Barron's derided McCain - and all politicians - for expressing the belief that they are somehow responsible for the ups and downs of the oil market. (Note that sections of the Barron's report look like expanded and rewritten sections of the AP report. )McCain credits Bush for drop in oil price
By TOM RAUMWILKES-BARRE, Pa. (AP) — Republican John McCain on Wednesday credited the recent $10-a-barrel drop in the price of oil to President Bush's lifting of a presidential ban on offshore drilling, an action he has been advocating in his presidential campaign.
The cost of oil and gasoline is "on everybody's mind in this room," McCain told a town-hall meeting.
He criticized Democratic rival Barack Obama for opposing drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf.
Bush recently lifted the executive order banning offshore drilling that his father put in place in 1990. He also asked Congress to lift its own moratorium on oil exploration on the outer continental shelf which includes coastal waters as close as three miles from shore.
"The price of oil dropped $10 a barrel," said McCain, who argued that the psychology of lifting the ban has affected world markets.
Unfortunately, I can't find a complete version of McCain's quote. I thought I heard it on a news insert on NPR's Morning Edition today, but I can't find it now. Local NBC affiliate WBRE had an
UPDATE: Not that I'm advocating violence against a Presidential candidate, but John McCain says the incredibly brickable phrase "It is what it is" three times in less than 20 seconds, at 1:47, 1:53, and 2:04.
UPDATE, 7/26/08: That George Bush is a genius! Gas prices dropped to $3.92/gallon at Sam's Club in Wilkes-Barre on Thursday, and were $3.88/gallon yesterday!
...or was it McCain's speech that drove down prices?
...or maybe Obama's European tour?
...or perhaps the solar eclipse coming up on August 1, visible in a very limited area in far northern Europe?
...or...
*Note: MSNBC, CBS, and countless newspaper outlets have simply parroted the AP story. Another story referred to the "junior varsity press corps" being sent out to Wilkes-Barre. So much for the hard-working folks in the mainstream media. "Oh, it's in Wilkes-Barre? We'll just run the wire report. Send Willy if he's done inventorying the stockroom."
**As Jennifer pointed out in the comments, local ABC affiliate WNEP also had an interview with McCain while he was in the area, though I didn't find that one while hunting on YouTube. I guess what set me off was the claim by CBS that Katie Couric had an "exclusive" interview with McCain - the juxtaposition of the headline with the AP article on McCain's visit made me think they meant "exclusive while he was in Wilkes-Barre", but I see now that the line says "spoke exclusively Tuesday to..." What the heck makes something "exclusive", anyway?
WBRE had their "exclusive" interview with McCain right after we had our "exclusive" interview. I believe that both stations referred to their respective interviews as "one-on-one" rather than "exclusive."
ReplyDeleteAs for Bush getting credit for the drop in oil prices, I say what I say about anything else Bush-related. Whatever.
I don't have the exact quote in my notes but he said that since Bush announced the repeal of the ban on offshore drilling the price of a barrell of oil dropped $10.
ReplyDeleteScrew them. They all made sure they were here with bells and whistles on when it was going to flood in 2006. "Oh Wilkes-Barre is going to self destruct...FINALLY! Send a news crew ASAP! We HAVE to get this on video!!!!"
ReplyDelete2 days later they were onto the next news event. Vultures.
Apparently he is very stupid. I've seen him get many facts wrong only to have one of his underlings lean over and whisper the correct answer in his ear. Things like how many troops we have in Iraq.
ReplyDeleteJen, what is the technical difference between "exclusive" and "one-on-one"? I always assumed "exclusive" meant "we had access that no one else did, so we have this and no one else does" - so in a sense, every one-on-one interview would also be an "exclusive", since you can't interview the same stream twice, so to speak. But, yeah, WBRE never calls their interview "exclusive", so I fixed that.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I think the official Newspeak translation of "Whatever" is "It is what it is." Imagine McCain saying "What-EVER!" three times in twenty seconds in an interview!
I agree with you about the meaning of "exclusive." In news terms, it should refer to a story or a piece of video that no one else (mainly newspaper or TV, though radio and, I suppose, blogs could be included) has in any shape or form. So, if we interview McCain and then another station interviews McCain, I personally don't consider either interview an exclusive even if the interviews were done separately. He talked with both stations on the same day a few minutes apart. Not exactly a scoop by either one. If he had talked ONLY to one or the other, and not to any other media in the market, then I would consider that one interview "exclusive."
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the word "exclusive" should be further limited to stories or video that are worthy of the label. Applying the label to more mundane stories, even if they are technically "exclusive," makes a real exclusive less meaningful. JHMO.