Re: Obama Dines With The Enemy: Journalists, That Is

As I write this, young conservatives on Twitter are discussing Barack Obama's dinner with certain august members of the conservative intelligentsia, and the general opinion is one of skepticism.

David Brooks is certainly no longer a conservative -- if he ever was one. And though George Will certainly qualifies as a conservative, many younger conservative bloggers -- who view how one came down on the issue of Sarah Palin as a sort of "legacy vote" -- would argue that he is, at least, not generally representative of modern conservative thought.

Give Obama credit, though, for rounding up journalists he might be able to, at least, temporarily, co-opt (In fact, based on the attendee list, one can only wonder why Kathleen Parker wasn't invited to attend this affair...)

Simply put, it is a bit misleading to describe this group as the "conservative media" -- though calling them the "mainstream conservative media" (meaning conservatives who are tolerable enough for the New York Times and Washington Post to publish) -- would be more accurate.

Still, as an act of political sagacity, one has to applaud Obama for taking the time to do this. George W. Bush did not have the time nor inclination to attempt to woo his friends, much less his enemies -- partly because of his 9:30 pm bed time. But just as Ronald Reagan was able to convince some liberal journalists to give him a break (because unlike George W. Bush, he courted them -- and they personally liked him), I expect to see some fawning columns these next few days out of at least some of the attendees.

(I'm thinking David Brooks and perhaps Bill Kristol are the most likely to repay Obama for extending this olive branch...)

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