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Katrina Swett's Developing Netroots Narrative

by: Nicholas Gunn

Wed Jun 06, 2007 at 06:00:12 AM EDT
I've been putting a great deal of thought recently into the role that blogs may be playing in the Senate Democratic Primary.  Yes, I know I may need to get a more interesting life, but the attention given to Katrina Swett on the front pages of the Daily Kos and MyDD have given me some food for thought.

Lets start with a quick review of what I?m talking about.

Of all the Democrats looking at the Senate race in New Hampshire, none is worse than Leibercrat Katrina Swett. Arguing that she'll be the better candidate than Portsmouth Mayor Steve Marchand, she says she's more popular and has more money.

. . .

Unfortunately, Lieberman isn't on the ballot in 2008. But this could be a delicious proxy fight. While the field isn't set yet, Marchand seems to be building support with the state's grass- and netroots groups. Barring further movement, I suspect Marchand will be the guy to watch in this race.


Mar 26, 2007

This front page diary by Kos on the Daily Kos is likely the first introduction many blog followers got to Katrina Swett.  Right of the bat she is compared to, in the eyes of many blog readers, public enemy number two: Joe Lieberman.  A not unfair comparison, given Swett's support of Lieberman in the 2004 Presidential Primary, and continued support of him last year in Connecticut's Senate campaign even though he wasn't the Democratic candidate.

To understand why this is significant, you must understand that Kos, and many other bloggers on the Daily Kos and other national Democratic Blogs, put a great deal of effort into defeating Joe Lieberman in 2004.  To them, Joe Lieberman represents everything they despise in the Democratic Party, and everything they are trying to change in it.  Joe Lieberman remained an unapologetic supporter of the Iraq War long after most of the American public, and the rest of the Democratic Caucus, had become painfully aware of how horribly wrong it was to get involved in the first place, and wanted out.  Lieberman gleefully appeared on talk show after talk show openly criticizing his Democratic colleagues for opposing Bush on Iraq.  All the wile with a D tagged on to his name.

So, by labeling Swett as a 'Liebercrat', it defines her as the very embodiment of everything many bloggers seek to eradicate from the Democratic Party.  Most kossacks reading that post would think: this is the one we've got to oppose.

More over the fold. . .
Nicholas Gunn :: Katrina Swett's Developing Netroots Narrative
Of course, Kos' post was inspired by a Blue Hampshire post by Dean, linked above, including a rather unfortunate advertisement placed within her article.  Dean, however, never characterized Swett as a 'Liebercrat' in his post.

The next time I spotted a Swett post it was on MyDD.  I recognized it immediately, it was inspired by a post of my own, a report I did after meeting Swett at a meeting of the Plymouth Area Democrats.  I tried to be very balanced in my Katrina Swett post.  I wanted to provide my genuine perspective of Katrina Swett after meeting her in the flesh.  And that?s not how it played on MyDD:

Katrina Swett to Activist Blogger: Get a Life

I know little about New Hampshire Democratic Senate candidate Katrina Swett, but this back-and-forth between Swett and an activist blogger is really obnoxious. 

(long block quote from my diary)

Swett is a somewhat milquetoast candidate who backed Lieberman's independent bid in Connecticut, though her positions are fairly liberal.  Her husband was a two-term Congressman who has endorsed Clinton, and she seems to be the establishment choice in the Democratic primary to face Sununu (her opponent is Steve Marchand).  She actually managed her husband's first campaign, so she has a deep and working knowledge of politics.  Surprisingly, though, she lost to Charlie Bass in 2002 despite dramatically outspending him.  Politics is in her family; her father is Congressman Tom Lantos, a noted Iran hawk (and holocaust survivor).

All in all, Swett seems like a standard 1990s Democrat, a bit contemptuous of activists and into the whole loads of cash thing.  I could be wrong.  But I do want to note that treating progressive activists who want to blog about public politics and policy badly is a good way of getting mentioned on MyDD.

May 26

What's wrong with this post?  She didn't know!  When I asked Swett my potentially obnoxious fundraising question, Swett had no idea that I was a blogger or an activist of any kind.  Its not exactly like we wear credentials, or anything.

