NBC's Guthrie Urges Obama 'Go for Broke' with New Stimulus

In an interview with former press secretary and current Obama campaign advisor Robert Gibbs on Sunday' Meet the Press, substitute host Savannah Guthrie pushed the President from the left: "If the President thinks more should be done, if he thinks there should be more stimulus, why doesn't he just go for broke? Why doesn't he go out there and ask for it, make a case for it?"

Guthrie worried that Obama was "pre-settling" and that, "He's making a political calculus about what he thinks might be able to pass and not getting out there and fighting for what he thinks is best of the economy." Gibbs responded: "...the President's going to fight for exactly what he believes is best for the economy because he's done that every single day he's been president. But you just mentioned it, Savannah. What can get through Congress?"

In contrast to her exchange with Gibbs, when Guthrie interviewed Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels minutes later, she actually discouraged Republicans from standing on principle: "...at the Republican debate the candidates were asked whether they would accept a deal in which there were $10 of spending cuts for every $1 of tax hikes. And every single candidate raised their hand....does that convey a sense that Republicans are so intransigent on this issue that this problem they profess to care about, i.e. the deficit, can't be solved?"

Daniels countered by pointing to stubbornness on the Democratic side: "Well, first, there's tons of intransigence on the other side. The Democrats have been utterly, I'd say, not only stubborn, but cynical in their protestations that they won't touch, they won't, they won't modernize or rebuild the safety net programs, and everyone knows that has to happen."

Invoking Michael Moore, CNN Asks Panel Who to Arrest In Wake of American Credit Downgrade

Referencing Michael Moore's absurd tweet that President Obama should arrest the CEO of Standard & Poors for downgrading America's credit rating, CNN's Kyra Phillips actually asked her panel members who they would like to see arrested in the fallout of the downgrade.

Whether or not the question was serious, Moore's tweet was. On Monday he implored President Obama , via Twitter, to "show some guts" and arrest the CEO of Standard & Poors. "These criminals brought down the economy in 2008& [sic] now they will do it again," Moore tweeted.
<iframe title="MRC TV video player" width="500" height="260" src="http://www.mrctv.org/embed/104453" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Moore may or may not have realized that he was imploring President Obama to assume unprecedented dictatorial power in a time of peace.

"All right, that's Michael Moore's opinion," Phillips remarked. "So guys, who would you want to see arrested over this?" Whether or not the question was in jest, CNN still held Moore's "opinion" in such regard as to air a discussion over it.

Liberal Roland Martin abruptly called for the arrest of "Every single banker, every single credit agency."

"Arrested for what?" a smiling Will Cain exclaimed. "You don't arrest people for being moronic."

A transcript of the segment, which aired on August 9 at 10:33 a.m. EDT, is as follows:



KYRA PHILLIPS: All right, here we go, "Buzzer Beater." Filmmaker Michael Moore – he tweeted out, quote, telling this to the President, "Show some guts and arrest the CEO of S&P. These criminals brought down the economy in 2008, and now they will do it again." All right, that's Michael Moore's opinion. So guys, who would you want to see arrested over this? Roland?

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN political analyst: All of them. Make them all do the perp walk! Every single banker, every single credit agency. Arrest them all, the crooks.

PHILLIPS: Will?

WILL CAIN, CNN contributor: Arrested for what? Just – I know I've got ten seconds. But let me tell you about the liberal prism of mine and the conserve perception. I think when a liberal looks at the world and sees bad things, they see malevolence and conspiracy. I see morons. You don't arrest people for being moronic.

MARTIN: Yes, you do.

(Laughter)

PHILLIPS: Pete?

PETE DOMINICK, comedian: Hold on, Kyra, I'm making a trade to help the Dow go back up. Oh, listen, listen, this is the fault, I say, of all of the senators who voted against the Brown-Kauffman amendment that would have led to the breakup of banks. Wall Street is just doing what they're allowed to get away with. Congress needs to regulate them and create rules they can't break. And by the way, the Italian authorities did raid Standard & Poor's yesterday.

MARTIN: Good!

New York Times Columnists Ridicule Tea Party: 'Zombies' Wearing 'Suicide Vests'

New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd on Wednesday continued to ramp up the newspaper’s vitriolic attacks against Tea Party conservatives, bizarrely describing them as “cannibals” “zombies” and “vampires.”

