Andrea Mitchell, for a second day in a row , pushed for more gun control on her MSNBC show as she encouraged Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, "You and Mike Bloomberg...have all been yelling and screaming," about more restrictive anti-gun measures, "Somebody's got to listen in Washington." Initially invited on Thursday's Andrea Mitchell Reports to discuss the Obama administration's push for more green jobs, Nutter wasn't allowed to finish the segment without Mitchell pressing him: "As a big city mayor, what are you saying to the White House about waiting for this gun control speech we keep hearing about?" On yesterday's... continue reading
ABC and reporter John Quinones on Thursday stretched the bounds of journalism, hiring an actor to play a racist security guard as a way of testing how the people of Arizona would react to the state's "anti-immigration law." Previewing the network's " What Would You Do? " segment for Friday's Primetime Live, Quinones explained the undercover concept: "So, I go undercover, pretending to be someone who is about to be arrested and deported, simply by the way I look." The piece featured a cartoonish "security guard" harassing Mexican actors in Tucson, Arizona. Presumably, ABC chose a security guard because impersonating... continue reading
On Tuesday's "Daily Show," liberal comedian Jon Stewart flashed a smirk and wondered why the conservative base of the Republican Party is "so easily ignitable." The comedian hosted former Republican Party chair Michael Steele, who recounted the story of how he had to go about "re-igniting our base" after the party lost the White House and fell further into the minority in Congress in 2008. "Why is it so easy to ignite your base?" Stewart asked with a smile. Amidst laughter from the audience, Michael Steele played along and quipped "they're an excitable bunch." Stewart kept at it. "They are... continue reading
Barack Obama has chosen Charlotte, N.C., as the host city for the 2012 Democratic convention that will officially launch his re-election campaign. (The Republicans picked Tampa, Fla., in May of last year.) New York Times reporter Jeff Zeleny on Wednesday evaluated Obama's choice in terms favorable to the Democrats: " Can North Carolina Deliver Again? - Democrats Pick Charlotte for Convention ." Obama won North Carolina in 2008. President Obama signaled Tuesday that he would try to follow the same path to re-election that he charted in his first campaign, selecting Charlotte, N.C., to host the 2012 Democratic convention in... continue reading
With a script and a dramatic voice over befitting a trailer for the latest superhero movie out of Hollywood, one of the first promos for Chris Matthews' documentary on Bill Clinton has begun airing on MSNBC. The ad begins with an announcer teasing viewers, "His presidency was over, his mission just beginning" and then goes on to tell the story of a post-presidential Clinton achieving universal adulation complete with shots of adoring crowds and accolades from the likes of Tony Blair and of course Matthews, who shrieks like a fan boy: "You're like a one man Peace Corps! " Even... continue reading
In a pre-taped interview with gun control advocate New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, aired during Wednesday's 1PM ET hour on MSNBC, host Andrea Mitchell browbeat President Obama for having "absolutely nothing, not one word....not even a sentence" about gun control in his State of the Union address. Prior to the interview, Mitchell touted Bloomberg's anti-gun crusade: "Michael Bloomberg is on a mission, a mission to curb guns, especially the semiautomatic pistols and the magazine used in Tucson. He sent New York undercover investigators to buy guns and ammo at a Phoenix gun show last month." While she noted how... continue reading
Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski broke from the panel discussion Tuesday and implored Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell to close the state's so-called gun show loophole. The MSNBC panel was discussing lax gun show laws allowing persons to purchase semi-automatic guns with little or no background check performed on them. Brzezinski, seemingly abandoning journalism in favor of advocacy, tersely asked Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell on camera to close the state's gun show loophole. "Just close the loophole. Governor Bob McDonnell," Brzezinski pleaded, staring into the camera as she singled out the state's chief executive. Virginia law presently allows private transactions at... continue reading
Speaking to physicist Michio Kaku on Wednesday's CBS Early Show, co-host Chris Wragge fretted over the recent series of severe winter storms and wondered: "...nine storms in seven weeks, why is this happening?...a lot of people want to talk about global warming and thinking that that may actually come into play here. Is that accurate? Is that having an effect on what's going on?" Dr. Kaku agreed with the suggestion: "Yes. It seems to violate common sense, but as the Earth begins to heat up, that means more moist air in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico on average... continue reading
In just one segment, on Tuesday's Hardball, host Chris Matthews managed to hypocritically use violent "gun play" language, attack Michele Bachmann and Sarah Palin and even likened the Tea Party to the Muslim Brotherhood. Matthews, who made many absurd pronouncements, saved his zaniest comment for the Tea Party as he actually compared their potential primary challenges of Republicans to the Muslim Brotherhood going after Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, as he asked GOP strategist John Feehery: " So the Muslim Brotherhood has a parallel role here with the Tea Party, they're the ones who keep you honest and decide whether you've... continue reading
MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell on Tuesday repeated Democratic talking points in the wake of Monday's ruling by a federal judge that Barack Obama's health care legislation is unconstitutional. She spun the decision as " most politically written and charged ruling and the broadest ruling yet ." Talking to Jeanne Cummings, an assistant managing editor for Politico, Mitchell repeated the White House's version: "Stephanie Cutter, their point person, saying that 'the ruling is just a case of judicial overreaching. The judge's decision contradicts decades of Supreme Court precedent...'" Mitchell continued, "So, you know, their best argument here that it's judicial activism." The... continue reading