February 15, 2017

If Omarosa didn't say "dossier," let's lob a new epithet: "Nixonian."

[POST TO COME. SORRY I ACCIDENTALLY PUBLISHED AFTER WRITING THE HEADLINE. CONCERNED THAT YOU MIGHT BE DISTRACTED BY IT ALREADY, I WON'T TAKE IT DOWN. THE BODY OF THE POST WILL ARRIVE SOON.]

I hate when that happens! There's some keystroke that publishes a post. I'm still not sure what it is, but I manage to hit it from time to time. Now, you're wondering what the hell this post title means. And the previous post title is enigmatic, so perhaps you think I've lost my mind.

Here are the 2 Washington Post articles I am reading:

1. From February 13th: "Journalist says Omarosa Manigault bullied her and mentioned a ‘dossier’ on her."

2. From February 14th (referring to the same juournalist, April Ryan): "‘This is . . . Nixonian’: Reporter was taped by White House in heated exchange."

Both articles are by Paul Farhi. The first article describes a dispute between Manigault and Ryan, and you can see that the headline highlights Ryan's version of the story. This is from the middle of Farhi's article:
In October, Manigault sent Ryan an email raising questions about whether Ryan was being paid by Hillary Clinton’s campaign — a claim Ryan vigorously denies. Manigault included a link to an article from the Intercept ["EXCLUSIVE: New Email Leak Reveals Clinton Campaign’s Cozy Press Relationship"]...
Ryan's name was in the Intercept article, and Manigault pushed Ryan to protect her "legacy" and "integrity."
Ryan said she was devastated by any intimation that she was unethical. “It’s just ugly,” she said. “She’s trying to harm my integrity and my career. I’ve been [covering the White House] for 20 years. I plan to be here for the next 20 years. You don’t mess with someone’s livelihood.”
I don't understand why Ryan is attacking Manigault for something that was in The Intercept. Was The Intercept right or wrong? Attacking Manigault makes it look like The Intercept got it right. Farhi doesn't explore that puzzlement. Here's his next paragraph:
During their altercation...
How did the "altercation" start? Suddenly, there's a face-to-face encounter? We're just plunged into the middle of things!
... Ryan said Manigault told her that she was among several African American journalists who were the subject of White House “dossiers.” Manigault has previously said that Trump is keeping “a list” of opponents, though at the time she was referring to Republicans who voted against Trump.

Ryan said she dismissed the idea of any such dossiers. “I said, ‘Good for you, good for you, good for you.’ ”...
What makes it into the headline is the idea of "dossiers." (An interesting word, given the fake-news Trump dossier of 4 weeks ago.) It sounds very creepy and scurrilous, the keeping of dossiers on journalists. Why it sounds... Nixonian.

One day later, the news is that the conversation was recorded and the word "dossier" isn't there. Ryan's story is shot to hell. And what's in the headline? Ryan's using the word "Nixonian" to describe the practice of recording conversations.
Ryan said she was not aware that her run-in with Manigault last week was recorded. “I didn’t know she was taping it,” she said. “This is about her trying to smear my name. This is freaking Nixonian.”

Manigault said the White House’s press staff recorded the encounter and that its contents make clear she never threatened Ryan or mentioned “dossiers.”

“She came in [to the White House press-staff area] hot,” hurling insults at her, Manigault said. “She came in with an attitude. For her to characterize me as the bully — I’m so glad we have this tape … because it’s ‘liar, liar, pants on fire’ ” in Ryan’s case, Manigault said.
It may be Nixonian to record conversations, but this incident shows it was smart, since it gives Manigault a way to defend herself.

Farhi tells us that Washington D.C. has a "one-party consent" law, which would mean that Manigault recording Ryan without her knowledge is not illegal, but:
Several veteran White House reporters said interviews are sometimes recorded by officials but that it was unheard of to do so without a reporter’s prior knowledge.
I'd like to hear more about the etiquette of recording. If it's done surreptitiously, that might explain why reporters do not hear of it. Maybe what's special in this case is how quickly Manigault offered the assertion of the existence of a recording to defend herself. One reason to do that would be if there actually is no recording and Manigault is simply trying to force Ryan into changing her story. But that's extremely unlikely given that Farhi writes that "a handful of reporters" have heard the recording. One of them, Fox News White House reporter John Roberts, said that he heard "some terse words and accusations... but it didn’t amount to a confrontation," and that he did not hear the word "dossier."
Ryan stood by her account and charged that Manigault “selected pieces” of their exchange. “She wants to spin it like it’s a catfight, but she edited that tape,” she said. “You don’t hear her screaming. This is about her smearing me.”
And that's where we stand. Ryan got some big press and now she's on the defensive. Why did The Washington Post help her go on the offensive on February 13th and then again boost her on the 14th, calling Manigault "Nixonian"? When does Manigault get fair balance in The Washington Post? 