Linking the debt ceiling deal to The Exorcist, Halloween and Alien (among other horror movies), Dowd offered these hyperbolic comparisons:

Tea Party budget-slashers didn’t sport the black capes with blood-red lining beloved by the campy Vincent Price or wield the tinglers deployed by William Castle. But in their feral attack on Washington, in their talent for raising goose bumps from Wall Street to Westminster, this strange, compelling and uncompromising new force epitomized “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and evoked comparisons to our most mythic creatures of the night.

They were like cannibals, eating their own party and leaders alive. They were like vampires, draining the country’s reputation, credit rating and compassion. They were like zombies, relentlessly and mindlessly coming back again and again to assault their unnerved victims, Boehner and President Obama. They were like the metallic beasts in “Alien” flashing mouths of teeth inside other mouths of teeth, bursting out of Boehner’s stomach every time he came to a bouquet of microphones. (Conjuring that last image on Monday, Vladimir Putin described America as “a parasite.”)

The piece included other cartoonish assertions, such as:

The horror director Brian De Palma once described the simple essence of his genre: “There is just something about a woman and a knife.” But, in this case, it was the president — and the federal government — being chased through dim corridors by a maniacal gang with big knives held high. Like Dracula’s castle, the majestic Capitol suddenly seemed forbidding, befogged not with dry ice but with the stressed-out Speaker John Boehner’s smoking. Like all great horror movies, this one existed in that surreal zone between fantasy and reality, as the Tea Party zealots created their own reality in midnight meetings.

The liberal columnist summed up the resolution to the debt standoff by lamenting, “The gory, Gothic melodrama on the Potomac is a summer horror blockbuster — without the catharsis.”

Savaging the Tea Party has been a theme of Times columnists lately. On Tuesday, columnist Joe Nocera attacked Tea Party Republicans as “terrorists” who have “waged jihad on the American people” while wearing “suicide vests.” Excerpts:

You know what they say: Never negotiate with terrorists. It only encourages them.

These last few months, much of the country has watched in horror as the Tea Party Republicans have waged jihad on the American people. Their intransigent demands for deep spending cuts, coupled with their almost gleeful willingness to destroy one of America’s most invaluable assets, its full faith and credit, were incredibly irresponsible. But they didn’t care. Their goal, they believed, was worth blowing up the country for, if that’s what it took.

Nocera actually managed to top those inflammatory comments by closing:

For now, the Tea Party Republicans can put aside their suicide vests. But rest assured: They’ll have them on again soon enough. After all, they’ve gotten so much encouragement.

CNN Ignores Poll Results Showing Strong Support for 'Cut, Cap, and Balance'

CNN touted results from its newly-released poll Thursday showing 64 percent of Americans favor a balance of spending cuts and tax increases in the debt ceiling debate, as well as raising the debt ceiling. What the network failed to mention in its on-air reports was that their poll also demonstrated how Americans strongly favor two conservative positions -- passage of a balanced budget amendment (74 percent), along with spending cuts and future spending caps ("Cut, Cap and Balance").

CNN's pollsters summarized the House GOP's "Cut, Cap and Balance" proposal:

In another proposal, Congress would raise the debt ceiling only if a balanced budget amendment were passed by both houses of Congress and substantial spending cuts and caps on future spending were approved. Would you favor or oppose this proposal?

66 percent ansered in favor.

In a report shortly before 2pm ET, CNN's deputy political director Paul Steinhauser emphasized that the poll results favored Democrats over Republicans. He insisted that "the headline here is Americans want compromise," and pointed out that 64 percent of respondents favored including both spending cuts and tax increases, "kind of like what the president is suggesting, what the Gang of Six is suggesting."

Then he reported that President Obama and the Democrats will receive less blame than congressional Republicans if no deal is reached by the deadline, August 2.

During its news coverage from the end of the 1 p.m. EDT hour into the 6 p.m. EDT hour, CNN mentioned at least three times that 62 percent of those polled favored raising the debt ceiling with or without debt reduction. At least twice, the network reported that 64 percent of those polled wanted a plan with both spending cuts and tax increases.

And CNN made sure to report that if no deal is made before the deadline, August 2, only 30 percent would blame President Obama while 51 percent would blame Republicans. They also mentioned the poll result showing that only 33 percent of respondents see the Republicans as acting responsibly in the debt ceiling debate, compared with 51 percent for Obama.

Adhering to the standard Democratic talking points, Time managing editor Rick Stengel told CNN's Wolf Blitzer during the 6 p.m. EDT hour of The Situation Room that if tax rates go up in 2013, it's "not a tax hike," demanding that "this is something that Republicans have to get used to."