As soon as I noticed the post, I commented in the thread correcting Matt Stoller.  Its not exactly fair to run a headline saying 'Swett to Activist Blogger: Get a Life' when she had no idea I was a blogger at the time.  Of course, I was promptly ignored, and the post remains un-altered.

So, along with her alleged contempt for bloggers, Swett is again immediately defined in the context of her support for Joe Lieberman: public enemy number two.  Swett is characterized as the 'establishment choice', a comment that plays very well to many bloggers distrust of the 'powers that be' in the Democratic Party.  Swett is characterized as a '90's Democrat', another very effective narrative.

It goes on.

There were two very brief mentions of Katrina Swett in the past week, little in substance but continuing to play off of the now established narratives:

On May 29 MyDD said:

The two announced Democratic candidates are LieberDem Katrina Swett and Portsmouth mayor Steve Marchand. . .
If Swett wins the nomination, the gag suppressant industry in New Hampshire might start booming in the fall of 2008.

Note how Swett is defined as a 'LieberDem', another reference to public enemy number two, and the lovely reference to gag suppressants.  Also, it is worthy of note that MyDD provides a link to Steve Marchand's website, and not Katrina Swett's.

Yesterday, Jun 05, on the DailyKos:

NH-Sen: Everyone is still waiting to see if Jeanne Shaheen enters the race. If so, it's a lean-D. As is, she's still trying to decide, and Portsmouth Mayor Steve Merchand remains our best candidate, with the odious Lieberdem Katrina Swett the only other candidate in the race.
Blue Hampshire has video of Marchand's speech at the NH Dem convention here.

Again, Swett is defined as a 'Lieberdem', and a link is provided for more information about Steve Marchand.  This one happens to lead to Dean?s Blue Hampshire post about his NHDP Convention Speech.

The narrative is already set.  I have now had interactions with bloggers far removed from NH Politics who, when NH-Sen is mentioned, tell me how great they heard Steve Marchand is.  Its kinda creepy, actually.

But, why?  Is it some vast left wing conspiracy?

I don?t think so.

Steve Marchand has begun to make a definite effort to reach out to the blogs.  He's posted on this website, and on the Daily Kos.  He's made arrangements to meet bloggers.  He releases press releases to bloggers, in response to the various ill deeds of John Sununu.  He's campaigning to the netroots!

Swett has, as of yet, made no such effort.  She has been invited to introduce herself to the Blue Hampshire community, but hasn't gotten around to it yet.  She isn't as quick to send off press releases.  Is there any wonder why she has been doing so poorly in our straw polls?

Is Katrina Swett wants to avoid making an enemy of the netroots, she needs to make an effort to reach out to online political activists and bloggers.  Then again, given that the narrative appears to be setting rather quickly, she may be too late.
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Katrina Swett's Developing Netroots Narrative | 53 comments
ok... (0.00 / 0)
I had to get that off my chest.  Its been bugging me for a while now.
not relevant (0.00 / 0)
What's wrong with this post?  She didn't know!  When I asked Swett my potentially obnoxious fundraising question, Swett had no idea that I was a blogger or an activist of any kind.  Its not exactly like we wear credentials, or anything.

She insulted a citizen for asking a well-informed question about politics.  Why exactly should it matter that she didn't know you were a blogger?

It's not important that you are a blogger, it's important that she acted disdainfully towards a member of the public trying to elevate public discourse. 

I hope that's a useful explanation of why I wrote what I did and why there was no need to 'correct' my post.

[ Parent ]
As noted yesterday in a comment, (4.00 / 2)
Dr. Swett is scheduled to meet with our DFA Link group in Newmarket this evening.  I talked to her briefly on Saturday and she confirmed her intention to visit with us.
Mayor Marchand came last month and Professor Buckey is scheduled for next.  As the host of the group, I try not to voice support for any candidate (we've interviewed for every level), unless and until the group decides to endorse soemone, usually based on consensus and the assumption that we'll actually work for the candidate.
Unfortunately, our ranks have been thinned somewhat as a result of sending members to Congress, the State House, the State Senate, Democratic town committees, etc., whose schedules command lots of our members hours and the days just aren't getting any longer.
if you are going (0.00 / 0)
to refer to Katrina as Dr. due to her phD, then please refer to Buckey as Dr. due to his MD-
[ Parent ]
And really, (4.00 / 2)
I so dislike academic PhD's being referred to as Dr. 

