In September 2007, a full-page advertisement in The New York Times sparked a political firestorm that consumed the White House and Congress. This week on pplpod, we look back at the infamous MoveOn.org campaign that labeled General David Petraeus "General Betray Us".
We dive into the details of the controversy, including:
• The Accusations: How the ad argued General Petraeus was "cooking the books" regarding the success of the Iraq War surge and violence statistics.
• The Political Fallout: From President George W. Bush calling the ad "disgusting" to the Senate passing an amendment condemning the attack on the General’s honor.
• The Pricing Scandal: The dispute over whether The New York Times gave MoveOn a preferential "standby" rate, leading the organization to pay back thousands of dollars.
• The Scrub: Why MoveOn erased the ad from their website in 2010 following Petraeus' nomination by President Obama.
