ABC's Claire Shipman Laments Lack of Political Will to Extend Unemploy
Good Morning America's Claire Shipman on Tuesday delivered a one-sided report on unemployment benefits and the fact that they end after 99 weeks. Reporting on those who have reached the limit, the so-called "99ers," she asserted, "...There's no hope in sight right now." Shipman featured three clips of those who are at the cap and one of Democrat Debbie Stabenow, who is advocating for an extension…
CNN Correspondent Touts Mangos as Tool to Fight Militants
Mango diplomacy, maybe. Mango defense, not so much.It would be much less disconcerting to say the above headline is a joke, ripped from the headlines of The Onion. But alas, it is frighteningly accurate.Hillary Clinton recently lauded the benefits of Pakistani mangos in a discussion of better trade cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan.As Reuters reports, "Hillary Clinton has lots to…
ABC, CBS, WaPo, NYT Use Loaded Poll Questions to Tout Dem Unemployment
The New York Times today touted two polls that supposedly demonstrate support for the Democratic position on unemployment benefits. But a further examination of the poll questions reveals that their findings were inaccurate; the questions misrepresented the issues at play, and the Republican position on the matter."Two national polls published last week suggest that most Americans are on […
Newsweek's Clift: U.S. Won't Face Greek Debt Tragedy 'Because We Can P
We all probably knew the sentiment of the American left for just not getting the entire Tea Party movement concept, but this statement ought to cement that notion. On the July 18 broadcast of "The McLaughlin Group," host John McLaughlin asked his panelists what the long-term implications of national debt could be for the United States. "Is America in danger of the current debt crisis becoming…
The Todd-Obama Interview: AP Misquotes Prez, Transcript Omits Referenc
Geez, can't anybody here play this game? During his visit to Holland, Michigan on Thursday, President Obama spoke with NBC's Chuck Todd. NBC aired the interview on the NBC Nightly News and The Today Show. (On Friday morning, NB's Geoffrey Dickens covered a separate aspect of that interview relating to the recess-appointed Donald Berwick.) In reporting on that interview, the Associated Press…
AP Three Months Late to Story of Cuba's Self-Admitted 1 Million 'Unpro
It's not a stretch to believe that the folks at the Associated Press would rather not report bad news from that communist workers' paradise known as Cuba. Just look at how the wire service has dealt with clearly significant news about the island nation's economy. Though the news, carried originally at the Miami Herald, is three months old, the AP as best I can tell finally got around to writing…
Heads, Obama Wins; Tails, Bush Loses: AP's Inconsistent 'Recession' De
There are two different ways of defining a recession. The Associated Press is using one of them to define its beginning, and the other to define its end. Using the former makes George Bush look bad; using the latter makes Barack Obama look good. Imagine that. The traditional definition of "recession," which is used as the official metric in the vast majority of countries around the world, is…
Reuters Editor Thinks Financial Regulation 'Still a Very Feudal' Syste
Chrystia Freeland, global editor-at-large for Reuters, believes the new financial regulations are still pretty loose."It is still a very feudal, very Byzantine regulatory system," Freeland complained on the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer, referring to the Senate's approval of a financial regulations bill yesterday.A radical policy, Freeland maintained, could have done away with the current "…
ABC's George Stephanopoulos Touts Obama's 'Big Day' of Financial Refor
Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos on Friday offered White House spin for the passage of financial reform, enthusing, "...You've got the well looking like it's capped. Passage of financial reform. Big day for the White House." Over two segments, he touted Obama's take: "But, the President called it a big win for the whole country." Talking to Jake Tapper, the former Democratic operative…
AP Misses Real Eye-Opener in Obama NBC Interview; Obama Claims He 'Got
UPDATE, JULY 18: This post was based in an Associated Press's quote of a statement President Obama made to NBC News that "my policies ... got us out of this mess." Subsequent review of the video and transcript of that interview shows that the President really said "my policies ... are getting us out of this mess." I have prepared a follow-up post dealing with this matter and a separate…
Federal Tax Collections Have Not Increased; Interest From the Fed is t
It's bad enough the federal government's official budget deficit has topped $1 trillion for the second year in a row, according to the just-released June 2010 Monthly Treasury Statement. But, focusing only on receipts for the moment, a closer look makes it obvious that the situation is even worse than it appears. Don't expect the establishment press to take any interest in the annoying but…
Luke Russert Touts Financial Bill as 'Huge Victory' for Dems, Fulfills
Reporting Thursday from Capitol Hill, MSNBC congressional correspondent Luke Russert touted a likely win for Senate Democrats on the Financial Reform Bill, saying it would be a "huge victory.""Obviously, [President Obama] ran on the slogan 'Change you can believe in,' with health care reform and financial regulatory reform," Russert commented, thus tying the passage of the financial reform bill…
ABC's Z. Byron Wolf Confused: Why Don't Americans Support Awesome Dems
UPDATE - 7/15, 7:00 PM: Politico makes a nearly identical argument. Ace tears it to shreads. Details below. The folks at ABC News are confused. Democrats are passing all this awesome legislation, they posit, so why are Americans acting so hostile and looking to hand Congress to the GOP? The key problems, ABC's Z. Byron Wolf deduces, are that Democrats simply have not embraced liberalism enough…
MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan Froths: Wall Street Frightens 'Little Boy' Obama
MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan appeared on Morning Joe, Wednesday, to dismiss Barack Obama as a "little boy" in the eyes of Wall Street and to assert the President "just bends over," rather than stand up to the financial industry. [Audio available here.]The charged language surprised host Joe Scarborough who sputtered, "You know, I was so uncomfortable with a couple of the things you said and then the…
