In the silliest comment I have read on one of the "big" blogs recently, I give you Josh Marshall:
It's looking like there might not be a GOP CNN/Youtube debate. Rudy appears to be opting out and Mitt Romney doesn't seem far behind. And GOP party functionary Hugh Hewitt is already laying down a line of covering fire for the retreat, arguing that CNN and Youtube are biased against Republicans.
"Liberal Bias", whatever else it once was, now appears to be the new Republican code word for any venue or events not controlled by Republican commisars like Hugh Hewitt along the lines of President Bush's notorious Social Security townhalls in which only certified flunkies who swore to a Bush loyalty oath were let into the room.
The Democrats ran – like hell – from a debate associated with Fox News, and the left hailed it. Now they deplore it. Raging double standard alert.
UPDATE: Incidentally, Patrick Ruffini (posting at Hugh Hewitt's blog) makes sense here:
It's stuff like this that will set the GOP back an election cycle or more on the Internet. No matter the snazzy Web features and YouTube videos they may put up, if they're fundamentally uncomfortable with the idea of interacting with real people online, what's the point?
Having spent the better part of a decade working at the intersection of politics and the Web, I can't help but feel of a deep, deep sense of dismay that we're missing something so basic. This is EXACTLY why I am afraid that we will be outraised by $100 million or more in 2008.
Yes, some of the questions on Monday were trivial. Yes, they were partisan. (I expect many of the 9/17 questioners to be partisan Republicans.) Yes, they were messy. But so is democracy. And the fact that some place so much faith in the broken mainstream media over a benign format like this one says a lot about the difficult straits the Republicans are in right now.
I think the right thing to do here is to go ahead with it – yeah, there will be setups – but this is a chance to prove that the Republican candidates are a) willing to face the people – even in a loaded format and b) that the Dems are still scared to death of Fox News. Its a kind of win-win.
I think they should do it also however only if George Will or Phyllis Schlafly can pick the video’s I mean come on now those video’s during the Dems debate were liberal in nature and offensive to southerner’s and gun owners which goes to show the mindset of the liberals who picked them and that really is what the GOP contenders are saying with regards to no class. I don’t think the next President of the United States should be answering questions from a snowman do you?
It’s sad to think that we have another year to look forward to. What other bits of inanity can these clowns come up with in the name of ‘debate’. Talking snowman?? I’d like to think that our ‘leader’ for the next term would have a bit more dignity in trying to convince me to vote for him…. her… whatever!