They can't keep their candidates off of FoxNews.

The nationÂ’s top Democrats are suddenly rushing to appear on the Fox News Channel, which they once had shunned as enemy territory as the nemesis of liberal bloggers.

The detente with Fox has provoked a backlash from progressive bloggers, who contend the party’s leaders are turning their backs on the base — and lending credibility and legitimacy to the network liberals love to hate — in a quest for a few swing votes.

In a span of eight days, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY.) and Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean are all taking their seats with the network that calls itself “fair and balanced” but is widely viewed as skewing conservative.

With the partyÂ’s presidential contest reduced to hand-to-hand combat, Democrats are turning to the ratings leader among cable news channels in a clear rebuff to the liberal activists known as the Netroots.

Markos Moulitsas, founder of the leading liberal site Daily Kos, told Politico’s Michael Calderone: "Democrats are being idiotic by going on that network.”

Ari Melber, the Net movement correspondent for The Nation, told Politico by phone that progressive activists and the Netroots are “not happy about it.”

“I don’t think that it is tenable to completely neglect or ignore what your base wants,” Melber said.

Of course, it is absurd for Democrats to stay after the highest rated cable news channel. After all, that is where the viewers -- including a lot of the independents that they claim to be reaching out to. Why cede those voters to the GOP by making Fox a Democrat-free zone?

Besides -- who are the KOSsacks and DUmmies going to vote for this fall in a fit of disapproval of the Fox interviews -- John McCain?

Posted by: Greg at 10:15 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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