William Safire explains "Straw-Man Issue"

I miss William Safire. In today's NYT he explains BHO's use of this technique. If you really want to understand what our President does in his speeches it is an important read. Not that he is the only user of this technique, but he is a master!

A summary paragraph:


"Encouraged by his reviews for eloquence, President Obama has embraced the straw man frequently (as F.D.R. liked to emphasize it, “again and again and again”) with nary a peep of criticism. Two weeks ago, the Times correspondent Helene Cooper dared to note this president’s repeated use of digs like “I know some folks in Washington and on Wall Street are saying we should just focus on their problems.” Some folks, like those who, are never named but are always wrongheaded extremists. Her “White House Memo” was headlined “Some Obama Enemies Are Made Totally of Straw”; its subhead was “Setting them up to have someone to knock down.” Cooper, as the objective reporter, gave examples of conservative politicians who speak straw-manese, although none with such fluency."


A good read to help you understand the manipulation!