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Will Obama and the media throw ACORN under the bus?

By Drew McKissick

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Published: 04Oct2009
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As the most recent scandal surrounding ACORN grows, it begs the question of "will they or won't they?" As in, will Barack Obama and the mainstream media decide that it's in their best interest to "throw ACORN under the bus"?

Things haven't been going so well for either of them lately, and the ACORN scandal presents them with an opportunity to try and gain a little credibility.

The "mainstream" media continues to take a beating with steadily declining readers and viewers, and many media companies are in (or on the verge of) bankruptcy all over the country.

They have allowed themselves to become so invested in certain groups and politicians that they have forgotten their jobs - that thing they are supposed to do to attract readers and viewers and earn money - and now they are going down the tubes.

Obama's in a similar situation. After taking office in what seemed like a coronation, accompanied by high public approval ratings, he has spent much of his time pushing policies that many who supported him have found to have little resemblance to the "hope and change" they thought they voted for. As a result, his numbers have been heading south. Fast.

A recent Gallup poll confirmed his slide in public approval as the third largest and fastest drop in presidential polling history. Currently only half of the country approves of the job he's doing.

And now along comes ACORN, with pimps, prostitutes and fraud - all caught on hidden camera.

What's so bad is that this is what it took to bring ACORN the attention is so richly deserves.

A report compiled by Republicans on the House Oversight Committee demonstrated plenty of reasons to look into ACORN. It found cases of tax evasion, obstruction of justice, investment fraud, defrauding government by using taxpayer dollars for partisan activities, submitting false information to the US Department of Labor and the IRS, and even violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act. This is in addition to dozens of investigations (and many convictions) for voter fraud.

But if it's not on video, it doesn't seem to matter.

To make things even more frustrating, we're talking about an organization that has received over fifty million dollars in federal tax dollars since 1994 and, thanks to the "stimulus bill", they're eligible for over eight billion more. And yes, that's billion with a "b".

Some have already been shamed into action.

In the past week, the Inspector General of the Justice Department announced that his office will begin an investigation into any misuse of grant money from that department. And the House and Senate have each passed differing versions of amendments to de-fund some or all of ACORN, but it still must pass both houses and then be signed into law by Obama.

For the media's part, even after the videos were there for everyone to see they paid only scant attention to the issue. A week after the first video hit, ABC News Anchor Charlie Gibson stated in a radio interview that "I didn't even know about it".

As for Obama, he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos that "it's not really something I've followed closely. I didn't even know that ACORN was getting a whole lot of federal money." Uh-huh.

If either Obama or the media want to attempt to salvage any credibility, they have to act. Sooner or later their instincts for personal gain have to kick in and they'll see that they have to throw ACORN under the bus.

It's not as though they've never done it before, as countless of their friends, grandmothers and former pastors could testify.

The media should do what they used to do well. Report. There are plenty of other ACORN offices around the country engaged in other activity which is sure to be just as salacious. Suit up the next Steve Kroft with his hidden camera and send him in.

Obama should express some of that self-righteous indignation he does so well and, considering the size and scope of the scandals involving ACORN's many branches and subsidiaries, he should appoint a special counsel.

If he doesn't do something, he'll soon lose control as Republican governors and prosecutors take the lead. If he does, some in ACORN's ranks will probably turn on him, (or others in his administration).

All in all, a pretty sticky wicket. But with the smell of blood in the water, it's better to get ahead of the story than be carried by it.

Which is why he needs to throw ACORN under the bus

Drew McKissick is a political strategist and former member of the Republican National Committee with over twenty years of experience in grassroots politics. He writes a regular column providing analysis and commentary on current events. His website is available at DrewMcKissick.com. You can follow him on Twitter @DrewMcKissick

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