Yesterday MovOn.org director Eli Pariser embraced the controversy over the 'General Betray Us' ad. "Sometimes you have to call a spade a spade, even if it's a respected general," was his quote in the Politico. And while this all might turn out well for MoveOn, it is causing some headaches for the Dems.
The statement today from Elizabeth Edwards:
"Someone who's spent their life in the military doesn't deserve ‘General Betray Us,'" said Edwards, wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards.
Colorado senator Ken Salazar's hush-hush statement from yesterday:
As noted in media reports, I believe the ad was inappropriate and sent the wrong message ("Salazar assails MoveOn over Petraeus attack ad", Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, 9/13/07).
And earlier in the week, Senator Kerry called the ad "inappropriate" and Senator Reid described it as "frustrating." Also, the New York Times was forced to report on itself in order to explain how MoveOn got such a sweet deal, while the paper's editors provocatively used the very same language as the ad in today's editorial. Writes Dave Price:
Discount explained:
The disastrous MoveOn ad in the New York Time calling General Petraeus "Betray Us":
Cooking the Books for the White House
New York Times editorial board:
...Pentagon numbers so obviously cooked...
But I think the real lesson here is for MoveOn: sure, you got a great discount, but if you'd waited a day you could have gotten the same message out for free.
MoveOn has been very successful at this game in the past, swelling their ranks and getting their message to stick (Bush lied and people died, wasn't that another MoveOn rhyme?). But they are causing trouble for their friends, and maybe this time they went too far. Raising funds is only half of it--they have to get the public, and the Democrats, to parrot their talking points. This time, the only Democrats parroting MoveOn are the editors at the Times. But MoveOn has doubled down with a new commercial, "Betrayal of Trust."
HT: Instapundit.
Update: Via Ace, "Giuliani Also Gets Liberal Discount."
