Is McCain's "C**tgate" ever going to break into the mass media?

[calmblueocean]

First it came out in a new book:

In his 1992 Senate bid, McCain was joined on the campaign trail by his wife, Cindy, as well as campaign aide Doug Cole and consultant Wes Gullett. At one point, Cindy playfully twirled McCain's hair and said, "You're getting a little thin up there." McCain's face reddened, and he responded, "At least I don't plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you cunt." McCain's excuse was that it had been a long day. If elected president of the United States, McCain would have many long days.

Then a Baptist minister brought it out into the open by asking McCain in public, "Did you call your wife a cunt?"

McCain didn't answer.

I firmly believe that if the country ever learns that McCain said those words, he would become unelectable. If you watch the video, you can hear the groans of disgust when the minister even asks the question. Insulting and humiliating your own wife by calling her a "trollop" and a "cunt" is terrible enough, but doing so in front of reporters is not only abusive, but raises huge questions about McCain's impulse control and fitness for office.

I know bringing the c-word into national discourse is distasteful to a lot of people, but this insult wasn't done in private. It was done in front of reporters while McCain was campaigning for the Senate. When George Allen used the slur "macaca", it was fair game then, and McCain's actions have made this question fair game now. It's time the media asked John McCain to confirm whether or not this anecdote is legitimate -- all it takes is one reporter to say:

"There's a report in a new book out claiming that while campaigning in 1992, you called your wife a certain four-letter obscenity in front of reporters. Is that report true or false?"

It's a fair question. The answer isn't trivial. This is the man who may be negotiating for the United States, the man who will meet with world leaders on our behalf, the man who must work with Congress on a daily basis, the man who may have to make snap decisions regarding our nuclear arsenal and our military. Isn't finding out whether he has so little control of his temper that he can't keep from calling his wife abusive obscenities in public more important than a few seconds of discomfort?

[saltpoint]

1. A crucial topic indeed. I think FOX should have Ann Coulter and Bill Kristol

do a 2-hour panel on this post-haste.

_____
It's time for the media to hold McCain responsible for what comes out of his mouth in the public sqaure.

[lonestarnot]

2. Taliban, burka sling'n freak that lumpy and the druggie just takes it.

[virtualobserver]

3. I think that it would have come out if he had called her a "macaca"

it might start coming out in the print media, where the asterisk is available, but it is hard to put it on the air.

[calmblueocean]

5. It's tough to put on the air, but they can refer to "a four-letter obscenity for female genitalia"

People will know.

The blogosphere's gotta start bringing some pressure on this, though, or the print media won't pick it up.

[AndyTiedye]

4. No. They Have their Orders. McCain Gets a Free Ride

[calmblueocean]

6. Sure seems that way.

All the more reason to hold their feet to the fire on this one.

[AndyTiedye]

9. Any Idea How to Do That?

We don't really have any leverage over the MSM. We can boycott them, sure, but they don't care. They are the propaganda arm of the likes of GE, which makes far more money off the war than they ever could from a TV network.

[calmblueocean]

10. The blogosphere has a lot of influence on the cable news cycle

Maybe I should call it the "outrageosphere" since policy wonk blogs don't have much influence on the MSM, but something as clear and vivid as whether McCain called his wife a cunt in public is something the blogosphere can essentially brute-force the cable news networks to cover if enough people blog and YouTube about it.

[AndyTiedye]

16. But a Phone Call from the CEO Has a Lot More Inflluence Than All the Blogs

[CTyankee]

14. True, but also remember that the folks in the audience applauded McLame's response!

People don't want to hear that. they turn on the person asking the question. Look what happened to John Kerry when he mentioned Mary Cheney's homosexuality positively. HE gets jumped on for simply saying out loud what everyone knew was true, AND he was saying something nice about her!

I'm afraid we'll lose on this one, unless we can satirize it someway, put that on YouTube and then let the media cover it as "news." I'm not going to hold my breath.

[HughMoran]

7. I'd just as soon wait until later for this to become an issue

...like on Oct 30th for instance :D

[calmblueocean]

11. I hear you, but I think it may be now or never.

The longer we wait to make an issue of this, the less likely the news media is to take notice of it at all.

[HughMoran]

12. We'll see

I think it's unlikely that this level of discussion will be needed to beat the old man, but if it's close in October, I would expect no holds barred...

[tom_paine]

8. Exactly. And Amerikan Media, without KGB thugs standing behind them with guns,

has become as complicit and toadying as ANYTHING the Chinese or the Russians ever produced at the height of their tyrannies, which are still going and have been strengthened by the growth of tyranny in what used to be the Old nited States of America.

[orangerevolution]

13. Just like the Question Chelsea was asked

about monica a month ago, we were outraged for a reason. How dare he bring up that part of the Big Dog's past.

Now, this is just a total and complete whitewash!

[ColbertWatcher]

15. ?

Did McCain just compare his makeup wearing to his wife's?

"At least I don't plaster on the makeup..."

No, John delicately applies it with a kabuki brush.

John McCain for President 2008; He doesn't put makeup on like a trollop.

[Supersedeas]

17. the Media Free Ride will not stop for the facts