84 comments:

Sydney said...

I read your second link first, and here is the key part - "Manigault and Ryan were formerly friends." I suspect Manigault knows the importance of CYA in dealings with Ryan.

Bob Ellison said...

'The reporter, April Ryan, said Manigault “physically intimidated” her in a manner that could have warranted intervention by the Secret Service.'

The Secret Service now has protection of reporters on its todo-list? That's going to hurt its efforts to hire hookers and find counterfeit currency.

Bob Ellison said...

By the way, WaPo stole that intro music in the video from Enya.

rehajm said...

The Secret Service now has protection of reporters on its todo-list?

That stood out to me. The left just can't adjust to not being in power.

Ron Winkleheimer said...

@Sydney

I read the 2nd link first too, saw "formerly friends" and didn't see any need to read the first article.

As for the adjective "nixonian," when uttered by a journalist it means the government official failed to sufficiently kiss my ass.

I'm Full of Soup said...

When did the news industry become the hot job for beta males and oh so tender females? I'd say right after Watergate when all the Ivy League pussyboys flocked to journalism so they could change the world.

About Ten years from now there won't be any printed newspapers and these weenies will really be screwed when it comes to making a living.

rehajm said...

The military is run by Sarah Silverman and now this!

Xmas said...

"Republican-hating reporters surprised to learn Republicans are treating them like they are Republican-hating."

Ron Winkleheimer said...

Or that the government official is calling them out on their bullshit.

The MSM continues to want to pretend that they are not part of the establishment.

David Begley said...

Soap opera.

Wince said...

The press does not like push-back.

Did anyone see Tucker Carlson's increasingly hostile interview with Washington Post media critic Erik Wemple last night?

Carlson turned the tables on the WaPo about "fake news" and Russian influence in the paid propaganda section in the WaPo called "Russia Behind the Headlines," among other things.

Carlson first confronted Wemple about the “paid propaganda from the Russian government” that the Post has ran. Wemple said there are a number of papers that run similar inserts and that readers should be able to differentiate between that and real news.

Carlson then accused Wemple of failing to adequately cover media issues related to his own paper, citing recent examples like the corrected WaPo report on Steve Bannon‘s alleged confrontation with DHS Secretary John Kelly. Wemple pointed to a very critical piece he did on the Post‘s very misleading report on Russian hackers penetrating the U.S. electricity grid.

Kevin said...

The Hitler thing isn't working. Everybody shift to Nixon!

Birkel said...

Reporter: Lies. Lies. Lies.
White House: Not true. Here is a recording.
Reporter: How dare they prove I

MayBee said...

April Ryan was in the Podesta emails as a big supporter of Hillary Clinton. She would email them with her support. So....

MayBee said...

Here's just one: https://wikileaks.org/podesta-emails/emailid/13776

From:aprilryan1600@gmail.com To: jennifer.m.palmieri@gmail.com CC: kfinney@hillaryclinton.com, john.podesta@gmail.com Date: 2015-08-18 19:26 Subject: Re: Hillary Clinton needs to sit down with black reporters fast. Her efforts in the black community are not resonating

FYI I also just talked with Marcia Fudge and Shelia Jackson Lee. Also, Lets make the black reporters meeting happen asap.

Freder Frederson said...

The Secret Service now has protection of reporters on its todo-list?

Actually it does. Besides their job as providing personal protection to high level officials, there is a uniformed division that acts as the security and police force for the White House and other facilities. So, yes it is their job to intervene and mitigate physical threats to members of the press.

Do a little research before you make stupid statements.

MayBee said...

It is....interesting that "This is Nixonian" becomes the headline when April Ryan is proven to be a liar.

Bob Ellison said...

Freder Frederson, nice try.

Michael K said...

"Do a little research before you make stupid statements."

So the uniformed division which protects the White House has as its responsibility interpreting body language ?

Among the witnesses were White House press office staffers and a Washington Post reporter, Abby Phillip.

