Doomed to Repeat? (Wizbang)

A brief history lesson:

During the 1992 Presidential campaign, it was well known that Bill Clinton had a number of embarrassing skeletons in his closet, particularly his affinity for young, attractive women, and his secret involvement in both the Madison Guarantee Savings And Loan and the Whitewater Development Corporation.

Outside of a few obligatory stories published to dispel rumors that the press was completely in the tank for Bill Clinton, the mainstream media largely disregarded these as non-newsworthy items, choosing instead to pick apart George H. W. Bush.

But during the eight years that followed, Bill Clinton was continually dogged by the fallout from the Whitewater investigation. And the Paula Jones lawsuit, which eventually morphed into the Monica Lewinsky investigation, almost destroyed his Presidency.

Fast forward to today.

During the 2008 Presidential campaign, it was well known that Barack Obama had a number of embarrassing skeletons in his closet, particularly the close rapport between Obama and crooked Chicago slumlord Tony Rezko, and Obama's cozy relationship with the Chicago Democratic Party political machine, perhaps the most corrupt organization in America, with only the possible exception of the Louisiana Democratic Party political machine.

The mainstream press published several interesting investigative pieces a year or so before Obama became the Democratic party nominee, but saw no need to keep that information above the page fold during the final months of the campaign. Instead, they chose to destroy Sarah Palin. And Obama's minions actively fought to silence anyone who sought to publish information about the connections between Obama and Bill Ayres.

Now, the Chicago Political Machine appears to be imploding. And there's also that pesky problem of campaign donation fraud that the mainstream press had previously found totally uninteresting.

Will Barack Obama, like Bill Clinton, be forced to endure four or eight years of embarrassing criminal investigations because the press failed to do their job and fully delve into his past?

Right now, it doesn't look good for Obama. Lord, forgive our press, for they did not tell us what they knew.

- Michael Laprarie

Comments (7)

It doesn't really matter, b... (Below threshold)

1. Posted by Jeff Medcalf | December 9, 2008 2:27 PM | Score: 3 (3 votes cast)

Jeff Medcalf:

It doesn't really matter, because as with Clinton, the news organs will also underreport and distort any investigations and in particular any charges that hit too close to Obama.

Posted on December 9, 2008 14:27

...his affinity for youn... (Below threshold)

2. Posted by astigafa | December 9, 2008 2:48 PM | Score: 2 (2 votes cast)

astigafa:

...his affinity for young, attractive women

Dude: Get your eyes checked. President Clinton was God's gift to homely women and nothing less. And not much more. But "attractive"...Sheesh.

Posted on December 9, 2008 14:48

Right now, it doesn't lo... (Below threshold)

3. Posted by wolfwalker | December 9, 2008 7:20 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)

wolfwalker:

Right now, it doesn't look good for Obama.

Which is very good for the rest of us.

A Snobama presidency shattered by scandal, enough to make him a powerless laughingstock yet never quite enough to impeach him or make him resign, is about the best outcome we could have.

Posted on December 9, 2008 19:20

I beg to differ... New Jers... (Below threshold)

4. Posted by Gmac | December 9, 2008 7:39 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)

Gmac:

I beg to differ... New Jersey has some of the most corrupt politicians in and out of office.

Clinton gave rise to the VRWC with his AND Hillery's antics in and out of office. He had tastes that James Carville so accurately described with his $100 bill in a trailer park comment.

With the Chicago political machine in smoking ruins one does have to wonder if their golden boy will escape unscathed. I seriously doubt it as he's been in bed with them his entire political career. Its going to be a fun 4 years full of golden moments as story after story is dug up.

Posted on December 9, 2008 19:39

Good thing the Dems nominat... (Below threshold)

5. Posted by Les Nessman | December 9, 2008 8:38 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)

Les Nessman:

Good thing the Dems nominated 'no-drama-Obama' instead of 'scandal-ridden-Clinton'. Heh.

The press didn't do it's job of vetting Brocko so these type of things are going to dog him for years. More dirt that should have been uncovered and examined before the election will keep coming up.

The press did the country, and Brocko, a huge disservice by looking the other way.

Posted on December 9, 2008 20:38

In an era when more young p... (Below threshold)

6. Posted by BlueNight | December 10, 2008 1:16 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)

BlueNight:

In an era when more young people get their news from Jon Stewart than from traditional talking heads, when newspapers are losing the subscribers their business models have depended on for generations, something has just popped into my mind.

Media companies need scandals to sell. What better way to stay in business than to help elect a scandal-ridden president?

Deliberately and coldly selecting the leader who'll sell more papers and more ad time? Heck, it's less of a stretch than 9/11 Trooth conspiracies...

Posted on December 10, 2008 01:16

Keep salivating over the po... (Below threshold)

7. Posted by Dave Noble | December 10, 2008 5:13 PM | Score: -1 (1 votes cast)

Dave Noble:

Keep salivating over the possibility of a scandal-ridden Obama presidency. I don't think that will work with the American people this time around. The Republican party tried that in the campaign and the voters rejected it.

But go ahead, after giving us eight years of arrogant, incompetent leadership, try to bring down the Presidency at a time when we desperately need leadership. That would be the patriotic thing to do.

Posted on December 10, 2008 17:13