A “centrist” pundit.
“The only way that real change… will come is through coalitions built from the center out. And those coalitions will only flourish in a public atmosphere of civility, humanity and compromise.”
— Joe Klein
Personal attacks by Joe Klein:
Eric Alterman: “futile and pathetic”, narcissistic, lazy, peripheral, inaccurate, foolish, silly…
Reason: “has been on my case”
Duncan Black: “illiberal leftist”, Extremist (demoted to: “extremely smug”)
Reason: Atrios has been mostly correct over the last few years (and called Joe Klein a wanker)
Noam Chomsky: “America Hater”
Reason: No explanation whatsoever
John Edwards: “Edwards’ line of work: ambulance-chaser”
“skeevy ambulance chasers (probably) contributing to his campaign”
Reason: Edwards is a Democrat with money
Al Gore: “a smug, stubborn, and aloof human being”, “harsh and stupid”, “Gore’s populism reeked of resentment and neurosis”, “looked like a madman”
“was it the powerful or Bill Clinton he really disdained? The anger was a bit too sweaty and confused for most Americans, who tend not to elect angry presidents.”
Reason: (ad hominem)
John Kerry: effete, awkward, aristocratic, Frenchy jerk
Reason: false claim that Kerry focus-grouped his Abu Ghraib response (a claim which Klein used to plug his book)
Paul Krugman: “fool”, “ill-informed dilettante”
Reason: Krugman said that those who argue for an failed escalation in the Iraq war are either cynical or delusional
Media Matters: “thought police”
Reason: Media Matters highlighted Klein’s use of a Republican cliché
Michael Moore: “a disgrace”
Reason: Took 9/11 victims to get free healthcare in Cuba
Markos Moulitsas: “dangerous extremist” “Robespierre”
Reason: Kos believes in the efficacy of democratic primary elections
Al Sharpton: “a race-hustling phony” “a dangerous buffoon”
Reason: Sharpton asks too many questions, leads “phony protests”
Joe Klein on Democrats in general:
“a party with absolutely no redeeming social value”
“They seem as confused as Democrats normally do”
“make fools of themselves even when they speak the truth”
“the perpetually benighted Donkey party”
“It’s a really boring and flat party.”
“the Democratic Party has had a love affair with eggheads, and sad to say, high IQ is not a leading indicator of success in the presidency.”
“unable to creatively engage or oppose President Bush, or even to start an interesting fight among themselves”
Joe Klein on about everybody on “The Left”:
“the take-no-prisoners left”
“illiberal leftists and reactionary progressives”
“rooting for an American failure”
“assume every U.S. military action abroad is criminal”
“a need, born of intellectual myopia and insecurity, to burn heretics”
“The default position of leftists like, say, Michael Moore and many writers at The Nation, is that America is essentially a malignant, imperialistic force in the world and the use of American military power is almost always wrong.”
Joe Klein on Conservatives:
“An argument can be made that NASCAR rules in presidential elections, and victory goes to the most convincing cracker.”
Newt Gingrich: “an intellectually honest policy wonk”
“It’s almost always a joy listening to Gingrich when he’s on a tear.”
“I don’t want to say Gingrich has mellowed–the staccato feistiness is still there”
Now, Newt Gingrich is not a public figure who has often been associated with civility. His angry hyperpartisan rantings defined him during the period before he led the “Republican revolution” of 1994 and during his four years as Speaker of the House. But there was always another side to Newt. He was an intellectually honest policy wonk with an appetite for taking on the most important issues facing society
Rudy Giuliani: What is COIN? Let me oversimplify: coin is the military equivalent of the police strategies that mayors like New York City’s Rudy Giuliani used to reduce crime rates in the 1990s.
John McCain: “the avatar of a new passage in American politics”
(“I suspect–well, I hope–that McCain was the avatar of a new passage in American politics: The public… will not trust a consultant-created android.”)