Why I believe Peggy Noonan

The thoughts of Peggy Noonan, the Reagan and Bush speechwriter and Republican guru, are all over the papers and the internet today. And I am sure she rather wishes that they weren't.

During a commercial break at the end of an MSNBC panel discussion, Peggy and colleagues (including McCain ally Mike Murphy) continued their discussion.

Here is the central part of the transcript of their chat, as it appears on the Huffington Post:

Mike Murphy: You know, because I come out of the blue swing state governor world: Engler, Whitman, Tommy Thompson, Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush. I mean, these guys -- this is how you win a Texas race, just run it up. And it's not gonna work. And --

PN: It's over.

MM: Still McCain can give a version of the Lieberman speech to do himself some good.

Presenter Chuck Todd (CT): I also think the Palin pick is insulting to Kay Bailey Hutchinson, too.

PN: Saw Kay this morning.

CT: Yeah, she's never looked comfortable about this --

MM: They're all bummed out.

CT: Yeah, I mean is she really the most qualified woman they could have turned to?

PN: The most qualified? No! I think they went for this -- excuse me-- political bullshit about narratives --

CT: Yeah they went to a narrative.

MM: I totally agree.

PN: Every time the Republicans do that, because that's not where they live and it's not what they're good at, they blow it.

The phrase "it's over" has been interpreted as Peggy suggesting that McCain is now sure to lose.

Here are three quick observations on the fuss there has been.

First, Peggy explains in the Wall Street Journal this morning that she did not say that McCain's electoral chances are over and does not believe that they are.

Here's her account:

In our off-air conversation, I got on the subject of the leaders of the Republican party assuming, now, that whatever the base of the Republican party thinks is what America thinks.

I made the case that this is no longer true, that party leaders seem to me stuck in the assumptions of 1988 and 1994, the assumptions that reigned when they were young and coming up.

This is what she thought was "over". Whether or not you believe her account (and I do for reasons I will go on to explain), the tape does not even begin to prove that she said that the McCain effort was over. She could have been referring to an effort to throw a ball of paper into the waste basket for all the transcript proves.

Second, I have a good reason to believe Peggy's account of what she said to the others on air (quite apart from my view that she is a very trustworthy person).

She is a friend of mine, and when we had dinner recently she said exactly the same thing to me about the Republican leadership.

And she punctuated her remarks with the phrase "it's over".

I recall it vividly. Why? Because it  was a very striking thing to say, much more sweeping and important than a passing comment on Palin. It corresponds closely to my view, and has an application to UK politics.

I was riveted and delighted to discover that Peggy shared my opinon, and her comment (including "it's over") was one of the most memorable exchanges of my trip.

Thirdly, there is a genuine scandal with these tapes. But it's not their content.

I appear on these sorts of panel shows all the time. It is a terrible betrayal of the guests for off-mic comments to be leaked. MSNBC should take this very seriously and find out who is responsible.

This is a serious journalistic breach equivalent to naming off the record sources without their permission.

Comments

[Adam]

"It is a terrible betrayal of the guests for off-mic comments to be leaked. MSNBC should take this very seriously and find out who is responsible.

This is a serious journalistic breach equivalent to naming off the record sources without their permission."

Come off it. This was off-air, not off-mic, and it was pretty foolish of the panel not to realise that their mics were still on.

Isn't a better comparison with a journalist who leaves their tape recorder running when an interviewee thinks they are speaking off the record? Ethically iffy but pretty widespread.

A "gaffe" is when a politician (or journalist) accidentally tells the truth. Well done MSNBC for getting Peggy's real thoughts out.

[Jez W]

Another 'mistake' on air?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj0oQseTgqY

Different scenario agreed, but these people should never have even been speaking like that in the first place, never mind in a studio with mic's on.

Would this also add support for someone fighting 'Washington elitism'?

[Richard Young]

Yeah, have to agree with the cynics commenting. Even if you buy into the interpretation of "it's over" (and although your friendship with her could be interpreted as meaning you have an interest in backing her, I see no reason to doubt your reading), what about:

"PN: The most qualified? No! I think they went for this -- excuse me-- political bullshit about narratives --

CT: Yeah they went to a narrative.

MM: I totally agree.

PN: Every time the Republicans do that, because that's not where they live and it's not what they're good at, they blow it."

Not exactly a ringing endorsement of Palin, hm?

[lawhite]

Another thing I think Americans were hungering for is honesty and removal of the corruption in government. Palin isn't afraid to point it out wherever it is, even in her own party. No more dirty political games.
It doesn't hurt that she is one of us, not another millionaire who owes markers to every political hack around. Just a common-sense average American who knows what we want.

[Patrick Carroll]

Well, Olberman and Matthews have now been fired. I take this as an indication that GE and NBC management now realize just how much damage those two baying, ranting windbags have done to the MSNBC brand, and as a first step to righting MSNBC.

People are so used the to press pumping the prime for Obama, it really doesn't matter whether she meant it or not. The press is an advertising company these days.

I saw Olberman on the air tonight - why - thought the worm had been dumped.

People like Palin because they feel she is a real person - not a cut-out Harvard lawyer who thinks he knows more than the founding fathers and is ready to slaughter the constitution to push his idealogue leftist policies.