Power Line
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about an American conservative blog.
- See Electric power transmission for the more common use of this term.
Best known for its role in events leading to the departure of Dan Rather from the CBS anchor chair, Power Line is among the most widely read conservative blogs in the United States. It is written by three lawyers:
- John H. Hinderaker ("Hindrocket")
- Scott W. Johnson ("The Big Trunk")
- Paul Mirengoff ("Deacon")
The authors also write for newspapers and magazines, appear on radio and television, and are associated with the Claremont Institute. Influential among conservatives, Power Line plays a role in helping to set the agenda of the American right.
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[edit] Political positions
Power Line authors usually gives strong support to President George W. Bush's administration, especially the Iraq war and the War on Terrorism. But they have criticized the President for being insufficiently conservative on issues including immigration and affirmative action. The blog advocates the nomination and confirmation of judicially conservative judges, and regularly features analysis of court decisions. Power Line often vigorously criticises Democrats and liberals (and sometimes Republicans as well[1]) for dishonesty, moral failure, bad judgment and disloyalty to the United States.
The Power Line authors believe the media suffer from systemic liberal bias. They frequently question the integrity of the organisations such as Associated Press, the BBC, Reuters, and the New York Times, and (to a lesser extent) the Washington Post. They charge that many reporters and editors are liberal partisans who act unprofessionally to promote their political bias. Power Line authors have advocated criminal prosecution when media outlets publish national security information. They also post disagreements with the editorial opinions of the Star Tribune of Minneapolis, home to two of the Power Line authors.
[edit] Rathergate
Power Line gained widespread recognition for its 2004 reporting on the Killian documents controversy relating to a CBS report on George Bush's service in the Texas Air National Guard. Conservative blogs (including Power Line, National Review Online and Little Green Footballs) used the term Rathergate in referring to the controversy. The blogs and their readers contributed research in assessing the authenticity of the documents, presenting evidence of forgery. Power Line helped advance the story, triggering coverage by mainstream media outlets. Dan Rather apologized and resigned from the CBS anchor chair. Power Line became identified with the Pajamahadeen when criticized by a former CBS News executive.
[edit] Schiavo Memo
Power Line speculated that Republican talking points Schiavo memo was most likely forged by Democrats as a political dirty trick.[2] When the memo turned out to be written by a Republican aide, Brian Darling, Power Line acknowledged the revelation, but continued to criticize the mainstream media for suggesting the memo was a "a product of the party's leadership or had an official status."[3] Critics accuse Power Line of using innuendo and guilt by association on this and other occasions.[citation needed]
[edit] President Carter
Power Line frequently criticizes former US President Jimmy Carter. They have described him as being "on the other side" after the Iraqi legislative election, January 2005, which Carter had said "would not take place". Hinderaker later wrote that Carter "started aligning himself with America's enemies", citing an alleged request that the Soviet Union expand Jewish emigration to help Carter in the 1980 Presidential election, and added
- In more recent years, Carter has never met an anti-American dictator he didn't like. Whether it was Castro, Ortega, Arafat...whoever. And he used the occasion of being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to attack the current American government...just as those who awarded the prize had expected. No class.
- ...
- Jimmy Carter is a disgrace. We've said so before, and we'll continue saying so as long as he merits the criticism.
[edit] Other coverage
Coverage and commentary by Hinderaker, Johnson, and Mirengoff, all alumni of Dartmouth College, was instrumental in the 2005 election of "insurgent" candidates Peter Robinson and Todd Zywicki to the Board of Trustees.
The blog also covers some lighter material. Johnson regularly posts historical articles about musicians, Mirengoff reports on European soccer teams and Hinderaker covers beauty pageants. [4]. Power Line authors also host a weekly radio show as part of the Northern Alliance Radio Network in Minnesota.
[edit] Awards
- 2004 - "Blog of the Year" Time Magazine
