Word on the street

Bob Burns, a South Dakota State University professor who is frequently quoted in the Argus Leader by David Kranz as some sort of objective "expert," was spotted today in Brookings plastered with Daschle and Herseth stickers at a League of Women Voters meeting. It's perfectly fine for Burns to take sides, but holding himself out as a "neutral" analyst and being frequently quoted by the "neutral" Argus Leader's "neutral" David Kranz is a total sham.

For more on Bob Burns' "neutral" background, see this post. Interestingly, every quote of his in any Argus Leader article that discusses Daschle (as well as in other publications) is almost invariably pro-Daschle. It's a total sham that Burns is held out to be a neutral observer. Take the following delightful example from only 12 days ago, where Burns says John Thune is "confusing voters":

"It is a close race," says Bob Burns, political science professor at South Dakota State University.

But he thinks Daschle still holds the edge.

Thune is confusing voters with his television ads, Burns says.

"There are two contradicting messages. He says he is independent and not tied to the White House with every vote, and then the other message is that Senator Daschle is an obstructionist and he will be fully supportive of the president," Burns said.