What Hath Russert Wrought?

Lost in the mainstream media coverage of the McCain-Obama dust up about Al Qaeda in Iraq is any mention of the role Tim Russert played in initiating the imbroglio.

Like the little manager man in pro wrestling -- the one who tosses the folding chair into the ring when the ref isn't looking -- he slipped McCain something to hit Obama with. And like the little manager man, he got away with it.

"Who...? Me...?"

It was Russert who asked Hillary Clinton (and then Obama) if, having pulled American troops out of Iraq, they would re-invade if Al Qaeda were to establish a base of operations there. Two hypothetical questions. An if and an if.

Jettisoning the hypothetical context of Obama's answer (as well as any sense of honesty and honor), McCain immediately struck a pose and delivered his, "I have news for Senator Obama: Al Qaeda is in Iraq" line.

The unflappable Obama was quick to point out that Al Qaeda had not been in Iraq before George W. Bush and John McCain invaded. The senator from Illinois seems to be a counter-puncher. But that doesn't mean the Republicans won't continue to try to use Obama's response to Russert's "gotcha" question against him in the future.

It was typical Russert hatchet work. Another example of his greasy thumb weighing heavy on the already-unbalanced scale of mainstream media political reporting. From Whitewater to impeachment to Florida to Iraq -- right on through last Tuesday evening, the man has consistently veered right. And his mainstream media colleagues have let him get away with it.

Inside the beltway, in New York, and up on Nantucket where Russert summers, the anointed say he's a bulldog. Out here in real America, where Iraq, jobs, NAFTA and healthcare are real issues, not pundit banter, a lot of everyday people say he's bullsh*t.

Hopefully, the profusion of new media and the ascendancy of the Internet will continue to diminish Russert's soapbox. Hopefully a new generation of politically aware Americans who get their news from the Internet, will make him irrelevant. Soon.

In the meantime, keep your eye on the little manager man running around the ring distracting the referee. You never know when he might try to slip McCain another folding chair.

Comments

[hughbetcha]

I don't get the hostility toward Russert. The idea that he's a closet conservative is laughable and unproved. He is an Irish Catholic, old style Rust Belt Democrat like we had in Youngstown, Ohio where I grew up. Sure, he got rich and summers in Nantucket but having watched his shows now for years, I truly don't detect a bias one way or the other. I think he desperately wants to appear even-handed and that pisses off the readers of this blog who would rather him slap around conservatives than liberals. His books, though, stink.

[Counterglow]

I've never been able to figure out whether Russert's actually biased, or just not terribly good at his job. How did he wind up getting a plum job like Meet the Press, anyway? There's no end of better-qualified journalists available.

[roncraw]

When Obama said he would reinvade Iraq if AlQueda regrouped Hillary tryed to call him on it and was cut off by Brian Williams who said he had to have a station break.But checking with the producer it was disclosed that the moderators had leeway on when to have a commercial. Whats new?

[candybar]

It is about time people see Russert for what he is...He wants to be the story. He and Williams didnt ask the important questions like the economy. He was interested in gotcha questions like Buffalo and the new Russian and he was disappointed when Hillary answered both.

[Warpublican]

Thank you, thank you, Peter Smith - I had no idae Obama was responding to a question from Russert (about reInvading Iraq). I actually thought Obama had stumbled, and felt that the ride was over - I expected Obama to be wearing a flag pin next time I saw him on YouTube.
Cool.

[pastgone]

Yeah, what was interesting about McCain's remarks is that he was ascribing to Obama the hypothetical put forth by Russert. Russert's hypotheticals (and his attempt to link Obama to Farrakhan) were straight out of the Republican playbook. Don't be fooled by this guy: he's a closet right winger, through and through.

[Lisette]

Bush is the main one protected by the media all these years.

The people in the media business are showoffs,
not hired for their brains but their showmanship.

[Durango]

Hired for their "Good Hair" with nothing underneath it.

[ImmanuelKant]

I would point out that the press gave GW Bush a pass and it cost us dearly. I do not believe Tim Russet is either to the left or right, I have watched him now for years without detecting this. Surely, with me being on the left I would have picked up on his "rightness" if it were there.
The politicians should expect and should receive complete venting by the press. Asking only the milk toast questions does deprives the reader or observer from evaluating what the candidate is really all about. While many believe difficult questions are not being politically incorrect or perhaps rude I find them most informative. You go Russert, I want to hear their responses on the hard questions you pose.

[AnninCA]

What truly cracks me up (and I hope Hillary took note of this) is that had the moderators allowed Hillary to reply to Obama, it would have been her "last words" being heard. Instead, they cut her off. Again. LOL*

So Obama's last words were justing echoing around and around.

I couldn't believe he said it.

Neither will most of America.

