New York Times Editor Says Paper Endorses Republicans That It ‘Dislikes The Least’

By Published on July 24, 2015

When the The New York Times editorial board endorses a Republican ahead of the 2016 primaries, it will not be picking one it believes voters should choose in the general election. Instead, The Times’ thought leaders will merely be picking the GOP candidate it “dislikes the least.”

That’s how Andrew Rosenthal, The Times’ editorial page editor, described the paper’s endorsement rationale for the GOP field during a recent podcast with Susan Lehman.

“Is it an endorsement?” Rosenthal began. “It’s hard to say. It’s mostly our saying, in recent past anyway, trying to figure out which one of them has actual qualifications for office and is the least objectionable. It’s not saying very much.”

“I don’t think a lot of hardcore Republican primary voters are sitting on the edge of their seat waiting to find out which one of the candidates The New York Times dislikes the least.”

Rosenthal’s contempt for the GOP doesn’t appear to have dissipated since his reporting during the 1992 presidential campaign. Then a political reporter for the Gray Lady, Rosenthal wrote a now-debunked article in February of that year claiming that then-president George H.W. Bush was “amazed” by a supermarket scanner he saw at a trade show in Florida. The article implied that Bush was out of touch and behind the times. But it was later revealed that Rosenthal wasn’t even present during that campaign stop and that the supermarket scanner in question did have some new technology.

In the podcast, Rosenthal attacked Rick Perry, Ted Cruz, Donald Trump and Ben Carson, while giving back-handed compliments to Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio.

“Rick Perry’s one of those politicians you think, ‘He should be better than this,’” Rosenthal said of the former Texas governor.

He said Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is in “the race for craziest talk” with his recent remarks about the need for better border security.

“There’s nothing to say about border security,” Rosenthal said with an air of confidence. “The Department of Homeland Security has reduced the border crossings to a trickle. Our border is perfectly fine.”

The two “craziest” candidates in the field, according to the editor, are Donald Trump and Ben Carson.

“You know, everything Ben Nelson says is ridiculous,” Rosenthal said, confusing Carson, a black neurosurgeon, with Nelson, a white Democratic senator from Florida.

And Trump, according to Rosenthal, is a “professional buffoon.”

Even candidates Rosenthal says he believes are serious are not safe from his enlightened scorn.

“I think Jeb Bush is — I don’t agree with him — and I wonder why he hasn’t learned how to speak in public after all these years, but I think he is a person who does want to talk about issues.”

Rosenthal said that he believes Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has offered some serious policy proposals but questioned whether he has a shot at winning the nomination. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, too, “has serious ideas,” Rosenthal admitted, adding that “I don’t think they’re necessary the right ones.”

Despite his uncharitable view of the GOP field, Rosenthal complained that it is unlikely that any of the Republican candidates will show up to The Times’ editorial board meeting ahead of its primary endorsement.

“We’ll invite them repeatedly, and none of them will show up,” Rosenthal said, adding that “they don’t care about our endorsement, which is not irrational.”

“No one cares about talking anymore, everyone yells at everybody, and there’s a lack of understanding and a lack of goodwill that’s sort of disturbing.”

Rosenthal’s views on Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton were the mirror image of his thoughts on Republicans.

“This is going to sound rather strange coming from a journalist, but she’s also ignoring the press, which I don’t think is a terrible idea,” Rosenthal said.

Clinton has been criticized for rarely talking to reporters while on the campaign trail. She’s given only one national interview since announcing her candidacy in April. And earlier this month Clinton’s campaign aides roped off reporters to prevent them from getting too close to her.

“I don’t think her not talking to the press is an issue,” Rosenthal said.

Rosenthal was critical of one Democratic candidate, but it just so happened to be the most conservative of the bunch.

“Let me just say for the record that not only Republican say stupid things,” Rosenthal said. “Let’s take Mr. Jim Webb, former senator, former secretary of something — the Navy, I think.”

Rosenthal took issue with Webb’s recent Facebook post during the debate over the removal of the Confederate battle flag in which he said that many brave men fought on the side of the Confederacy during the Civil War. The editor called the post “noise and jibberish and baloney.”

“One of the criticisms I get is we have a very nice time trashing Republicans who say foolish things, so I wanted to throw a Democrat in there,” Rosenthal said.

 

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