TPM Reader TC checks in …
A reasonable person could read this Jeffrey Birnbaum article in the Washington Post and mistake it for an RNC press release. Among the article’s assertions:
Corruption affects both parties, not just Republicans
Occasional prosecutions actually illustrate how clean Congress is on the whole
The public distrusts both parties, not just Republicans (this point is made twice in the article)
The public distrusts incumbents in general, not just Republicans
Voters don’t care about party affiliations of officials charged with corruption, especially in cases they’ve heard of (I’m not kidding)
Voters have a general, theoretical dislike of “too much money in politics” rather than a specific dislike of specific (mainly Republican) corrupt politicians“Happens all the time,” “nothing new,” and “goes in cycles” are both trotted out as well William Jefferson, William Jefferson, William Jefferson.
Even the headline reads like it was carefully focus-grouped by Frank Luntz: “A Growing Wariness About Money in Politics”
It’s sad to watch Birnbaum squirm and dance his way around the central fact that almost all the corruption coming to light now springs from the machinations of Republican politicians, lobbyists, and donors. I hope you find time to comment on this article.
Birnbaum does make some decent points in the article. But I think TC’s got this one right.
