![]() The thing is, though, that while you can argue the cartoon goes right to the precipice of acceptable taste, Ann Telnaes's reasoning is correct. ![]() ![]() "When a politician uses his children as political props, as Ted Cruz recently did in his Christmas parody video in which his eldest daughter read (with her father’s dramatic flourish) a passage of an edited Christmas classic, then I figure they are fair game,"said Telnaes in response to the predictable backlash. Still, that outraged backlash grew into a cacophony and the Post has now pulled the cartoon, with editorial page editor Fred Hiatt saying that he hadn't seen the cartoon before it was published. It implied that little Caroline and Catherine were dancing monkeys to Cruz, not to Telnaes or The Washington Post. Granted, portraying them as monkeys was asking for trouble, but make no mistake: the cartoon, by Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Ann Telnaes, was aimed not at Cruz's daughters but at Cruz himself. He claimed the high ground, sarcastically calling the cartoon "classy" and expressing disappointment that his opponents would be so morally bankrupt as to attack his children. So when The Washington Post ran an editorial cartoon this morning that featured Cruz dressed as an organ grinder Santa with two dancing monkeys attached to him on leashes, he and his supporters lashed out immediately. This is why the no-children rule works both ways and it's considered as déclassé to exploit your kids as part of your campaign as it is to attack a candidate's kids on the trail or in the media.īut Ted Cruz did exploit his kids - and he did it knowing full-well that if anyone called him out for it he could take umbrage on behalf of his unimpeachable daughters' hurt feelings. There's just something tawdry about the sight of a child running down Dad's talking points, if for no other reason than the fact that it's so cynical to use kids as human shields in politics given that the competition can't hit back at them without looking terrible. "There's a complete double-standard for daughters and sons of Republicans," she said, claiming the media treated her differently from offspring of Democratic politicians such as Chelsea Clinton, daughter of former President Bill Clinton and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.įor more on the 2016 presidential race, see the Reuters blog, "Tales from the Trail" ().While it can be argued that every politician uses his or her family to some extent, if only to prove his or her life is "normal" or "traditional," it's rare that a candidate genuinely trots out his kids and gives them speaking parts in campaign ads and it's even rarer that those kids participate in direct attacks on the competition. Meghan McCain, daughter of Senator John McCain, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2008 against Barack Obama, appeared on Fox News and called on the Washington Post to apologize. Their clothing, physical features, underage drinking and even boyfriends have been fodder for barbs. Over the years there has been spirited debate whenever the children of presidents and other politicians, both Republicans and Democrats, have had their mostly private lives pierced by journalists. "I understand why Ann thought an exception to the policy was warranted in this case, but I do not agree." "I failed to look at this cartoon before it was published," Post editorial page editor Fred Hiatt said. The Post said its policy generally is to avoid children in its editorial section. He sought $1 million in contributions in 24 hours to "send a message to the Washington Post." But my girls didn't sign up for that."Ĭruz responded to the cartoon on Tuesday with an email to supporters that, according to NBC's website, featured the cartoon. "If folks want to attack me, knock yourself out," he said. Telnaes said that since Cruz used the girls in a campaign video, she was justified in putting them in her cartoon, which was on the Post website on Tuesday before editors removed it.Ĭruz, rising in polls ahead of next November's election, said at a campaign event in Oklahoma that he expected to be attacked but not his daughters. The Washington Post pulled the cartoon by Pulitzer Prize winner Ann Telnaes. The debate dominated cable news television and social media. It followed a new Cruz campaign TV ad in which the Texas senator shares with his wife and two young children faux Christmas stories entitled, "How Obamacare Stole Christmas" and "The Grinch Who Lost Her Emails," a reference to Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton. presidential campaigns when it published - and then retracted - a political cartoon portraying Republican candidate Ted Cruz as an organ grinder and his daughters as monkeys. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Washington Post ignited a debate over the role of children in U.S.
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