Posted on 06/23/2012 5:41:20 PM PDT by Kaslin
All three journalists invited to the journalists' roundtable on the Diane Rehm Show on NPR Friday played down the Fast and Furious scandal as a loser for Republicans. Jeanne Cummings of Politico wanted Congress to drop it like a hot potato: "to create this big constitutional clash with the White House makes Congress, once again, look like it's just got its eye off the ball. This isn't what people want them to do... we're going nowhere here."
NPR reporter Ari Shapiro recalled how Bush attorney general Alberto Gonzales was dogged by a U.S. Attorney-firing scandal because Republicans were willing to harp on it. But the Democrats are united for Obama, so it somehow cannot be a scandal: "I think it's only when and if we see Democrats turning against Holder, which I don't expect we're going to see, that this will really enter a new phase." How convenient is that reasoning?
Doyle McManus was mildest, sticking to the line that anything that distracts from the economy is somehow a bad idea for Republicans to pursue (without anyone noticing the utter lack of pursuit by "objective" journalists):
McMANUS: It's not a great issue for the president or the White House. They are on the wrong side of this in that, you know, if you want to -- that, initially, when the Justice Department was asked about this program, about the gun -- what's called gun-walking into Mexico, they said, well it's not going on. We don't know anything about it. They've acknowledged that wrongdoing.
On the other hand, is this really what Republicans in the House want to be talking about and arguing about on television for months and months? Well, no, actually their agenda is -- of course, is supposed to be to talk about jobs, jobs, jobs. And so they run the risk of looking as if they're pursuing the administration on everything else but jobs.
Substitute host Terence Smith wondered where (if anywhere) this was going:
TERENCE SMITH: Jeanne Cummings, several reason attorneys general have had problems with Congress and been in tight spots with the executive refusing to turn over documents or whatever. What's the political impact to this? And look ahead to the election. Is anybody going to be talking about this?
CUMMINGS: No, they aren't going to be. And that's -- I mean, I agree with Doyle that it's not good for either side. But I think, on balance, this is -- Congress has just gotten itself, you know, in a patch where they should probably find their way out. I mean, if you look at any focus group with voters, all they care about is the economy. That's all they care about. And for -- to create this big constitutional clash with the White House makes Congress, once again, look like it's just got its eye off the ball. This isn't what people want them to do.
They are tired of the confrontations in Washington. They're frustrated by it. And they think that Washington doesn't understand their problems and isn't trying to help them. This just gives them one more reason to think that Washington is out of touch. And then, in the end, when you look at what would be the real impact of all of this, if they find them in contempt, that should be -- that contempt citation would be enforced by the U.S. attorney general who works for the Justice Department. So we're going nowhere here.
Then came the listeners with their (liberal) input:
SMITH; I have some emails here, including one rather sharply worded one from David on the subject of the contempt citation. He writes, "It appears that 85 percent of the country holds the Congress in contempt. Therefore, the hearings on Fast and Furious are an attempt to distract from the economic issues that the Congress is not able to handle. Isn't that the fact, Ari Shapiro? -- says David.
SHAPIRO: This is a point that Spokesman Jay Carney made at the White House yesterday in the briefing. He said, if Congress wonders why they are the most unpopular of any Congress in recent memory, maybe if they would spend their time working on the economy instead of what Carney called partisan fishing expeditions, they might see their numbers go up. You know what? As you mentioned, many attorneys general recently have been in this kind of trouble with Congress.
And I covered the Justice Department when Bush's Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was under fire for the U.S. attorney dismissals, which ultimately led him to leave the post of attorney general under a cloud. And one big difference between that controversy and this controversy is that when Gonzales was under fire in Congress, there were Republicans and Democrats calling for him to step down. Now, we've seen six Republican senators call for Eric Holder to step down, but the Democrats have been a united front. And I think it's only when and if we see Democrats turning against Holder, which I don't expect we're going to see, that this will really enter a new phase.
Taxpayer $$$$$$ are used to support these traitors!!!
Sure didn’t drop it when the Contra scandal hit. Nope, had to get Reagan one way or other
Two words NPR: Anita Hill.
As it should.
NPR = Irrelevant, treasonous, asswipe clowns.
One name: Brian Terry. FUNPR!
Well ... we all know that there are still a bunch of RINOs in congress -- but when have you heard the term "DINO"? Pretty much all the old "Blue Dog" Democrats have all been defeated by Republicans or eaten by now.
If NPR wants this to go away, it's about the best reason to pursue it!
>>Then they should pursue it.<<
Exactly. Hello!!! There’s a story here! You’re reporters after all! Big story too. Presidential coverup, criminal activity, conspiracy to subvert the 2nd Amendment rights of the American people. Not to mention dead Mexican citizens by the hundreds and two dead American law enforcement officers.
Hellooooo!!!! (crickets)
Holder LIED, AMERICANS DIED! Hell yes it’s an issue! If they commited a felony shipping illegal guns to Mexican drug lords and americans were killed then they should be tried for that murder..
What is an NPR?
Oh yes. Ignore the Kenyan’s classic KGB op to undermine the second amendment. Oh and the 1000s of people killed with the guns the lizard supplied.
If NPR says F&F is bad for the Republican brand, it must be a winning issue.
“And I think it’s only when and if we see Democrats turning against Holder, which I don’t expect we’re going to see, that this will really enter a new phase.”
If not before, you will see a new phase when people start going to jail. Then, under the clear and convincing threat of going to prison, the weak links will begin to sing like a bird in hopes of saving their own skin.
There is only one way for two people to keep a secret, one of them must die.
The more the pressure, the greater the chance this is going to blow wide open.
Correction: Holder lied, people died. Don’t forget the 200+ Mexicans who were killed because of Fast and Furious
Correction: Holder lied, people died. Don’t forget the 200+ Mexicans who were killed because of Fast and Furious
That would be a real good reason to want the whole business dropped because when the indictments get passed around they'll get one of them!
This one conversation, sad to say, is a really good reason to eliminate NPR
It is kind of amusing that NPR made its in-depth journalist reputation on the live and heavily commented coverage of the Senate committee investigating the Watergate break-in and cover up.
Now it is “Hear no evil, see no evil...” as these in the tank shills allow murder and corruption to go unexamined. What hypocrites.
That kind of amazing and penetrating political analysis is easily worth $150K-$500K a year. NPR has perfected wasting taxpayer dollars to a fine art.
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