I rarely do this, but let’s go meta for a moment.
Kevin Madden was Mitt Romney’s former campaign aide. Not bad on the eyes, obviously smart and a favorite among the Beltway set, Madden dispenses analysis on Twitter like mini shots of political caffeine, delivering short bursts of cherry-picked political nuggets easily digested by people with little time to click and learn the full facts, which is what most partisans rely on through their tweets.
Today on Twitter, he engaged me in a back and forth when I called him out on his faulty analysis of a new CNN poll, while I at least was transparently honest about Obama’s failures and challenges. I tweeted to Madden that I thought his analysis was, well, “dishonest”, which he didn’t much like even if it was true.
On Twitter, it’s very convenient to use the 140 character limit to skate your responsibility to actually offer the full picture, but that’s not Madden’s job. Madden and many others using Twitter to get out talking points that support their side, painting a very different picture than reality. He chose to use the the CNN polling date link, skipping down to question #11, which appears on page 3. Conveniently ignoring questions #9 and #10 on page 2, because the answers didn’t set up Republicans as he’d like.
The first question not great for Obama, especially given his bend over backwards, waste of time, bipartisanship or die trying policy self-destruction. Michael Gerson simply calls it judgment.
9. In your view, is Barack Obama doing enough to cooperate with the Republicans in Congress, or not? Answer: Yes, doing enough = 47%; No, not enough, 52%.
To be fair, Madden’s rebuttal to me included that he thought the most interesting point was that in one year, the “not enough” number for Obama had gone from 25% to 52%, which on-the-outs GOPer Mike Murphy retweeted. Oliver Willis calling both of them out: cant yall be honest about *anything*? The answer to that is an unequivocal no.
I’ve said innumerable times that Pres. Obama has failed utterly in messaging, with his bipartisan efforts completely wasted, which the 25% to 52% numbers certainly prove. Madden gladly tweeting this point multiple times.
There is also the CNN poll where younger voters weigh in, with support for Republicans up 10 points, which Madden was smart to tweet, twice.
…the number of Millenials who lean towards the Republican party has jumped 10 points, from 30 percent to 40 percent.
One of the questions, from the prior CNN link, Madden and Murphy ignoring because it wasn’t good for their side.
10. In your view, are the Republicans in Congress doing enough to cooperate with the Barack Obama, or not? Answer: Yes, doing enough = 31%; No, not enough, 67%.
It’s why Madden skipped to the third page to begin his Twitter analysis:
11. Do you think the Democratic party or the Republican party is more responsible for the lack of cooperation between the two parties in Washington? Answer: Democratic party = 35%; Republican party = 37%; Both: 25%.
Not knowing who the hell I was and not caring either, mimicking his own Twitter readers who won’t click on a link he provided with the cherry picked factoids, which Madden counts on, he called me a “dude.” Madden inadvertently proving why adding a link to his tweets was a lame excuse for not providing the full picture.
Republican and Democratic analysts don’t much care about providing truth to their tweet peeps or beyond, whether written or TV audience. Pres. Obama addressed this today at the business round table he participated in. They just feed them enough information to keep them loyal to the political party line the analyst is pimping. The other guy is always worse, which is why many people no longer care who they vote for as long as it’s not the person currently in power. After all, could it get any worse?
This atmosphere absolutely benefits Republicans in 2010, but as Sen. Scott Brown on his rightly cast jobs’ bill vote, the public is fickle and they’re angry. They’ll turn on the latest star in a heart beat if that person doesn’t vote as expected. Activists rarely understanding that a Massachusetts Republican simply must vote his constituents, who don’t look at all like they do in South Carolina.
While the Democrats certainly haven’t proven they can change things even while owning all the power, even as Republicans run around without an idea or answer among them.
There is one constant in politics that continues. Protecting the status quo, which both parties do at the expense of the American people. Kevin Madden example A for what’s wrong with politics, though he’s got lots of company.
Nobody can be as bad as the Republicans and Democrats currently holding court. Even if one has been reduced to Twitter and tweets, with the other owning Washington.
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