
WWII was a different circumstances.
I come from a military family and while I did not serve in the military I have had plenty of family members and too many friends to count who served in Vietnam. We all know there are immoral and illegal wars. Bloody is for sure. Vietnam and Iraq are two of them.
If simply biding your time, cooperating with the VC when you feel you need to, and then being released when the war is over is heroic, then John McCain is a hero. The rest of the man’s life and military service is that of a pampered, privileged, silver spoon worthless cad with nothing admirable about it. He is a jackass of the highest order and always has been. I honor your and most all others’ service to the country, McCain did nothing but wreck equipment and treat it like his own privileged playground. I have been around and studying McCain ever since he dropped anchor in my state; he is a despicable and worthless cad.
Gerald, are you always this grumpy, or did you just get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning????
I am not familiar with Jamie Clark, so i have nothing to add there as far as Dowd’s letter and the subsequent omission by the NYT. As to Gosinski though, I don’t personally consider it caving not to have run with his statements. For all the bad things said about Dowd, and I have said some of them, he is he is a lot closer to accuracy on Gosinski than a lot of people would like to admit. Gosinski has absolutely no credibility beyond what was established to be in his original journals. Although, I will say, what was in the original journals was plenty damning to Cindy McCain if the NYT wanted to use that, as opposed to new material from Gosinski.
Oh, I purposely didn’t say they caved. All I said was Dowd’s letter had the desired effect–to dissuade them from using Gosinski or Clark.
Yeah, Hitchcock’s evil twin was clearly effective in that regard.
So, Ms. ew: are we just supposed to guess at your endorsement?
I think a polisci grad student could do worse for a thesis than a close analysis of those dead tree dailies that are endorsing McCain.
The truly aggravating thing in the NYT this morning is the article warning about the evils of government involvement in the banking business. Maybe we could play a guessing game: who put this piece of tripe in the reporter’s ear:
Could it be….
Other examples, or other experts agreeing? ‘Course not
That’s actually worth an Oxdown diary.
I’ll second that!
Here’s all I need to know about the McCain’s. She has millions(!) and stole drugs using innocent people’s names from a medical health charity- that didn’t even use them in the medical care they provided. No one should think that is personal morality.
MCCain accepts a senator’s salary, a social secrity check and a VA disability check every month. Not because he needs all three but because he is entitled to it. No one should think that is personal morality. No one should be entitled to excess when there are people with little more than a good desposition and love.
When the facts are against you, call them lies. Call your lies facts. Hope that nobody pays attention. Make sure the ribs are hot, the lobbyists flush, and the babes are in the back rooms.
— The GOP according to Karl Rove
The NYTimes threatens to let its reporters, you know, report. Not hard hitting stuff, just Journalism 101 and Froomkin’s Rules stuff: search the public record, read the background materials by and about the target and its sources. Talk to friends and enemy alike. Confirm claims, confirm controversial claims with multiple sources. Print what you can confirm. No anonymous sources.
Dowd threatens to make life horrible for Bill Keller if he allows his reporters to report. Not much disguised there, though the insinuation is that the repercussions for Keller will be political, social and ad-based, not legal. (The Big Stick of Murdoch’s Journal across town is always looming in the background here.)
Keller, stout fellow, gives in. How unusual; I wonder if he’s considering running for a Dem. seat in Congress? His reporters avoid the most controversial topics and use anonymous sources, the kind you wouldn’t trust if you heard them at a party. Who needs censorship when self-censorship is so much more exciting?
somehow I’m having a flashback to another potential first lady who was sullied with the unflattering stories: Kitty Dukakis. I don’t remember the sensitive GOP pulling any punches there.
I feel for these women who are under such scrutiny. And money can’t buy you love.
kspena,
sorry if i appeared grumpy.
Just telling it like i saw it. By the way i read that Cindy has her personal hair stylist with her all the time (even Edwards couldn’t beat that)
leen and bmaz
I am not arguing about the difference between good and bad as far as wars are concerned. War is hell as one Civil War General famously said.
I think that the survival of our country and indeed most countries requires that there be a police for internal security and safety and a military for external security and safety.
The countries that don’t have these two organizations don’t survive very long unless they have another country protecting them.
The police and the military of the country should take orders from the democratically elected officials (at least in America) and then the troops go where they are told to. Ultimately the people in America are responsible for what happens. So the troops are following the orders of the American people.
There are always typically arguments in a Democracy about whether there is reasonable cause to go to war. We can’t afford to wait for it to be unanimous. Even after Pearl Harbor there was a lady Rep from California against the war act. She was just ignored by Sam Rayburn as I understand it.
bmaz
I will repeat what I said before that John McCain shouldn’t be president. He just doesn’t have the proper temperament. He is way to dogmatic. I personally will vote for Obama but I wish Joe Biden was at the head of the Democratic ticket.
I can’t agree with you on your critque of John McCain’s war time POW experience. As for the rest of what you said, I am sure you remember the song ”Fortunate Son” by CCR. I and my buddies sang it many times. Some of them aren’t here now but I don’t fault America. I will never do that.
Here’s what I wrote to Bill Keller and Glenn Greenwald:
You [Greenwald] conveniently ignore the fact that Cindy McCain stepped forward to enter the campaign as a direct spokesperson for it. I support the NY Times for running its story since, according to the AP, Cindy McCain accused Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama of running “the dirtiest campaign in American history.” … “The day that Sen. Obama cast a vote not to fund my son when he was serving sent a cold chill through my body, let me tell you,” she told a Pennsylvania crowd before introducing the Arizona senator and his running mate Sarah Palin.”
I’d say that, with that step forward, unprecedented by any wife of a Presidential candidate, she exposed herself to investigative journalism.
Sorry, but after that I don’t have any sympathy for the woman. I want to know what kind of First Lady I’m being offered, just as it would have influenced me if I had know JFK was scr–ing other women in the White House pool.
Sorry, Glenn, if it’s true – repeat true – it’s all grist for the mill.