Matthews Keeps Pounding Perry's Social Security Ponzi Critique Despite

September 14th, 2011 10:29 AM
Despite having been exposed for at least twice calling Social Security a Ponzi scheme, MSNBC's Chris Matthews continues to pound Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry for saying the same thing. Here's what the "Hardball" host hypocritically said on Tuesday's program (video follows with transcript and commentary):

NYT Reporters Huff: Social Security Is Not a Ponzi Scheme

September 14th, 2011 9:45 AM
Tuesday's New York Times's “Check Point” was the latest liberally slanted fact check of a G.O.P. presidential debate, this time by two liberal reporters, Michael Cooper and Nicholas Confessore, “Perry’s Criticism of Social Security as ‘Ponzi Scheme' Dogs Him in Debate.” Confessore, who once worked for the liberal journals Washington Monthly and American Prospect, once again staunchly…

Yahoo's Headline Implies GOP Debate Audience Wanted Uninsured to Die

September 13th, 2011 9:18 PM
Rachel Rose Hartman's Tuesday item for Yahoo! News's "The Ticket" blog carried a misleading headline ("Audience at tea party debate cheers leaving uninsured to die") implying that the majority, if not all, of the audience at Monday's GOP presidential debate thought that the critically injured who are uninsured should be left to die. In reality, only a handful cheered and/or laughed in response…

CNN's Gergen: Many Americans 'Horrified' by GOP Debate

September 13th, 2011 8:02 PM
CNN's political analyst David Gergen remarked Monday that many Americans were "horrified" at what they heard from the Republican presidential debate, co-sponsored by the Tea Party Express and CNN. "I was getting notes about they ought to keep this people locked up and not let them out. Don't let them do anything to the country," Gergen remarked. Gergen's comments came in the  post-debate…

Chris Matthews Falsely Accuses Ron Paul of Saying He’d Let Someone W

September 13th, 2011 7:27 PM
Exactly how do anchors on MSNBC get away with routinely stating complete falsehoods without any repercussions? On Tuesday, Chris Matthews wrongly accused Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul of saying during the previous evening's debate he would let a critically ill person die if the patient didn't have health insurance (video follows with transcript and commentary, file photo):

MRC Study: CNN's Tea Party Debate More Fair Than NBC News/Politico Hat

September 13th, 2011 6:13 PM
The left is already out attacking last night's CNN Tea Party debate, with the New York Times leading the way as it cried "the first event hosted jointly by a major news organization and a Tea Party group" has "left some questioning whether the network had gone too far in reaching for centrist credibility." That charge only makes sense in a liberal world view that thought Brian Williams' biased…

Matt Lauer Urges Bachmann to Bash Perry; NBC Debate Coverage Promotes

September 13th, 2011 5:34 PM
In an interview with Michele Bachmann on Tuesday's NBC Today, co-host Matt Lauer actually delayed discussion of job creation as he pushed her to attack Texas Governor Rick Perry: "We'll talk about jobs in a second, but I do want to stick on this controversy over...Perry mandating vaccinations for HPV." Bachmann had attempted to begin on the subject of President Obama's jobs plan, but Lauer…

CBS Uses Cartoon to Spread Liberal Anti-Perry Talking Points

September 13th, 2011 5:28 PM
On Tuesday's Early Show, CBS targeted Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry by using their 'Fast Draw' animators to depict the Texas governor as gun-slinging, right-wing extremist. Cartoonists Josh Landis and Mitch Butler turned to a Texas journalist who claimed that Perry "would turn back the clock. He would take America back to where there was basically no safety net" [audio clips…

Memo to GOP: Social Security Demogoguery Is the Province of Liberals

September 13th, 2011 4:22 PM
It is very disheartening to see Republican presidential primary candidates racing to out-demagogue one another in denouncing Texas Gov. Rick Perry's accurate description of Social Security as a Ponzi scheme. It used to be that Republicans at least waited until the general election campaign to pander to liberals. I admire Perry both for telling it like it is and for having the guts to stand by…

George Stephanopoulos Again Features an Obama Aide to Deride GOP Debat

September 13th, 2011 12:37 PM
After last Wednesday's Republican debate, Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos turned to a top Democrat for reaction. After last Thursday's jobs speech by Barack Obama, Stephanopoulos turned to a top Democrat for reaction. On Tuesday, after the GOP presidential contenders debated in Florida, the ABC host turned to yet another top Democrat for reaction. Stephanopoulos offered softball…

Flashback 2007: Tim Russert and Chris Matthews Agree Social Security I

September 13th, 2011 11:03 AM
Whether or not Social Security is a Ponzi scheme was again a source of great discussion during Monday's Republican presidential debate, and it appears this is likely going to be a hot issue throughout this election cycle. What should be interesting to participants and pundits alike is that during the last presidential campaign, on November 5, 2007, the late Tim Russert, and Chris Matthews,…

Open Thread: Will Last Night's Attacks on Perry Hurt His Campaign

September 13th, 2011 10:45 AM
Last night's debate brought a few blows to front runner Gov. Rick Perry, who kept his cool despite the attacks from every other candidate. While Perry's overall performance at last night's debate seemed to have improved over last week's debate, his stumbling on the issues of immigration and health care may have hurt him in the eyes of some Tea Party supporters. Do you think the attacks against…

Friedman Floats Scarborough-Bloomberg Third-Party Ticket

September 13th, 2011 10:03 AM
Joe Scarborough and Mike Bloomberg for president and veep? Yeah, that's the ticket—according to New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, who floated the idea during his Morning Joe appearance today.   Friedman foresaw Scarborough-Bloomberg running on a platform of Simpson-Bowles on the economy, an "investment agenda" [infrastructure spending], and getting out of Afghanistan ASAP.  "I would…

After Hitting GOP Candidates from Left, NBC’s Williams Presses Obama

September 13th, 2011 3:44 AM
A few days after he hit Republicans from the left when he moderated a presidential candidates debate on MSNBC, NBC’s Brian Williams pressed President Barack Obama with the concerns of Obama supporters to the President’s left (“Members of your base are asking: ‘When are you going to get your Harry Truman on?’” and “What do you say to those Americans who voted for that man on the poster that said…