Hype, Hype, Hype! He’s the Hypesman…err…Huntsman!
friend, the Lonely Conservative, is puzzled by a question posed by left-wing blogger Steve Benen. Why, they wonder, is Jon Huntsman getting so much press right now? Benen noted that he was scheduled to appear on six national shows in the past two weeks even though he barely appears as a blip on any Presidential poll. In fact, saying that his support is a “blip” is a gross insult to actual blips throughout electoral history such as perennial write-in candidates Mickey Mouse and Elmer Fudd.
It is a puzzler, if you assume that the MSM are open brokers of information and show favor to no particular party. There is no objective reason Jon Huntsman should have more media appearances than, say Herman Cain who according to his staff has won ten straw polls thus far. You might be able to make the argument that Huntsman isn’t as in demand as other GOP candidates who are busy campaigning because they have a chance to win, but I’m not sure that works.
I believe the answer is far more simple. The MSM is setting Jon Huntsman up to use him as a weapon against the rest of the Republican field. Imagine how an average voter might see what the MSM has shown him. Huntsman is “moderate” and he gets all manner of warm receptions from television hosts who are otherwise hostile to Republicans. He must, says the coverage, be that most rare of creatures, a true moderate champion of bipartisanship, the very sort of politician for whom the President has long sought.
But he won’t win anything, and when his campaign finally crashes, after a number of last-place finishes, the MSM will alter their narrative. He will become Jon Huntsman, the reasonable conservative who was utterly rejected by Republican voters in favor of a horde of fire-breathing, hard-hearted, extremists. They’ll tell the nation how fortunate Barack Obama is that he didn’t have to run against Huntsman and how his exit will lead to a far more coarse campaign as the troglodytes launch their insidious attacks against the noble President.
And that, folks, will be the storyline for at least a couple months of the election season. Jon Huntsman never had a chance as a Republican and the media know that. Their apparent adoration for him now is a put-on to set up a new line of attack against the candidates who can beat Barack Obama next year.
That’s my thought. What do you think?
Other Posts of Interest:
- The New MSM Meme: Jon Huntsman, The Man Who Scares Democrats
- Shockers: Most McCain MSM Coverage Has Been Negative.
- He’s a Man (Dun DAH Dah Dah Dun). He’s a Full-Grown Man!
Category: Oh, THAT liberal media., The 2012 Horse Race
[...] for it, though. He’s in a position where he had to be unorthodox in order to get traction while the media continue to hype Jon Huntsman. He missed this one pretty badly, and for a campaign with as little margin for disaster as his, the [...]