Phillip said she didn’t hear every word of the women’s exchange but said Ryan told her afterward that she felt Manigault’s behavior was so threatening that it was “Secret Serviceable,” meaning that it rose to the level of law enforcement intervention.


But Phillip didn't see anything so the USSS was supposed to be able to tell that it was a threat by "extrasensory perception?"

Matt Sablan said...

"2. From February 14th (referring to the same juournalist, April Ryan): "‘This is . . . Nixonian’: Reporter was taped by White House in heated exchange.""

-- ... Reporters should have no problem being taped during interviews. If a reporter won't let me record our interview, I won't talk to them.

TreeJoe said...

I read these articles and it basically comes down to:

Day 1: Reporter makes personal claim a white house communication staff member referred to dossiers on reporters, as if that's unexpected or a bad thing for white house communications people to assemble information on reporters documented influence for/against their policies. Claims exchange was so heated it may have required physical intervention by nearby law enforcement.

Day 2: Recording of convo released that does not appear edited and, while not always clear, shows no sign of White House communications staff being aggressive or using the words reporter declared.

Day 2.5: Reporter says "Not fair" that a conversation could be recorded and reveal her to be false. Claims it was edited without outlining what was edited besides the word "dossier", or providing any evidence of editing.

Day 3: Reporter goes down in flames.

...

This is the type of thing that in the professional world would lead to a reporter being banned from the grounds.

Matt Sablan said...

"Ryan said she felt “physically intimidated” by Manigault, who she said told her that Ryan was among a handful of journalists on whom the White House was keeping “dossiers” of negative information."

-- Isn't that exactly what every White House has done with reporters?

Jess said...

The press doesn't like to be told no, or find their bullying leads to a stronger returned aggression. So, they whine.

Bleh!

Matt Sablan said...

"Manigault, who appeared as a contestant on Trump’s reality shows “The Apprentice” and “Celebrity Apprentice,” asserted that White House press staff regularly records interviews between reporters and officials. “We do it all the time,” she said. “When you come into [the press staff’s offices], you’re on the record.”"

-- I kind of figured that's how it works. What a terrible excuse for a reporter to not know this.

zipity said...

"When does Manigault get fair balance in The Washington Post."

Is this a trick question? Obviously the answer is "NEVER".

Matt Sablan said...

“Protect your legacy!!” Manigault wrote to Ryan in October. “You have worked too hard to have people question your ethics as a journalist.”

-- Where'd they get this? I'm guessing Ryan. I think handing over a private email to smear someone is significantly worse than recording something in a press office.

rehajm said...

Not so much Nixonian as Project Veritassy.

damikesc said...

Ryan said she was not aware that her run-in with Manigault last week was recorded. “I didn’t know she was taping it,” she said. “This is about her trying to smear my name. This is freaking Nixonian.”

Journalist lies and it's the person she lied about's fault?

'The reporter, April Ryan, said Manigault “physically intimidated” her in a manner that could have warranted intervention by the Secret Service.'

She seems to be a serial fabricator of events.

As for the adjective "nixonian," when uttered by a journalist it means the government official failed to sufficiently kiss my ass.

Well, in the paper's defense, Milbank did label Obama's treatment of Rosen as Nixonian. That was magnitudes worse than "reporter lied about subject, subject provides proof of her lies, reporter claims Nixon!"

But Phillip didn't see anything so the USSS was supposed to be able to tell that it was a threat by "extrasensory perception?"

Hell, all he had was Ryan's claims --- and Ryan is a known liar.

This is the type of thing that in the professional world would lead to a reporter being banned from the grounds.

Absolutely needs to happen here.

Matt Sablan said...

So, what did Ryan think about Obama wiretapping journalists to intimidate and silence dissenting opinions?

Birkel said...

WARNING:

Premises under video and audio surveillance.

The reporter did not know?

Hagar said...

Again, Dossier is just Fremch for "file," and the use of the word is definiely European and "Eric Amblery," but not so much "Nixonian." Richard Nixon was a very American phenomenon.

Kevin said...

Dossiers? Binders full of women!

Anonymous said...

It's Nixonian because, "that's what we do!? you can't do that to us!"

damikesc said...

So, what did Ryan think about Obama wiretapping journalists to intimidate and silence dissenting opinions?

Remember how it's "OK to punch a Nazi"?

It's also "OK to wiretap a racist". And all who opposed Obama were clearly racist.

Kevin said...

