Sunday, February 18, 2007

Press the Meet: the anti-Meet the Press



Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly, host of Press the Meet. Here we ask all the questions that Meet the Press won't. We're honored to have Tim Russert as today's guest...


Bill. Pleasure to be here.


Hope you still feel that way in five minutes, Tim. Let's get right to the Libby case, shall we?


Nothing to hide, Bill.


Libby's charged with telling conflicting stories about what he told you and other media-types about Plame's affiliation with the CIA. What reason would Libby have to lie?


Bill, I'm not telepathic, I can't speak for Libby's motivation.


Isn't it true that Libby's main interest wasn't Plame at all? That he was trying to combat Joe Wilson's lies, including VP Dick Cheney had sent him to Africa?


I guess that could be the case.


Not only was Plame behind Wilson's trip, but Wilson had actually found evidence that Iraq was in the process of acquiring uranium from Africa? Just as President Bush had charged in his State of the Union speech, correct?


Er --- well, I guess you have me there...


And isn't it true that you and your press cohorts have continually avoided Joe Wilson's lies, uniformly demonized Dick Cheney, and distorted what the bi-partisan Senate Committee on Intelligence discovered about Joe Wilson's real activities?


Define "demonize"...


And isn't it the case that you and most other journalists have avoided mentioning key facts about Iraq -- both before and after the war?


How do you mean?


That terror heavyweights Abu Abbas, Abu Nidal, and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi were all in Iraq before the war. That a terrorist training center at Salman Pak featured a Boeing 707 used to train hijackers. That al-Qaida affiliate Ansar al-Islam operated in Iraq. And Saddam's government provided official support and money for many terror groups, including Hamas, Hezbollah, Fatah, and other homicidal goons throughout the Middle East.


Oh, that... well...


And that, since the war, you've avoided calling out The New York Times on its many anti-administration fabrications like Al-Qaqaa...


Well, our schedule precludes covering every ---


Its damaging disclosures of classified, yet perfectly legal programs like SWIFT, international call-record data-mining...


Bill, I think it's debatable whether -


And you and your cohorts have avoided mentioning that, say, 500 WMDs have been found in Iraq since 2003...


Well, they could have been some old WMD's...


Furthermore, that by failing to highlight any success stories in Iraq since 2003, you've directly contributed to Al-Jazeera's disinformation campaign against America... and thereby helped make the fight even more difficult for our men and women in uniform...


But... but... I'm only one man...


And by dint of these omissions and one-sided coverage, isn't it true that -- either purposefully or through sheer ignorance -- Meet the Press and its ilk have been waging information warfare against America itself?


But... why... why would I have any reason to do that...?


Why would you and the rest of the press not connect the dots for your audience? That we face a threat more challenging than the Third Reich: Iran's mullahs are Hitler with nukes. Worse, they represent only the leadership of a worldwide, nihilistic cabal of extremists bent on destruction. Are the attacks in Manhattan, Washington, Bali, Beslan, Madrid, London, Iraq, Uzbekistan, Israel, Mumbai, Kashmir, Thailand, Darfur, Somalia, Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines not connected?


Err... but... I... don't...


Isn't it true that instead of facing up to this growing threat, today's press and Democrats alike have abdicated responsibility for educating the public and have effectively thrown the country "under the bus" to gain partisan advantage?


But... it makes no sense... why would I... we...


Well, Tim, isn't it also true that your wife is Maureen Orth, a correspondent for the rabidly anti-administration magazine, Vanity Fair? Hasn't she been dependent on paychecks from that virulently one-sided mouthpiece for over a decade?


Well... well... I won't sit here and have you impugn my background as a scrupulously honest, non-partisan reporter! I'm outta here, O'Reilly!


Thanks for visiting Press the Meet, Tim, and we'll look forward to seeing you on This Week in the DNC -- or whatever it is that you call your show these days. And to you, our viewers, thank you for watching and please join us next week, when our guest is John Murtha...


Thank you for watching Press the Meet. We explore the stories that Meet the Press ignores.



