The playbook is always the same.  The Democrats, in collusion with the media, target Republicans, no matter who they are.  They trashed Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, John McCain, Mitt Romney, and Donald Trump.

Then, when people die, such as Reagan or McCain, they act as though they had always loved them.

Here is the New York Times on McCain in 2008:

As tough as the times are, the selection of a new president is easy.  After nearly two years of a grueling and ugly campaign, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has proved that he is the right choice to be the 44th president of the United States. ...

In the same time, Senator John McCain of Arizona has retreated farther and farther to the fringe of American politics, running a campaign on partisan division, class warfare and even hints of racism.  His policies and worldview are mired in the past.  His choice of a running mate so evidently unfit for the office was a final act of opportunism and bad judgment that eclipsed the accomplishments of 26 years in Congress.

Here is the Washington Post on McCain in 2008:

The choice is made easy in part by Mr. McCain's disappointing campaign, above all his irresponsible selection of a running mate who is not ready to be president.  It is made easy in larger part, though, because of our admiration for Mr. Obama and the impressive qualities he has shown during this long race.  Yes, we have reservations and concerns, almost inevitably, given Mr. Obama's relatively brief experience in national politics.  But we also have enormous hopes.

Here is Joe Biden on McCain in 2008:

The campaign a person runs says everything about the way they'll [sic] govern. The McCain-Palin campaign decided to bet the house – decided to bet the house – on the politics perfected by Karl Rove.  Those tactics may be good at squeaking by in an election, but they are bad if you want to lead one nation, indivisible.

Here is John Lewis on McCain in 2008:

Civil rights icon and Georgia congressman John Lewis is accusing John McCain and Sarah Palin of stoking hate, likening the atmosphere at Republican campaign events to those featuring George Wallace, the segregationist former governor of Alabama and presidential candidate.  McCain's campaign has responded with a statement in the candidate's name, urging Barack Obama to repudiate Lewis's comments.

"What I am seeing reminds me too much of another destructive period in American history," Lewis said in a statement issued today for Politico's Arena forum.  "Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin are sowing the seeds of hatred and division, and there is no need for this hostility in our political discourse."

Rick Davis is being widely quoted this week in his praise of John McCain.  Davis was McCain's campaign manager in 2000 and 2008.  I wonder why the media doesn't point out the connections between Davis and Paul Manafort.

I wonder why there is no mention of the Davis connection to Russia and to McCain.

A top political adviser in Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign helped arrange an introduction in 2006 between McCain and a Russian billionaire whose suspected links to anti-democratic and organized-crime figures are so controversial that the U.S. government revoked his visa.

The only time the media liked McCain is when he was trashing Republicans.  They liked him before 2008, when he wasn't challenging Obama.  Then they ripped him in 2008.  They loved him again when he went after the Russian dossier and trashed Trump.

Where is the maverick on the left who ripped Obama's disastrous policies?  He would have been given no coverage in the papers or on the networks.

Objective reporting has mostly disappeared over decades.

Image credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.