“With respect,” my ass!

Note: This post has been amended for the sake of clarity.

This is staggering disrespect from the press. Disrespect for the White House, its representatives and the military.

The press, finally, has gone too far. They’ve crossed a line and revealed – completely and fully revealed – their utter contempt for the military, and their hatred for the president. My journalist friend calls it simple “arrogance.”

No, it’s not “arrogance.” It is hate. It is juvenile. It is mindless. It is kneejerk and reactionary. It is bitter. It is adolescent. And yes, it is real, live hate.

And it is on display for all the world to see. It can no longer be denied or called something else.

Things cannot continue like this. Things are getting out of hand. If American journalists can not find some semblance of professional comportment within themselves, I fear for our nation. I fear that any hope of understanding or co-operation between the coastal elitists and the rest of the nation will be lost. I fear that relations between the two, already wary and distrustful, are going to spiral downward at an accelerated pace, and that cannot be good for our country.

Frankly the last thing the growing chasm between the middle-class red-staters and the press (and those they serve) need is an earthquake, and this press conference may come a sneaking tremblor.

Americans do not mind a spirited exchange between opponants, but they do expect The American President, whoever he may be, to be shown a certain amount of deference. The Republicans overplayed their venom at President Clinton and America went into a protective mode for their president. The press, having seen this, should know it – they should expect it. Instead, blinded – utterly blinded, by their hate – they are going overboard, way overboard. And this is serious, because if the press goes overboard in it’s hate, if it cannot restrain itself, pull itself back from this abyss into which it seems ready to jump, it will take the nation with it.

America is going to have to decide, finally, if this snarling, sneering, deaf, accusative, snotty and ultimately unhinged pack is what they want in their most powerful journalists. And she is going to have to make herself heard about it.

The whole world is watching. The press are challenging the president and the military. Our enemies see this.

Our troops have died to keep us safe, to bring our enemies into a different mindset – one of democracy, one of openess. The president has stared down the whole world to liberate a people and help them grow into their fullest human potential, all of which can ONLY be to our nation’s good and future safety.

But there is a hate at work here, that does not understand, or does not care, about the repercussions of undermining this work, or of even completely tearing it apart.

An internationally respected magazine misjudges, and runs with a report culled from one source who will not be named, and then blames the administration for not, somehow, stopping them from doing so. When the administration, understanding that years of work may have been done irreparable damage, dares to demand accountability, one commenter goes so far as to say (paraphrase), “the government gave us the report, and then blamed us…”

(!)

Riots and murder break out because of the report, and even as people in the Middle East attest that these riots are because of this report report, why, the press insists, the people were raging over something else.

No. This childish game-playing must stop.

The world is not perfect, and the folks on the left and the folks on the right are imperfect, also. And they often take great delight in wagging fingers at each other and repeating, ad nauseum, instances wherein the other side has fallen short. I admit to having – in the heat of anger – done it, myself. “Well, YOUR side did THIS,” “Well, YOUR GUY did THAT!”

I’ve done it. Many have done it. Perhaps most have done it, in varying measures. Probably we should not do it, and in a perfect, less divided world we might not.

But there is a huge difference between members of the public having a heated exchange that ends when they walk away from the keyboard to watch Seinfeld reruns, and members of the press acting like a pack of petulant college sophomores given way too much power.

When Elisabeth Bumiller, employed by the most powerful newspaper in the world, can stand in the White House, and address a representative of the President in the manner of a sulking teenager, “Are you asking them to write a story about how great the American military is; is that what you’re saying here,” and when another can sneer, “With respect, who made you the editor of Newsweek?” (which in any language translates into: “just who the hell do you think you are?”) then we have a serious problem, a problem so thrilling to our enemies, so clearly NOT in the best interest of the nation, that I would hope that even the most partisan among the left could take off the blinders and say, “wait…there IS a standard that our journalists must be held to, regardless of anything or anyone else!”

Certainly in a time of war, that standard might be understood thusly: Journalists are – at the very least – duty-bound not to present themselves in a manner that can only fill our enemies with glee.

If our friends on the left cannot admit to that, then things are very bad, indeed.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, please. Try to control yourselves. Try to comport yourselves in a manner that suggests maturity, civility, professionalism and even – if you can bear to do it, and yes, it takes some maturity – a modicum of objectivity. For the sake of the nation, please, try. Osama bin Laden said that he felt free to attack the US because she had become a “weak horse.” We cannot afford to be seen as conquerable because we are so divided.

I am sorry to say this, Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, but you are now, officially, with this presser, doing the nation much more harm than good. Many of you have decided you are “Journalists first and Americans second.” Okay. But if you do not believe it is your job to do the nation good, I would hope that you also do not believe it is your job to do the nation ill.

Make no mistake; this breathtaking disrespect does the nation ill.

REPORTERS RIP BUSH SPOKESMAN OVER NEWSWEEK MESS

From Drudge: Mainline reporters moved into battle mode today during a White House press briefing — as one of their own outlets continued to hemorrhage over a now retracted story!

[Joined in progess]
Q With respect, who made you the editor of Newsweek? Do you think it’s appropriate for you, at that podium, speaking with the authority of the President of the United States, to tell an American magazine what they should print?

MR. McCLELLAN: I’m not telling them. I’m saying that we would encourage them to help —

Q You’re pressuring them.

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I’m saying that we would encourage them —

Q It’s not pressure?

MR. McCLELLAN: Look, this report caused serious damage to the image of the United States abroad. And Newsweek has said that they got it wrong. I think Newsweek recognizes the responsibility they have. We appreciate the step that they took by retracting the story. Now we would encourage them to move forward and do all that they can to help repair the damage that has been done by this report. And that’s all I’m saying. But, no, you’re absolutely right, it’s not my position to get into telling people what they can and cannot report….

Q Are you asking them to write a story about how great the American military is; is that what you’re saying here?

MR. McCLELLAN: Elisabeth, let me finish my sentence. Our military —

Q You’ve already said what you’re — I know what — how it ends.

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I’m coming to your question, and you’re not letting me have a chance to respond. But our military goes out of their way to handle the Koran with care and respect. There are policies and practices that are in place. This report was wrong. Newsweek, itself, stated that it was wrong. And so now I think it’s incumbent and — incumbent upon Newsweek to do their part to help repair the damage. And they can do that through ways that they see best, but one way that would be good would be to point out what the policies and practices are in that part of the world, because it’s in that region where this report has been exploited and used to cause lasting damage to the image of the United States of America. It has had serious consequences. And so that’s all I’m saying, is that we would encourage them to take steps to help repair the damage. And I think that they recognize the importance of doing that. That’s all I’m saying.

Q As far as the Newsweek article is concerned, first, how and where the story came from? And do you think somebody can investigate if it really happened at the base, and who told Newsweek? Because somebody wrote a story.

Hmmm…it DOES seem to me that the reporter should be asking NEWSWEEK where the story came from, doesn’t it seem so, to you?