Sorry, Sweetie

Like many of you, I have been following the sexual harassment allegations surrounding Mr. Cain and have been both fascinated and appalled by the campaign’s complete failure at crisis communications and the media’s reluctance to put forth more details to substantiate such serious allegations.

In all honesty, the way the Cain story has been handled (by both the campaign and the press) makes me yearn for greater coverage of the Kim Kardashian divorce and Lindsay Lohan.

But Kimmy K. and LiLo aside, this whole goat rodeo has brought to mind this clip from 2008 in which then-candidate Barack Obama called a Michigan reporter “sweetie” while touring a plant in Detroit:

Now I bring this example up, not to point out the obvious bias and hypocrisy that comes along with covering such instances, but to illustrate a bigger problem: we’re losing focus on the narrative.

Let’s just briefly revisit a couple items:

1) President Obama has been giving Congress the runaround and is unilaterally issuing executive orders as a way to push through his agenda

2) The Fast and Furious scandal has escalated with news that Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer knew about potential problems with the operation back in 2006

3) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has asked for an additional $6 billion in aid. Add that to the $169 billion taxpayers have already spent to bailout the fledgling federal agencies

4) And let’s not forget the growing list of failed alternative energy companies after Beacon Power filed for bankruptcy. Another one bites the dust, eh?

Now the allegations involving Mr. Cain are serious and do need to be answered and investigated with the utmost care. Most of Cain’s wounds have been self-inflicted by mishandling the media. And it doesn’t help to finger point a rival campaign without evidence. But what is most disturbing to me is the fact that attention to important issues that have a direct impact on the health and prosperity of our country have fallen by the wayside.

I hope Mr. Cain can clear up these issues soon so we can get back to the business at hand.

Because if we don’t, we’ll all be sorry, sweetie.