[ariadne1]

i had expected him to hit obama on rezko, but no, he had to start a racial divide, alienate the jewish vote, piss off blacks, at the same time giving the repubs 'grist for the mill.' not bad for one question...

the only good thing he did, in my opinion, was hit hillary hard. he did not seem intimidated with the 'press picks on me' spin her campaign puts out. saying she promised to bring 200,000 jobs to ny and then bringing out the fact that they actually lost 30,000 jobs was insightful.

she anticipated the question tho and had a 'canned' answer prepared. the drivel about assuming that al gore was going to win the presidency and the assumption that he was going to help bolster her plan is another example of no plan b.

just like bush... no plan b, loyal to unqualified subservients/yes men, never apologize[until she realizes she must in order to mitigate blow back,] double speak, outright lies, and on and on and on

[deb123]

Gosh, I thought Russert asked each candidate good questions. I also feel he has historically posed debate over the questions floating around in the public conversation. Isn't it funny how we can watch and hear the same things and interpret them so differently? That's what makes the world go 'round ...

[pithymaxim]

I like Tim Russert and didn't think he was unfair to either candidate.

[Teritt]

I'll never understand why Russert has to bring religion into Obama's questions. If it isn't the 'Muslim' background, it's his Chicago church. If it isn't that, it's Farakhan & the Jewish questions. Why does Obama always having to waste his time deflecting religious questions? Oh, and the whole middle name thing (which has been dissected in other posts). The one thing that I really like about Obama is that he just answers the questions and move's on to important matters. After all these years, we need a President that would be able to rise above all the petty stuff that gets thrown at him.

[Jacee]

Russert is the evil Hobbit. Hes got the Ring, under the evil power...his little Hobbit smile is tesisting and twisting. Gotcha!!!

What a horrible little person. Treating candidates for the presidency like they are beneath him, What a laugh. Hey Bad Hobbit, you are nothing but a pathetic cable guy.

[Grulg]

Russert needs Giant Robots stepping on him just because.

[independentrepublicrat]

Thank you for posting that. I thought I was alone in my suspicions of Russert.

[HeevenSteven]

Yeah Pumpkin-head is G.E.'s designated hit-man. I can't stand him. I stopped watching him long ago; unfortunately, someone at NBC thinks he's a genius.

[shotput8]

It was Jack Welch, former head of GE, to whom Russert sold his soul.

[Dem02020]

RUSSERT: "Mr. Lincoln, if Union Soldiers were to prematurely leave the areas west of the Mississippi that they presently occupy, in order to join those Union forces in Pennsylvania, and if in their absence in the west, greater and greater numbers of Confederate sympathizers were to move in, and if also that "insurgency" included members of the Ku Klux Klan, who, if they were heavily armed and hell-bent on murder, and if..."


MR. LINCOLN: (Looking about him, left and right, in an exasperated manner) "Who let this fat pumpkin-headed dude in here, to ask such idiot hypothetical questions as these?

Why are these debates being interrupted every forty-five seconds, by people like this guy, with foolish questions meant to steer the words and thoughts of Sen. Douglas and myself, to whatever ends this guy has in mind... ends that all seem to point to him, as a famous "media" hack?

Why are the good folks of Illinois, and America too, being denied hearing exclusively from Sen. Douglas and myself, as the principles in this election, and as their prospective Senator... why are we being subjected to this pumpkin-headed dude... why is it about him...

What Office is Tim Russert running for?

And could he please run for it somewhere else, and get off the stage and stop interrupting Sen. Douglas and myself, as we petition the People of Illinois, and America, for the leadership of them."


SEN. DOUGLAS: (Beaming a great Senatorial smile, and to great applause from all those in attendance) "Well said Mr. Lincoln!

I will have my goons and hooligans take this guy out of here, immediately, and smash in pumpkin head out on the street!"

[bmora]

Russert has chair all warmed up for him at Fox.

[DasBoot]

Thank god this is not the year 2000 anymore. This was exactly how Gore was defeated by the MSM. Thank god we have the net roots now. But we need a 24/7 Russert watch.

[fairwitness]

A great image to keep in mind when Russert shows up, thanks.

I just emailed him Glenn Greenwald's piece about the bias Russert employs vis a vis the Farrakkan hiy job on Obama vs McCain's ACTUAL embrace of the lunatic/racist John Hagee. Glenn documents it irrefutably.

Russert (and, really, most of the media spokesliars) are very skilled at such deceptions and I appreciate that you called him out on this one.

[Reeceecup]

Applause! Applause! Applause! Mainstream media is full of (for lack of a better word) "shit starters"! It boggles my mind how they are allowed to continuously get away with this. I believe they interject controversy in order to stay relevant. In my circle the only person who still believes in main stream media is my grandmother and that's because she isn't tech saavy. So when the dinosaurs die off (no offense grandma)so goes the shit starters!