Media Turn On Holder
Attorney General Eric Holder's attempt at damage control appears to be backfiring. Holder was scheduled to hold "off the record" meetings with key members of the media today and tomorrow to repair frayed relations stemming from the Associated Press and Fox News scandals. But leading outlets are refusing to attend.
Yesterday the Associated Press and the New York Times announced they would not attend any "off the record" meetings with Holder given that he is now a huge part of the story. CNN, Fox News, CBS News, Reuters, and the Huffington Post also turned down Holder's invitation.
It's not surprising that Fox and the AP would refuse to go given that they were targets of Holder's probes. But the Huffington Post and the New York Times? Perhaps some dormant "journalistic gene" long suppressed in the liberal media has finally started to reassert itself!
Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney (a former reporter himself) was peppered with questions during yesterday's press briefing about the fact that Attorney General Holder is being investigated for perjury by the House Judiciary Committee.
As you may recall, Holder told the committee that the prosecution of journalists was "not something I've ever been involved in, heard of, or would think would be wise policy." And yet Holder signed off on a warrant labeling Fox News reporter James Rosen a potential criminal co-conspirator under the 1917 Espionage Act.
Carney asserted that because Rosen was never formally charged or prosecuted, Holder did not technically commit perjury. That explanation doesn't pass the straight face test. In fact, it makes the scandal even worse.
At least one reporter reminded Carney that the warrant is a legal document. If the Justice Department never intended to prosecute Rosen and made up the charge in order to get a judge to sign off on the warrant, then the so-called "Justice Department" lied to a judge and Holder approved it!
So, did Holder lie to the House Judiciary Committee or did his Justice Department lie to a judge? Perhaps the best answer is for Mr. Holder to resign quickly before this gets any worse.
Obamacare: You Can't Keep Your Policy
In a story headlined, "Like Your Health Care Policy? You May Be Losing It," the Associated Press is finally acknowledging what critics of Obamacare have warned about for years: Obamacare will cause many people to lose their existing health insurance coverage.
In the coming months, millions of Americans will be told that their current policies are being cancelled. Why? Because "their current policies aren't up to the basic standards of President Barack Obama's health care law."
So here we go with the Big-Government-knows-best approach. And so much for the president's promise, "If you like your health care plan, you'll be able to keep your health care plan, period."
The Real Benghazi Scandal
Yesterday we reported that the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee had issued a subpoena to the State Department demanding "all documents and communications referring or relating to the Benghazi talking points." On Fox News last night, columnist Charles Krauthammer offered his thoughts on the possible origin of those talking points. Here's what he suggested could be the real scandal:
"But five hours in he calls the Secretary of State. And after the phone call she releases a statement essentially about the video and how we denounce any intolerance. It looks as if the only phone call is to construct a cover story at a time when the last two Americans who died were still alive and fighting for their lives. There's the scandal and that has to be uncovered."
"Obamagate"
A new Quinnipiac poll provides fresh evidence that the scandals swirling around the Obama Administration are taking a toll on the president's support. At the beginning of the month, the president enjoyed a net positive rating of 48% approval to 45% disapproval. Today it is flipped: 49% of voters disapprove of his job performance and 45% approve.
The president took the biggest hit among independent voters: Only 37% of independent voters approve of Obama's job performance, while 57% disapprove. Just a few weeks ago, the president was down only six points with independent voters. Now he's down 20 points!
Here are some other numbers that should concern the White House: Two years ago, 63% felt Obama was "honest and trustworthy." Today voters are divided 49% to 47%. And when asked whether a special prosecutor should be empowered to investigate the IRS scandal, 76% of voters said "Yes!"
As we have noted before, there are numerous comparisons in the current IRS and media scandals to the Nixon Administration. This video compares Obama's reactions to the scandals and Nixon's responses to Watergate. The similarities are stunning! It's almost as if the Obama press office deliberately decided to emulate Nixon's media strategy.
"Breadwinner Moms"
A Pew Research report released yesterday found that women are the primary earners in 40% of American homes today. That is a huge cultural shift. Fifty years ago, women were the breadwinners in just 11% of homes.
Most of the media have seized on this report as a triumph of modern feminism. While it is certainly laudable that more women are graduating college and making gains in the workforce, the underlying facts in this report do not suggest a "feminist triumph."
One reason many women today are earning more than their husbands is because the Great Recession disproportionately affected men. By some estimates, jobs held by men accounted for 70% of the losses from 2007 to 2009, leading many economists to label it a "mancession." In these households, working women are earning more, but the family is by no means better off.
Here's something else to keep in mind: 63% of the "breadwinner mom" households are led by single mothers. The Pew report only underscores the staggering breakdown of the traditional family in America.