After uttering a slew of jokes about Tuesday’s Republican presidential debate, Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon made sure to play the role of equal opportunity offender during Wednesday’s monologue by teaming with comedian Billy Crystal to mock Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders for being “so old” (in borrowing a bit often employed in the Jay Leno days).

Just as a reality check, I asked a friend today what his reaction would be if I said with a sincere-sounding voice that he makes me want to strangle him. He said, "Almost sounds like a threat." I said, "No, it was supposed to be a joke." He said, "No it's not."

I also asked another person what her reaction would be if I earnestly called her "demented." She said, "You'd be insulting me." I asked, "What if I said I was just joking?" Response: "I'd say, 'The heck you were.'" In the past ten days, members of the press have decided that threatening language and an insult, both directed at GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, were only "jokes." There is virtually no chance that these same people would give the same treatment to threats and insults directed at Democrats and leftists.

On Wednesday's The View, liberal co-host Joy Behar surprisingly hit Hillary Clinton for failing to condemn one of her supporters who said he wanted to “strangle” Carly Fiorina. Behar admitted that “if somebody had said that to Donald Trump and he had laughed, we would be ripping him a new one and she did not -- she should have stood up to him, I'm sorry, I have to say that.”  

After the CNBC debate, Republicans were outraged at the vicious personal attacks not even  disguised as questions from the moderators. Defenders of CNBC suggested the Republicans were just whining. President Obama joked that if GOP candidates can’t handle TV moderators, they could never handle Russian strongman Vladimir Putin.

Then the Obama-lovers at Comcast proves Republicans’ point. When NBC anchor Lester Holt sat down for an interview with the president on November 2, there were no attacks. It was business as usual, just another syrupy Brian Williams-style lovefest.

Attempting to excuse Hillary Clinton laughing at one of her supporters wanting to “strangle” Carly Fiorina, NBC correspondent Kelly O’Donnell appeared on MSNBC’s 3 p.m. ET hour to offer up a defense of the harsh rhetoric: “He then told a very detailed story about having been an employee of HP and laid off and he had a lot of anger and upset about that...So he has a very direct personal relationship, if you will, to Fiorina as the CEO.”