Gordon Smith, Ben Nelson, Kit Bond, Trent Lott, Susan Collins, and Ted Stevens enjoy the Senate's seersucker suit day. No word yet on whether Senators can bring their butlers.
It's not just Newsweek of DC elites pressing a conservative, elitist agenda. Local newspapers are often the worst purveyors of conservative ideas, and they often have a hammerlock on information in the district. Oregon is a good example, where progressive Jeff Merkley is challenging Republican Gordon Smith. Though he has a moderate reputation, Gordon Smith is very much the picture of a pampered Republican politician. Born wealthy into a Mormon family, the anti-choice Smith's family money comes from a frozen food company with a history of safety violations, low pay for workers, and a record of hiring undocumented immigrants. His privilege is legend; he owns golf clubs worth over a million dollars, he uses 15 year old footage in his ads so he'll appear younger and slimmer, and he enjoys Seersucker suit day in the Senate (he's the one on the far left). I've even heard rumors he has a golden toilet seat at home and a giant mural of himself in his foyer. Smith is a wealthy, entitled man who enjoys his position as a wealthy, entitled Senator voting for policies that help those who are wealthy and entitled. It's literally in his blood.
But in one breath, the powerful local newspaper the Oregonian endorses Democrat Barack Obama, arguing there has "rarely been a time when the nation so desperately needed a sharp change in direction," and Republican Senator Gordon Smith, arguing that his seniority, moderation, and power are what Oregon needs. Merkley, by contrast, is apparently in thrall to the very liberal wing of his party, as evidenced by his opposition to the bailout and corporate friendly trade agreements. Oregonians "need a senator who thinks of their needs before he thinks of his party's priorities. Gordon Smith has proven that he's the man in this race who can do that. We believe Oregonians should re-elect him."
The Oregonian lists off some environmental votes, a stem cell bill, and a hate crimes bill as evidence that Smith is a moderate, but the paper argues that "a conscience-driven reversal of his support for the war in Iraq was his most important decision. He made the choice after deep reflection and while under great pressure from the White House and Republicans to stay the course. His defection prompted others and pushed the administration toward finally developing an endgame in Iraq."
Actually, after calling Bush's Iraq policy as one that 'may even be criminal' in late 2006, Smith voted to block debate on the surge just a few months later. Smith's voted against birth control, choice, a progressive tax code, and he voted badly on Iraq, directly in opposition to the position the Oregonian lauds him for taking. The Oregonian is pushing a specific ideological agenda; the paper wants a Wall Street bailout (the Treasury is already blacking out compensation schemes for the Bank of New York Mellon) and corporate trade agreements. Merkley doesn't. Ergo, Gordon Smith is a moderate.
He's not, obviously, or maybe he is since 'moderate' doesn't actually mean anything these days except for whining a lot before supporting the acceptable conservative policy. Regardless, I'm not worried about the death of the newspaper industry. It's about time, frankly. Conventional wisdom doesn't just come from DC elites, it comes from a whole set of interlocking industrial interests, many of whom publish a paper or own a TV station near you.
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