Cranky Carl to Kilmeade: 'I Hoped This Would Be Interview of Me, Not You'

Fox & Friends/NewsBusters ^ | Mark Finkelstein

[governsleastgovernsbest]

by Mark Finkelstein

June 27, 2006

Come on, Carl. The Tigers are in first place. GM announced some good news this morning. The sun is gonna shine again. Why so cranky?

The senior Democratic senator from Michigan had some very testy exchanges with Fox & Friends' Brian Kilmeade this morning. The topic was possible troop reductions in Iraq. Levin has been leading the Dem charge in alleging that the Bush administration is orchestrating the drawdowns with an eye on the November elections.

At one point, the give-and-take went like this

Brian: "Judging by conditions on the ground, do you think the President enjoys having troops over in Iraq? Do you think he would keep them there one day past where they should be there or have to be in harm's way?

Levin "I don't think anybody enjoys having troops in Iraq."

Kilmeade. "Why would you think [the president] would keep troops there at a level level if they didn't have to be?"

Levin: "I think the Karl Rove playbook . . . "

Kilmeade:"Karl Rove, not the general, is making the decisions?"

Levin: "You're interrupting my answer here."

"Brian: "Go ahead."

Things ended on this nasty note:

Levin: "I hoped this would be an interview of me rather than an interview of you."

Brian: "I listened to you talk, I watched you read."

[MikeA]

Levin is a dumbass. I love how dumbass couldn't answer the question without having to bring up Karl Rove's name. I'm surprised dumbass didn't also blurt out "Halliburton! Cheney! Big Oil!" These losers can't talk without their little lightening rods.

And why would Rove want to keep troops in Iraq? The politically expedient thing would be to take them out! But it's not the administration screaming to take them out, it's the party of French surrender and retreat, the Democrats.

By the way Carl, get some glasses that can stay up on your big nose.

[Mikey_1962]

No Passover Dinner for Brian.

[Big Guy and Rusty 99]

Brian is a great interviewer. He does not succomb to what people in my business call 'sharp angle." He knows what he wants, he is unyielding.

[adorno]

I love Brian. He does not hold back on the interviews!

I agree.

If O'reilly were ever to leave his show, Brian would be the best replacement I could thiink of. There would really be no spin. Not from the guests, and not from the host.

"The Kilmeade Factor". Sounds good to me!

[Constitutions Grandchild]

Saw the exchange and Brian has, on several occasions, impressed me with his tenacity and understanding of the issues. It always surprises me, because they relegate him to the fluff. He's a sharp young man. Maybe Mr. Ailes should take a look at moving some people around. I might add that E.D. had a strange combination of shell-shock and disgust on her face after the set-to.

[SE Mom]

Brian asks questions in a forthright way- no hidden anything.

WTG!

[Bitsy]

Yeah, what's with the libs and those half glasses. Do they think it's cool or intellegent looking to look over those half glasses at us poor unfortunates? Pelosi, Levin,Kennedy,Schumer wear them. I don't get it!

[OldFriend]

Brian Kilmeade deserves a show of his own. No sidekick!

Note to Roger Ailes..

[2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten]

I emailed Fox as well - masterful job by Kilmeade.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Lancey Howard]

Great report!

Old-time rats like Levin have STILL not come to grips with the fact that the days when they controlled the news media monopoly are OVER. They got so used to getting nothing but softballs, affirmations, knowing nods, and pats on the back from their shills in the liberal network newsrooms and editorial boards that they simply cannot handle real questioning by real interviewers.

Levin's performance is a perfect case in point.

As always, thanks for the pings!

[Landry Fan]

did you see this?

[Inspectorette]

Brian is great - he should be on in prime time. We used to watch the last hour of F&F when we were getting ready for work out here on the Left Coast.

Now that we're retired, even though we love Brian and Doocy (E.D. is OK sometimes), we don't love them THAT much that we're going to get up at Oh-Dark-30 ;-)

[governsleastgovernsbest]

My pleasure, Lancey. As you say, Levin's performance was a perfect example of the fury of the frustrated left!

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Lots of TV personalities portray themselves as 'regular guys', but Brian is the real deal.

[RJL]

Levin: "I hoped this would be an interview of me rather than an interview of you."

Brian: "I listened to you talk, I watched you read."

Great smack down By Brian.

Carl Levin is thinking that it's all so much easier on the other networks when they all read the Dems daily talking points together.

[Surtur]

I saw this, and Brian gave better than he got in that exchange. The head shake at the end was the gravy on the biscuits for me. Two big thumbs up for Brian this a.m..

[W04Man]

Me too, and I emailed Brian a big THANK YOU! email.

[pawdoggie]

I watched the "exchange" and found it a little troubling. However much Levin deserves to be "smacked down", talking over the person you're interviewing is something I would expect from a Left-Wing dingbat. Brian is sometimes like Sean Hannity and Chris Matthews in terms of histrionics (only without Hannity and Matthews "personal charm"). Worst of all, though, he was making exactly the wrong point reference the difference between General Casey's reported "plan" for a phased draw-down of US forces in Iraq, and the Democrats' "cut and run" schemes. Mr. Kilmeade was attempting to say that General Casey's plan was only one option of many that might not happen, when he should have pointed out (amongst other things) that what Casey is considering is a three-year draw down based on the security situation on the ground, not an immediate and irrevocable unilateral "withdrawal" based on the need to appeal to a perceived political imperative.

[Judith Anne]

I saw that interview, I thought it was OUTSTANDING, and I emailed Fox this morning to commend Brian. He is the real deal--very impressive young man, brilliant.