Secret tapes! I'm sure the missing 18 minutes would have supported her story.

buwaya said...

" When does Manigault get fair balance in The Washington Post? "

Never, this is war. No detail is relevant, no fact, no logic.
There is no reasoning between such adversaries.

All that is left is to choose sides and eliminate the other.
Really, its come to that. There is no real "deal" possible on questions of power of this magnitude.

Bob Boyd said...

"... Ryan said Manigault told her that she was among several African American journalists who were the subject of White House “dossiers.” "

When they said, "African American journalists" it set off my bullshit detectors.

The implication being, the Trump WH is not just keeping dossiers on journalists, they're keeping racist dossiers.

Rick said...

“She’s trying to harm my integrity and my career. I’ve been [covering the White House] for 20 years. I plan to be here for the next 20 years. You don’t mess with someone’s livelihood.”

This is a revealing argument. She's trying to harm someone's career and livelihood, as are many other reporters. Yet she thinks it's somehow inappropriate for others to respond in kind, and worse seems to instinctively think non-aligned people will agree with her.

#leftwingprivilege

mockturtle said...

'Nixonian' is hardly a new epithet.

Ron Winkleheimer said...

Apparently we all are just supposed to ignore the wikileaks revelations and go on pretending that journalists are disinterested and objective seekers of truth.

Hey, remember when wikileaks and Julian Assange were celebrated on the left?

http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/a-message-from-mark-zuckerberg/n12987?snl=1

Matt Sablan said...

"When they said, "African American journalists" it set off my bullshit detectors."

-- It's just a weird way quote to attribute to Omarosa. So, are we to believe that Omarosa is standing idly by while Trump's office she's a part of creates racially motivated dossiers?

Really? Also:

"Manigault sent a second email to Ryan a few minutes later. It read, “Protect your legacy!! You have worked too hard to have people question your ethics as a journalist. People talking trash about the reporters on that list having NO integrity. It’s hurtful to hear people say those things about you.”"

-- It sounds to me like Omarosa doesn't believe the allegations against Ryan, and wants Ryan to stand up against that. Maybe not done in the best way, but if that is the worst of what she wrote (and we can guess it is since that's what Ryan leaked to friendly reporters), I'd think... WEIRD. If a friend said, "Hey, people at your work are accused of X; you've worked too hard to let people question your ethics. People at your work who did that are bad. It hurts to hear people trashing your job," I'd not take it as the person subtly implying I'm a bad guy.

I'd take it as: "Hey, you may not know this, but your company has a bad reputation. Heads up." So, what did Omarosa say to get Ryan to react like this?

Matt Sablan said...

"The Rev. Marcia Dyson, who knows both women, said: “I hope both can do their jobs professionally and well and they put this behind them. Because all I see are two heartbroken friends.”"

If Rev. Dyson then said: "And you all should stay out of their private affairs," she'd be the hero of the piece.

Matt Sablan said...

"Manigault reportedly was harassed by two unidentified people while recently shopping with her bridesmaids at a Nordstrom’s store in Tysons Corner. After a brief argument, Manigault called the store’s security staff, which escorted her to her car."

-- Yeah... this is going to end well.

Michael K said...

"Manigault reportedly was harassed by two unidentified people while recently shopping with her bridesmaids at a Nordstrom’s store in Tysons Corner.

This is war. Especially war against blacks who support any conservative, or god forbid, are conservative.,

David Begley said...

WaPo reporter can't accurately report the facts. That's hardly news.

Achilles said...

The people leading the left just aren't good people.

Laslo Spatula said...

The Media is working to make 'Nixonian' become a compliment.

I am Laslo.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

Inflation surges in January by most in four years

Helicopters down, inflation surging, turmoil everywhere, remind you of anyone?

Bill Peschel said...

Nothing to add, except there's been a severe cold going around, and for the last two days I've been averaging sleep in two hour bursts before I wake up hacking and coughing.

So I'm trying to follow this and wondering why Omorosa moved from The Apprentice to the white house, and which one works for the washington Post.

Iwould like to think it's a by-product of NyQuil. If I close my eyes tight, and cross my fingers, I'm really hoping it's the NyQuil talking.

Isn't it?

Fernandinande said...

Kevin said...
The Hitler thing isn't working. Everybody shift to Nixon!


