Quickies: A Low Tactic Reprised Without Effect

     In 2004, A number of European literati, including novelist David Cornwall (better known by his nom de plume of “John Le Carre”), participated in a letter-writing campaign to American voters in Ohio that attempted to sway the results of the upcoming Presidential election in favor of John Kerry. The campaign failed to have the desired impact, while evoking anger from many Americans at the presumption of the participants. However, it appears that the Left remembers the occasion fondly and views the underlying idea as promising:

     CNN’s Wolf Blitzer must’ve figured he was throwing a hanging curveball to Jordan’s King Abdullah the other day.

     “What’s your reaction to Donald Trump saying there should be a temporary ban on Muslims coming into the United States?” he asked during an on-air interview.

     The king neatly side-stepped, talking movingly of Jordan’s own refugee crisis and the need to provide a haven while ensuring that security vetting is adequate.

     But that’s not what Blitzer was after, so he tried again. To which Abdullah replied: “You’re into an election cycle, so I don’t think it’s fair for you to ask a foreign leader to express his opinion on candidates in your country running for election.”

     I’ve heard several good things said both by and about King Abdullah of Jordan. The above constitutes an item of confirmation.

     No doubt Blitzer, who leans leftward, was disappointed by his failure to elicit a statement of condemnation from Abdullah. Yet remember how harshly the Left condemned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel over the mere supposition that he’d tried to influence an American election in 2012?

     The Israeli leader faced accusations he’d tried to influence votes for Mitt Romney in 2012. Joe Klein in Time called it “outrageous . . . an unprecedented attempt by a putative American ally to influence a US presidential campaign.”

     The New Yorker’s David Remnick said Netanyahu seemed “determined . . . to alienate the president of the United States and . . . to make himself a factor” in the election.

     The Left’s attitude toward ethical standards appears to be that two are better than one. Not that that should come as a surprise to anyone familiar with the overall behavior of the American Left.