Oven-baked good readin', just like Mama used to make:
AIM: Media on Trial in Libby Case, Decision '08, Eclipse Ramblings, Hang Right Politics, Imus Blog, Just One Minutes, Kesher Talk, Moderate Voice, National Review Online: Contradictions Come to Define Libby Trial, Newsbusters, New York Sun, No Easy Answers, Ocean Guy, PostWatch, Roger L. Simon, Soccer Dad, STACLU, Washington Post: Trial in Error, Wizbang

Saturday, February 17, 2007

NFL Commissioner Goodell on the Border Patrol Ad



NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, why did you refuse to allow the U.S. Border Patrol to advertise during the Super Bowl?


Mulva, we just feel it's a controversial topic.


But, sir, the ad talked about preventing the entry of terrorists and weapons into the United States. Helping to detect the unlawful entry of undocumented aliens... and helping to stop drug smuggling along the borders. What's controversial about any of those Border Patrol duties?


Well, Bovary, we just feel that the immigration debate itself is a very controversial issue, and we were sensitive to any perception we were injecting ourselves into that.


Commissioner, what do you say to your detractors who claim that this is a shameless attempt to avoid upsetting the emerging Latin America football market?


Honestly, Hest, nothing could be further from the truth. We're just trying to avoid a political firestorm here.


But since the vast majority of Americans favor securing our borders and increasing the number of Border Patrol agents, how is this a political controversy?


Dolores, I've really said all I'm going to say on this -- Hey, Jimmy! JIMMY!!


Jimmy, all of those guys are sneaking into the stadium without paying!


Those guys are sneaking into the stadium illegally! They haven't got tickets!! What the hell??


Sir... sir... Commissioner... wait... sir... don't you find that just a tad ironic?


I have no idea what you're talking about, Doris, these people are sneaking into my stadium illegally. This interview is over.


Oven-baked good readin', just like Mama used to make:
ALIPAC, Conservablogs, Dr. Sanity, Faultline, Hang Right Politics, Hill Chronicles, HotAir, Hugh Hewitt, Liberally Conservative, Liberty Papers, Minuteman, NoisyRoom, OTB, Sovereign Commentary, Teacup Tempestry, Uncooperative Blogger, Wizbang

You can have peace in a second...


Rep. Eric Cantor has released a powerful video featuring, among others, FDR and JFK. It's a must-view (huge tips o' the hat to Gateway Pundit and Larwyn):


Democrats have yet to comprehend the meaning of information warfare in the Internet Age. One can only pray that it won't take more massive terrorist attacks here at home to crystallize the concepts of unity, utter violence against our enemies, and national survival.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Al Franken announces a run for the Senate: a Transcript



Hi, I’m Al Franken. I'm running for the United States Senate here in Minnesota. I'd like to talk to you about why I'm running.


I'm not a typical politician. I’ve spent my career as a successful actor and comedian, starring in TV and movie classics like LateLine, The Definite Maybe, Stuart Saves His Family, and -- of course -- Trading Places (as the baggage handler).


Minnesotans have a right to be skeptical about whether my acting success will translate to Washington. Two words: Ronald Reagan. But, remember, Reagan had a wildly successful movie career with loads of hot actresses chasing him and his politics later veered to the hard right. It's safe to say that in both cases, I'm the complete opposite of Ronnie.


I want you to know: nothing means more to me than making government work better for the working families of Hollywood. Think of a down-on-his-luck high school jock like Tom Cruise in All the Right Moves or a down-trodden Jet Li in Unleashed. Guys who work their tail off earning twenty or thirty million a year. Today, however, I want to take a few moments to explain to you why I take these issues personally.


My family moved to Minnesota from New Jersey when I was four. My dad had a vision of beating Baskin-Robbins in the ice-cream business and what better place to begin than Minnesota? Ice was free and he had plenty of recipes in order to beat Baskin-Robbins with thirty-four flavors, which would give him a competitive advantage.


After about three months, the factory failed and we moved to the Twin Cities. Years later, I asked my dad why the business failed. "Two reasons: it's so damn cold in Minnesota that no one wants to eat ice cream."