Nixler. Getting ready to invade Thoughtcrimea.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

NORDLINGER said...
"A line is developing on the right — it is even embraced by the president himself: General Flynn was the victim of unpatriotic saboteurs within the government. Okay. Why did the president fire him? Why didn’t the president stick with this victim of unpatriotic saboteurs? The president didn’t have to fire him, you know. Flynn could be at his side today — and forever, or as long as the Trump presidency lasts. Oddly, Trump is crying foul play. Almost as though he had nothing to do with Flynn’s ouster. When he was the ouster."

Matt Sablan said...

"Inflation surges in January by most in four years."

-- Paul Krugman can still be right! Note the thing driving this: Gasoline, rents and health care. We totally should've elected The Rent Is Too Damn High guy.

Matt Sablan said...

"Why did the president fire him? Why didn’t the president stick with this victim of unpatriotic saboteurs?"

-- Trump fired him because he lied. We also would like to know who illegally made copies of classified documents and made them available to the press, because they, too, should be fired.

Seeing Red said...

Ooohhhhhh, a reporter was recorded.

Scandalous!


Has she ever heard of YouTube?


People get recorded without their knowledge all the time.


So do teachers.

Birches said...

pass the popcorn. Since the press can't bothered to be skeptical about anything unflattering in the Trump administration, it probably doesn't hurt to record everything. And those tapes brought Nixon down, they didn't vindicate him. I suspect everyone at the WAPO knows this, but suspects most of the public doesn't.

Seeing Red said...

Dossier, binders, whatever.

bgates said...

This is about her trying to smear my name.

How? She's already admitted to being a journalist.

MayBee said...

Speaking of Journalists, having praised Jake Tapper last week, I think he's now getting high on his own supply.

Two tweets this morning:
Jake Tapper ‏@jaketapper 53m53 minutes ago


Obama and Bush folks are all fairly worshipful but I've never heard them talk like this.

Jake Tapper Retweeted Mike Nizza
Mike Nizza @mikenizza
"President Trump is brilliant, with the strength and stamina to match," said Hope Hicks http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/15/politics/donald-trump-white-house-dinners/index.html …
---------------------------------------

How can Jake say this? Does he not remember Valerie Jarrett's Ode to Obama?

Then this:

Jake TapperVerified account
‏@jaketapper


@_Americanmom @Smart_Sapper12B it's a bias in favor of facts and truth. There are other channels for folks who don't care about those.
----------------

This was after someone criticized him for having bias after a snarky tweet he made toward Donald Trump.

I think Jake has lost the ability to question himself. He's been praised for being a straight shooter, therefore everything he does and thinks he knows is right.

Unknown said...

Why is it that the Soviets had to threaten their reporters to parrot the party line, but American reporters jump at the chance to lie for the glorious cause of the Democrat party?

I mean, Soviet Reporters have more ethics than WaPo people or something?

--Vance

Paddy O said...

This whole kerfuffle to bury lies beneath outrage is very Hillarious.

Paddy O said...

"...which escorted her to her car."

The store had a literal staff working as security? Is it like a shepherd's staff?

Or are they security robots?

Sebastian said...

"Why did The Washington Post help her go on the offensive on February 13th and then again boost her on the 14th, calling Manigault "Nixonian"? When does Manigault get fair balance in The Washington Post?" Why oh when -- faux questions, right? Why: they peddle the party narrative. When: never.

David said...

"When does Manigault get fair balance in The Washington Post? "

Never.

David said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kevin said...

"It is....interesting that "This is Nixonian" becomes the headline when April Ryan is proven to be a liar."

The headline will reassure Trump haters who will read no further. Those who do will be thrilled to find "secret recordings" to back up their suspicions of evil. There will be a few tidbits of truth to ward off claims of fake news.

This is the current media recipe.

Kathryn51 said...

Maybee said I think Jake has lost the ability to question himself. He's been praised for being a straight shooter, therefore everything he does and thinks he knows is right.

Well, in the current environment, being a "straight shooter" is probably considered an epitaph by his peers; he needs to do a bit of virtue signaling.

And Hope Hicks shouldn't be anywhere near the White House - they need to send her off to be spokesman for the Transportation Dept.

MaxedOutMama said...

Manigault is black, right? No black conservatives are ever going to get a fair deal in any liberal newspaper.

But as for the WaPo, it is owned by Bezos, he of Amazonian fame. And Amazon hates, hates, hates the idea of limiting illegal workers and limiting H1B's, so Bezos' editorial policy must be to crucify Trump.