And I am one.

[ Parent ]
The particular distaste for Lieberman (4.00 / 1)
was noted by Atrios the other day. Of the sites I visit (usually not MyDD) it's strong at DailyKos, much less obvious at Atrios and TPM.

But then, DailyKos is the big gorilla, and has the greatest user participation.

Joe is so unapologetically for the war that Swett will have clear opportunities to contrast her on view on what we need to do there with his. Her own position will ultimately matter much more than her previous support for the Connecticut Senator -- at least outside the blogosphere.

"The Great Orange Satan".... (0.00 / 0)
.....as Atrios has referred to him.

 "We should pay attention to that man behind the curtain."
[ Parent ]
Its Our State (4.00 / 1)
One of the problems I have with "new media" is the failure to even do a cursory review of all sides of an issue before proclaiming one's position, and the failure to do even rudimentary investigation before rendering an opinion. It is knee jerk on the part of Kos to attack Swett and label her the enemy simply because she supported Lieberman.  If Kos hasn't made an effort to talk to Katrina Swett, and is basing his opinion on some internet posts and some mainstream media reports, then his opinion is not an informed opinion, and he is no better than the mainstream media we all love to criticize. Actually, he is worse, because they at least pay some lip service to talking to both sides through editorial boards or interviews.  If he interviews all the candidates, and then gives his opinion, that would be different. But right now he is trying to influence our primary when it doesn't sound like he has ever talkied to any of the candidates.  Until he does, he should stay out of our New Hampshire Democratic primary. 
curious (4.00 / 1)
I have written extensively about my thoughts on NH-Sen.  Have I not sought to review all sides of the issue in my quest to find a NH-Sen candidate I support?  Or, did I just go out and proclaim my position, in a knew jerk fashion?

We are part of the New Media.  Be careful of how broad a brush you paint.

Also, I didn't say that I thought kos was acting in an ill informed way.  He's been following this race closely, he wants a democratic victory against John Sununu as much as anyone.  He's making his decision of who to support early because there is an effort some to narrow the field of candidates so that we don't have a contested primary...  Steve Marchand is precisely the sort of Democrat kos loves to support, and Swett the kind he would oppose.

And its curious.  Weren't you one of the people telling me I was overly concerned with the influence all of the out of state money Katrina Swett was raising?  Here, you're complaining about the influence of out of state bloggers...

[ Parent ]
Calm down (0.00 / 0)
You are very thoughtful and very diligent in your writings, but I can't say that for the majority of bloggers in the blogosphere. Most of the people on this site follow NH politics very closely, and while I disagree frequently with Elwood or you or others, you try to fully inform yourselves before giving an opinion.  That is not always the case elsewhere.  Also, I know you didn't say Kos was ill informed; I'm saying that, not because of his conclusion, but because he did not fully inform himself before drawing his conclusion. If he is going to go out of his way to involve himself in our elections, then he should fully educate himself. Basing his conclusion on Swett's support of Lieberman is pretty cursory. 
On the funding, I don't have a problem with money coming in from where ever it comes from; my problem is with someone outside the state using his bully pulpit to influence us when he hasn't read the entire text on which his sermon is based.  Disclosure: I am not a Swett supporter, or a Marchand supporter, I want Governor Shaheen to run. For me this is a question of fairness, and Kos isn't being fair. 
Elwood, as for Dobbs, Brooks and O'Really, don't you think we are better off when our conclusions, as opposed to theirs, are based on a broader review? 
[ Parent ]
Two points (4.00 / 1)
My main point is, the distinction is not between the medium (blog versus print or TV) but rather between the type of opinion piece.

A quick opinion piece reacting to a candidate's speech or position paper without interviewing the candidate is appropriate in either a blog or a newspaper.

