Regulations and Rhetoric

Last week, the president wrote in the Wall Street Journal an article titled "Toward a 21st-Century Regulatory System" in which he announced that he had issued an executive order to review all government regulations on a cost-benefit ratio basis. In itself, this is a good idea, although the president makes it explicit that the cost-benefit analysis must take account of — as benefits — intangible…
Tony Blankley
January 27th, 2011 3:27 PM

Media Critic to Maddow: My Dog 'Has Better Journalism Credentials and

Some on the left have been crying foul at CNN's decision to air live Rep. Michele Bachmann's response to the president's State of the Union address Tuesday night. None have been more vocal than MSNBC libtalker Rachel Maddow. One media critic had enough. On Thursday, the Baltimore Sun's David Zurawik laid into Maddow's criticism, saying it derives from "the mentality of a lockstep party member…
Lachlan Markay
January 27th, 2011 2:51 PM

CNN Email Alert Cites 'Surge' in New Home Sales -- To Worst December o

To those who follow the news fairly closely and look at underlying reports, CNN's email alerts are sometimes entertaining. Much less frequently are the accurate and informative. Even though they tend not to realize it, those who don't follow the news closely and attempt to stay informed by relying on CNN's alerts are regularly deceived by the network that used to call itself "the most trusted…
Tom Blumer
January 27th, 2011 2:42 PM

Today Show Highlights Harry Reid Hitting Obama From the Left on Earmar

In what was perhaps a move to make Barack Obama appear more moderate than he is, NBC's Kelly O'Donnell, on Thursday's Today show, played up a "rift" between him and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid over government spending. In her piece, O'Donnell hyped that Reid was "calling out the White House" on his State of the Union claim that he would veto any bill with earmarks in it.  The…
Geoffrey Dickens
January 27th, 2011 2:24 PM

Liberal Media Ignore Plagiarism Allegations Against Obama

As it turns out, mainstream media outlets that lauded President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech as "downright Reaganesque" might be on to something. While ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and MSNBC exalted the commander-in-chief, at least one observer charged the Democratic president with crafting a speech that was "tantamount to plagiarism." In a column on the U.S. News site, presidential…
Alex Fitzsimmons
January 27th, 2011 1:14 PM

Filmmaker: MSNBC Needs 'Bogeyman' Sarah Palin for Ratings

On Wednesday, the Hollywood Reporter tried to dissect cable news's strange fascination with Sarah Palin. For Fox it's more apparent: Palin is a paid contributor, after all. But for MSNBC, whose primetime hosts have mentioned her more than any other cable news personalities, it seems to be a case of mutual dependency. MSNBC needs Palin. In a response to the THR article, filmmaker John Ziegler…
Lachlan Markay
January 27th, 2011 1:04 PM

ABC, CBS Provide Skeptical Looks at Obama's Plan to Spend More, Cut th

Of the three evening newscasts, only NBC's Chuck Todd on Wednesday offered no critical analysis of Barack Obama's call for both new spending and deficit reduction. ABC's Jake Tapper actually investigated the proposed plans and concluded, "...It almost looks like a wash between his new ideas for cutting and his new ideas for spending." CBS's Chip Reid also highlighted Republican opposition and…
Scott Whitlock
January 27th, 2011 12:57 PM

Bozell: Attacks on Limbaugh by Calif. State Senator Yee 'Reek to High

Editor's Note: In the last 24 hours, State Senator Leland Yee (D-CA) has incriminated Rush Limbaugh for a racist fax sent to him by an unidentified individual which allegedly read, "Rush Limbaugh will kick your Ch--k ass and expose you for the fool you are.” NewsBusters publisher and Media Research Center (MRC) President Brent Bozell issued the following statement regarding the media…
Brent Bozell
January 27th, 2011 12:53 PM

Tea Party Leader Battles Chris Matthews, Defends Michele Bachmann: 'Yo

For the second day in a row, MSNBC's Chris Matthews mercilessly attacked Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) while repeatedly referring to her as a "balloon head." Knowing what he was going to be up against, Texas Tea Party leader Phillip Dennis came prepared for the "Hardball" host's hostility, and at the end of a lengthy segment, marvelously summed up exactly why Matthews and others in…
Noel Sheppard
January 27th, 2011 11:44 AM

Rahm Seen His Opportunities, and He Took 'Em

Ah so, every day, in every way, it becomes ever clearer that Rahm Emanuel's campaign for mayor of Chicago and mine have striking similarities. Rahm went off to Washington two years ago to pursue politics on the national stage. I left Chicago about 40 years ago to pursue politicians on the national stage, particularly huckster politicians. Two of my targets were Rahm's old boss Bill Clinton and…
R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr.
January 27th, 2011 10:50 AM

NPR Cries Factual Foul on Paul Ryan for Saying 'Failed Stimulus' in SO

Beware when the liberal media starts a "fact check" story on political speeches. Their "facts" often come directly from liberal policy wonks. On Wednesday's Morning Edition, NPR ran through a series of Obama claims without really saying he mangled a fact. Reporter Elisabeth Shogren suggested he was too optimistic about getting electric cars on the road with "this Congress" (ahem, not…
Tim Graham
January 27th, 2011 10:42 AM

Obama's Time Cover Transition: From FDR To Reagan

What a difference a shellacking makes . . . Just after Barack Obama won the White House in 2008, Time photoshopped him into an iconic FDR photo at the wheel of a convertible, jaunty cigarette-holder in mouth. Obama was riding high as the champion of the left, the promise and personification of a born-again big-government New Deal. That was then, this is the 9+% unemployment, recent-…
Mark Finkelstein
January 27th, 2011 8:42 AM

NPR Highlights Liberal 'Buzz' That CNN Was Unethical for Offering Air

At their website, NPR tried to add to the controversy that CNN would dare to air Rep. Michele Bachmann offering a Tea Party response to Obama's State of the Union address, despite her "history of inflammatory remarks." Reporter Corey Dade underlined that it could undermine CNN's image of neutrality, as if it wasn't a liberal network: "I can't figure how you can partner with a political action…
Tim Graham
January 27th, 2011 7:18 AM

Still Trolling to Blame the Right for Violence: L.A. Times Notes Threa

The media couldn't pin the Gabrielle Giffords shooting on conservatives, but that doesn't mean they've stopped trolling for proof that conservatives are racist and violent. In California, a liberal state senator running for Mayor of San Francisco named Leland Yee received an indirect death threat after he attacked Rush Limbaugh. Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Tony Beard said he and the California…
Tim Graham
January 26th, 2011 11:31 PM