CEA's Shapiro to Dobbs: Let's Debate; Nation Refutes Image of Buckling Under Fear

Millions of people watch Lou Dobbs' sad decline into economic demagoguery in silence and with a resigned shake of the head. I am one of them. Thank goodness, the Consumer Electronics Association has a CEO with the...um... guts to take the Pompous One on directly.

CEA's Gary Shapiro challenged Dobbs today:

“I am prepared to debate Lou Dobbs live on his CNN show. His anti-trade comments on his cable show and his refusal to grant equal time to opposing viewpoints are inconsistent with CNN’s great legacy as a pioneering news network. We are hopeful that CNN will wish to retain its credibility and allow equal time for pro-free trade viewpoints. We should not promote a climate of fear. A great nation like the United States isn’t afraid to compete and to win on the international market.”

And, perhaps to the surprise of some politicians who may have written the American people off as sheep herded by a climate of fear and pessimism, CEA also released a poll of 10,000 Americans that said:

- 78 percent of Americans polled agreed that it would be hypocritical for an American news anchor to speak out against international trade while, at the same time, promoting their program overseas and generating advertising revenue from foreign services. More than 50 percent "strongly agreed" that such activity would be hypocritical.

-Nearly 70 percent of those polled either "somewhat" or "strongly" agreed that Dobbs is being "inconsistent" by publicly attacking free trade while promoting himself overseas and generating revenue from foreign sources.

- Of those polled, more than 46 percent agreed with the statement that criticizing international trade "sends the wrong message that the U.S. isn't good enough to compete globally" vs. only 23 percent who agreed with the statement that "criticizing international trade sends the right message because the U.S. actually can't compete globally and needs to protect American jobs."

- Of those polled, more than 50 percent of those polled said that they watched Lou Dobbs' show at least a few times a year.

These Americans polled are remarkably like the CEA members who run small businesses and are dependent on international trade to be successful and hire/retain their employees. After the jump are two videos of small business owners who represent the coming (hopefully) less silent majority...

Beyond 463 client CEA, there are many others who are beginning to chip away at Dobbs' policy of fear...

The Wall Street Journal's Daniel Henniger wrote:

"Lou Dobbs isn't an economist; he's a television performer. As such what Lou is doing would satisfy economic rationalists from Adam Smith to Milton Friedman. 'Exporting America' has little to do with economics but everything to do with Lou Dobbs's economic self-interest. "

Vanity Fair's James Wolcott opined recently:

"If Lou Dobbs were any more full of himself, the tub would overflow. In the autumn resplendence of his telecasting career, Dobbs's self-regard, never meek or slender, has ripened into the pompatus of love. I am Lou, hear me moo..."

The New Yorker takes a peak into what The Man of The People does for lunch...

Regular viewers of “Lou Dobbs Tonight,” on CNN, might be surprised at the venue that Dobbs chose for lunch not long ago: the Grill Room of the Four Seasons, a midtown bastion of the very same political and business “élites” that he denounces daily on his television program. The Four Seasons is the enduring commissary of the Old Guard, where Henry Kissinger waves to the former Citigroup C.E.O. Sandy Weill, there is limo-lock at the side door, and the regulars have their checks sent to the office. Dobbs’s Town Car left him at the door, on East Fifty-second Street, and the restaurant’s co-owner, Julian Nicolini, embraced him that day as warmly as when he welcomed, among others, Stephen Schwarzman, the chairman and C.E.O. of the Blackstone Group; Nelson Peltz, the C.E.O. of Trian Partners; Edgar Bronfman, Sr., the former chairman and C.E.O. of Seagram; and Mortimer Zuckerman, the real-estate developer and publisher of the News. Nicolini led Dobbs to one of five choice banquettes, and Dobbs settled in, looking very much at home.

And, my favorite, the Washington Post's Gene Weingarten talks about his favorite comedy show...

Now, if you're thinking: "Hey, wait a minute, that's not a comedy show! That's a serious look at world affairs hosted by a dignified, award-winning journalist," then you either:

1) do not watch the show, or

2) are Lou Dobbs.

He adds:

Lou used to be an actual newsman, but then, some years ago, he apparently realized that whenever he expressed outrage over illegal immigration or outsourcing of jobs -- hot-button issues among the xenophobically inclined -- his viewership climbed. Like a pigeon in a box who gets rewarded with a corn kernel every time he flaps a designated wing, Lou was soon just one big madly flapping right wing....

..."Lou Dobbs Tonight" can sneak up on you, like a pirate ship not flying its true colors. At first, it appears to be a normal talk show in a familiar format, with nicely dressed men and women in swivel chairs speaking in pleasant, professional altos and baritones. But then odd things begin to happen. A typical segment on "Lou Dobbs Tonight" includes an interview with some newsmaker who agrees with Lou entirely on every issue, so the conversations tend to go like this:

Lou: What in the world is wrong with these politicians who want to send manufacturing jobs to China? What are they, idiots?

Newsmaker: "Idiots" is too good a word for them, Lou. They're vomit sandwiches on whole wheat toast.

Lou: Vomit? At least vomit has nutrients in it! They're feces on an onion bagel!

Newsmaker: Feces? Feces is too good a . . .

We look forward to the comedy ending for a brief segment and a serious debate between Shapiro and Dobbs. We hope that Lou can find it in him to turn the laugh track off for a night.

(Photo credit goes to the National Association of Manufacturers who found the gem and posted it to their blog. They, btw, have been running a "Dobbs Watch" for a couple years now. The NAM folks ran a caption contest for the photo. Feel free to pile on here. One suggestion from the 463 peanut gallery: "Sorry, Mr. Dobbs, that life-saving medical device can't be used. It was created in Japan."

Comments

[J.D.]

Lou Dobbs 2008!