This is now less of a conservative/liberal split than an oligarch/average dude split in politics. I think the oligarchs are overplaying their hand. It's very hard to get most people to see these issues the way Bezos sees them, and due to some unfortunate provisions in the US Constitution and later legislation/judicial rulings, for some reason votes are allocated by individual rather than net worth.

MayBee said...

And Hope Hicks shouldn't be anywhere near the White House

I really don't know much about Hope Hicks. It was just a weird thing for a journalist to choose to comment on, especially considering how much Jarrett raved about Obama. Made me think Jake Tapper is losing perspective.

wildswan said...

"Fernandinande said...
Kevin said...
The Hitler thing isn't working. Everybody shift to Nixon!

Nixler. Getting ready to invade Thoughtcrimea."

Yes. Metamorphosis in Swampland

And the the WapoNYT story-line-shifting reminds me of a teenage bedroom - everything lies about the floor in chaos. Message T-shirts tangled into wires from X-Box and game add-ons which are interleaved with pajamas and notebooks and sauced with discarded energy-bar wrappers stuck together with spilled soda.

In a regular house, in the midst of chaos, supremely comfortable, a boy and a cat watch a video of a cat being catapulted over a house. But at WapoNYT in the midst of its intellectual debris a pussy-hat screams that the Trump White House has done ... something and Flyover watches contentedly as another pussy-hat catapults through the air. It's wrong to laugh but it's funny.

Robert said...


There's some keystroke that publishes a post. I'm still not sure what it is, but I manage to hit it from time to time.


After entering the "headline" or blog post title in blogger, if the next key you press is the TAB key, your cursor will sit on the "Publish" button. If you press the Enter key then voila, premature publication ... all headline, no body.

Michael K said...

"Oddly, Trump is crying foul play. Almost as though he had nothing to do with Flynn’s ouster. When he was the ouster."

I like Nordlinger and I hate to see him parroting the NeverTrump line. This is a non sequitur. Flynn was taken on the the Deep State and made a mistake. Maybe it was a lapse of memory or a misunderstanding but Pence strikes me as a "no second chance" kind of guy and Trump had to back him up.

This is not the end of it.

Ann Althouse said...

"'Nixonian' is hardly a new epithet."

I didn't mean new in that sense. I meant new to this story after "dossier" failed. One scare word used one day. When that's shown to be bad, go to another one.

mockturtle said...

I didn't mean new in that sense. I meant new to this story after "dossier" failed. One scare word used one day. When that's shown to be bad, go to another one.

I get it. Like 'turmoil' replacing 'chaos'. ;-)

Sam L. said...

Dossiers: Way better, or way worse, than "binders full of women"?

damikesc said...

This is a revealing argument. She's trying to harm someone's career and livelihood, as are many other reporters. Yet she thinks it's somehow inappropriate for others to respond in kind, and worse seems to instinctively think non-aligned people will agree with her.

Also adorable that she thinks she can continue covering the White House. They don't have to hand out press credentials. She can scrounge for the daily passes if she so wishes, but she can be frozen out of all contact pretty easily.

Mark said...

I hope the White House staff enjoys having edited tapes of their meetings with press released.

It's going to get ugly.

Etienne said...

I any case, I'm not feeling "great again" yet.

I don't think it's possible. No one's taking the high road.

MikeR said...

Good example that anyone dealing with the press should make their own recording. Inform them if local law says you must.

RMc said...

It was a misquote! She didn't say "Nixonian", it was actually:

"I don't see a playoff run for the Knicks, only if get value in a trade for Anthony. Or bring back Jeremy Lin."

Yancey Ward said...

In my opinion, if you are not recording your conversation with a reporter, you are a fucking idiot.

damikesc said...

I hope the White House staff enjoys having edited tapes of their meetings with press released.

That's why it'd take an idiot to not record the conversation themselves.

You're aware that this story was based on a reporter lying about Omarosa said, right? The reporter was the one who was wrong here.

Snark said...

In this context I took "Nixonian" to be related to what Ryan sees as the smear campaign, rather than solely focused on the act of recording a conversation. Nixon's fundamental sins - presumably what one intends to conjure with "Nixonian" - were the dirty tricks, the Plumbers, the cover ups etc. Recording is just the way he destroyed himself.

JaimeRoberto said...

Given reporters' propensity for getting stuff wrong, maybe these recordings need to be more heard of.

JaimeRoberto said...

I always appreciate a women in a sexy dossier.