I'm going to add to the dogpile on the Argus on this one.
Greg Belfrage jumped on the Argus, and SDP joined them this morning. I'd have to add a "me too" on this issue.
I hope he remembers that the next time he cries foul at being accused of favoritism.
Now comes a column from the Imperial Editor of the Argus Leader, Randell Beck. Beck is taking issue with those who are concerned the public isn't getting enough information about Johnson's condition.Read that all here. Mr. Beck has been johnny-on-the-spot whenever he's perceived a hint of withholding information on the part of the Governor. But now he's devoting a column to why we don't need to know?
Beck says, "Anyway, it's my guess those who are griping about the shortage of information on Johnson's health didn't vote for him in 2002 and won't vote for him next year if he does seek reelection."
This is the kind of hypocrisy from the Argus Leader, and especially Beck, that I find infuriating. When he and the Argus want more information on completely trivial matters, such as the names of those attending the governor's hunt, their motives are above reproach. However, those wanting more information about Senator Johnson's condition are "griping" for political reasons. Does anyone really believe the Argus Leader's position would be the same if this were Senator John Thune?
I hope he remembers that the next time he cries foul at being accused of favoritism.
Comments
Hypocracy at its' pinnacle.
Geez, let's hope Johnson's name isn't on that pheasant list. I bet the Argus wouldn't know what to do then.
Randall, don't unzip your fly and show your biases so overtly.
ps-I've been to the governor's hunt and never seen Johnson there, so Beck's safe on that one.
Beck's point is that the guy is in bad health, and we should back off. The Argus has never asked for health records of state employees, so the situation isn't really comparable.
It does, however, expose Rs to being jerks for demanding updates on the personal health of an individual.
Let's face it - its the Republicans that want it when the want it and how they want it, and its the Republicans that are hypocrites.
They figure as long as they keep the sympathy coming, no Republican will dare announce that they are running against a sick guy.
Sooner or later, the public's going to catch on. I think most of us already have.
The whiny cry baby Republicans are mad at Randall Beck ... again.
The ARGUS isn't much of a paper, but the main problem for Republicans is that it is no longer a direct connection from Republican politicians to readers.
Just because it is no longer the "Daily Republican" is really tough on GOP hacks with secrets to hide.
Seems to start at the bottom and go all the way to the top. Bush and Cheney records will be delivered to the Texas library, but all will be pre-shredded.
Johnson is an top elected official and we have a right to know his abilty to perform his duties.
State employees, county employees are a different story. The spin doesn't work.
Then they adopt a new format this year with a writing style that is little more than juvenile name calling. They print anonymous blog rants and a "coffee table talk" bitch session every week. No attribution, no confirmation, no opposing viewpoint for balance. Just complaining.
They've tossed the venerable AP stylebook out the window in favor of a daily complaining fest, then complain about cynicism?
Fred Friendly and Ed Morrow must be spinning in their graves at the state of corporate journalism today.
Yep, IF johnson would decide to try and run there is NOTHING WRONG with the Republicans having someone run against him and announce now.
There is NO SHAME it is what we are supposed to do.
If Johnson ran he might get some sympathy votes and there will be voters who see Johnson hiding and will NOT look kindly on the act.
I agree if the situation was reversed and it was a Republican he Dems and the media would be pushing for informaion and open dialoge.
Great thinking Randall!!
Wonder what he'd say if it were Thune or Rounds instead of Johnson. Bet the world would be coming to an end then.
Republicans just want to start campaigning for the next election needlessly early like everyone else. I don't think they really care about Johnson's health.
If it were Thune or Rounds, you can bet the Argus would be doing four pages of stories every Sunday about how the Republicans are covering up the story.
If you don't believe that, you haven't been paying attention.
Now that you bozos have had your whine fest, blow teh snot out of your noses, dry your eyes and move on to the next Sibby-inspired spazfest.
So pleased over your concern over open government and accountability of elected officials.
Let's start with Cheney, 'kay?
oops. Records of his visitors at his undisclosed location aren't there. AG Gonzales can't recall much ....
Where's the outrage over those up at the top and their lack of "memory"???
