An altercation is precisely what we need

Eric Alterman echoes my sentiments (or have I echoed his?) concerning Corsi's smear job on Obama.

Media Matters - Altercation by Eric Alterman

As you've probably heard, there's a guy out with a new anti-Obama book packed full of outrageous lies and distortions. This isn't clever RNC-style misreadings of his voting record, but rather is along the lines of "Obama is a baby killer," a drug addict, possibly a Muslim, etc.

There are two questions, although the second probably answers the first. One, how the hell is this book debuting at number one on the New York Times bestseller list. Two, why is it being treated so credibly by much of the MSM? Most outlets don't actually validate the claims (Fox News, naturally, excepted), but it's still given serious discussion. Look at how Mark Halperin's "The Page" treats it: by simply saying that "Jerome Corsi's 'The Obama Nation,' which tries to paint the Senator as a radical liberal with ties to Islam and an ongoing drug habit, will debut at No. 1 on the Paper of Record's best seller list Sunday." No mention that those are, you know, lies. An ongoing drug habit? How can Halperin justify even repeating that without noting the sheer insanity? He doesn't, and in fact, he even provides a link to an excerpt.

Technorati Tags: Jerome Corsi, proven liar, slander, evil, scumbag