John Heilemann

Andrea Mitchell, John Heilemann Scold GOP 2012 Hopefuls for Disagreeing with Obama's Israel Policy
By Alex Fitzsimmons | May 20, 2011 | 5:25 PM EDT

In lockstep with Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg, who scolded Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to "please don't speak to my president that way," MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell cautioned of the "political pitfalls" for Republican presidential candidates who dared to challenge Barack Obama's speech on the Middle East.

On the May 20 edition of "Andrea Mitchell Reports," NBC's chief foreign affairs correspondent warned against criticizing the Democratic commander-in-chief and bewailed the "angry reception" he's received over his desire to see Israel surrender territory it acquired in the six-day Middle East war of 1967.

NY Mag's Heilemann: Obama's Got More Talent In His Little Finger Than All GOP Candidates
By Noel Sheppard | April 2, 2011 | 2:58 PM EDT

The liberal media are on a full-court press to make the entire GOP presidential candidate field look hapless and unelectable.

Doing his part Friday was New York magazine's John Heilemann who on "The Chris Matthews Show" said the Obama campaign thinks their guy has "more talent in his little finger than any of these Republicans" (video follows with transcript and commentary):

MSNBC's Brzezinski Hits Gov. Walker From Left, Wonders Why He's Not Raising Taxes
By Matt Hadro | February 22, 2011 | 7:25 PM EST

"Morning Joe" co-host Mika Brzezinski and regular guest John Heilemann both pulled the class warfare card and pressured Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) Tuesday on why he did not raise taxes on the wealthy to cover the state's budget shortfall, rather than pushing to require union members pay into their pensions.

"You're receiving a lot of criticism for only asking the other side to give, and they have given – on health care and pensions. Are you asking people in your state across the board, including the wealthiest, to give, to help deal with the crisis....and I mean tax increases for the wealthy, or in any way, has anyone else been asked to give?" Brzezinski pressed Walker.

Following up on Brzezinski's question, New York Magazine columnist John Heilemann asked Walker why he cut the corporate income tax rate and chose to go after unions – but Walker corrected him. "We didn't cut corporate taxes," he answered.
 

John Heilemann: Republican Presidential Field Weakest Anybody Has Seen In Our Lifetime
By Noel Sheppard | February 14, 2011 | 12:13 AM EST

New York Magazine's John Heilemann on Friday said the Republican presidential field is the weakest anybody has seen in our lifetime.

This absurd statement was made on the syndicated "Chris Matthews Show" in a segment about which GOPers will be throwing their name into the ring in the coming months before next year's elections (video follows with transcript and commentary):

Entire Chris Matthews Panel Sees Obama A Big Winner In First Quarter: 'The Comeback Kid'
By Noel Sheppard | January 10, 2011 | 12:20 AM EST

Talk about bullish consensus, the entire panel on this weekend's "Chris Matthews Show" felt that President Obama was going to be a big winner in the first quarter of this year making him the proverbial comeback kid.

Alex Wagner of Politics Daily went so far as to predict, "Obama’s going to be flying on angels wings two feet off the ground" (video follows with transcript and commentary):

Chris Matthews Show Panel Predicts GOP House Will Make Obama 'Look Good'
By Geoffrey Dickens | January 3, 2011 | 12:19 PM EST

On the syndicated Chris Matthews Show, over the weekend, CNN's Gloria Borger predicted that incoming House Republicans will overreach and make Barack Obama "look good" in comparison and allow the President to become the "grown-up." During a segment in which host Chris Matthews asked his panel to predict how Obama will deal with the GOP, New York magazine's John Heilemann suggested Republicans would "work with him" on issues like deficit reduction and education, which prompted Matthews to ask Borger if this meant Republicans could no longer call him a "socialist."

CHRIS MATTHEWS: So, you're shaking your head. Is one of the advantages of cutting deals with Republicans, they can't call you a socialist anymore?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN: Right! They can't call you a socialist anymore. Although there will be some Republicans, in the new Congress, who are not gonna like the deals that the other Republicans cut. So he's still gonna have those problems. But they will make him look good, by the way. And he will be able to triangulate and to look like the grown-up which is-

MATTHEWS: Oh my favorite word!

BORGER: -what people want.

A little bit later on in the segment the Atlantic's Andrew Sullivan insisted a GOP House will allow Obama to become the "President he wants to be" because, as he insisted, "he's not a big spending liberal, never was!"

NY Mag's Heilemann: Obama's the Only Serious Adult in Deficit Reduction Conversation
By Noel Sheppard | December 5, 2010 | 12:58 PM EST

New York magazine's John Heilemann said this weekend that President Obama is the only serious adult in the deficit reduction conversation now going on in Washington.