A survey of a field of candidates, exploring nuances in their positions, absolutely benefits from greater research regardless of the medium.

BTW: I agree that Kos' post on the Senate race is under-informed. I can easily support Swett, Marchand, or Shaheen; presumably Buckey too. But I'm not yet convinced that  Shaheen is the strongest candidate, as Kos assumes. In particular, if school funding is still a mess in November 2008, I think the climate works against her.

[ Parent ]
Kos' post may be under informed (0.00 / 0)
but anyone who's been reading him knows that he likes to write short 'hit pieces', or news briefs.  Many of the deeper, analysis filled posts on the front page generally come from other posters.
[ Parent ]
Under-informed or over-certain (0.00 / 0)
He's covering every Senate, House, and Governors race, so being fully informed on each is not practical.

But I think his open-thread post remark:

NH-Sen: Everyone is still waiting to see if Jeanne Shaheen enters the race. If so, it's a lean-D.

is at the very least debatable. Arguably the seat already is a lean-D, and arguably the 2008 climate won't favor Shaheen. So I would have been inclined to rewrite that to "...enters the race. She has statewide name recognition and may be the strongest candidate." 

But you don't get the attention needed to become the top political blog with mushy statements.

[ Parent ]
Not based on polling (0.00 / 0)
Sununu beats both Marchand and Katrina. That's not to say things can't change between now and November 2008, but based on empirical evidence it is not now considered a lean Dem seat unless Shaheen or Lynch runs.
[ Parent ]
Can you point me (4.00 / 3)
to the poll that puts John E. against either of the declared challengers, or else the empirical evidence you mention?

birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker
[ Parent ]
DSCC polling (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
Link? n/t (4.00 / 1)


birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker
[ Parent ]
They COULD be that stupid (0.00 / 0)
to spend good money polling candidates with district-wide names before the campaign gets underway.

But they wouldn't be stupid enough to then share that confidential information with someone who uses it to try and win little disputes on blogs.

[ Parent ]
Yup. I'm making it up. (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
J'accuse. (0.00 / 0)
Produce the results or shut up.

Don't come round claiming to have Double Secret Poll Results that make your candidate favored.

I don't believe you. Honest people don't pull that stunt.

[ Parent ]
Sorry. (4.00 / 1)
It's not about your credibility or lack thereof.

I can't do anything with an unsubstantiated statement.

birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker

[ Parent ]
Let me reiterate my original point (0.00 / 0)
Someone questioned why Kos would describe the race as lean-D only if Shaheen gets in. My response was that right now only Lynch and Shaheen poll as beating Sununu. I also said things can change between now and November 2008.

I don't understand why that is so offensive and preposterous that my integrity is attacked.

I don't have a link or hard copy of the DSCC poll. I've only been told about it. Feel free to call me a liar, but it is common sense that the DSCC would have polled by now.

I like discussing politics and I've done my best to make thoughtful and informed posts on this site. It's disappointing that at least twice now when I have disagreed with the opinions of the dominant voices on this site I've been personally attacked.

Do you want this site to be an echo chamber for a few voices? Is this turning into one of those places where one's Democratic credentials are questioned if one doesn't agree with the dominant voices?

[ Parent ]
well... (0.00 / 0)
I'm sure the DSCC is smart enough to know that the biggest reason Shaheen polls better than Marchand or Swett is name recognition.  It doesn't mean that Swett or Marchand are less capable of defeating Sununu, particularly after they get a chance to introduce themselves to the voters.
[ Parent ]
or, I should say (0.00 / 0)
the biggest reason they WOULD poll lower than Shaheen.  I'm not convinced they've wasted the money on polling yet...
[ Parent ]
My empirical evidence (4.00 / 1)
Is the Loserpalooza Tour itself. The Republicans consider Sununu, Collins, Coleman, and Smith the most vulnerable.
[ Parent ]
Ok (0.00 / 0)
I don't think Kos was ill informed.

