News Hounds

What a coincidence. Do you believe that? Where does Fox get these people?

Last Friday (May 30, 2008) Neil Cavuto (Fox's alleged "business news" guy) interviewed two Clinton supporters — Cynthia Ruccia and Marilu Socher — in a segment titled, "Clinton Supporters Claim They're being Bullied by DNC."

(Video below.)

At the outset, Cavuto said Ruccia and Socher "were in on that call with Dean," during which he (and by extension, the DNC) allegedly bullied them. Cavuto didn't say anything about when "that call" took place, who was on it, what the topic was, etc., etc., etc. He said Fox contacted the DNC for a comment and "it calls the conversation constructive." Again, yo, Mr. Spinmeister, could we have more info about "the conversation," and "that call?"

Directing his first question to Socher, Cavuto asked what happened:

Socher: "Well, I think it was constructive but I think that he made no promises to us. I think that basically he said that he felt that the liberal media and ah, Chris Matthews was to blame for Hillary's troubles in the election."

Trying not to pee his pants, gleeful that "liberals" would say the media is "liberal," Cavuto looked down ...   more »

News Hounds

This afternoon (June 1, 2008) Chris Wallace and Juan Williams continued to batter Obama with Father Pfleger acting as if his resignation from Trinity Church was inconsequential. Watching the Puerto Rico primary returns on FOX News from 3:39 to 3:55 PM, one might conclude that Barack Obama was spiraling down and poised to lose the nomination.

Wallace and Williams agreed that Obama has been losing primaries steadily since March noting that his favorability numbers have been going down. Juan Williams started rehashing the Pfleger visit to Obama's former church claiming he was " putting on a minstrel show". Wallace said, " Did you see the chorus in the background?"

Wallace asked if Obama could "still turn it around'? Williams said he could "make a display" but doubted it would help. " Rational people will say why should we believe it? They know what they saw." Wallace wondered about Obama's plan for a "big victory speech" on Tuesday night noting "it looks like he has some big problems."

When Bob Beckel appeared Wallace said, " Barack Obama is wheezing to the finish line" Then he asked Beckel who was the stronger candidate, Clinton or Obama? Beckel quickly chose Obama ...   more »

News Hounds

So, the next time Neil Cavuto lectures you about being a loser and a scumbag because you're having a hard time making ends meet - remember what his boss's mommy did.

URL: News Hounds

Think Progress

In his explosive new memoir, former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan claims that on Sept. 27, 2003 he asked Karl Rove “an unambiguous, unqualified catch-all question” about whether he was involved in “any way” with the leaking of CIA agent Valerie Plame’s identity. “Karl replied categorically, ‘No. Look, I didn’t even know about his wife,’” writes McClellan.

But on Fox News this week, Rove disputed McClellan’s description of their conversation, claiming that “Scott’s questions to me were: did I leak Valerie Plame’s name, and the answer is no.”

On NBC’s Meet The Press today, host Tim Russert asked McClellan about the discrepancy between his and Rove’s stories, pointing out that “one of you is not telling the truth.” Rove’s story is “pretty disingenuous,” replied McClellan. McClellan then added that he said the same thing under oath to a grand jury:

MCCLELLAN: But, let me mention this, that question, when I said, “were you involved in this in any way” and he categorically said, “no.” That is absolutely true. It is what I said under oath to the grand jury. It is what I told investigators. And, secondly, that is the same question I asked Scooter ...   more »

Think Progress

Earlier this week, speaking in Wisconsin, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) falsely claimed that troops in Iraq are down to “pre-surge levels.” “I can look you in the eye and tell you it’s succeeding,” he said of the surge. “We have drawn down to pre-surge levels.” In reality, there are now 155,000 troops in Iraq, far more than the 130,000 before the surge.

Today on ABC’s This Week, conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks said McCain’s misreading of the troop levels is an irrelevant issue, claiming it simply reflects the “stupidity of Blackberry politics.” Ultimately, McCain has been “right” about Iraq, he said:

BROOKS: Yeah, this is the stupidity of Blackberry politics. They get caught in this day to day. No one’s going to care what John McCain says about the fact levels. What they care is fundamentally who was right about Iraq. And there I think McCain has a pretty strong case. I mean, the Iraq war is going a lot better.

Watch it:

The troop levels comment wasn’t McCain’s only misreading of “the fact levels” in Iraq that day. In the same town hall, McCain said that the city of Mosul in Iraq is now “...   more »

Think Progress

AP reports:

A bipartisan group of 54 former state attorneys general from across the country has filed a federal appeals brief supporting former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman’s bid to overturn his criminal conviction.

Saying the prosecution and sentencing of Siegelman “raised serious First Amendment concerns,” the brief asks the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn Siegelman’s conviction.

URL: Think Progress