Progressive Media USA - a leftist independent foil to the swift-boat groups that launched a media blitz against Kerry in 2004 - has announced that it will not launch it's own planned blitz because Obama has asked it not to. The reality is that he told his deep-pocket supporters not to donate, which has a more direct effect, but the result is the same.
Come the fall, the swift-boaters have sworn that they will be back. The Obama campaign is subject to finance laws that limit the money it can take to fight these ads. Second, without an outside media group hitting back, the campaign itself will have to take on these messages or risk having them go unchallenged. I'd much rather have third-party groups lobbing the racist tag than have the campaign lend credibility to the attacks by addressing them.
I understand the desire to centralize the dem. media machine. I am just not sure it is the wisest course. Perhaps tacit control over a third-party via back channels would be best, even if that is classic back office Washington politics. I mean, there is a reason that machinery evolved to what it is.
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