Aside from the blogs, and the articles in mainstream media outlets that we've all seen, Kos has access to some degree of information that most of us don't have access to.  He undoubtedly has many friends in DC who probably could give him a very good idea of how people in Washington view NH-Sen, and what's likely to happen.  I wouldn't be surprised if Kos has at least talked to Steve Marchand.  At the very least we know people he trusts have talked with Marchand, and are on the ground here in NH helping give him a perspective on other kinds of information about this race.

I would say Kos has a rather well formed and supported opinion on this race, even if he doesn't describe it in detail on his blog.

Of course, now we're trying to guess what's on the mind of the Great Orange Satan.  An exercise in futility, if there ever was one...

[ Parent ]
Not sure (0.00 / 0)
I don't know if Kos has access to greater info than we have.  If his info is from people in DC, then I would say he does not have access to better info than you do. 
But I guess what I don't want to get lost here is my other point.  What obligation does a blogger have to get more than one side of a story before posting, or to disclose he isn't getting all sides?  I don't know, maybe I expect too much?  'There are kossaks who take a lot of what Kos says as the bible, in a fundamentalist reading of the bible kind of way. Does that create a greater obligation?  I don't know. But if we are going to consider bloggers to be news sources, then maybe they need to act more like old fashioned reporters, and ask more questions, talk to more people? 
[ Parent ]
Don't tell someone to calm down when (4.00 / 1)
they have replied to your own overwrought comment calmly and politely. That's the first thing.

You also are making unfounded assumptions about what Markos does or does not know. He may come off flip and acerbic, but he very rarely (not never, but rarely) pops off without doing his homework, and campaigns and candidates are one of the areas where, in my observation, he's least likely to say something under-informed.

Once the element of knowledge/research is removed from your blogger ethics criticism, can I ask what's left? I mean that not snidely but seriously - it seems to me that the basis of your initial comment was "he hasn't done the research therefore it's not right to make the criticism."  So if he has done the research, does he then get to make the criticism?

I think nhcollegedem was also right to raise the apparent contradiction in your opposition to out of state money but not out of state writing - I think there's hypocrisy there. Perhaps it's unexamined and unintentional, but I can't see it as anything but that and it feels an awful lot like people with money get to have influence on a race, people with only their voices don't.

I'll say, for myself, my concern with Swett is less the Lieberman issue and more that her political instincts seem to be so off.  As I think I said when the out of state fundraising issue was raised before, I think there's a problem with someone who got hammered on an issue 5 years ago and goes and does the exact same thing again.  Fine, raise money out of state, but at least give in-state fundraising some lip service! Pretend to make an effort! And when you lost a House race where you outspent your opponent by something like 60%, don't claim that money and your Swett name recognition are going to get you through a primary.

I've talked to a lot of people in NH about this race, and what I would say is that while I've been told by you and others that certain criticisms of Swett are for some reason off limits, no one has made the case for her. No one has explained to me why she can win or why she should or who her natural constituency is. Temperamentally I'm not like Markos; I'm unlikely to write that kind of stuff. But I fail to see where he's wrong.

[ Parent ]
overwrought and hypocritical? (0.00 / 0)
That was over the top. 
My point, which perhaps is getting lost in the shuffle, is that I would like to know if Kos has ever talked to Katrinna Swett, or is he making assumptions about her based on internet posts and some news reports?  If he hasn't talked to her, does he have an obligation, as a prominent blogger, to make the effort before labelling her as the enemy? I don't know the answer.  Have you ever asked her about what the case is for her to be a senator? Should you? I don't know. Are bloggers in the news business, or the opinion business?  Or a combination thereof? I don't know. But is a bad thing to raise these questions? And to ask about the responsibilities of bloggers? Or are bloggers exempt from questions and criticism?  One of the reasons I told collegedem he was thoughtful is that he does go out and talk to the candidates. He made a point in his piece is that he tried to correct mydd, but without success, about his conversation with Dr. Swett.
In summary: Kos is not God. That would be Eric Clapton. 
[ Parent ]
Heresy (0.00 / 0)
Coltane, Miles, Hendrix, but not Clapton. He's great but not up there with those guys. There is some great footage of Clapton in a recently aired PBS special on the life of Ahmet Ertegun...especially when he played with Aretha...

