The moonbats have argued that snuffing Terri is a substantive decision that needs to be made, as if current laws are sacred. If that’s the case, why bother having a legislative branch since we have all the laws we need and nothing needs changing?

Terri showed that there were flaws in the judicial process. We can either say that’s the way the cookie crumbles, or we can say that something needs tweaking, either way it is a political process. If the majority feels nothing needs to be done, that’s still a political decision. It takes political courage for someone to stand up against 90% or what have you and say this is flawed we need to change it.

In esscence the memo said, “stiffen up and make changes, there are more than enough who will support that action”.

I can’t believe that you might think that there is NO similar memo circulating the MSM/DNC saying we must resist SS reform, even if we have no options on the table and don’t worry, the moonbat base will be energized and the GOP wafflers will be de-energized, thus inclined to change the topic.

Is SS reform substantive? Yes. Is the decision to postpone action political? Yes. Hence that memo would be insignificant with regards to accusations of a nefarious plot to capitalize and politicize on the inevitable fears of SS recipients. There is a base energized by the thot of an ownership society and there is a base energized by the thot of being weaned, or as doom-n-gloomers imply of being yanked, from the goverment’s teat.

That’s precisely why it IS significant. Because it means that political, not substantive, decisions are made. I can’t believe this.

It is insignificant because the substance is 100% true. Taking action to protect Terri would and did energize the base. Just as true is what is left unsaid, that snuffing her would energize the pro-death base.

It is insignificant because it outlines political truths. Those making hay wanted to merely cast that truth in a devious Rovian light.

I suppose that you think that the GOP erred in energizing the base over Daschle’s obstructionism.

So what. sKerry energized his base in accusing Bush of screwing up the WOT and Bush energized his base in accusing sKerry of flip-flopping. Like I said, the substance is insignificant in terms of the spin that the MSM/DNC tried to put on it.

Thats not why people are arguing. People are up in arms because the substance is signifcant.

FACT (or as we are currently lead to believe): Martinez gave a draft to Harkin and Harkin passed it around to slam the GOP. That’s political hardball, nonetheless ironic/hypocritical for someone supposedly on the same side in this issue — saving Terri and making sure it doesn’t happen again under these circumstances.

No one ever claimed, much less pointed to multiple drafts circulating. If that draft was the sole document that made the rounds, who made the edits and why? If Martinez and Darling had enough sense to duck and hope it would blow over, why on earth would they correct the typos & bill # and recirculate it?

As I’ve said before, the substance of the memo is insignificant with regards to partisanship and typical. It certainly doesn’t rank as some ominous Rovian plot to destroy America. The issue is why the obscurity and multiple backtracking as to source and circulation, once it landed in the hands of the MSM/DNC.

Is it normal practice for the MSM/DNC to take a sloppy Exhibit A, clean it up and represent it as Exhibit A? Or could it be that the MSM/DNC so-o-o believed their poll results (majority condemning congressional involvement) that by tying the memo to their “reality”, they could possibly further sink the Save Terri and Pro-lifer cause by blaming the GOP? Hence dressing up the memo in hand to make it more credible.

If so, that backfired on them. Otherwise, why would Harkin come clean about where he got it from? I believe that is the little loony detail that you insist on glossing over. Had Harkin kept quiet to this day, conventional wisdom would have settled on it being a MSM/DNC dirty trick and Darling would still have a job.

OTOH, if Harkin had immediately revealed the source, would we even be having this discussion? I think not. It would had a life of 2 or 3 days at most. As it stands now, the bogus talking points meme is fast fading to irrelevance as the world turns.

If Mel thot he could trust and work across the aisle on life-n-death issues, he now knows better. And the pro-lifers are still on track to make hay out of judicial activism. I also imagine Harkin is now on political death watch, meaning he’ll be extremely lucky to survive his next election. How do you like dem apples?

Here’s my new speculation about you — you’ve been likened to a troll. I’m beginning to think that maybe in tandem with the pursuit of your law degree, you work for a small business in the service of MSM/DNC and your job is to sidetrack issues on various blogs.