This is not apologizing for or protecting the man, but I wouldn't expect all the media haters to recognize this.
Help SDWC find out the condition of Senator Johnson, we'll call it "Project Bernie" Anyone leading to verifiable information on his condition will win a 50" flat screen tv!
the argus is great at creating news and just plain horrible at reporting it.
oh, and kranz doesn't read blogs.
Referring to Johnson in a weekend at Bernie's context is flat-out wrong. You should be, but probably aren't, ashamed of yourself. Whether you are a Republican or Democrat, the man devoted his life to serving South Dakota, and has done alot of good for this state.
With respect to the Argus - there's a difference between invading the private life of a public official and maintaining the public's right to know.
Good journalists - moral journalists - know that. There's a point where you don't watchdog a guy.
The Governor's Hunt is a different deal. The Argus asked for the list of names, and they were denied because it could damage business interests. Then, they asked for a list of names that didn't include business leaders - Rounds said no, again.
So, what do you expect, with such a closed-government approach, except for people to wonder what exactly is being hidden from public view.
If it is a big pheasant hunting trip for Rounds family members on the state dime, the public should know that. If it is a big glad-handing event for Republicans to rub elbows and spur donations, the public should know.
Public servants shouldn't be asked to divulge private matters - no matter what. Public figures using public money for private reasons, if that's the case, is something the public has an interest.
I find this blog entertaining, and the comments, from time to time, quite amusing. But, this has to be a new low. The references made about our Sr. Senator are out of line and uncalled for.
Think about how his family must feel.
Plus, if an elected official's private life is off-limits, why do we care if the Governor's family is at the hunt?
You can't deny that, look at the people complaining. They see Johnson's health as something they can capitalize on, nothing more.
Republicans who are complaining should just come clean and say they don't like Johnson and are using the health issue to try and hurt him.
I wouldn't have a problem with Republican attacks on Johnson because of this health if they would be honest about it. Instead they hide behind the line of Johnson is an elected official and we have a right to know his ability to perform his duties. The truth is that they just want Johnson out and don't care what issue puts him out.
The Republicans are upset, because it's becoming more and more obvious that Johnson won't be able to run for re-election. However, the Dems are going to stall as long as possible before announcing that. Thereby giving no Republican candidate a chance to announce his candidacy, and get a foothold, because people like the ones who are spinning this issue today, will cry foul... How can the Republcans be so cruel as to start their campaign before Tim's healthy enough to defend himself !
If the Dems delay long enough, Herseth or young Johnson can announce at the last minute, and sail in virtually unopposed.
It's not the Republcans that are politicizing this, it's the Democrats playing political poker, and holding back the truth as their trump card.
I agree with you here:
http://house.typepad.com/
Regards,
CH
Here is what you do. Field a candidate for the office pushing the “I’m running FOR the Senate seat, not AGAINST Tim Johnson” (thank you Stan – that’s a wonderful way to put it)
Then run on ideas. Run on how they would be a good Senator for the state of South Dakota. Do not address Tim Johnson at all except to wish him good health and a speedy recovery. When and if he does recover, debate him on the issues.
Now the down side to this is you will need someone who actually has ideas. Sadly, running on “the other guy is a liberal” doesn’t work when you don’t really know who you are running against. And “President Bush is Right” isn’t going to cut it because no matter what, he won’t be President after the election. “I’ll cut taxes” doesn’t play so well anymore when people are looking at where the money is going to come from. “ABORTION!!!! GAY MARRIAGE!!! ” may not work, as the religious conservatives are figuring out that you haven’t done anything for them in the 6 years you had the keys to the kingdom, why should you start now. You will need honest to god real true ideas to win this type of campaign.
You only left out one thing:
What kind of person would blame his inability to campaign for office on a person who is recovering from a massive stroke. That's hypocritical fingerpointing to the max. If you want to run, don't whine, run. Part of being a good leader is the ability to think on your feet, respond to changing circumstances, and make decisions without having all the facts. Get used to it.
Sorry, Randall -- You still got caught with your fly open.
