"There's Adam Clymer, major league asshole from the New York Times."
September 4, 2000 2:10 PM   Subscribe

 
Open-mike gaffs seem to be an occupational hazard for Republicans. "We begin bombing in fifteen minutes."
posted by Steven Den Beste at 2:56 PM on September 4, 2000


I love Cheney's reply: "Oh yeah, he is, big time." Deadpan or deadwood? Decision 2000.
posted by highindustrial at 4:10 PM on September 4, 2000


Well, actually, Bush has every reason to consider Clymer a major-league asshole. (Also read the "Hit Parade" section here.) And this won't hurt him one bit anyway; it'll actually help. See the links to find out why.
posted by aaron at 4:22 PM on September 4, 2000


When you are a major league asshole in a room full of other major league assholes its no trick spotting a major league asshole.
posted by quonsar at 5:18 PM on September 4, 2000


He called someone a major league asshole. Big deal. There's plenty of people in the world that I consider to be major league assholes, the difference is no one cares what I think. Things like this get blown way out of proportion because of the media's need to publicize, dramatacize and overexpose everything.
posted by tomorama at 6:11 PM on September 4, 2000


How about an even trade: Bryant Gumbel agrees to quit his CBS show for his indiscrete comment if George W. Bush quits his Presidential campaign for his...
posted by wendell at 6:38 PM on September 4, 2000


AP getting even? Check out the "typo" in this first take over the wire (a correction soon followed).

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (AP) — George W. Bush made a disparaging remark Monday about a reporter from The New York Times that was picked up by a live microphone.

As Bush stood on the podium waiting for music to finish, he turned to running mate Dick Cheney and used an obscenity to describe reporter Adam Clymer in the nearby press area. Cheney agreed with Bush’s assessment. Both men thought their remarks were off-mike.

When asked about the comment at a brief airport news conference in Allentown, Pa., late Monday, Bush said, ``I regret that a private comment I made to the vice presidential candidate made it through the pubic airways.’’


--

Pubic Airways ... the only way to fly!

posted by luke at 6:58 PM on September 4, 2000


I dunno about it being a win-win, no real impact thing... To the degree it pisses off the boys on the bus, and gets them to wondering what Dubya thinks of each of them in turn, it only hurts Bush. Given the relatively free ride he's been getting from the press (mostly because they think he has a decent chance of winning, and they don't want to anger future sources), antagonizing the press doesn't help Bush a whole helluva lot. Not unlike the way the surest method to get a police beating is to take a swing at a cop while other cops are around, taking a pot shot at a journalist may well have unfortunate side effects...

posted by aurelian at 8:57 PM on September 4, 2000


Yah, I thought about the win-win scenario too. The yahoos at Free Republic were cheering him on today for calling out the godless media, apparently assuming this would win him points among the non-reading.

This is hardly going to be the biggest story of the campaign, but it certainly will end up being the most-noted water-cooler story tomorrow (viz. right here). Along with Bush's bizarre counterpunch on the debates debate (doesn't want prime time? last-minute press conference before getting on plane? concern about filling two-minute answer time frame?) this doesn't bode well for the charm offensive.
posted by dhartung at 9:48 PM on September 4, 2000


Gore said over and over and over that he would debate "any time, any place." Now Bush calls him on it and Gore waffles. A thousand promises, a thousand attacks?
posted by aaron at 9:56 PM on September 4, 2000


Aaron: How does "I will debate you, but only on Meet the Press, Larry King Live and once in primetime" mean the same thing as "I will debate you any time, any place"?
posted by rcade at 10:16 PM on September 4, 2000


That nefarious war-mongering petroleum loving robber/baron GWB. His heart is as black as the crude oil that he loves. If he wins this election this country will become nothing but the plaything of the rich and powerful world oligarchy.

Vote Hagelin/Buchanan!
posted by ArtieGorFunk at 10:39 PM on September 4, 2000


Here's video of Dubya's latest fubar.
posted by owillis at 10:50 PM on September 4, 2000


Are you confusing who said what, rcade? Last time I checked, the studios of Meet the Press and Larry King Live were places. If Gore won't debate there, then he will not debate any time, any place.
posted by aaron at 10:58 PM on September 4, 2000


Bush has picked these programs because he knows their audience will be miniscule. If he goes with the standard debate process, a much larger group of people will be watching as he proceeds to shove his entire leg down his throat.
posted by owillis at 11:00 PM on September 4, 2000


Aaron: last time I watched Larry King or Meet the Press, there wasn't a whole lot of debating going on.

