Health Care BS

Having spent the 1990s studiously ignoring Bill Clinton’s bizarre refusal to release his medical records, the “news” media have suddenly developed an abiding interest in the health history of at least one presidential candidate—-John McCain.

So, McCain released his records and they show that he’s in great health. But what are mere facts to editors who increasingly see themselves as Democratic campaign operatives? Here are a couple of headlines that typify the coverage McCain’s record release has received:

McCain Healthy but Cholesterol Concerns Remain

McCain’s Ambien Use a Security Threat?

Even when the headline wasn’t so tendentious, the lede was. The Boston Globe began it’s story by highlighting what most Democrats hope will be the central theme of the election:

Senator John McCain, hoping to become the oldest man inaugurated as president …

And, for the NYT, the story was about … well … the NYT. Specifically, the Gray Lady is in a snit because its “reporters” were not invited to join the press pool that reviewed the records.

John McCain was once the darling of the establishment media because he was a thorn in the side of President Bush. Now that he is the presumptive presidential nominee of his party, McCain is apparently going to receive the same dishonest and frivilous coverage endured by all other Republicans.