Florida Over U.S. Supremes; 4 to 3 Not "Sharply Divided"?; Florida Justices Not Called Liberal But U.S. Supremes Labeled Conservative 1) All four reporters on Inside Washington and Capital Gang favored the Florida over the U.S. Supreme Court. Evan Thomas: "I think that the Florida Supreme Court did do the right thing here." Al Hunt impugned the U.S. Supreme Court, claiming "the fix is in" and the stay order is "a disingenuous cover for the real agenda which is desperately to prevent any count." 2) To CBS News, a 4 to 3 decision by the Florida Supreme Court was just... continue reading
"Republican" U.S. Supreme Court, Non-Partisan Florida Supreme Court; CBS Ignored Chief Justice's Dissent 1) Dan Rather refused to apply a partisan label Friday night to either the Florida Supreme Court or the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, but he insisted the U.S. Supreme Court "has a majority of Republican-appointed justices" and the Florida legislature features "an overwhelming Republican majority." 2) Sam Donaldson: "If the Republicans complain that this was a Democratic court in Florida, that's a little dangerous ground because seven of the nine justices of the United States Supreme Court were appointed by Republican Presidents." 3) Chief Justice Charles... continue reading
Sauls Made It "Difficult"; Politics-Free FSC?; Florida GOP "Gamesmanship"; Geraldo: "Screw You!"; Fox Too Biased for Gore 1) "How difficult do you think that the lower court judge has made it for the Supreme Court?" So asked ABC's Peter Jennings in seeming to suggest Sanders Sauls ruled the wrong way. 2) Media Reality Check. "ABC Still Selling Florida Court as Pack of Moderates: Jack Ford Finds It 'Difficult' to See Politics in Florida Supremes." 3) CBS's Byron Pitts: "They really went after Al Gore's man -- early and often." NBC's David Bloom: "The seven Justices appeared divided and skeptical over... continue reading
Legislature's "Hammer"; Hillary's "Deference" to Conservatives?; Geraldo Promised No Honeymoon for Bush; Gore's Loss Elian's Fault 1) David Bloom thundered on NBC Nightly News: The Florida legislature "brought down the hammer tonight" in planning to name electors so "Democrats are seething," claiming "Jeb Bush and his friends" want "to take the decision away from the people." 2) CBS adopted the language of the plaintiffs about how in Seminole County "Republican operatives were allowed to alter absentee ballot applications." CBS's John Roberts volunteered that Gore's aides insist "he's not delusional." 3) Though conservatives see Hillary Clinton as "a symbol of an... continue reading
Tax Cut "Bad for the Economy"; Hillary's "Modern Fairy Tale"; Gore Has Lost Gumbel & Rivera; Gore to Hijack Air Force Two? 1) CBS's Scott Pelley pressed George Bush on 60 Minutes II about naming his brother Jeb the Attorney General. "He didn't go to law school," Bush observed. Pelley imagined Alan Greenspan would say "an across the board tax cut is probably bad for the economy" and demanded of Bush, so "will you listen?" 2) CBS relayed Gore's claim that Democrats and Republicans were treated differently with absentee ballots, but FNC's Jim Angle pointed that "the local elections supervisor... continue reading
ABC & NBC Skipped "Vacated" Order; Gore Urged to Fight On; Reporters a Sounding Board for Boies; Toobin's "Whack" 1) On Monday night all three broadcast networks led by stressing setbacks for Gore, but only Tom Brokaw incorporated finality into his lead as he suggested Judge Sanders Sauls "may have finally settled the presidential election." NBC's David Bloom still tagged Katherine Harris as the "Republican Secretary of State." 2) The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that "the judgment of the Supreme Court of Florida is therefore vacated," but of the broadcast network evening shows, only CBS mentioned the "vacate" order. ABC... continue reading
"Shiite" Florida House; Bush "Scared" & Scolded for Recession Talk; Race Card Raised; Felon Voting Ignored; Gore Goaded to Hit Harris 1) Margaret Carlson on the Florida legislature picking electors: A Newt Gingrich-like "Shiite move." 2) Veteran reporters over the weekend questioned George Bush's readiness. Steve Roberts argued: "It's almost as if he's scared to be President." David Shribman wondered whether Cheney is "going to be the President." Alan Murray piped in the joke that "when Mr. Cheney went into the hospital...Governor Bush was just a heartbeat away from the presidency." 3) Bush scolded for daring to suggest an economic... continue reading
NBC Tied Gore to "Honesty"; GOP Absentee Felony; Thomas Grudge Against Gore?; Kaplan Angry About Missing Big Story 1) Dan Rather warned the "Republican-dominated legislature is moving" to give the state's electors to Bush "no matter what" and NBC's David Bloom reported that by supporting such a move the Bush brothers were "dropping any pretense of neutrality." 2) ABC and NBC both highlighted Bush's response to NBC reporter David Gregory's question about being out of touch with Gregory himself noting how Bush laughed while ABC's Dean Reynolds intoned: "That was a serious question and I'm not sure that Bush really... continue reading
Rather Rued "Roadblock" for Gore; Jennings Suggested Gore a "Victim"; FNC Disclosed Broward Hand Count Shenanigans 1) Dan Rather adopted the Gore team spin in leading his broadcast by characterizing a court ruling as a "roadblock" in Gore's effort for a "fast-track Florida vote count." 2) Jennings, Rather and Brokaw all pressed Al Gore with tough questions on procedural matters, but none cast doubt on the legitimacy of his pursuit. Jennings also asked Gore if he thinks he's "the victim of circumstance" and Rather wondered if Gore believed "that the Bush forces are being if not dishonest, at least not... continue reading
Morning Shows Hugged Hillary; NBC's Shipman Tough on Gore; Army General Gore Imagined by Stephanopoulos -- Back to today's CyberAlert 1) NBC's Claire Shipman delivered a fairly tough interview on Today with Al Gore. She tossed some softballs but mainly stuck to pressing him about the accuracy of counting dimples and how legitimate his win would be if based only on votes from select counties. 2) In a fit of balance, on Tuesday morning Today hit both Cheney and Lieberman with devil's advocate points on vote counting. 3) On Today a day earlier Jonathan Alter contended Al Gore has a... continue reading