This deliciously came seconds before Heilemann told other guests on the syndicated "Chris Matthews Show," "I have been dispirited by the lack of strategy on the part of the White House since the midterm elections...specifically on this [issue]" (video follows with transcript and commentary):

Heilemann and O'Donnell: Obama Will Demonize Victorious Republicans Just Like Clinton Did
By Noel Sheppard | October 31, 2010 | 7:03 PM EDT

If the Republicans are victorious at the polls next Tuesday, President Obama will demonize them the same way Bill Clinton did after the 1994 midterm elections. 

So said New York magazine's John Heilemann and NBC News's Norah O'Donnell on this weekend's "The Chris Matthews Show" (video follows with transcript and commentary):

Matthews & Heilemann Label Toomey as ‘Right-Leaning’ & ‘Pretty Conservative,’ But No Label for Sestak
By Brad Wilmouth | October 31, 2010 | 1:16 PM EDT

 On Sunday’s syndicated Chris Matthews Show, as host Matthews asked the panel to predict the outcome of the Pennsylvania Senate election, he described Republican candidate Pat Toomey as "right-leaning," but assigned no ideological label to Democratic candidate Joe Sestak. Panel member John Heilemann of New York magazine asserted that Toomey is "not just right-leaning, he’s a pretty conservative guy," while also giving no label to Sestak. Ironically, it was Helene Cooper of the New York Times who finally described Sestak as "so far to the left."

Later in the show, as the group discussed what Republican control of Congress would mean for President Obama, Heilemann continued to see Republicans being at an extreme without noting any liberal extremism as he recounted President Clinton’s battle in the 1990s with Republican Speaker New Gingrich and how President Obama could play a similar role with a Republican Congress. Heilemann: "He (President Clinton) took advantage of Newt Gingrich’s extremism to make Republicans look bad. Obama can play that part of the game possibly very effectively."

On Today: Young Voters Disappointed that 'Centrist' Obama Hasn't Governed as Their 'Progressive Champion'
By Geoffrey Dickens | October 28, 2010 | 1:54 PM EDT

 New York magazine's John Heilemann apparently thinks Barack Obama hasn't been liberal enough, as he told NBC's Matt Lauer, on Thursday's Today show, the "centrist" president was compelled to go on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to fire up his young supporters because they lost faith in their "progressive champion." After Lauer relayed a point Stewart made during his interview with the President, that voters were disappointed by Obama's "timidity", Heilemann agreed as he explained: "I think there's also kind of a fundamental confusion about who the President is. A lot of young voters...thought that he was a progressive champion and they've seen him govern in a more pragmatic, centrist way."

The following exchange was aired on the October 28 Today show:

MATT LAUER: When you see the President on The Daily Show, obviously courting young voters, if that group was, for lack of a better expression, fired up and ready to go two years ago for Democratic candidates and this president, how would you guys describe their level of enthusiasm and involvement, right now?

MARK HALPERIN, TIME: A lot less than two years ago.

LAUER: Why?

Chris Matthews Winces In Pain When Guest Says Dems Could Lose Senate
By Noel Sheppard | August 15, 2010 | 12:35 PM EDT
Chris Matthews this weekend winced in pain when a guest on his syndicated program said it's actually more likely the Democrats will lose the Senate than the House in the upcoming midterm elections.

As the "Chris Matthews Show" entered its final segment when panelists offer their predictions, New York magazine's John Heilemann said, "There are a lot of really smart Democratic politicos that I talk to who are actually a little bit more worried right now that it's possible Democrats could lose the Senate more easily than they could lose the House."

Matthews interrupted with a pained expression on his face, "That's like losing a dozen seats."

As Heilemann continued, the host once again interrupted, "Could [Sen. Barbara] Boxer lose in California?" 

When Heilemann said yes, Matthews grimaced, "You're talking tsunami" (video follows with transcript and commentary): 

Chris Matthews Show: Hillary Should Replace Biden to Help Obama's Re-election
By Noel Sheppard | August 8, 2010 | 12:46 PM EDT

The panel of the syndicated "Chris Matthews Show" this weekend campaigned for Hillary Clinton to replace Joe Biden as Vice President in order to assist Barack Obama's re-election in 2012 and set her up for a successful presidential bid in 2016. 

As NewsBusters reported Wednesday, Chris Matthews on that evening's "Hardball" had former Virginia governor Doug Wilder and New York magazine's John Heilemann on to discuss the merits of this strategy.

The "Hardball" host must have found this quite compelling, for he decided to do an entire segment on his weekend program with guests Erin Burnett of CNBC, Kelly O'Donnell of NBC, Howard Fineman of Newsweek, and Heilemann.

After playing a clip from Wednesday's "Hardball," as well as a video of Clinton in 2009 saying she'd never run for president again, Matthews and his panel started the campaigning (videos follow with commentary):