Open Thread Wednesday

For general discussion and comment about the news. Of note today: Our comedy show NewsBusted has a new episode, please check it out.
NB Staff
June 12th, 2013 10:25 AM

Markey on Budget: 'It's Really Not Math. It's Just Arithmetic

Last night, Republican Gabriel Gomez debated Democratic Rep. Ed Markey for the second time in the race to fill John Kerry's vacant senate seat in Massachusetts, and had this to say about the budget: "it's not math, it's arithmetic."  Gomez had taken a swipe at Democrats for ignoring the fiscal realities facing the nation.
Matt Vespa
June 12th, 2013 10:24 AM

Leno: ‘Now That Tebow’s Associated With the Word "Patriot" He’s

Jay Leno continued his humorous attacks on Barack Obama Tuesday. During a series of opening monologue jokes about the various scandals plaguing the White House, the NBC Tonight Show host said of quarterback Tim Tebow, “Now that he's associated with the word 'Patriot' he's being audited by the IRS” (video follows with transcript and absolutely no need for additional commentary):
Noel Sheppard
June 12th, 2013 9:36 AM

MSNBC Panel Agrees: Republicans 'Don't Care About' Individuals Struggl

The pundits over at MSNBC have it all figured out: Republicans don’t care about the millions struggling in the Obama economy. At least that was what a left-wing panel on Sunday’s The Ed Show decided, with Salon’s Joan Walsh declaring that Republicans “don’t care” about people who have lost their jobs. Walsh’s ridiculous comments came after guest host Joy Reid preposterously worried that the…
Andrew Lautz
June 12th, 2013 9:16 AM

CBS Anchor Scott Pelley Has 'Meltdown' at N.Y. Post After He Skipped N

It looked bizarre. After CBS broke the State Department scandal on Monday’s “CBS This Morning,” there was nothing on “CBS Evening News.” The New York Post “Page Six” gossips suggested it was “because Pelley and his EP, Pat Shevlin, were peeved” it broke in the morning, not on their show. “Pelley called Page Six last night to vehemently deny he had a meltdown — then promptly went into a…
Tim Graham
June 12th, 2013 7:33 AM

Bozell Column: Obama, Less Tyrannical Than Bush

The unfolding story of the Obama administration monitoring not just telephone records but Internet usage has drawn media coverage with adjectives like “astonishing.” No doubt about it, even the pro-Obama press acknowledges it is a scandal. Still, it is laughable that the media would label him a “dictator” or discuss the “I word.” That’s not what greeted George W. Bush at the end of 2005. Just…
Brent Bozell
June 11th, 2013 11:14 PM

Pat Buchanan: Republicans Caving on Amnesty Like Chamberlain Giving Su

Not surprisingly, conservative columnist Pat Buchanan is not pleased with Republicans talking about agreeing to an immigration reform bill that ends up being another amnesty without closing the border. On the Laura Ingraham Show Tuesday, Buchanan equated it to Neville Chamberlain giving Sudetenland to Adolf Hitler.
Noel Sheppard
June 11th, 2013 9:52 PM

NB ToonsDay | Life in Obama's USA (Under Surveillance, Always

For today's NB ToonsDay, what else but a collection of cartoons about the Obama administration snooping around on civilian phone calls, emails, etc. Click "read more" to see them, but beware, the government is watching you laugh!
NB Staff
June 11th, 2013 7:35 PM

Gore Accuses Koch Brothers of Being 'Purveyors of the Dirtiest Energy

Former Vice President Al Gore made some disgraceful statements about the Koch brothers Tuesday. Participating in a Google+ Conversation, Gore accused two of the nation's largest employers of being "purveyors of the dirtiest energy on earth" (video follows with transcript and commentary):
Noel Sheppard
June 11th, 2013 7:17 PM

MSNBC's Wolffe Compares Darrell Issa to IRS Corruption

Appearing on Monday's The Last Word show, MSNBC.com Executive Editor Richard Wolffe -- formerly of Newsweek -- joined MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell in defending the actions of IRS employees who focused on Tea Party groups for scrutiny, and ended up suggesting that it was Republican Congressman Darrell Issa, rather than the IRS, that was "acting out of public view for purely partisan reasons…
Brad Wilmouth
June 11th, 2013 6:42 PM

NYTimes, WSJ Fail to Quote Critics of Plan B in Story About Obama Back

Yesterday evening the Obama administration announced it would back down from plans to fight a federal judge's ruling that the Plan B emergency contraception pill must be made available over-the-counter and without age restriction in U.S. pharmacies. Previously the FDA permitted over-the-counter sales to girls and women aged 17 and older and the Obama administration wished to revise that age…
Ken Shepherd
June 11th, 2013 6:26 PM

Was Martin Luther King Wiretapped ‘Because He Was Campaigning for Ci

With attention drawn to government surveillance of citizens, some in the media are recalling that this has long been an issue.   Columnist Phil Kadner of the Southtown Star, a publication of the Chicago Sun-Times, did so in a recent column, "Do you want security or freedom?":  When Communists were suspected of conspiring to undermine our country, innocent political activists were targeted in…
Mike Bates
June 11th, 2013 6:17 PM

Puzzled Matt Lauer to O'Reilly: 'You Think There's Been Less Transpare

In an interview with Bill O'Reilly on Tuesday's NBC Today, co-host Matt Lauer seemed perplexed by the Fox News host asserting that "the Obama administration doesn't tell us anything" about numerous government scandals: "So you think there's been less transparency under this administrations than there has been under past administrations?" [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump…
Kyle Drennen
June 11th, 2013 5:13 PM

CBS Hounds Rand Paul on NSA Spying Scandal: 'Why Only Now Raise These

Norah O'Donnell unsurprisingly conducted a confrontational interview of Senator Rand Paul on Tuesday's CBS This Morning, pummeling the Kentucky Republican for his strong opposition to the National Security Agency's controversial PRISM surveillance program. The anchor played up how "all three branches of government have approved this surveillance" after Paul asserted that "we don't want the…
Matthew Balan
June 11th, 2013 4:48 PM