Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus on Wednesday mocked the liberal, pro-abortion bias of MSNBC, educating anchor Thomas Roberts about the so-called "war on women." After Priebus denied such an attack on females existed, Roberts dismissed, "But Chairman, how can you say that it's a fiction if you stand on the record on what the Republican Party has said and done? "
Priebus highlighted the pro-Obama spin of MSNBC, taking it right to the network: "If you believe that all women are pro-abortion, maybe in your own world, maybe there's a war on women." An indignant Roberts huffed, "I think he term is pro-choice." Continuing to call out MSNBC, Priebus attacked, "...You and I are never going to be on same page because I happen to believe that life begins at conception and you don't." [See video below. MP3 audio here.]
Not used to such a challenge, Roberts stumbled, "You can't- This is not about what I believe or don't believe. This is me asking you about the Republican National Committee and your leadership.
Priebus, exposed, "I don't buy that, because I don't buy your argument. I happen to believe that you can be pro-women and pro-life. You don't. The that's the problem, Thomas."
A partial transcript of the April 11 segment, which aired at 11:14, follows;
THOMAS ROBERTS: Chairman, I want to get you on the record about something, because leadership is all about casting vision and you created a visual with your war on caterpillars when responding to what's been called the war on women. You called the war on women a fiction, obviously the war on caterpillar comment created a lot of headlines, is that something you want to walk back or clarify right now.
REINCE PRIEBUS: I'm not going to walk back. I'll double down on it. This war of women is a fiction that the Democrats have created. And the real war on women is the war that this president has put forward on the American people by not following through on his promises, by having women proportionately affected by the Obama economy. By- Go read Anita Dunn's book if you want to read about a war on women in the workplace, go read that book and you'll see what the White House's record on-
ROBERTS: But Chairman, how can you say that it's a fiction if you stand on the record on what the Republican Party has said and done? And let's just remind you, all three remaining Republican presidential candidates, they are pledging to eliminate federal funding for family planning. All three of them say they support so-called personhood measures. According to the Guttmacher Institute, 90 anti-abortion bills have been signed into law in 2011. This after many of the state legislators and state governorships swung back to the Republican side. So, how do you say that it's fiction when these laws exist on the book now, on the books in this country?
PRIEBUS: Because it's a fiction, Thomas. It's a fiction because, because, because number one, there is no war on women, it's a fiction. If you believe that all women are pro-abortion, maybe in your own world, maybe there's a war on women.
ROBERTS: I think the term is pro-choice.
PRIEBUS: The fact of the matter is that our party, our party believes in life for everybody. And the fact of the matter is, that the real war on women, the actual things that I think most women in this country are most concerned about, which is a good job, a good family, being able to live the American dream, provide for your kids and your family, that war on women is being perpetrated by President Barack Obama who has put our economy on the wrong track and we're going to have an opportunity to correct all of that in November.
ROBERTS: But, Reince, the fiction that you talk about, the phrase war on women it's now being uttered by Republicans like Mitt Romney. Take a listen to this.
PRIEBUS: There's been some talk about war on women. The real war on women has been waged by the Obama administration's failure on the economy.
ROBERTS: All right, so it sounds like you got the messaging going there from Romney, because it's the exact same phrasing that you gave me.
PRIEBUS: Yeah. We're just borrowing- We're just borrowing your messaging. We're just borrowing your messaging an pointing out to the American people that his war on women fiction that the Democrats have tried to perpetuated on us, is a war that if you actually look at what matters most to Americans, which is the jobs and economy, it's a war that the president is losing. Because women in the country know that the most important thing in any family is a good job. And this President isn't providing it.
ROBERTS: But, Reince, you can't discount the fact that we almost took the government to the brink of closing over Planned Parenthood. Correct? Did we or didn't we?
PRIEBUS: The Brink of closing? Thomas, the world will continue. The world will continue.
ROBERTS: The world will continue, exactly. But is this the fact of the Republican Party or not? Because you say it's a fiction and you don't want to walk back the fact that, you know, the war on caterpillar. That is fine. But, how can you still say it's a fiction when this truly exists and these laws 90, spiking in 2011, 90 different anti-abortion calls coming across the state legislatures, spiking in the country after the Republicans take back state legislatures and governorships. How do you say it's a fiction?
PRIEBUS: You and I are never going to be on the same page as long as you believe that if you're pro-life, you're anti-women. And you and I are never going to be on same page because I happen to believe that life begins at conception and you don't. So, since you don't believe that you're always going to- Let me finish.
ROBERTS: You can't- This is not about what I believe or don't believe. This is me asking you about the Republican National Committee and your leadership.
PRIEBUS: I don't buy that because I don't buy your argument. I happen to believe that you can be pro-women and pro-life. You don't. The that's the problem, Thomas. And I'm going to go back to the most important issue in this country, the most important issue in this country is the economy. The issue that you and President Obama don't want to talk about because it's an issue in regard to the economy that this president has been an absolute failure on. As long as he has been a failure in the economy he's going to lose the women vote in November, because he has not full field the promises to the Americans. And, that, my friend, is the most important issue facing women in this country.
ROBERTS: We shall see. Right now the gender gap is two-to-one with women under 50 in swing states right now leaning towards President Obama. Reince Priebus, chairman of the RNC, nice to see you.
PRIEBUS: Mmmhmm. Have a great day.
