Live from Music Row, Wednesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy welcomed the original all-star panelist Crom Carmichael to the studio for another edition of Crom’s Crommentary.
CROM CARMICHAEL:
Michael, the new phrase in the media – and we’re going to hear it through the election – is a four-word phrase that we’re going to hear (affects dramatic, fearful tone): “threat to our democracy.” “Threat to our democracy.” That’s what you’re going to hear. Chuck Todd was (emulates fearmongering tone) breathless, absolutely breathless; “the new poll showed that for the first time a threat to our democracy ranked as the number one issue.”
Chuck Todd doesn’t mention is that it’s the first time that that was polled. Think about that for a second. He breathlessly tells you that the threat to our democracy is now the number one concern of voters, and it’s the first time that’s ever been that way.
But they’ve never had the threat to our democracy on any previous poll. So that’s a completely air-headed thing to say. But then it’s Chuck Todd, and he’s paid millions to say what he’s told to say.
But here’s what’s interesting about that poll. They say that 21 percent of those polled said that threats to our democracy was the nation’s most important concern. Well, actually, Michael, you and I might actually say the threat to our democracy is our number one concern.
And in fact, it turns out that only 53 percent of those who said it were Democrats, and 32 percent were Republicans. And so the way Chuck Todd says it, [the idea that] everybody who thinks “threat to our democracy” is going to vote Democrat is fundamentally flawed.
And he knew it when he said that. But the other thing that’s also interesting that NBC did in this poll is they took the cost of living and made it one issue, and made jobs and the economy another issue. And so guess what? Cost of living got 16 percent and jobs and economy got 14 percent.
Well, if you just asked the question “threat to our economy,” then 30 percent would have said “threat to our economy.” And they’re essentially all going to vote against the Democrats. The key phrase in fact, as I was driving in listening to your interview, the head of the NAACP is also uttering “threat to our democracy.”
Everything is “a threat to our democracy.
We’re going to hear that over and over again and you’re going to hear a lot of, quote, science, and data, and it’s all essentially contrived. It’s just made up. And I remember back in the day when The Tennessean and the Democrats in this state were trying to get an income tax passed, and The Tennessean reported right before the vote in the State House that 70 percent of the people in Tennessee wanted a state income tax.
Well, I had somebody at The Tennessean who was a kind of whistleblower, or a mole, if you will. And so I received what the questions were in the poll. And the first question in the poll was, would you like for the children of Tennessee to get a better education? How do you think that polled? Ninety-five percent said “yes.”
I’d like for the children of Tennessee to get a better education. The second question was, if the only way for the children of Tennessee to get a better education is to have a state income tax, would you favor a state income tax? That got 70 percent, if you preceded it with a phony question.
And so that’s how The Tennessean was able to report that 70 percent wanted it. If you just poll the people a straight question – do you want an income tax in the state of Tennessee? – 70 percent said “no.” And so polling matters. And now you have Chuck Todd and the breathless Left on (whining tone) “threat on our democracy” is going to be their cry through the election.
Listen to the Crommentary:
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Tune in weekdays from 5:00 – 8:00 a.m. to The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy on Talk Radio 98.3 FM WLAC 1510. Listen online at iHeart Radio.
Photo “Chuck Todd” by Chuck Todd.
