Some Good Questions for the Press

Jake Tapper plays it down the middle better than most mainstream media political reporters, and he posts this item with some good questions:

Chicago Tribune columnist Steve Chapman in the New York Times said the following: "If John McCain had a long association with a guy who'd bombed abortion clinics, I don't think people would say, 'That's ancient history.' "

Another jump ball for discussion purposes:

What if McCain had launched his political career in the living room of a former abortion clinic bomber who is now a respected professor at, say, a Christian college, who is unrepentant in his previous actions, but never charged with a crime, and was now pursuing a different avenue for his views...

And what if he'd given McCain a $200 campaign contribution eight years ago, and they'd served on a board together, and were "friendly" though they hadn't spoken in a while, and McCain had condemned his previous actions and didn't know him back then…

And what if right now McCain were ahead with a Republican wind blowing, and Obama were behind.

And what if Obama started attacking McCain about this guy.

How would it look to you? How would the media react? And would it be a fair hit?

I'm sure Tapper knows the answer. McCain would be crucified while Obama gets cover from the NY Times and other mainstream media.