Next time, there may be no next time.
[ Parent ]
I think it might be Monk (0.00 / 0)
a little crazy, a little playful...

(Thelonius, not Adrian.)

Anyway, the question of the role of bloggers as journalists is so damn hackneyed -- search for Blogger Ethics Panel -- I won't discuss it further here.

[ Parent ]
Straight, no chaser. (4.00 / 1)
My great Aunt, Minerva Pious, was a radio actress on the Fred Allen Show, and was married at one time to Bernard Hanighen. He was a songwriter who contributed the lyrics to Monk's classic 'Round Midnight along with Cootie Williams. One day about 15 years ago, my mom got a call out of the Blue from a lawyer who asked, if she was the last living relative of her aunt, who died penniless in an SRO hotel in Manhattan.

Minnie was a well known radio comedienne, and a former activist who had been born in Russia circa 1900. She was Blacklisted after being outed during the Army-McCarthy hearings. It was Bud Collier of "Beat the Clock" who was the rat. She hardly worked again. Quite a comedown from a life of luxury. She was made a lot of dough in her heyday, hanging at the Round Table hob nobbing. We found letters in her possessions from Bing, Bob Hope, Eddie Condon, Margaret Bourke White...shots from USO tours

In any case it turned out when Bernie died he left his royalties to his 'ex-wives, and their heirs'.
Hence the term 'laughing heirs'. They knew nothing, expected nothing, and had not heard of Bernie since a divorce over 45 years before. The movie "Round Midnight" starring Dexter Gordon, was the big reason for the surge of interest in the song. Miles version is my fav. And now I know why Michael Jackson bought some of the Beatles early catalogue. Royalties are where its at.

I never heard of Bernie before that, Aunt Minnie was single as far as we knew. Bernie drank a lot, I suppose she did too. One of the things she left us was an autographed publicity still of a young Billie Holiday, who Bernie had helped and supported, along with John Hammond. The citation reads, "To the nicest woman I know, Min Pious, may we always be friends".

We have been blessed to be surrounded by talented folks who lead the way in politics and in culture.My last memory of her was going to her bother's funeral,(my granfather. In the car she railed against Nixon, and never got over her bitterness towards Republicans, and Democrats who turned on their friends when it was expedient to so.

Next time, there may be no next time.

[ Parent ]
If you haven't heard it (0.00 / 0)
Great story.

I can strongly recommend the Carmen McRae CD of Monk with lyrics.

My daughters loved the Beatles and this album growing up (just a few years ago).

When I think of that era -- before my time, the echoes not -- I remember Burl Ives' death. He had named names.

Bob Edwards of NPR got Pete Seeger to speak of Ives' music and contribution to the folk era. Pete talked about how Ives had not only changed some of the conventions of the era, but had popularized folk music in a way that helped everyone else trying to do the same.

When Bob asked about the blacklist and the decade that Pete and the Weavers had spent in obscurity because of Ives and others, Pete said (IIRC) Look, he was a victim too. That isn't how I will remember him.

What a wonderful, graceful strength Pete has. Bill Clinton giving him the Kennedy Center award bought the President a lot of leeway for other mis-steps with me.

[ Parent ]
Pete Called (4.00 / 1)
Pete recently called Americans for Campaign Finance Reform in Concord, John Rauh's group, to see how he could help ! Our friend and Merrimack County Dem Chair Rob Werner, who won a special election yesterday for Concord City Councilor is the Exec.
Wouldn't it be cool to have him come to Concord ?

Last night I had the strangest dream...

Burl Ives named names on the Big Rock Candy Mountain...

Next time, there may be no next time.

[ Parent ]
1980 (0.00 / 0)
We noticed a small ad in the Sunday NYT for a Thanksgiving Day concert. We called immediately and saw the Weavers' last gig, at Carnegie Hall again.
[ Parent ]
Take a step back (4.00 / 3)
and look at your comments and hopefully you'll see why I responded vehemently.  That said, yeah, I had a flash of temper there.

