Obama meets with liberal columnists (Frank Rich, Rachel Maddow, others)

[sabra]

Source: Politico

Obama held a meeting with several columnists and liberal commentators this morning, following up on last night's dinner with conservative writers, according to a source with knowledge of the meeting. Some of the writers there today are clearly on the liberal side, while others more moderate.

Today's group included the Washington Post's E.J. Dionne and Eugene Robinson, the Wall Street Journal's Gerry Seib, National Journal's Ron Brownstein, the New York Times Frank Rich and Maureen Dowd, and MSNBC's Rachel Maddow, among others.

The meeting was held at the transition headquarters.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/blogs/michaelcalderone/0109/Oba...

[polichick]

1. I would've loved to be at that meeting!

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

2. Now he's channeling FDR.

Bring the media in close - brilliant idea. These people will be key to the longterm success of the administration, and he's doing well by making them happy with access.

[calimary]

3. How superb that Rachel was included there! Few are more intelligent and articulate

on the issues we all care about, than she. If I had to send anybody in from our camp to argue our points, or talk somebody down from theirs, she'd be my choice. Very happy to see this! Having Dionne, Robinson, and Frank Rich in there, too, is most encouraging. Maureen Dowd is there on a technicality - probably because she FINALLY woke up about bushworld after being asleep with the rest for several years. Maybe those who chose didn't bother to look too far back into the record. Dowd wins the "but what have you done for me lately?" award here, I guess.

[tishaLA]

8. Rachel is in some heady company these days

I mean, who could have guessed when Unfiltered debuted less than 5 years ago that Rachel would be sitting with a Pres Elect less than a week before his inauguration? And that she'd be joining Rich and Dowd? It has to feel surreal on some level.

[bdamomma]

20. I hope she mentions this on her show.

[cyclezealot]

9. an oversight was Paul Krugman

not only a columnist but an economist.

[Doctor_J]

12. And Olbermann. I would have left WSJ out altogether

They're anti-American

[TheWraith]

25. I'm not sure Keith would have taken the opportunity for a sit-down non-interview.

He's previously expressed a strong reluctance to connect with people he covers, in anything other than a journalistic context, because he feels it makes him sympathetic to them, and less likely to criticize them when and if they deserve it.

[Bette Noir]

27. Being personally fond of the Clintons didn't stop him

from being sharply critical of them when they behaved badly during the primaries.

Or maybe he doesn't want that to happen again?

[Larkspur]

16. According to Politico, Krugman is already advising the Obama team on economics

Krugman would not tell them more than that.

[ErinBerin84]

32. Marc Ambinder

said that Krugman was invited, but did not go.

[tishaLA]

36. Krugman was invited, according to politico

But did not/could not attend

[No Elephants]

17. Not only FDR. McCain has used the tactic to very good effect, giving access to the press until

they were blue in the face, over Keating, his wife's drug problem and whatever. They harped on those things very little during the campaign, very little.

[PM Martin]

35. True. Obama has very effectivly handled the vultures known...

as the mass media.

[Cha]

21. Since the corporate media brought us

8 years of bush and the war on Iraq and Obama team knows this..I think they have plans to change our course in this area, too.

You know they won inspite of the corporatemedia.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

4. He is so fucking smart

No one's gonna be able to put him in any kind of box. He's always half-a-dozen steps ahead of everyone else.

I love it.

[davefromqueens]

6. Correct correct Correct

He disarms the criticisms that will be forthcoming brilliantly.

The moment the Right claims he has met with the "liberal media," his people will bring to light how he met with all these conservative writers as well.

Not only that, he met with them first.

[calimary]

7. Isn't it great, after this eight-year drought, to have, once again, a President who

actually IS the sharpest knife in the drawer? I remember hearing Bill Clinton described that way by some pundit awhile back - when the subject was - what's so wrong with having a President who's smarter than you are, instead of a sarah palin or any ol' Joe-Sixpack average dumb-ass in there - (for "their turn for a change," as palin once "opined"). It's the PRESIDENCY for crying out loud, not kindergarten - where everybody gets a turn at leading the line to the bathroom?

[Cha]

23. It's surreal after 8

years of getting beaten down by lies and manipulation.