Then I asked him what the second reason was. He simply cursed and handed me an old notebook. It was his original set of recipes, covered in dust, and nearly unreadable. I flipped through the ancient, leather-bound collector's item and found a set of unique ice creams based upon Minnesota's favorite foods. There was a recipe for salmon ice-cream, walleye ice-cream, trout ice-cream, catfish ice-cream, and even some non-seafood-based treats. Jalapeno ice-cream, for instance. I carefully closed the book and then sneezed. A tear ran down my cheek, but it could have been some leftover particles from the onion ice-cream recipe.


That was my dad – a great Minnesotan and a lousy businessman. He got a job as a private lake-cleaner, and my mom worked in the fields straightening cheese. The four of us – I have an older brother, Owen – lived in a two-bedroom, one-bath house in St. Louis Park. That was my childhood, a far cry from my later success in radio, television, and movies that I -- even today -- refuse to share with my ungrateful, unsupportive family. I earned it - they didn't.


My wife, Franni, and I met in college. My widowed Mother-in-law got herself a $300 GI loan to fix her roof, and used the money instead to go to the University of Maine. I later reported this incident to the authorities and collected a substantial reward. Later on, after serving several years of probation, my mother-in-law and every single one of her kids became a productive member of society.


But now, thanks to progressives like me, we're incenting more people not to work at all. They can become productive members of society by suckling off government, which becomes ever bigger under Democratic leadership. Face it, folks, most people can't get by on their own! Government needs to pay them. Even me! Heaven knows, the radio business ain't what it used to be!


Last year I traveled all over the state of Minnesota on behalf of many Democrats: from Wasacka and Crabassa up to Turgid Falls and Coitus Lakes, over to Jimanju and the Free Range, from Spittoon down to Chlamydia, I was in Formaldehyde and all over the metro, up in St. Slick's a few times, eating a lot of beans and buns, talking and farting along the way. But most importantly, I talked to Minnesotans, passed gas, and listened.


They told me that they’re sick of politics as usual—and they're sick of the usual politicians. And, oh, whether I could move a few stools further away.


And I’ll tell you what else they told me. It’s different now than it was for me and Franni. When Franni’s sisters were using them to go to college, Pell Grants paid for 90% of a college education. Today, they pay for 40%. And President Bush, with the help of his Republican cronies in Congress, have even tried to save Social Security. I say, enough of trying to live within our means! Let's go whole hog, like in the FDR days, and spend your -er- government money even faster!


It's different for middle-class families, too. Forget low unemployment rates, the soaring stock market, more home-owners than ever... forget all that s**t! It don't matter! We need Democrats in charge so we can return to the days of the Internet boom, the invention of the world-wide web, Y2K, and no damn terrorism on our shores... I call those 'the golden years.'


We can return to the days when college was free, and doctors paid house-calls, and prices never rose. Just like the Soviet Union in the thirties - now, that was a great society!


Your government should have your back. Pay the bills. Take care of your pets. Paint the shed. Beat up that surly dude who collects your monthly payment at the garage downtown.


Our state has sent strong, progressive leaders to Washington—from Paul Wellstone to Walter Mondale. That's the kind of strong, bold leader I think we need more of in this, the nuclear age of terrorism, and that's the kind of Senator I'll be.


The kind of leader who won't hesitate to pass a resolution or issue a strongly worded memo when some whacked-out dictator attacks us with nukes.


Retired anti-terrorism expert and ex-President Bill Clinton used to say that there’s nothing wrong with America that can’t be fixed with a suitcase filled with cash from John Huang. Well, John Huang isn't around any more, but there are plenty of others who can fund Democratic ventures. Ventures like discovering life-saving cures for syphilis, ending global warming by banning cars, inventing new energy sources from renewable sources like M&M's, and repairing our relations with valued allies like Iran and North Korea.


My political hero is Paul Wellstone. He used to say, “The future belongs to those who cheat the most... like Richard Daley.” I may be a comedian by trade, but I know a good line when I hear one. I'm willing to work hard, cheat when necessary, and construct a diabolical political machine that can wrest Washington from the Republicans, once and for all.


Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you on the trail.


Oven-baked good readin', just like Mama used to make:
Anchoress, Captain's Quarters, California Conservative, Cave News, Donklephant, Grouchy Old Cripple, Hang Right Politics, Hugh Hewitt, OTB, Rick Moran, Radio Equalizer, Rhymes with Right