O'Reilly Factor - Left-wing "reporters" met with John Kerry in Al Franken's apartment

03.22.04

[kcvl]

In an effort to galvanize the message Kerry wants to deliver in the time remaining, he convened a powerful roster of journalists and columnists in the New York City apartment of Al Franken last Thursday. The gathering could not properly be called a meeting or a luncheon. It was a trial. The journalists served as prosecuting attorneys, jury and judge. The crowd I joined in Franken’s living room was comprised of:

Al Franken and his wife Franni;
Rick Hertzberg, senior editor for the New Yorker;
David Remnick, editor for the New Yorker;
Jim Kelly, managing editor for Time Magazine;
Howard Fineman, chief political correspondent for Newsweek;
Jeff Greenfield, senior correspondent and analyst for CNN;
Frank Rich, columnist for the New York Times;
Eric Alterman, author and columnist for MSNBC and the Nation;
Art Spiegelman, Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist/author of ‘Maus’;
Richard Cohen, columnist for the Washington Post;
Fred Kaplan, columnist for Slate;
Jacob Weisberg, editor of Slate and author;
Jonathan Alter, senior editor and columnist for Newsweek;
Philip Gourevitch, columnist for the New Yorker;
Calvin Trillin, freelance writer and author;
Edward Jay Epstein, investigative reporter and author;
Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., who needs no introduction.

We sat in a circle around Kerry and grilled him for two long hours. In an age of retail politicians who avoid substance the way vampires avoid sunlight, in an age when the sitting President flounders like a gaffed fish whenever he must speak to reporters without a script, Kerry’s decision to open himself to the slings and arrows of this group was bold and impressive. He was fresh from two remarkable speeches – one lambasting the PATRIOT Act, another outlining his foreign policy ideals while eviscerating the Bush record – and had his game face on. He needed it, because Eric Alterman lit into him immediately on the all-important issue of his vote for the Iraq War Resolution. The prosecution had begun.

[Will_Zurmacht]

Oh good lord...

"A vast right wing conspiracy of well known, and well heeled conservatives met recently with President Bush in the velvet lined Passion loft of media mogul Rush Limbaugh. Between cancer causing cigars and inebriating spirits, the conservative glitteratti took Bush to task.
Bush had just come off a whirlwind tour of stealing candy from babes, attacking innocents abroad and sticking it to the little man, but now he faced the real trial......

[BlueAngel]

The dems and their cohorts have NO shame. They want to get rid of President Bush at whatever cost. Too bad. It didn't work last time and it won't work this time.

[AF68]

I only thought stuff like this happened in totalitarian countries. These "journalists" put to shame the propaganda organs of the old Soviet Union.

[isthisnickcool]

This is a joke right? Is there a link or some supporting information?

[Theresawithanh]

The only possible explanation for the writer finding Kerry's speaking ability "impressive" is that the writer himself is a Dim-O-Crat. That, or he's smokin' somethin!

[mylife]

'Slings and arrows'... from his own speech coaches?

Yup! thats the long and short of it! Kerry surrounds himself and subjugates himself to the "best and the brightest"! LOL Wh00P!!

[Marylander]

Didn't Al Gore do something similar?

[Piranha]

Since the meeting was all on the record, according to the blog, I have no problem with it in concept.

The problem came only after the meeting, when apparently nobody wrote about it. Therefore, they were complicit in making the meeting into a workshop, as you say, instead of a trial, which it should have been. Just as reporters typically won't make contributions to political campaigns, so they shouldn't coach candidates.

[TankerKC]

Franni Frankin????

Sounds like a "Laugh In" skit, doesn't it?

[Kahuna]

"it probably smelled like moth balls".................


Question? How did they get the legs apart?

[CaptainK]

It was a trial. The journalists served as prosecuting attorneys, jury and judge

It was a coronation. The journalists served as pawns, lackeys, yes men and a** kissers

[Slings and Arrows]

It wasn't me! I have an alibi!

[Piranha]

Could have been...and, again, I wouldn't have a problem with a meeting with "friendly" reporters and columnists, as long as the meeting is on the record not only in theory, which it was, but in practice -- which means that it is used as source material for future articles and columns.

[Samwise]

Kerry’s decision to open himself to the slings and arrows of this group was bold and impressive

I'll be impressed with the bravery and openness of John Kerry when he sits down with a bunch of Freepers and submits to question and answer session with them.

[eddie willers]

That group? ROFLMAO........I bet he got some REALLY hard questions from them.

Hah!
I think you and Mrs Marple should go grill Dubya just to even things up!

[BigSkyFreeper]

"Grilled"? Probably more like "Coached".

[Senator Pardek]

DON HEWITT ( Executive Producer, " 60 Minutes"): And they came to us because they were in big trouble in New Hampshire. They were about to lose right there and they needed some first aid. They needed some bandaging. What they needed was a paramedic. So they came to us and we did it and that's what they wanted to do. When I told Tim Russert that I was persona-non-grata at the White House, he said, "Why?" I said, "The Gennifer Flowers interview." He said, " You got him the nomination." I said, " I know that." As far as I know from the conversations I've had, Bernie Nussbaum knew that, Gergen knows that, Lloyd Cutler certainly knows it 'cause Lloyd had a hand in his coming on that night. You know it was strong medicine the way I edited it but he was a very sick candidate. He needed very strong medicine, and I'm not in the business of doctoring candidates but he got up out of a sick bed that night and walked to the nomination and as I said to Mandy, " You know if I'd edited it your way, you know where you'd be today? You'd still be up in New Hampshire looking for the nomination." He became the candidate that night.

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[Piranha]

Post no. 2. The meeting happened in December, when Kerry was way down in the polls.

[reflecting]

All men except Al's wife, I guess she served the coffee. ALL MEN. Does anyone think this appropriate for the protect of equality of women? What hypocrites...

[Darlin']

"This is REPREHENSIBLE!
BTW, who wrote this crap?"

Scott Ritter's buddy, William Pitt. LOl. Now you know why it is so reprehensible.