The way this question is posed is so revealing. This question is about whether consultants and pundits have agency. Why? Elites are asking the question.

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The real question concerns the volunteers at campaigns who Hayes described as always having their opinion about how best to run the campaign. The trouble is- these are the people who don't have agency.

You know, the citizens. They should either shut up and let the technocrats run the campaign, or shut up and let the elected representatives work their policy magic, or for 2012, shut up and write a check... and fast, because the other side is raising a kajillion bucks!

Agency in the 21st century. Very sad.

Pundits are primarily actors and actresses. They're dramatists and entertainers, some of whom m-ass-querade as "hard hitting" journalists. The top pundits exist in the politi-social realm of the true American Aristocracy, but they pretend to be average folks. They dramatize and exacerbate. They kvetch and pontificate. They exaggerate and stir the pot and exploit anger for profit. They also pretend to be highly ethical. . They throw stones continuously at others and can't see their own reflections. They're primarily corporate news thespians, with many masks. . On the other hand, they deliver a large amount of info. and are quite capable of wit and humor and insight and brilliance. Unfortunately they also increase societal rifts. They tend to increase the negativity and pessimism, and also lower the morale of the country at large. 80% of the country has turned against them. They turn negativity and divisionism and cynicism and "depressionism" into $$$$$$$$$$$$, and rarely are they singing a happy tune. They work for Wall Street and corporate America primarily and the few who are simply truthful and well intentioned and not greedy or shallow or simply self serving or corporate droids are the few, the bright, wondrous shining lights of American potential. Most may simply be trying to survive in a corporate centered culture of exploitation and manipulation. Some few are actually journalists. A few have courage. They're primarily a pack of shallow, howling, yapper-poodles with paste on smiles and dollar signs in their eyes, who wear corporate sponsored goggles. . By the way, pundits are different from their guests, unless their guests are pundits too, which would be a gaggle of pundits, or a pundit-gaggle, and if they gobbled, they'd be a gobbling gaggle of corporate goggle wearing yapper poodles.

Pundits carry water for someone. There are two MSNBC hosts - not Chris Hayes - I've watched change positions depending on which way the wind is blowing. Changing your mind is one thing - pretending to support a policy to make political points is a waste. Screaming over one another is another waste of valuable time and to often the case. Talking points buz words are the lazy persons way of expressing a point of view.

Pundits remind me of copy machine salesmen. No matter what your problem is, you need a copy machine.

So few people care about truth, in this election, I don't know what can be done by those who do care.

I was talking with a customer who is an "independent." But, like so many of those who claim to be independents, he has only voted for republicans, and never for a democrat. I asked a question, and he responded not just with the same message as Rush Limbaugh, not just with the same words, but with the same tone of voice, the same inflection.

How can intellegent people fight this blind, brainless, rhetoric.