And of course we recall the liberal media saying it was a career-ender for Joe Biden to have said "you cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking,"
Or not. By the way, 'haunt' seems to be the MSM's word of choice in these circumstances. When Biden made his Dunkin Donuts remark several weeks ago, former Wonkette Ana Marie Cox claimed it wouldn't hurt him, but, incredibly, that Alaska Sen. Stevens would be 'haunted' by his somewhat clumsy description of an the internet!
But let George Allen make a similarly insensitive comment, and the MSM is ready to call it curtains on his career. Let me preface by saying that Allen was wrong to have said what he did. For that matter, his claim that he was unaware of the meaning of the term he used, 'macaca', is unconvincing given that his mother is of French Tunisian background, in which circles the term is apparently used.
That said, this morning's Good Morning America was a study in piling on.
Co-host Bill Weir introduced the segment by darkly musing whether this was an innocent case of foot-in-mouth disease, or something - pause for dramatic effect - "more sinister."
ABC reporter Jessica Yellin narrated the segment, and to make the case against Allen, ABC was even willing to feature a competitor, as NBC/MSNBC's Chris Matthews popped up in a clip, gleefully speculating whether this was "suicide by George Allen."
Pouring gasoline on the fire, GMA displayed an image of the type of macaque monkey to which the comment reportedly refers.
Yellin interviewed S.R. Sidarth, the object of Allen's comments and the Webb campaign volunteer who apparently has been following Allen around the state, videotaping his appearances for opposition research purposes. Yellin's only question aired: "would you like the senator to apologize to you?" He would.
The only other person whose comments on the matter were aired was Ryan Lizza of the liberal New Republic. Yellin introduced her guest by informing us that Lizza is of the view that the incident "could cripple the senator's presidential ambitions." Lizza was shown saying "I think it's pretty bad . . . and I don't think he's going to overcome it."
Yellin concluded by flatly claiming "you can be sure that the gaffe will continue to haunt Sen. Allen for years to come."
Yellin is probably right - as long as the MSM is around. And you know what I'm talking about!
Finkelstein lives in the liberal haven of Ithaca, NY, where he hosts 'Right Angle,' the award-winning public-access TV show. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net