Stengel was reacting to a clip of Paul Ryan saying that if the Bush tax cuts are permitted to lapse in 2013, that's a "massive tax increase." Stengel ridiculed that as "Washington-speak."

RICK STENGEL: Well, it's funny. I mean, Wolf, Washington-speak is a language of its own. I mean, the expiration of tax cuts is not a tax hike. Remember, in Washington people always say "the reduction in the rate of increase is a cut." It's not. This is something that Republicans have to get used to, and we as Americans have to get used to. I mean, to reduce the debt ceiling, it has to be a combination of revenue enhancement and reducing the debt. You know, these negotiations are not a suicide pact. I think both parties will realize that eventually they have to come to some sort of agreement, and somebody's gonna swallow something that they don't like. That's just inevitable, that's politics.

Networks Cast Big-Government Obama as Pushing 'Very Significant' and 'Painful' Budget Cuts

Reporters have repeatedly portrayed Barack Obama as a deficit hawk committed to "slashing" spending, as MRC Research Director Rich Noyes documented in April ahead of the president's much-anticipated budget speech.

While the media touted Obama's budget blueprint, which contained puny cuts, as "deeply painful," CBO Director Doug Elmendorf told Congress the president's framework lacked sufficient detail to be scored as a credible plan.

Since then, Obama still hasn't revealed a serious plan to cut spending, yet correspondents continue to paint the president as a budget cutter.

Echoing an earlier report in which he asserted that Obama's initial budget blueprint "promises pain," ABC News White House correspondent Jake Tapper framed Obama's latest plan on the July 15 edition of World News, as a "big, painful deficit reduction package."

Tapper's counterpart at CBS, Bill Plante, on the July 18 Early Show, trumpeted Obama's "push" for a deal to "slash" trillions from the deficit: "That's what President Obama continues to push for, a deal that would slash four trillion dollars from the federal deficit over the next decade and increase taxes on some corporations and wealthy Americans."

At the Washington Post, financial reporter Lori Montgomery claimed in a front-page story on July 7 that Obama sought to "slash more than $4 trillion from annual budget deficits over the next decade, stabilize borrowing, and defuse the biggest budgetary time bombs that are set to explode."

On July 14, New York Times reporter Jackie Calmes insisted "President Obama wants deficit reduction." Later in the piece, she proclaimed "Obama has conceded to [Republicans] this year on spending cuts, including for those entitlement programs Democrats favor."

The next day, NYT White House reporter Mark Landler channeled his colleague in the latest edition of the paper's "Caucus" podcast: "It’s also worth pointing out that the president and Democrats are putting some very significant cuts on the table."

As Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) explained to CBS's Bob Schieffer on Sunday's "Face the Nation," Obama has paid lip service to the idea of deficit reduction, but hasn't put a serious plan to cut spending down on paper. Nevertheless, the media continue to advance the narrative that the president is a disciplined budget cutter.

Tea Party Congressman to CNN's Spitzer: Press Must Stop Protecting Obama

Conservative Congressman Joe Walsh of Illinois twice called out the media for protecting President Obama on Thursday night's In the Arena, and told host Eliot Spitzer to his face that "you're doing a much better job of making [Obama's] case than he did."

Before the interview began, CNN excoriated the verbal war on Capitol Hill that ensued after Obama's criticism of Republicans in his press conference, likening the spat to the frat-house chaos in the movie "Animal House." However, Rep. Walsh minced no words when he came on the show, saying the president was "in over his head," "in denial," and "acted like a 10 year-old" in the presser.



Then Walsh called out the press not once, but twice to Spitzer's face. "I'm not talking about you in particular, Eliot, but your profession has protected [President Obama]. He's in a cocoon. And the minute somebody pokes him and gets critical with him, look at how huffy he gets."

The former Democrat governor of New York offered a defense for President Obama, detailing the work he has done on the budget and giving a reason why he kept peddling points Walsh deemed "insignificant." Walsh had hit Obama for repeatedly emphasizing a corporate tax break on private jet owners as an example of why Republicans were not serious enough about closing tax loopholes.

"Eliot, you're doing a much better job making [Obama's] case than he did," Walsh boldly responded.

Later on, the congressman again chided the press for covering for Obama. "This is a president, whether you want to admit it or not, has been protected by your profession," he told Spitzer. "And that's got to stop. Everything he says now matters. And when he plays politics with issues, like they are, you've got to call him on it."