I am sure that everyone wants Johnson to recover. I do not think that anyone wants the Argus telling us what we should want to know. Especially when they have taken the stances they have in the past.
This is not a political issue; this is a media hypocrisy issue.
Good journalists ask the tough questions. The Argus should ask the questions and let the readers decide what to make of them.
I’m not saying that the Argus isn’t hypocritical. I kind of thought that it was a given. They are also no more or less hypocritical than any other news outlet you may want to name (Fox News, CNN, The Rapid City Journal). Yes, they are more liberal than the majority of newspapers in the state. Sioux Falls is more liberal than the majority of South Dakota. It’s a good fit. If Sioux Falls began to tend more dramatically conservative, the local daily newspaper would so the same. I do not believe that their number one priority is pushing a liberal agenda…I believe that their number one priority is to sell newspapers. But for those of you who think that the Argus Leader is radically liberal journalism: go pick up any of the following – The New York Daily News, The LA Times, The San Francisco Chronicle.
because they can't help themselves.
(...there Haggs, now we got the whole circle covered. High 5.)
He's playing the political game as every good little Democrat does, and probably if it were a Republican in like situation, the Reps would be doing the same thing. It's all political.
But you can't blame the people, whom these elected politicans work for and who pay their salaries and their trip expenses (listening, Steffi?), if they are getting tired of the game.
That is news reporting at its worst!
If Johnson REALLY had hopes of a full recovery he would have already resigned to focus on therapy and a complete and full recovery.
Johnson is a Harry Reid puppet who can't make the best decisions for us or for himself because of politics. Sad as it is that he has had this “bump in the road” in his life it is hard to maintain any respect for a political puppet.
Seems to me a lot of reporters don't go out and find the news, they let the news come to them.
That is news reporting at its worst!" 6:37 PM
Not only that!
Truncated stories from Gannett and AP, lots of pictures with little content (usually with less content than other local news outlets), a website that looks like it was setup by someone learning Frontpage OJT . The Argus is certainly one of the worst examples of journalism I've ever seen.
I can't see how Gannett hasn't seen the decline in subscriptions and readership that I've seen. If I were a shareholder, I'd really want to know why the present staff is still employed!
I don't know anyone that still has a subscription since they can pick up the movie schedule for free. The Auctions page I can read for free and there's really nothing else I find important that I can get from the Argus that requires paying for it.
I joke with coworkers that I quit getting the Argus when they changed to their new "content free" style. The typical response is "ME TOO"!
I've lived all over the country and have never had a local paper as worthless as the Argus Leader.
Same goes for Stephanie H-S and John Thune however.
That vote was so egregiously opportunistic or ignorant that it should automatically eliminate those war power voters from future office.
That includes Hillary Clinton incidentally.
And, it might as well include Mikey Rounds too. He has spent a lot of time glorifying Bush and war at funerals for SD boys wasted in Iraq.
Blogger ID is not working..post by Doug Wiken
So I can't really blame Republicans and Democrats back then for agreeing to go to Iraq, because Bush had everyone fooled. But, knowning what we know now, I don't understand how anyone can still support this immoral war.
The major issue at hand is not Johnson's health, but rather the fact that the Argus Leader would take a stance totally contrary to one previously and vigorously held by them. When such a turn around is made, it should be questioned.
I am sure that everyone wants Johnson to recover. I do not think that anyone wants the Argus telling us what we should want to know. Especially when they have taken the stances they have in the past.
This is not a political issue; this is a media hypocrisy issue.
Thanks for not distorting the intent of my original remarks, as some have been doing. I was not suggesting a cover-up by Mr. Johnson's staff, nor do I believe he should resign from office.
My outrage is with a self-appointed "watchdog" newspaper that doesn't act fairly in its reporting of the news.
If six months isn't long enough to wait before asking questions about Senator Johnson's health, then what is a reasonable amount of time? One year?
Frankly, I suspect the righteous indignation from some Dems here would be no different had I waited 10 years.
As for those Republicans who are trashing Johnson, you ought to stop. It was never my intention to criticize the senator, only defend those who were attacked by Randell Beck.
The Argus Liar by backing Beck prove they have no credibility!