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Bai on Rudy

Why Matt Baii moderated the Yearly Kos Prtesidential forum still remains one of those unexplainable mysteries. Why Matt Bai's book is taken seriously by anyone actually familiar with the Netroots is another mystery. We have one final mystery to solve about Matt Bai - why is he considered a good reporter? This story on Rudy is simply appalling. Take this part for instance:

The logic of Giuliani’s pitch to voters on terrorism will feel familiar to anyone who paid close attention to his political ascent. When he first won office in 1993, New York was widely considered a city beyond governance, an uncontrollable metropolis where violent crime, entrenched bureaucracy and swollen welfare rolls were accepted as the grim but unshakable realities of urban decline.

Say what? You mean a reporter can just write whatever they want and say it was "widely considered?" This is not reporting - this is bloviating. And should be labelled as such. But it gets worse. More.

Rudy ran as a real S.O.B., the guy who had the steel to restore order and sanity where no one else could or would. Whatever you think of Giuliani personally, it’s hard to argue that he didn’t succeed; crime and the welfare rolls plummeted for the first time in decades, while jobs and neighborhoods came back.

(Emphasis supplied.) Matt Bai just lied to his readers. What I bolded is simply false. A lie. Does the NYTimes have any factcheckers? Bai is no reporter it is clear.

But even as a fabulist he fails. His whole idea is that Rudy is running as the tough guy who we need on terrorism. And Bai points to his Mayoralty as the basis for this. But this is nonsense. He did not become "America's Mayor" during the "good years" of his Mayoralty (indeed, Rudy was at quite a low ebb of popularity in September 2001).

He became "America's Mayor" because of the press conferences he held on 9/11 and the days after. Let's repeat that - Giuliani did nothing right as Mayor regarding 9/11 except hold press conferences. Wayne Barrett demonstrated that.

Now let's see if anything Wayne Barrett demonstrated made it into Bai's article. Let's see . . . Ok. A thousand words in:

On the surface, it’s an odd comparison, not least because, while Churchill foresaw a threat that few in his time fully understood, there’s not much evidence to suggest that Giuliani spent a lot of time thinking about Islamic terrorism before Sept. 11. Although New York was the target of at least one successful attack before Giuliani took office (the World Trade Center bombing in 1993) and continued to figure heavily in federal investigations into terrorist cells, the closest Giuliani publicly came to battling terrorists before the planes came bearing down on Manhattan that day was to respond to the emergence of West Nile Virus in Central Park (this was briefly thought to be the work of biological terrorists but turned out to be a naturally spreading disease) and to prepare for an attack on the millennial celebration in Time Square (which, perhaps thanks to the diligence of the feds, never materialized). Jerry Hauer, who was Giuliani’s top adviser for emergency preparedness and later had a nasty falling out with the mayor, now refers to his old boss as a “9/12 expert” — that is, one who saw the grave potential of Islamic terror only after it had been realized. “I can’t remember in the whole time I worked for him having a discussion about Islam or Al Qaeda,” Hauer told me. “The words ‘Al Qaeda’ were never part of his vocabulary.”

That's it.

In essence, Bai provides nothing more than the reverse personality driven nonsense we saw in 2000 - except Rudy's not being a guy you want to have a beer with is the positive image to portray.

Even Bai's so called "substantive" questions on terror, Iraq and Pakistan reveal a reporter who simply knows very little about the subjects. Rudy's sidesteps of these amateurish questions was rendered smooth by Bai's clear ineptness.

I have read Bai in the past, liked his article on Howard Dean, one in which Bai clearly had no clue what Dean was talking about and shuddered about. I have seen his piece on Edwards, an extremely weak piece from a reporter who simply knows very little about actual issues. I saw his performance at Yearly Kos and have read his book.

He is a hack. His meteoric rise to the top of his profession seems likely.

And Rudy we all know about. A hacks on a hack is what the New York Times provided us here.

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  • Display: Sort:
    BTD (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by glanton on Sat Sep 08, 2007 at 10:53:16 AM EST
    Let's repeat that - Giuliani did nothing right as Mayor regarding 9/11 except hold press conferences.

    Well done.  Especially in political commentary, Distilled truth is the best kind.  

    This one's a keeper, should be repeated endlessly, after he gets the nomination.


    Nope. (1.00 / 0) (#18)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Sep 08, 2007 at 10:46:24 AM EST
    When he first won office in 1993, New York was widely considered a city beyond governance, an uncontrollable metropolis where violent crime, entrenched bureaucracy and swollen welfare rolls were accepted as the grim but unshakable realities of urban decline

    That is an accurate description of how NYC was viewed at that time. You may claim the view was wrong. But that was the widely held view.