Obama's not afraid of at least talkng to everybody.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

31. Indeed

We have been so numbed by the last eight years that reasonable and intelligent behavior is best - for now - described as "surreal".

Stockholm Syndrome, anyone?

Ah, but we're back. Smart is back, well-informed is back, smiling is back, defanging your opposition while you pick their pockets is back.

I had a cab driver today who asked me if I'd seen "Larry King Live" last night. I told him I hadn't. He said (a big, burly man from Afghanistan), "King asked Bush what he knew about where bin Laden was, and Bush said, 'I don't know.' How could he not know? He's been the President for eight years."

The guy was steamed.

I said, "You're right. He's been in that office for eight years, and look what it's gotten us."

Boy, the hatred for Chimpy Fucknuts out there is vast.

But the affection and hope for Obama is even bigger. The driver said, "Obama will fix it. He will help us if we will help him."

Can you imagine that?

[Cha]

33. Cool cabbie conversation..

thank you!

[Fearless]

5. Uh-oh where are the dissenters who said yesterday (snidely) that he wouldn't meet with them...

I'M WAITING.

[mopinko]

15. wouldn't it be great to have a "flashback" feature on here

that would keep track of this kind of thing, and call the whiners onto the carpet.

always ahead of the curve barack is.

[AlinPA]

10. I'm sure if it was off the record, Dowd will use the meeting to trash him.

[Doctor_J]

13. I wouldn't trust that one at all

[jackpan1260]

11. Damn! I am trying to find something about this that makes me OUTRAGED, with no luck.

Poo.

[EconomicLiberal]

14. Maureen Dowd is a liberal?

Lots of "moderates" here, if you want to call them that.

Where are the real liberals?

Did he meet with Krugman?

With Kos?

With Glen Grunwald?

Arianna Huffington?

[TheWraith]

24. Krugman's one of Obama's economic advisors. nt

[No Elephants]

18. So, he met with some supposedly conservative writers and some

supposedly liberal writers. And?

[Cha]

19. Cool! Sullivan

was there with the sane ones.

[bdamomma]

22. I wonder if he would meet with Limbaugh, and O'Reilly.

[Bette Noir]

26. I wish I had been there!

My favorites, all in one room!

But where was Keithie?

[islandmkl]

28. say it ain't so, BO...say it ain't so...

you only gave some of us 12 hours to bitch about your dinner with the cons...

[knixphan]

30. LOL - exactly!

[katusha]

29. it would have been great if the cons/libs were at same meal

that would have been some fun for the PE to watch them go at each other whilst breaking bread

[ErinBerin84]

34. I was thinking that too

Film them playing Clue or something after the discussion, heh.

[katusha]

39. clue eh? who killed the constitution?

it was bush, in the oval office, with the signing statement. hehe

[Doctor_J]

37. I didn't realize politico is read mostly by the loony right

the comments are lousy with Limbeciles

[depakid]

40. It's set up by the looney right and MSM

so that they can be seen to eb quoting "from the blogosphere."

Gle Greenwald's done several exposes on the nature Polito.

Bottom line- they're About as trustworthy as Fox "news."

See, e.g.

The Right-Wing Politico Cesspool

Politico reporter Mike Allen, formerly of The Washington Post and Time, appeared yesterday on the show of right-wing radio host Mike Gallagher. The two of them guffawed together at how absurd are Scott McCellan's claims that the media was "deferential" to the Bush administration and then Allen said this:

ALLEN: And indeed, Scott does adopt the vocabulary, rhetoric of the left wing haters. Can you believe it in here he says the White House press corps was too deferential to the administration?

Think Progress has the audio, which makes even clearer how eager Mike Allen was "to adopt the vocabulary, rhetoric" of the right-wing operatives which Politico exists to serve. Actually, not even Karl Rove -- who gave Allen and comrades their marching orders earlier this week when he said during an interview with Sean Hannity that McClellan "sounds like a left-wing blogger" -- goes so far as to refer to those critical of the media's war coverage as "left wing haters." But Politico "reporter" Mike Allen does.

More: http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/05/30/9312

[Phred42]

38. Olbermann SNUBBED? WTF?