Wall Street Journal may endorse (Rupert Murdoch?) for president

Did you feel a strong tremor a little while ago? That had nothing to do with an earthquake. It was the news that the Wall Street Journal, the symbol of the influential little New York street that so much of the non-capitalist world loves to hate, may express an editorial preference for president this year.

Now you understand why the ground moved. Not since Herbert Hoover -- who was the 31st president and we're in the lengthy process of electing No. 44 -- has that stuffy, elitist, intelligent conservative newspaper announced an endorsement for president. A whole lot of good it did Hoover. And even without endorsements it's usually been, shall we say, crystal clear whose ideas the highly respected Journal highly respected.

What's different this time is that the newspaper has a new owner, Rupert Murdoch, the aging ex-Australian who is well on his way to owning virtually everything in the world that is named Fox or is likely to increase in value.

Murdoch was born on a large island far, far away during the Hoover administration, 77 years ago next week, as a matter of fact.

As someone with roughly $8.8 billion in assets, mainly involved in the giant and modestly named News Corp., Murdoch's words are carefully monitored. The other day he said, "I think it would be fun to own a newspaper."

No, wait. That was Citizen Kane. What Murdoch said, using the ...

royal "we," was, "We haven't made up our minds yet." Which probably means, "Yes, of course, we'll be endorsing a candidate for president. What's the point of owning a newspaper unless you can throw your weight around?"

Murdoch also owns the N.Y. Post, which has thrown its tabloid weight around by routinely attacking the female New York senator and endorsing the Illinois senator in that state's primary.

So wouldn't that be something if the print voice of American conservatism, not counting the National Review and Weekly Standard, ended up breaking its tradition and endorsing the man whom the National Journal calls the most liberal senator in Congress?

What does Murdoch think the Wall Street Journal will say? "I don't know what we'll do in the general election," he said, which is billionaire talk for "I've decided, but I ain't saying yet."

Our esteemed colleague, Michael Calderone, who writes about media and politics, has the full story over at Politico.com.

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo Credit: BBC