Pre-spinning the SOTU: GOP lowers expectations, Dems buy ad on Fox

[DeepModem Mom]

"The Fix," Chris Cillizza
washingtonpost.com's Politics Blog
Posted at 05:38 PM ET, 01/31/2006

Pre-Spinning the State of the Union


President George W. Bush's fourth State of the Union address isn't slated to begin until 9:01 p.m. ET tonight, but the spinning and positioning has been underway for the last 48 hours.

Much of what the president will say in his speech has already been poll-tested and previewed in the media, giving partisans on both sides the chance to frame the debate before Bush utters a single word.

Expectations-setting is the name of the game in the speech run-up. The Republican National Committee released a polling memo yesterday from Matthew Dowd that sought to tamp down the story line of an expected Bush bounce in the immediate aftermath of the speech....

***

(Senator Charles) Schumer said that voters have "caught onto the George Bush waltz," which he described as "broad platitudes and lofty ideals and then when it comes to solving problems and doing what they said they would do, they let the special interests run the show."

Rep. Rahm Emanuel's (Ill.) Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is sponsoring an ad on Fox News Channel set to run in the half hour before Bush is scheduled to speak tonight. The commercial is designed to drive home the idea that the GOP Congress has "rubber-stamped" President Bush's agenda. It features video clips from Bush's last three State of the Union addresses with the requisite standing ovations on issues like Social Security reform, a prescription drug benefit under Medicare and the energy bill. "Sitting House Republicans have voted with President Bush 86% of the time," appears on screen at the ad's end. "What special interest will the Republican Congress rubber stamp this time?"...


http://blogs.washingtonpost.com/thefix/

[hedda_foil]

1. The DCCC ad is without a doubt, the stupidest thing I've ever seen.

The only purpose for airing that piece of crap ad on FAUX that I can see is to say to us (the base, ya know, who they refuse to listen to) "Look how tough we are. We're attacking the Repubs on their own turf." Like that will impress us. It sure as hell won't have any positive effect on anybody watching the SOTU on FAUX. it's a goddam waste of the money somebody donated to the POS DCCC.

[DeepModem Mom]

2. It beats me, too -- why? nt

[DeepModem Mom]

3. a.m. kick