Nedra Pickler Covers Economics (The Horror!!!)

I recall meeting reporter Nedra Pickler during the Dean campaign. She was well-known on the campaign for her articles which presented non-contradictions that at first seemed like absurdist jokes, statements like "But when he criticizes Bush's links to Lay, Dean never mentions that Enron's mismanagement was not the result of the president's tax-cut package."

She seemed quite nice in person, but not that bright, and from talking with her I was left with the sense that she just didn't understand why sentences like the above didn't make sense.

Today she has an AP article which says "Barack Obama says John McCain's plan to balance the budget doesn't add up. Easy for him to say: It's not a goal he's even trying to reach."

The rest of the article typifies the he-said, she-said policy article that makes my head explode. A reasonable intelligent person reading the article would not come away understanding that McCain's "plan to balance the budget" has as much connection to reality as my plans to play starting forward for Italy in the next World Cup, or the Underpants Gnomes' plan to make their fortune by gathering boxers and briefs.

Which all makes me wonder how anyone imagined it was a good idea to have Nedra writing about economics. I'm sure she could write fine stories about topics like trends in pet fashion this year, or how to buy a bowling ball. Please, AP, keep her away from policy!