Anyway I think Gore should accept a cuddly Regis & Kathy Lee-style comfy sofa show to "debate", or even get Jerry Springer to host it, as long as it's on HBO and both candidates are allowed to swear until they're blue in the face. Because that's what politicians do: they say "fuck" quite a lot, you know?
posted by holgate at 11:02 PM on September 4, 2000


nefarious war-mongering petroleum loving robber/baron GWB LOL... Good one, but did you know that Gore also has ties to the petroleum industry???

Oh yeah! Daddy Gore was on the Board of Directors or CEO (I can't remember which) for a major petroleum company. His severence package from that company includes a large stock portfolio, which Al Bore is heir to.

Funny how everyone seems to forget that Bush isn't the only one with links to Big Business.

Besides, I am tired of both their childish games... nah nah nah boo boo... he said it! No he did! Did not! Did too!

It's no wonder 50% of the voters don't vote. It isn't apathy, it's disgust.
posted by da5id at 6:02 AM on September 5, 2000


Aaron: Bush is offering Meet the Press and Larry King Live as an alternative to debates the Commission on Presidential Debates set up for North Carolina and Boston. The commission is headed by the former national chairs of the Democratic and Republican parties. Why should Gore agree to what Bush is proposing? Shouldn't a person who wants to be president of the United States be confident enough in his abilities to agree to three prime-time debates that his own party helped set up?
posted by rcade at 9:14 AM on September 5, 2000


So I guess this is how Georgy will "restore honor and dignity to the White House." Hmmmm, interesting strategy.

posted by quirked at 9:42 AM on September 5, 2000


Profanity is nothing new for a President, or Presidential Hopeful.

If you have ever heard any of LBJ's tape, people would know this.

You can also bet that Bubba, Nixon, Bush Sr. Reagan, and a few others swore, or were known to swear.

Profanity has nothing to do with being Presidential. If anything, it let's people know that the person is human.

I personnally find it refreshing, and it doesn't surprise me in the least coming from a person from Texas :-)

This is being made into a mountain from a molehill. It really isn't all that big of a deal.
posted by da5id at 10:59 AM on September 5, 2000


When asked about the comment at a brief airport news conference in Allentown, Pa., late Monday, Bush said, ``I regret that a private comment I made to the vice presidential candidate made it through the pubic airways.’’

Bush is not sorry he said it, he's sorry he got caught. Sounds more like Bill Clinton all the time.
posted by dcehr at 10:59 AM on September 5, 2000


I'm not gonna vote for the man, but I think it would be lamer if he did say he was sorry. More than most things he says, I really do believe he thinks the guy is an asshole. It would be weasly if he did apologize.
posted by thirteen at 11:05 AM on September 5, 2000


...it would be lamer if he did say he was sorry.

Fair enough. In this case of characterizing somebody as an asshole, you're right, that's a pretty lame thing as warrants apologies.

However, I think that it's an important distinction to note Bush expressing contrition not for having committed a wrong (setting aside, for a moment, whether calling Clymer "asshole" is actually a wrong), but merely for having gotten caught at it.

To my ear, it rings of a disturbing moral relativism, and just further illustrates that Bush is no more than a worthless waste of skin.
posted by dcehr at 12:44 PM on September 5, 2000


9.5.00 "late show with david letterman" top 10 list:

top ten things going through george w. bush's mind right now [after the hot mic incident]

#2 "oh shit, i said asshole. oh shit, i said shit."
posted by judomadonna at 9:32 PM on September 5, 2000


I honestly dont think GWB calling an NYT journalist a "majorleague asshole" actually matters in the minds of vast majority of Americans. Out side of the liberal coasts, no one really cares about what the NYT says anymore. A whole lot of people in middle America actually thinks NYT is out to destroy their own family values with its liberal agenda. This is so non-issue, even Joe Lieberman said, let's move on.

As a matter of fact, NYT has been losing readership even in the City. This year I personally have known about something "newsworthy" more than 10 times before it found its way into the pages of the Times. This is an unusually high number for an average person like me. I always looked at NYT as this "news cabal," where the editorial board MADE (or Dictated) what was "news" and worthy of the knowledge of the citizenry. In the past three years, none of the major news affecting NYC broke on the pages of NYT. The only people who read NYT for any "direction" are in London and Tel Aviv / Jerusalem (and maybe Johannesberg).

BTW, last night Dave had an even funnier mock campaign commercial for GWB. It went something like this:

Narrator: "To honor this great Labor day, Texas Governor George W. Bush has pledged not to execute anyone for one whole day. YES!! THATS RIGHT!! NO KILLING FOR 24 WHOLE HOURS!!"

It just looked sooo funny.
posted by tamim at 10:27 PM on September 5, 2000


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