    As to the murder rate, I have no idea as to the actual numbers but will just accept the claim of the letter writer in the link. Like the booming economy Clinton took credit for, Rudy took credit.

    So what? Elections are about perceptions. Again, Clinton won on "its the economy stupid." Rudy may very well have won on "I'll stop crime."

    And he did. The rate declined. Clinton did. The economy improved.

    As for Hauer's comment:

    "9/12 expert" -- that is, one who saw the grave potential of Islamic terror only after it had been realized. "

    I would rather have someone who now understands rather than someone who still doesn't.

    That is your opinion (5.00 / 1) (#20)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Sat Sep 08, 2007 at 11:12:06 AM EST
    But it can not be stated as a fact.

    Indeed, it is my opinion that you and Bai are wrong.

    I acknowledge that it is my opinion. You and Bai state your opinions as fact.

    You are some commenter on a blog. He is writing in the New York Times.

    Parent

    Will you concede Rudy (none / 0) (#1)
    by oculus on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 05:16:25 PM EST
    was effective on jaywalking? BTW: how do you have access to Sunday NYT on Friday?

    It's on the site (none / 0) (#3)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:06:12 PM EST
    Hmmm. I searched "Bai" (none / 0) (#6)
    by oculus on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:08:52 PM EST
    but results didn't list this article.

    Parent
    Got it. (none / 0) (#9)
    by oculus on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:16:15 PM EST
    Rudy on Crime (none / 0) (#2)
    by Jeralyn on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 05:34:45 PM EST
    Many have reported, including the AP on 7/23/07 (available on Lexis.com):

    Giuliani was mayor during a period of declining crime rates nationwide. Crime in New York peaked in 1990 and had been dropping for three years before Giuliani took office, according to FBI data.

    As for the reduction NY did see in crime during Rudy's tenure, I believe, as do many others, it was mostly due to Bill Bratton.

    When he (none / 0) (#4)
    by oculus on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:06:36 PM EST
    responds to this, let's find out how he came to be the moderator.

    Parent
    I added a link (none / 0) (#5)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:06:59 PM EST
    But this is a well known fact that the drop in crime started under David Dinkins.

    Bai error is an embarrassing one.

    Parent

    Not to Mention (none / 0) (#10)
    by squeaky on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:25:20 PM EST
    That it takes several years for any policy to affect the street. Also, crime dropped at similar rates all across America. Crime patterns  are linked to demographics.

    The Ghoul is a shameless opportunist. He would claim credit for good weather if he could.

    Parent

    Link (none / 0) (#11)
    by squeaky on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:30:40 PM EST
    Crime, Demographics, Giuliani

    Parent
    Google (none / 0) (#12)
    by squeaky on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:32:44 PM EST
    <a href="http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Giuliani++Crime+Demographic&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8">link</a>

    Parent
    Oops (none / 0) (#13)
    by squeaky on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:35:36 PM EST
    Forgot to move out of Plain Text mode. Now in auto format:

    link

    Parent

    Crime rate fluctuates depending on (none / 0) (#14)
    by oculus on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:40:21 PM EST
    how many young adult males in the population.

    Parent
    Exactly (none / 0) (#15)
    by squeaky on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 07:46:22 PM EST
    Guiliani's is shameless for taking credit for the decline in youth population across the US in the same way he is taken credit for being a hero in NYC during 911.

    He is a powerhungry fake.

    Parent

    Roe v. Wade (none / 0) (#17)
    by Demi Moaned on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 10:32:25 PM EST
    Yes, and didn't this particular drop correlate with the coming of age of the post Roe v. Wade generation?

    Parent
    See also (none / 0) (#7)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:12:26 PM EST
    this:

    When Mr. Kelly led the Police Department during the last 17 months of the Dinkins administration, the crime rate began to fall. He became familiar to many New Yorkers as a reassuring presence on television after the World Trade Center bombing in February 1993.


    Parent
    See also (none / 0) (#8)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 06:14:11 PM EST
    Rudy (none / 0) (#16)
    by TomStewart on Fri Sep 07, 2007 at 08:55:14 PM EST
    Has long been a walking ego in a suit. So he stalked the streets of NY after the planes hit the tower? That was because his command center had just been wiped out and what else was he going to do? Go to Radio Shack and order decent walkie-talkies for the 9/11 workers?

    Bai obviously has fallen hard for the 'hero mayor' snakeoil Rudy is selling by the quart. But then, so has a lot of supposedly smart people. The difference being that Matt has the facts easily at his command, a whole morgue of them to call up and check, and still turns out nonsense by the yard.

    Shameful.

    Man, I think it's time for a nap, my posts today have been extra cranky.