Miers Withdrawal Timing - For Maximum Effect to Distract from Fitz Indicts?

[NAO]

Just wonder if the whole Miers nomination mess was a ploy (a la "Wag the Dog") to distract from the Fitz indictiments...

Now even if the Miers nomination was just shrub's brain misfiring while Karl Rove was not watching, I still think that Rove and Company have "used" the disaster to maximum benefit. If there is ONE theme that runs thru the Bush admin, it is to take a bad situation and use it somehow for political gain.

The feature that is MOST suspicious to me is WHEN she choose to withdraw...the EXACT DAY the indictments were SUPPOSED to come out, and with a few days of when they actually will come out.

Right now her withdrawal is the "big news". Over the next few days speculation of who the next nominee might be can dominate a few news cycles, and then when Bush names someone, discussion of that person can dominate a few news cycles...meanwhile the Fitz indictments will have come and gone. Sure, liberal bloggers will know who got charged with what and who else is under investigation, BUT the general public will have missed it because it will have gotten less - possibly MUCH less time on TV, which is their only source of news, and the only source which seems "absolutely real".

*****

Wag the Dog 1997 (The story of the 2004 Presidential Election.)

Starring Robert DeNiro as Karl Rove; Anne Heche as Karen Hughes; Craig T. Nelson as Senator John Kerry. Special appearance by Woody Harilson as Private Jessica Lynch.

A ficticous war with administration created coverage is started under the false pretext that they have WMD. The war, and the coverage are professionally produced so that the news is an extended free campain commercial for the incumbent.

[vi5]

1. I think they got hosed...

I think they thought the indictments were coming down today and so they got Miers to withdraw to take some of the news coverage and the sting off that and rally the troop by throwing Miers to the wolves when Bush needed them most.

But since the indictments didn't come down today that means the media will have Miers out of their system when they do.

[jaysunb]

2. Won't matter

the indictments will be bigger than anything we've seen since Watergate.....

[stopbush]

4. Agreed. Miers won't even be remembered by Xmas.

[tulsakatz]

12. I agree too

by tomorrow, Miers will be old news and it will be Fitz TV 24/7!!!

[Debi]

3. Some people think so

<snip>
A more critical view was offered by Waterloo attorney and former U.S. Rep. Dave Nagle.

"It's a bad sign," Nagle said. "It means the administration, which is already in trouble, instead of reaching to the middle, is going to try to appease its conservative base.

"The second thing is, it is a terribly cynical maneuver to have her withdraw on a morning when indictments are anticipated," Nagle said referring to a grand jury probe of White House leaks of an undercover CIA agent's identity. "This is a very cynical attempt to manage news by 'feeding' one story to take away the focus on the federal prosecutor's announcements, anticipated later today or Friday."

It's like waiting until the day after ratification of the Iraqi constitution earlier this week to announce that the U.S. troop death toll there has now topped 2,000, Nagle suggested. "The 2,000th soldier had been killed the previous Friday," he said.

<snip>


http://www.wcfcourier.com/articles/2005/10/27/news/metro/1ab2205b7db6f793862570a70050385a.txt

[longship]

5. When Fitz hits, they'll all forget about Miers.

This is going to be big news no matter what. Miers will be old news the second Fitz hands down his indictments.

[Inland]

6. Miers debacle is already digested

The theme of "Miers appointment an idiotic mistep" complete, room for indictments.

Now, what MIGHT distract is a new nominee.

[onenote]

7. No.

If there are indictments, they will overshadow the Supreme COurt matter. The Miers affair makes Chimpy looks weak. In DC, losing is considered a contagious disease.

onenote

[ThoughtCriminal]

8. Not quite

I think it was more of a news dump strategy to cover the humilation of withdrawing a nomination. They know that nothing is really going to distract from high level indictments, so they might as well take advantage of that to dump otherwise embarrassing news. They may have mis-timed it thinking the indictments would be today.

[napi21]

9. I don't think so. I think Harriett just couldn't handle it anymore.

Remember, she's not a politician who's used to constant degradation and criticism. She looks like a throwback to the late 50's with her hair do and mannerisms.

I really think she cried herself to sleep for the last week or more, and finally said I give up!

[greyl]

10. No, NAO. nt

[hiabrill]

11. Absolutely nothing will distract from FITZMAS...

[dalloway]

13. How much do you want to bet that the new nominee will be announced

once the indictments are out to try and change the subject.

[WinkyDink]

14. Harriet Who?

Please. We're talking about the typical American attention sp............