Ron Fournier, Wanker

By Cernig

The AP's the acting Washington bureau chief Ron Fournier writes today that Obama chossing Biden as his running mate shows that Obama suffers from a "lack of confidence" and that "Barack Obama sought to shore up his weakness � inexperience in office and on foreign policy � rather than underscore his strength as a new-generation candidate defying political conventions."

The Right, obviously, loves it. Not surprising, since Karl Rove approves this message.

Fournier last rose to journalistic prominence over an email exchange with Rove about Pat Tillman. From his SourceWatch entry:

In a U.S. House of Representatives committee report investigating the White House's media management efforts over the death from friendly fire of Army Ranger Pat Tillman and the rescue from an Iraqi hospital of Private Jessica Lynch noted that journalists, including Fournier, had made suggestions on how to manage the story. The draft report stated that:

Karl Rove exchanged emails about Pat Tillman with Associated Press reporter Ron Fournier, under the subject line "HE-R-O." In response to Mr. Fournier�s e-mail, Mr. Rove asked, "How does our country continue to produce men and women like this," to which Mr. Fournier replied, "The Lord creates men and women like this all over the world. But only the great and free countries allow them to flourish. Keep up the fight."^[7]

Gawker noted that "Fournier isn't trying to explain how telling the White House's main political adviser to "keep up the fight" keeps his journalism unbiased. Instead he said he's kind of sorry, even though he obviously isn't, at all" in his response which was reported in an AP story.^[8] Fournier was cited as stating:

"I was an AP political reporter at the time of the 2004 e-mail exchange, and was interacting with a source, a top aide to the president, in the course of following an important and compelling story. I regret the breezy nature of the correspondence."^[1]

Fournier also almost worked for McCain.

In October 2006, the McCain team approached Fournier about joining the fledgling operation, according to a source with knowledge of the talks. In the months that followed, said a source, Fournier spoke about the job possibility with members of McCain�s inner circle, including political aides Mark Salter, John Weaver and Rick Davis.

Salter, who remains a top McCain adviser, said in an e-mail to Politico that Fournier was considered for �a senior advisory role� in communications.

�He did us the courtesy of considering the offer before politely declining it,� Salter said.

He added that Fournier was an attractive target because of his knowledge about the political process, not because of his ideological or partisan leanings. Salter says he still does not know what, if any, those are.

"Does not know"...yeah, right.