By: Tom Bevan

Every White House complains about its press coverage. A contentious relationship between the Executive Branch and a free and independent media is part of America’s DNA. Always has been.

But this White House seems to feel they’re different. It’s not just that the current occupant of the Oval Office has a particularly thin skin when it comes to criticism – which is especially ironic given that he’s been the recipient of more glowing press coverage than possibly any candidate or president in modern American history. But not since Nixon conjured up an “enemies list” have we seen the full weight of the Office of the Presidency brought to bear in such a targeted and deliberate effort to delegitimize a media organization critical of the President.

When Communications Director Anita Dunn first announced the White House’s war against FOX News last week, many people from across the political spectrum dismissed it as silly. But two of the administration’s heaviest hitters, Senior Advisor David Axelrod and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, went on the Sunday talk shows and made clear that the White House’s attempt to delegitimize FOX News is deadly serious.

On This Week, Axelrod told George Stephanopoulos: “[FOX News] is not really a news station. It’s not just their commentators but a lot of their news programming it’s really not news it’s pushing a point of view. ”

Emanuel echoed the line to John King on CNN’s State of the Union: “The way the president looks at it – we look at it – it’s not a news organization so much as it has a perspective.”

And MSNBC doesn’t push a certain “perspective?” What about the New York Times? The idea that FOX News’s perspective disqualifies it as a “legitimate” news operation lays bare the manipulation and hypocrisy at work here. The White House is all for news organizations taking certain “perspectives” – so long as they’re favorable to the administration’s agenda.

The current presidency, as much perhaps as any in history, is built upon the foundation of the President’s personal popularity. President Obama has, out of necessity, become the Salesman-in-Chief for his progressive agenda. But as the White House continues to struggle adjusting to the reality of governing versus campaigning, it is either unwilling or unable to brook criticism of the President or his policies. Thus FOX News is targeted as the enemy.

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