But really, when I read stuff like this, it's enough for me:

KEVIN LANDRIGAN - Telegraph Staff
June 6, 2002

Katrina Swett said Bass will be unsuccessful trying to paint her as just another "liberal," since she is a self-described hawk on defense, supports a values-based education and a balanced federal budget.

"I am a moderate and a centrist," she said.

Former President George H. Bush made a "mistake of colossal proportions" by not continuing the Persian Gulf War to topple Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

"We should have finished the job," said Swett, adding that if President Bush favors military action against Iraq, she will support it.


[ Parent ]
This is not so: (4.00 / 1)
If Kos hasn't made an effort to talk to Katrina Swett, and is basing his opinion on some internet posts and some mainstream media reports, then his opinion is not an informed opinion, and he is no better than the mainstream media we all love to criticize. Actually, he is worse, because they at least pay some lip service to talking to both sides through editorial boards or interviews.

The idea that David Brooks, or Lou Dobbs, or Bill O'Reilly always interview people directly before writing columns or broadcasting opinion pieces just is not so.

[ Parent ]
Spin (0.00 / 0)
Thank you for that analysis. We must be constantly vigilant that "spin" exists in both parties and certainly exists in the blogs. You have been fair and thorough in this diary and I thank you for that.

Having said that, I remember K. Swett when her husband was in congress and the few years after that. It was her showmanship that I didn't like.  All those silly hats and parading her large number of children at every event.  I met the Swetts one night at a theater in Portsmouth with a 3 week old baby in tow.

Whoa (0.00 / 0)
So the Swetts have a large close-knit family? That's a disqualifier now?

I am not supporting anyone yet because I want to see what Shaheen is going to do, but Katrina Swett should be judged on her positions etc and not the number of kids she has.

Many years ago I was told that Katrina wanted a large family because most members of her father's and mother's families were wiped out in the Holocaust. Both of her partents are concentration camp survivors.

She and Dick seem to be doing a great job raising their kids.

[ Parent ]
Not how many she has, (0.00 / 0)
but what she does with them.
[ Parent ]
What does she do with them?? (0.00 / 0)
I saw a few of her kids at the NHDP convention with what looked to be a bunch of their school chums. They seemed to be having a good time. They didn't look to me like they resented being there to help their mother out.

[ Parent ]
Lay the irony on a little thicker, guys (0.00 / 0)
I can still see my screen. :)
Speaking of engaging (4.00 / 1)
with the netroots, Steve Marchand is over at dKos at this very moment.

birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker
Comment. (4.00 / 2)
I'm a little late to this party, so I'll speak my piece altogether here:

On Joementum: I dislike Lieberman intensely for two reasons, both of which came later than the Swett/Lieberman connection.  First, his unwavering cheerleading of the Iraq invasion, despite the increasing evidence of reality against his fantasy of Victory At All Costs.  Secondly, his refusal to step down after losing the primary was odious in the extreme, and showed conclusively to me that, damn the constituents, it's really all about Joe.  And I say that not as a party man (I'm often quite happy when Dems buck their own leadership on some things), but in respect to ignoring the will of a people as expressed in an election.

On Swett/Marchand and the netroots: I think nhcollegedem has it right: the more you reach out to the netroots, the more interest we will take.  I keep hoping Swett  will do so.

On the Great Orange Satan: I don't take my marching orders from Markos, but on many if not most issues I find myself in agreement with him.  And when I don't, I'm the first to let him know in the comments to his posts, on such issues as the NH primary and on redistricting in non-census years.  I also agree with elwood and disagree with kos that the race may be lean-D even without Shaheen.

Old vs. New Media: I think the real benefit of having a local new media outlet like Blue Hampshire is that it can help bring a story to the nationwide new media, which then can be picked up by the Old.  I think that's happening to a small extent with Marchand.  What's nice about the local angle is that out-of-state media, both Old and New, tend to mention our race as if no one else existed except Shaheen.  There was one Shaheen-mentioning paragraph from the AP recently (quoted by me in an open thread somewhere) so lazily written that you could read it and conclude that there were no challengers to Sununu.

