Glenns Greenwald get bent out of shape – as only Greenwald can – about the fact that Mike Huckabee got lots of bad press for using – allegedly, intentionally – a subliminal cross in an overtly Christian campaign commercial, while John McCain got nothing but good press for his ad, an emotionally powerful ad in which McCain relates a Christmas story from his captivity in Vietnam:
Greenwald:
[T]he reverent reaction to McCain’s ad could not have been more different than the one provoked by Huckabee’s. Chris Wallace said: “That McCain ad is so powerful. You find yourself tearing up when you see that, obviously.” Obviously. A clearly moved Fred Barnes concurred with the only word that was needed: “Indeed.” Mort Kondracke gushed: “I think it was a great ad, and it had a religious overtone to it. . . . it should remind religious [voters] that there is another candidate in the options besides Huckabee.”
In what conceivable way could Huckabee’s ad, containing (arguably) a “subliminal” floating cross, constitute some grave breach of theological propriety, while McCain’s overt appeal to the cross in his political ad is some sort of inspiring, perfectly appropriate message?
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Why does the Republican establishment think that Mike Huckabee should be barred from the use of Christian symbols while John McCain — and, for that matter, George Bush — are to be cheered when they do? Especially on this day, that strikes one as a deeply unfair standard.
Now, I was in the camp that thought Huckabee’s ad was pushing the limits a bit, but hardly anything to get agitated about – but whether you liked Huck’s ad or not, Greenwald misses the most obvious point of all: McCain was relating a story from his own life experience, and one that relates to the central narrative of McCain’s career. Now, it’s true enough that the media has had a long love affair with McCain, but Greenwald, who sneers at the emotional content of the ad, simply fails to comprehend – or finds it convenient to dismiss – the inspirational drama of McCain’s experiences as a POW.