Drinking the Right Wing Kool-Aid in Mission Valley; UT-SD’s Quest to Demonize President Obama

How low will the UT-San Diego’s editorial board go in its quest to demonize President Obama? Will they manufacture or twist history to portray him as the worst chief executive in history? You betcha!, as they did in an editorial profile (Presidential busts: The worst of all: Barack Obama...) this weekend. Will they cry “wolf” when one of contender Mitt Romney’s financial backers’ activities gets scrutinized by the federal government after years of investigations by state governments? Oh, yes!, they will. Consider the first paragraph of this editorial entitled “The president’s enemy pays a price”:

Last year, Idaho businessman Frank VanderSloot contributed $1 million to a “super PAC” supporting Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and took a formal role with his campaign. The CEO of a successful supplements company, VanderSloot was exercising his rights as a U.S. citizen in the same way that millions of other Americans do: by giving money to a cause he supports.

OMG! This is obviously, based on the facts presented, yet another part of the vast Obama conspiracy. But what if the facts aren’t exactly right? What if the successful supplements company based its accomplishments on a multi-level marketing scheme that prompted Michigan regulators to take action, resulting in a voluntary agreement stipulating that they would “not engage in the marketing and promotion of an illegal pyramid”? What if his successful supplements company was cited by the Food & Drug Administrated for deceiving customers about some of its products? Read this story by Glen Greenwald about this poor, persecuted Romney supporter and decide for yourself if it’s really necessary for the UT-San Diego to drum up sympathy for his cause.

UT-San Diego’s “Presidential Busts” editorial has prompted yet another round of subscribers dumping the daily; other folks, like my significant other, told me that they couldn’t be bothered to even finish reading it. Since we know that you may have heard about the editorial, but not the local Democratic Party’s response, as a public service we’re presenting the following statement as posted on Facebook:

“At this point, I’m not sure how many people view the U-T’s editorial page as a credible source of political information. But Sunday’s anti-Obama screed (“Presidential busts,” Opinion, July 22) read more like a rabid tea-party blog than the product of a major news outlet.

President Obama’s policies have created 4.3 million private-sector jobs, granted tax breaks to businesses that hire veterans and enabled thousands of teachers to be retained or rehired.

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, we are on track to reduce the deficit by $127 billion in the next decade, according to independent analysts. The bill has already strengthened Medicare, extended insurance to more than 3.1 million young adults and prevented insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.

The president has pulled the economy back from the brink of crisis, responsibly wound down two wars, and brought much-needed reforms that prioritize middle-class citizens over CEOs. This administration has made a positive difference in the lives of Americans – despite Republican opponents more concerned with their next election than with the good of the nation.

You wouldn’t know it from reading the U-T, but America is on the rise again, thanks in large part to the strength and leadership of our President.

– Jess Durfee, chairman, San Diego County Democratic Party“

The remainder of Doug Porter’s column can be found at San Diego Free Press.