In a preview of President Obama's upcoming 60 Minutes interview on Friday's CBS Early Show, correspondent Steve Kroft is shown commiserating with the commander-in-chief over midterm election losses: "People have made the argument you lost control of the narrative, you've let other people define you, that you haven't sold your successes well enough." Kroft was understanding as he lamented Obama's political problems: "People who were among your most ardent supporters...feel a little disappointed, that they think that you've lost your mojo, that you lost your ability, that touch you had during the campaign to inspire and lead." He noted how... continue reading
For those smug ones on the left who constantly insist Fox News is remarkably synonymous with the Republican Party, they might want to play down the smugness. That might start with MSNBC chief Phil Griffin, who mocked Fox News over News Corp. donations to Republicans and insisted to the New York Times "Show me an example of us fund-raising." Politico's Simmi Aujla reports that Keith Olbermann couldn't just put Democrats on his show, he also gave to them after they appeared: MSNBC host Keith Olbermann made campaign contributions to two Arizona members of Congress and failed Kentucky Senate candidate Jack... continue reading
Contrasting a "contrite" President Obama with a "less conciliatory" Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell, CBS reporter Nancy Cordes on Thursday night conveyed Democratic concern about likely House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's pledge to hold oversight hearings as she recalled "a barrage of damaging probes, one of which ended in impeachment hearings." Cantor, Cordes asserted, has called "for more investigations into the administration, with quote 'one major oversight hearing each week.' That worries Democrats, who remember what happened the last time Republicans controlled the House during a Democratic presidency." She then challenged Darrell Issa, now the ranking minority member on the... continue reading
In an attempt to re-litigate the past, MSNBC contributor Cenk Uygur indicted former President George W. Bush for war crimes. Bellowing today from his regular perch on late afternon Dylan Ratigan Show, Uygur mischaracterized the 43rd President's position on the waterboarding of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed as "go ahead and torture him basically" before demanding that Bush be prosecuted for allegedly violating Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. "Now it seems to me we have a confession here of a war crime and a clear violation of international and United States law," proclaimed Uygur. "President George W. Bush... continue reading
On Thursday's Countdown show on MSNBC, as he plugged a segment on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's appeal to President Obama to cooperate with the GOP, host Keith Olbermann suggested that Obama should "kick" the "ass" of McConnell rather than surrender to the Republican Senator's demands. Referring to McConnell during a plug, Olbermann complained: "Once again, he honestly explains what compromise means: agreeing with him. And instead of kicking him in the ass, the President agrees to sit down and chat." After a few more plugs in which the Countdown host mocked McConnell for asking Obama to move in the... continue reading
Chris Matthews must be really pleased with himself, after accusing Rep. Michele Bachmann of being under hypnosis, in his now famous election night skirmish with the Minnesota Congresswoman, as he attached that description to yet another Republican on Thursday night's Hardball. After noting that Ben Quayle won his congressional race, Matthews went on to play a clip of one of his ads, after which he blurted: "God. Is he under hypnosis?" Matthews also took a dig at Ben Quayle's father calling him "infamous" as seen in the following item aired during the "Sideshow" segment from the November 4 Hardball: CHRIS... continue reading
At the top of Wednesday's CBS Evening News, anchor Katie Couric worried: "Can the President and the new speaker find common ground or are we headed for gridlock?" Moments later, she made it clear who would be to blame: "And while the President spoke of seeking common ground with the new majority, presumptive Speaker John Boehner said the GOP victory is a rejection of the Obama agenda." Later, Couric continued to preemptively blame Republicans for any government stalemate: "We were initially hearing a lot of talk about cooperation and bipartisanship, but it seemed as if, at least the Republicans, in... continue reading
Lawrence "Crazy Larry" O'Donnell was back to his former self during MSNBC's Election Night coverage Tuesday. During the 9 p.m. EDT hour the MSNBC anchor claimed that if Rand Paul holds to his "principles" and filibusters an attempt to raise the debt ceiling, it would destroy the United States' credit rating and possibly spark a worldwide depression. O'Donnell also pressed House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on the matter. After Cantor refused to give O'Donnell a direct answer to his oddball question, the frustrated MSNBC host ranted that he didn't want to see Cantor on MSNBC again. In the beginning... continue reading
James Carville on Thursday appeared on Good Morning America to discuss Tuesday's Republican landslide, but faced no questions about his erroneous prediction that Democrats would enjoy 40 years of dominance. On May 4, 2009, Carville stopped by GMA to tout 40 More Years: How the Democrats Will Rule the Next Generation, his book on the subject. An ABC Graphic hyped, "Democrats 1932-1968, Republicans 1968-2008, Democrats 2008-2048? " In light of massive GOP victories, Stephanopoulos also could have questioned his friend about a quip from the 2009 appearance: "...These tea baggers, they turned everybody off. There were a bunch of like... continue reading
On Thursday's CBS Early Show, co-host Harry Smith saw Republican goals to limit government spending as antithetical to improving the economy: "How do you unleash the economy and not spend any money, oh, by the way, because that's the other mandate, is don't increase the deficit and don't - don't - 'I don't want one more cent of tax on me.'" Smith put the question to Time magazine Washington deputy bureau chief Michael Crowley, who was equally skeptical: "I think it may be impossible, frankly. What Democrats would like to do is they would say you actually have to spend... continue reading