MS NOW’s ‘Heavy Lift’ Copium: Five Times for Doug Jones, the Alabama Long Shot

Saturday night’s episode of The Weekend: Primetime on MS NOW featured Democrat Doug Jones discussing his long-shot bid to become governor of Alabama in a race against Tommy Tuberville.

In a remarkable display, ex-Senator Jones and the MS NOW hosts combined to use the phrase “heavy lift” five separate times.

That's a lot of weight for poor Doug to lift.

Alabama hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 1998. The last time the two faced off, Tuberville destroyed Jones, beating the incumbent Democratic senator by almost 20 points. Shades of a cupcake game before the Iron Bowl for former Auburn coach Tuberville.

Yet despite these brutal realities, MS NOW insisted on framing this race as some noble, difficult-but-worthwhile effort. One almost expected them to break into the old Tennessee Ernie Ford song: “You load sixteen tons, and whaddya get? Another day older and deeper in debt.” Or perhaps: “He ain’t heavy… he’s our Democrat candidate!”

The whole segment reeked of copium. You have to wonder: is Jones actually trying to win the governorship — or simply keeping his name alive and his profile high enough to land another comfortable gig when he loses? After his landslide loss to Tuberville in 2020, Jones quickly collected the usual prizes for defeated Democrats: a CNN commentator gig, fellowships at Georgetown and the University of Chicago, and a Biden administration role as a Supreme Court nominations advisor.

Once again, MS NOW wasn’t doing journalism — it was running interference for a fellow Democrat, shamelessly pumping up a hopeless candidate while pretending it’s all just one big “heavy lift.”