It’s one thing to not feed a real troll, but you tend to throw out stuff that if left undisputed, could leave a “not fake but inaccurate” or misleading impression in the mind of the casual reader. And you do it so well. In that sense, letting you have the last psuedo-fact is loony.

I don’t know if they reported solely a final product. they reported what was being distributed. more than the final product is distributed.

“Or are you claiming that more than one talking points were circulating the Hill amongst the GOP? How come no one reported that angle?”

I’m assuming that like most offices, they make drafts, and sometimes distribute drafts. Its SOP around my office. And also we don’t put our names on things till they are final.

” Just political hardball that backfired on MSM/NBC.”

Are we talking about hte martinez memo. Are you really serious that thats how you think this has ‘backfired’? you’re a loon.

As I recall, the MSM/DNC reported one document, a talking point memo — IOW the final product — yet their solitary evidence came in multiple versions?

Or are you claiming that more than one talking points were circulating the Hill amongst the GOP? How come no one reported that angle?

With regards to the actual substance of the so-called memo, macht’s nichts. Just political hardball that backfired on MSM/NBC. At least you concede a draft can slip out.

As for their past lives, the point has been made ad naseum for those unaware of who Mel was prior to running for office.

I think they’re both experienced in washington. One is a former bush official, the other is an ex lobbyist. “no leadership position” but he was the point man and sponsor of the legislation in question.

“Afterall, the MSM/DNC has shown a couple of versions of the ONE “memo”. How can that be? I’d be more interested in finding out who made edits to the original & sloppy draft.”

Around my small office we work from several versions of documents. we do share drafts outside the office, but we’re usually not in the hurry that these guys are, so we do actually know what we’re doing.

For one, Martinez is as junior as they come, with no leadership position. And Darling is obviously a product of our fine education system, given the typos. What? Don’t they teach you how to use a spell checker in law school?

Secondly, maybe he lied when he initially said he had no knowledge of THAT document. If so, he will have some ‘splainin’ to do with his constituents. But then again, maybe he didn’t recognize the document, as bandied about, as the same one he handed to Harkin. If so, why? Who knows? Do you care?

Only when Harkin cited Martinez as the source did Mel go back and query his staff. Or did you miss that point?

Afterall, the MSM/DNC has shown a couple of versions of the ONE “memo”. How can that be? I’d be more interested in finding out who made edits to the original & sloppy draft.

But that’s irrelevant, just as the fact that Sandy snuck 5 “identical” copies out of the archives. If identical, why take 5 out when 1 would suffice? Then he could run off as many copies as he wished and no one would ever be the wiser!

Or is he so cheap, he’d rather make copies on YOUR dime, rather than his? Hmmm, lessee a copy for himself, a copy for Jamie, a copy for Slick, maybe a copy for DNC and a backup?

If this was meant to hurt bloggers, I don’t see how. And, from The Anchoress, you can connect to “grandma’s well-being” … she got airlifted out of the hospice to UAB, where she’s being given great medical attention. BLOGS WORK. The MSM doesn’t.

What da ya want? More balloons? Or more story?

Floriduh still isn’t a happy place.

So in other words, the “55 senators know nothing about it” assertion is meaningless. Fine.

In my small-business company, I’ve lost count of times where I don’t even recall a draft passing thru my hands.

All the same, I find it interesting that Harkin — the sKerry-esque combat pilot hero in ‘Nam — finally had to burn his MSM/DNC cohort(s) in order to save the Dems from getting blamed for “creating” the memo.

Couple of weeks late for Harkin to come clean in admitting where he got it from, doncha think? Oh wait, that’s right, it’s an evil Rove scheme. Talk about an insignificant document turning into a storm by omission.

So we know at least one of those, Martinez, is lying. Because he has seen, produced or distributed it. I wonder why the GOP isn’t in such a hurry to claim they had anything to do with this. Is it because the guy who owned up to it had to quit / was fired?

Also I think I should refer you to an interesting post on the top 10, 12, 15, scratch 20 categories of MSM/DNC bias. Just click on the comment by The Cassandra Page just below my previous post.