On our candidates and possible candidates: I think it's high time we started writing up some issue diaries on this quartet.  Leaving aside fundraising and name rec and experience, there are some huge differences between them on major issues.

birch paper; on Twitter @deanbarker

Joementum (0.00 / 0)
Worst political slogan of all time. I am Jewish, from CT, and a committed life long Dem from an extended family of same. The only time we collectively ever opposed a Dem was when we voted for Lowell Weicker against Joe. At least Lowell knew and supported the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. In that case a liberal R with principles was better than a prig D who tells others about morality. I am glad he left the party.

Next time, there may be no next time.
[ Parent ]
If I May (0.00 / 0)
Just a couple of points --

1) I thought Laura's "hypocrisy" response to Frodo was excessive (and so did she, I assume, because she added that it might be unintentional). Frodo had said "Calm down," but he followed that immediately with praise for nhcollegedem -- hardly a smackdown. Since Laura is one of the editors, her negative response is more negative. I know he doesn't need me to chime in, but I found myself wondering if there was some other dispute that I missed.

2) As Huey mentions -- and I don't know Huey or the usual tenor of his(?) comments -- people are rather quick to go ad hominen on this site. I don't know, honestly, how this compares to the rest of the blogscape (people are extremely polite here compared to the letter writers on Salon.com), but I have noticed the ad hominen tendency, and even gotten a bit of it (though not lately).

3.) Why is the journalism vs. bloggers debate hackneyed? Because this is "new media" with all new rules? If that's true, wouldn't a journalist be justified in ignoring blogs completely? I generally try to stay out of "role of blogger" discussions, because I'm a skeptic on the issue, but this one is too rich to avoid.

(On vacation -- may be slow in replying.)


Why is it hackneyed? (0.00 / 0)
Because it has been discussed ad nauseum on other sites, that's all. Atrios keeps track of it in particular.

Perhaps it's worth a diary here at some point. But if anyone wants to see both informed and uninformed discussion of blogging versus journalism -- the role of pseudonyms, whether "self-correcting" is real, the role of sources and attribution -- there's a LOT of stuff out there already.

[ Parent ]
So it's hackneyed in the blogscape (4.00 / 1)
... partly because the evolving nature of blogs changes the discussion, and partly because blogs and bloggers talk about each other a lot.

It's a phony discussion in the mainstream press, because  their answer is very clear and unanimous: Bloggers are not journalists.

An odd sort of detente, I'd say.

A diary is a good idea, but I think you could start it off more even-handedly than I could. (And if you're game, could you wait until Monday?)

[ Parent ]
It's not that uniform (0.00 / 0)
Mainstream press will often give credit to Josh Marshall's Talking Points Memo, which has an entirely different style and structure than DailyKos.
[ Parent ]
I could never support Swett (4.00 / 1)

From the Concord Monitor, August 13, 2006 (Joe's N.H. supporters still loyal)

"Round two in Connecticut is going to be a battle between two Democrats: Joe Lieberman, a centrist Democrat, and Ned Lamont, a pretty-far-left-of-center Democrat," said Swett. "I'm convinced that Joe Lieberman is the better leader . . . and I'm also convinced that he's the better positioned politically for the future of the party that I love."

Anybody who was upset because they felt the national party favored Jim Craig over Carol Shea-Porter should be even more upset that Katrina Swett still endorsed Joe Lieberman after he lost the primary to Ned Lamont.


That's a fair point, imo. (0.00 / 0)

[ Parent ]
I will give her some credit (4.00 / 1)
The price she would pay for that endorsement, whether Joe won or lost, must have been clear.

Your reaction is not at all extreme for a Democratic activist.

I suspect she could have just kept mum -- Joe wasn't depending on New Hampshire endorsements. So I think this was driven by personal friendship and loyalty, and conviction, not by political calculation.

[ Parent ]
I've always been bothered by (0.00 / 0)
the characterization of Ned Lamont as "pretty-far-left-of-center" -- he's a business guy! Maybe I have a different understanding of what "pretty-far-left-of-center" means, but, to me, it seems pretty hard to be a business guy and also be "pretty-far-left-of-center."
[ Parent ]
Katrina Swett's Developing Netroots Narrative | 53 comments

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