I was on George Stephanopoulos’ show this morning for a lively roundtable with George Will, Martha Raddatz, Richard Haass and Arianna Huffington. One thing became clear to me as we discussed the likelihood of bank nationalization – an auto bankruptcy -and the impending nuclearization of North Korea and Iran: It’s clear that the Obama administration needs more and better euphemisms for what it is doing. Maybe a National Euphemism Initiative? Maybe a cabinet department? Or maybe a special presidential euphemism representative within every department? It’s amazing what can be done, so long as we find a way to avoid calling that thing by too candid a name…





















7 responses so far
1 ottovbvs // Apr 5, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Mike K
11:37 AM
….She was also the first woman president of the Oxford Union and has written some quite readable books about Picasso amongst others. Sure she married money, who can blame her, but she’s no dimwit.
As to Obama…you and David are deluding yourselves. He’s neither Henry II nor Napoleon although he demonstrates both these gentlemen’s capacity for governance. If the last week has demonstrated that I don’t know what it takes. And David, there aren’t going to be any major bank nationalizations and I even doubt whether GM will go into bankruptcy. As for North Korea they acquired nuclear weapons about six years ago and the Bush admin did nothing about it any more than they did anything substantive about preventing Iran from getting them quite simply because there is no practicable way to stop it short of launching a war against these countries and neither Bush or Obama were/are going to do anything that stupid. You can make jokes about Obama but he appears to be carrying all before him as far as I can see.
2 krove // Apr 5, 2009 at 1:12 pm
I thought this blog was about finding new Conservative ideas. It’s just turned into a David Frum lets bash Obama Blog. There are hundreds of those that do a far better job. Time for you to give up on the ideas front because I can’t remember having seen any on this blog since it’s inception
3 ottovbvs // Apr 5, 2009 at 1:13 pm
Oops correction on Huffington it was the Cambridge Union.
4 Ryan // Apr 5, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Manipulation of language is public relations 101 and has been a part of political debate since before the Greeks I’m sure. Everyone does it. Lets just get over it.
5 fact based // Apr 5, 2009 at 7:59 pm
as others have pointed out you no longer posit any “ideas” you are just a somewhat more articulate version of hannity et al and their ceaseless obama bashing with nothing of substance to offer. Congrats, the phone will be ringing with the offer of a position as a “fox news commentator ” soon. And if you work on dumbing down your arguments just a little bit more , you too can get a talk radio program.
6 Ryan // Apr 5, 2009 at 10:54 pm
David I just wanted to say you shouldn’t take the criticisms below too seriously. Even if you were simply a more articulate version of hannity (and I’m not sure that’s the case) it would still be much better than what the Republican party has got going for it now. I’m a liberal independent myself but I think everyone wants the republican party to emerge healthily from its slump and I think people like you offer the best hope for its future.
At least you’re willing to engage the other side without shouting, at least you’re taking some of the extreme anti-science edge off of the party, and at least you’re attempting to turn the party into one with ideas rather than one who just holds up its hands and says, “no” to progress. And at least you’re not resorting to Glenn Beck-style apocalyptic fear tactics or appealing only to the far right end of the spectrum. My point is, keep it up.
7 fact based // Apr 6, 2009 at 7:02 am
where are your “ideas” for a new majority
healthcare
education
is there global warming if so what should be done
energy policy
getting us out of the economic near depression
financial industry reform
alternatives to the stress test/ppip
entitlement reform
just obama bashing is just exactly what repubs elsewhere and the fox/talk radio crowd do…and you have joined the club
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