Spitzer, predictably, denied any notion that he or the rest of the media were taking it easy on the president. "I've been very hard on this president over a whole slew of issues, as have so many people in not only the news media, but the cable news media and there's obviously FOX that's very critical, so I don't think he's been protected by anybody," Spitzer insisted.

CNN Anchor Questions If Gov't Should Really Be Limited Within Constitutional Powers

CNN's Ali Velshi apparently believes the idea of a federal government limited within Constitutional powers is a little far-fetched. He made his thoughts known in an interview with Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) on Tuesday's American Morning, hours after Bachmann declared her candidacy for president during a GOP primary debate.

"Now, the fact is, when we have to change things in society, government has had to provide incentives to capital to move into certain areas. Think about energy, think about the environment," he told Bachmann.



"Do you really believe that the federal government should offer no incentives, should undertake no planning with anything that doesn't have to do with powers granted to them in the Constitution?" he challenged the congresswoman.

Not only does Velshi discount the thought of a limited federal government, but he seeks to frame those who believe in a Constitutional government as outside the mainstream. Liberals are quick to invoke the Constitution when the rights of terrorist suspects are at stake, but what might Velshi think of James Madison's description of the powers delegated to the federal government by the Constitution, "few and defined"?

Velshi's next question of Bachmann had to do with the corporate tax rates. He dismissed the Republican argument that corporate tax rates in America are higher than in the rest of the world.

"You know full well that, really, American corporations don't pay those taxes," he condescendingly argued to Bachmann. "So, on balance, American corporations are not taxed more than others."

Bachmann responded that the corporations simply don't escape the tax rates, but pass them on to the consumer. "Well, the taxes are paid as you know by the consumers in this country. So, those are the viewers that are watching you this morning," she retorted.

"That's why what we want to do is to be able to create all of the incentives that we can so we can have job growth in the United States," she added.

A transcript of the segment, which aired on June 14 at 6:37 a.m. EDT, is as follows:

ALI VELSHI: All right. You have said in the past that you feel very, very strongly – and this is before the Tea Party movement got started. You feel very strongly that government should be limited to what it is allowed to do in the Constitution. Now, the fact is, when we have to change things in society, government has had to provide incentives to capital to move into certain areas. Think about energy, think about the environment.

Do you really believe that the federal government should offer no incentives, should undertake no planning with anything that doesn't have to do with powers granted to them in the Constitution?

Rep. MICHELE BACHMANN (R-Minn.), GOP presidential candidate: Well, I think there's two very different roles of government. And one role that President Obama takes is a command-and-control view of the economy, where the government has a very heavy hand. The best example is Obamacare. Now, what's wrong with that, Ali, is the fact that under Obamacare, even the Congressional Budget Office says we will lose 800,000 jobs. That's something we can't afford in this economy.

That's why I subscribe to a supply-and-demand view of the free markets. I want to see job growth. We'll create hundreds of thousands of jobs under the free market as opposed to the command-and-control view of President Obama. That's the message I look forward to taking across the United States.

VELSHI: Congresswoman Bachmann, I enjoy having this conversation with you, because I know you know taxes better than possibly anyone standing on that stage. It's a constant Republican mantra that lowering taxes will create jobs and that America has some of the highest corporate tax rates in the world. You know full well that, really, American corporations don't pay those taxes. So, on balance, American corporations are not taxed more than others. How do we deal with that?

BACHMANN: Well, the taxes are paid as you know by the consumers in this country. So, those are the viewers that are watching you this morning. They pay those taxes because the corporations have to pass them on to the consumers. That's why what we want to do is to be able to create all of the incentives that we can so we can have job growth in the United States.

CNN Host Slams the Tea Party: "Not the Brightest," Akin to Hitler's Mobs?

Conservative author Ann Coulter appeared on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight on Tuesday evening to promote her new book, Demonic, which argues that liberals are historically prone to a mob mentality. But host Piers Morgan used Coulter's thesis as a launching pad to make several insulting jabs at the Tea Party, even suggesting that those protesting against big government are somehow "similar" to the mobs drummed up by fascist dictators Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.

And, when Coulter said she "loved" the Tea Party, Morgan seemed flabbergasted: "I don’t get that because you’re a smart cookie," before again impugning the Tea Party: "They're not among the brightest of spellers."


When Coulter defended Tea Partiers as "smarter than any liberal," Morgan could not accept it, repeatedly asking: "Do you think so?...You really think that?...In your heart?"