The Talking Points

Gotta Give it to the Leader that they just posted the talking points for Jack Ryan:

Imagine all the divorced political leaders we have – Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, Joe Lieberman, Jon Corzine, John McCain, just to name a few – have their divorce records been unsealed? Is the media even demanding them?

Yeah, imagine that:

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) – John McCain gave up his interest in two homes and agreed to pay $1,625 a month in alimony and child support when he divorced his first wife 20 years ago, court records show.

The senator and Republican presidential candidate divorced his wife Carol in 1980 when he was a Navy captain with a home of record in Orange Park, Fla., about 12 miles south of Jacksonville.

McCain, 63, gave her his interest in homes in Alexandria, Va., and South Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., according to records of the divorce settlement obtained by The Associated Press and other newspapers.

McCain has admitted that he wasn’t faithful and instead of trying to hide it, he settled the case. I’m betting Kennedy settled as well, not that it helps his reputation. The beached whale pic of him nude sunbathing probably did more harm than any other revelation anyway. The reality is that most divorce files are publicly available as are most custody files. The fact that Jack had them sealed is notable.

If anyone wants to look up the Handlin vs. Handlin case from 1971, you’ll find plenty of hate, vitriol, and some down right pettiness from my parents, but I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be public. It is quite embarrassing (who the hell needs a court order to keep one parent from cutting the child’s hair?–my parents did). The reality is that keeping such files open keeps the system honest.

Once you go down this path, who in his right mind would ever want to run for office?

Someone not stupid enough to think it won’t come out and discloses embarrasing information about themselves before running. Like, oh, I don’t know–Barack Obama did about cocaine use as a youth.

I’m not going through them all, but it is a bad response. It’ll only keep the issue alive. He needs it to go away, not prove he is right. Going to war with the press is stupid and counterproductive. The proper way to proceed is take responsibility, accept that his statements could have been misconstrued, apologize to supporters and the party, and then, find a message–something he hasn’t been able to do before.

Extended entry has the whole list. Enjoy.

The precedent

It is virtually unprecedented in political campaigns to compel a candidate to release custody documents.
Imagine all the divorced political leaders we have – Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, Joe Lieberman, Jon Corzine, John McCain, just to name a few – have their divorce records been unsealed? Is the media even demanding them?
Once you go down this path, who in his right mind would ever want to run for office?
Even Mayor Daley said this has got to stop – he actually applauded Jack Ryan for sealing his divorce files, called the news media’s obsession with Jack Ryan’s divorce files “a disgrace,” and said “I think everybody should seal their divorce records.”

The judge

What kind of a judge overturns his own decision?
What kind of a judge rules that the public’s so-called “right to know” outweighs the health and welfare of a nine-year-old boy?
The very notion that the individual – ANY individual – must be sacrificed for the good of the people ? isn’t that what we fought the Cold War over? I mean, isn’t the notion that the state’s interests trumps the individual’s interests in itself a totalitarian concept?
What kind of a judge appoints a special referee — a specialist in such matters — to examine the documents and give the judge a recommendation, and then rules against that recommendation?
It is dispicable to me that the judge would agree with Jack Ryan that the release of these files will harm his son, and then rule for release ANYWAY.
This judge was appointed by Jerry Brown, the most liberal Governor of California in history.

The media

The media should be ashamed of itself.
What gives them the right to sacrifice a nine-year-old boy’s health and welfare just so they can sell more newspapers?
I saw in one report that the lawyer for the Tribune said the public had a “right to know” what was in the sealed documents because Jack Ryan was calling himself the “family values candidate.” First off, that’s just not accurate – Jack has never said that about himself. But even if it were true, think about what she’s saying – she’s admitting that it’s Jack’s POLITICAL PLATFORM that makes him ripe for this kind of witch-hunt. That’s a truly scary thought.

What the documents reveal

The documents make one thing perfectly clear – Jack Ryan never broke the law, never broke one of the Ten Commandments, and never broke his wedding vows.
There’s no “there” there – this is the biggest bust since Geraldo Rivera opened up Al Capone’s secret vault.
The documents also make clear that the people who have been running the whispering campaign against Jack Ryan were all wrong. They should be ashamed of themselves.
The judge listened to what she said, listened to his denial, and struck both sets of comments from the record – then ruled for joint custody, and gave Jack more time with his son. Seems pretty clear to me what the judge thought of those allegations.
The contents of one’s custody files are truly crossing the line, they are highly emotional proceedings and he-said/she-said is not a good way to judge our elected officials.
These are the records from a contentious custody case – Mayor Daley said allegations made during a divorce rank “down at the bottom” of the credibility scale because emotions are high, there’s money at stake, and the meter is running for the attorneys. And every now and then, even Mayor Daley is right.

What Republican leaders are saying

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist spoke with Jack late last week, after the judge’s ruling, and told Jack to keep fighting – Senator Frist is fully supportive of Jack.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has already done three fundraisers for Jack, and is still looking to schedule more. He’s fully committed to helping Jack win this race.
Senator George Allen, the chairman of the National Senatorial Republican Committee, talked to Jack late last week, after the judge’s ruling, and told Jack to keep fighting – George Allen is fully supportive of Jack.
Senator Peter Fitzgerald says “I don’t think anything negative will compute with the public, with all the good things people know about Jack.”
Former Governor Jim Edgar has said that Jack has shared with him the full contents of the documents, and he remains fully supportive of Jack.
State Senator Steve Rauschenberger – one of the candidates Jack Ryan defeated in the primary – says “Jack is THE man. He won the Party’s support the old-fashioned way – he earned it. He proved he’s the best Republican to take on Barack Obama, and I’m in his corner all the way.”
State Rep. Paul Froehlich says, “After personally reviewing the documents released, the flap over Jack Ryan?s divorce file is much ado about almost nothing. As Jack?s earliest legislative supporter, I feel vindicated. There is nothing in the papers that either discredits or disqualifies Jack from being elected U.S. Senator. In fact, through this trying process, Jack has demonstrated he possesses the character to be a great U.S. Senator. The release of this file should bring to an end the baseless rumor-mongering and the media?s obsession with irrelevant personal details about Jack Ryan?s personal life.”
State Senator Kay Wojcik says, “I think it?s sad that this is what politics has become in Illinois-obsessing about the difficult aspects of people?s personal lives. Do I think Jack will make an outstanding, principled U.S. Senator? You bet I do. But even more importantly, Jack Ryan is an outstanding father and that is not in controversy.”

What Republican leaders should be saying

Illinois’ future is far too important for us to be wasting time on ridiculous media-driven side issues like this.
We’ve got real differences in this race – Jack Ryan wants to secure America against terrorist attacks, create new jobs by keeping taxes low, make health care affordable and accessible through market incentives and tort reform, and make sure every child has a grade-A education, regardless of income or race – THAT’S what this Senate campaign ought to be about.
Are the liberal news media trying to cripple Jack Ryan’s candidacy because they’re scared he’s going to win?
Are the liberal news media trying to drive Jack Ryan out of the race because they’re scared he’s precisely the kind of Republican who can pull votes from communities that Democrats usually take for granted?