Hotline After Dark -- Cruel Intentions?

The New Yorker cover of Barack and Michelle Obama was the talk of the TV last night.

New Yorker ed. David Remnick was in the "Situation Room" last night to discuss the cover.

Remnick, asked if he would the cover again, knowing the uproar it has caused: "Yes. And I would like to explain, quite concisely, what our intention was. The idea is to attack lies and misconceptions and distortions about the Obamas, and their background and their politics. We have heard all of this nonsense about how they're supposedly insufficiently patriotic or soft on terrorism, that, somehow, the fist bump is something that it's not. And we tried to put all of these images in one cover, and to satirize and shine a really harsh light on something that's incredibly damaging."

More Remnick: "If there's no possibility for satire, if you always have to look for the joke that absolutely everyone will get, you won't have Jon Stewart, you won't have Stephen Colbert. Stephen Colbert goes on and mocks right-wing commentary by pretending to be a right-wing commentator. In a way, this is Colbert in print."

After the jump, more New Yorker reaction, McCain goes "On the Record" and Ventura rules out MN SEN run.

(KATHERINE LEHR)

Blitzer: "But when does satire become bad taste?"

Remnick: "Well, that's for everybody to decide and for everybody to discuss. ... This is what being provocative is all about. It's not being loved by everybody. But I do want to state very, very clearly, the intention of this cover, in no uncertain terms, is to talk about the politics of fear and the lies that have been told about Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as well" (CNN, 7/14).

Meanwhile, New Yorker's Ryan Lizza was on "Hardball."

Lizza: "There are two ways that you can deal with lies and misinformation. One way is through a lot of careful reporting and explaining who Barack Obama is, and The New Yorker has been doing that since day one when this guy was on the political scene. Another way, traditionally in this country and in journalism, is through political satire, and that's what this cover was about. It was trying to show the absurd view of this guy and to point out how far from the truth this is. And sometimes, you need to hold up a mirror to the absurdities to drive the point home and just to sort of poke fun of them" (MSNBC, 7/14).

Mike Huckabee, on the intended satire: "I don't know how clear it is, though. It's clear to people who keep up to politics, but if you're walking down the corridor of an airport, you just happen to look over the bookstore, you're just going to see that image, and, frankly, I don't know that the average person who doesn't know The New Yorker, who doesn't read the article, is going to get that it's satire. ... Believe me, I've been a candidate, I'm telling you that there are a whole lot of people that don't get beyond the surface. ... I can understand why Obama was, you know, pretty burned about it. He was more burned than the flag over this" ("Hannity & Colmes," FNC, 7/14).

Ex-WH adviser David Gergen: "I think both McCain and Obama are right about this. You know, under David Remnick's leadership, The New Yorker has earned a reputation for being sharp and witty. And, ordinarily, it is that. This time, they just made a terrible mistake. It was a failure of judgment. And they turned out a cover that is both dumb and decidedly unfunny. ... There are so many raw emotions in this campaign around this question of race, of Muslim, of terrorism, of patriotism. ... It rubbed those emotions raw. And the earlier it gets behind us, the better" ("AC 360," CNN, 7/14).

Salon.com's Walsh: "I think what The New Yorker has done is put out a kind of roadmap, a perfect picture of what the smears are. ... And I think in the long run, it helps.... It's amazing editorial art. It is satire. And look, The New Yorker has a long tradition of controversial covers. If The New Yorker has to give up this kind of commentary and satire, then the terrorists have won. We really need to have a bigger frame as we look at this, because this controversy is getting silly" ("Race for the WH," MSNBC, 7/14).

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX): "Biting is probably a good description. I think they meant to be satirical and they said that they did, but, clearly, it was way over the top" ("LKL," CNN, 7/14).

SO LONG, FAREWELL...

FNC's Van Susteren caught up with John McCain on the "Straight Talk Express" in WI on 7/11. The interview aired on "On the Record" last night.

McCain, on the status of his town hall meetings proposal: "I think it's pretty obvious that Senator Obama isn't going to do it. We offered time after time. We've both appeared on the same day within an hour of each other before the same organization, and he refuses. ... We'll keep asking. We'll keep requesting up until election day."

McCain, asked if economic adviser Phil Gramm got thrown under the bus: "I spoke to Phil yesterday. And the point is that he just -- he's wrong. I've been to too many town hall meetings and talked to the person who just lost their job to think that it's just a mental recession. I've talked to too many people who can't educate their children and can't stay in their homes and can't pay their medical bills to believer that they're whiners. Americans aren't whiners. Americans are fighters. ... Phil Gramm was wrong. I wish him luck in Belarus as our ambassador."

McCain, asked if he would consider a Dem as his VP: "If I say that I know the name that pops up immediately."

Van Susteren: "I didn't suggest any names."

McCain: "Look, we have a process we're going through. ... It has to be someone who, obviously, shares your principles, your values, and your priorities. But you also have to remember, as we learned from history, first do no harm. And my party is blessed and my people that we will consider, I think we're blessed with a large number of very talented and dedicated and outstanding people" (FNC, 7/14).

SURF'S UP

And ex-MN Gov. Jesse Ventura (I) announced on "LKL" last night that he would not launch a third-party bid for MN SEN.

Ventura, at the beginning of the interview: "I know how TV works, Larry. We'll take it right to the bottom of the hour. It will be the last thing we do."

CNN's Larry King: "No, we won't. No, it won't be the last thing we do. ... I'm just trying to rev it up, Jesse."

Ventura: "Maybe not quite. I might hold off a little bit, Larry, you know, for that extra dramatic effect. ... But we'll get her done this hour."

L. King: "All right, I don't want to wait anymore. ... Will Jesse Ventura run for the United States Senate in Minnesota as an Independent?"

Ventura: "This was an agonizing decision for me, because everywhere I walk on the streets of Minnesota today I get, 'Run, Jesse, run.' And it feels the same way as it did in '98 when I ran and with little chance and won the governorship. Ultimately, this decision comes down to my personal life and my personal family. ... My children were attacked by the Minnesota media when I was the governor. I fear very much that they will be attacked again, because nothing is off limits today in the world of politics. So these are some of the dilemmas that I go through. Do I want to put my family on the firing line again? This is a six year term. And as an Independent, you're held to a different standard than a Democrat or Republican is. ... Independents are accused of trying to turn it into a money-making venture and all that."

L. King: "So, you're not going to run?"

Ventura: "Um ... I haven't said that yet, Larry. ... Also, I've looked hard at what it takes and I feel very strongly that maybe I'm not religious enough, because I don't go to church. I don't have a reverend today. And I'm from the old school, where there's a separation of church and state, like our founding forefathers wanted. Today, it seems that religion is being brought into the mix. ... And so I will tell you now, I am not going to run at this moment. But, if between now and 5:00, maybe God comes and speaks to me like he did the president, and tells me I should run, like he apparently told the president to invade Iraq, well, then maybe at 5:00 tomorrow, Larry, don't call me a liar, just understand God sent me to file."

Ventura, asked if he will endorse entertainer Al Franken (D): "No, I won't endorse a Democrat or Republican. But I would say this, it's very difficult. I don't see how Al Franken could possibly win because he should be leading in the polls now, not trailing me. And I'm not even a candidate."

More Ventura, on why he isn't running: "It will take an act of God to do it. ... It came down to ... surfing versus the Senate. And I found surfing to be much more honorable than the Senate for the next six years, because the ocean doesn't lie to you, the waves don't lie to you. My government does lie to me today" (CNN, 7/14).