Bill Kristol's Debut NY Times Column Larded With Awful Cliches
January 7, 2008 -- 9:23 AM EST // //
Updated below.
Okay, so The New York Times's new columnist, Bill Kristol, had his debut today. And his first column gives those who criticized the Kristol appointment not because of ideology, but because of the quality of his work, a chance to proclaim a hearty "I told you so."
As you may recall, Times edit page editor Andy Rosenthal, who dubbed Kristol's critics as "intolerant," defended the Kristol deal by describing him as a "captivating writer."
So I'm going to leave it to others to argue with the column's content, such as it is, and merely point out that the first effort of this "captivating writer" is absolutely larded with teeth-grindingly awful cliches from top to bottom:
Thank you, Senator Obama. You’ve defeated Senator Clinton in Iowa. It looks as if you’re about to beat her in New Hampshire. There will be no Clinton Restoration. A nation turns its grateful eyes to you.Playing around with the "nation turns its lonely eyes to you" line is one of the most hackneyed rhetorical gimmicks out there. There are also these fingernail-on-the-chalkboard phrases...
We don’t want to increase the scope of the nanny state, we don’t want to undo the good done by the appointments of John Roberts and Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court, and we really don’t want to snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory in Iraq....and this thoroughly insightful bit of political analysis...
After the last two elections, featuring the well-born George Bush and Al Gore and John Kerry, Americans — even Republicans! — are ready for a likable regular guy....and this thud of a cliche...
Some Democrats are licking their chops at the prospect of a Huckabee nomination. They shouldn’t be.As a special bonus, Kristol also includes a quote from Michelle Malkin. So, to review: Kristol has managed to sneak onto the august Times Op ed page -- onetime home to James Reston and Russell Baker -- some of the worst cliches political writing has to offer and a quote from the worst of the very worst in the wingnutosphere. And all in only one column.
Hmmm. This may not concern Rosenthal much, but you have to imagine that lots of Times editors and writers who care about the quality of their newspaper will be a bit perturbed by this, though they'll almost certainly keep their concerns private.
Update: Looks like Kristol's first column will already require a correction.
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