Where CNN Conducts an Interview, MSNBC Has a DNC Strategy Session

July 5th, 2012

FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda

Once again MSNBC has shown it is more a Democratic operative rather than an actual news organization. On Thursday morning, Obama campaign national press secretary Ben LaBolt appeared on both CNN’s Starting Point and MSNBC Live, and the interviews could not have been more different.

LaBolt got the kid glove treatment from MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts, who first teed him up to slam the Romney campaign’s “sloppy messaging.” Contrast that with CNN”s Soledad O’Brien grilling LaBolt on whether ObamaCare’s individual mandate was a tax or a penalty. [Video coming soon. MP3 audio here.]

When he tried to deflect scrutiny and attack Mitt Romney, O’Brien would have none of it. “Yeah but I’m not talking about Mitt Romney. I’m not talking about Mitt Romney. Let me stop you there, because I’m talking about President Obama,” she told him.

When LaBolt claimed the Obama administration had always argued that the mandate was a penalty, O’Brien challenged such an assertion with the following:

“No, your argument before the court honestly also said that it could be – one of the side arguments, kind of like the backup argument was that it was a tax. So I did see the arguments before the Supreme Court.”

In addition, O’Brien pointed out that Obama has never formally stated his opinion and instead relies on campaign surrogates to answer for him. One of the panelists, Ryan Lizza of The New Yorker continued the tough line of questioning by asking Ben this question:

“The argument before the Supreme Court was, if you don’t agree that this is constitutional under the Commerce Clause, surely you agree it is constitutional under Congress’ power to levee taxes. And that is the argument that the Supreme Court took. So how can you sit there and say you guys didn’t go before the Supreme Court and make that argument?”

“But he said it’s administered by the IRS. What does the IRS do?” he continued grilling LaBolt.

Fast forward exactly three hours on MSNBC and there was no such tough questioning. Instead anchor Thomas Roberts tossed softball questions like:

“The Wall Street Journal says in an op-ed about this that Mr. Fehrnstrom is part of the Boston coterie who are closest to Mr. Romney and wouldn’t say such a thing without the candidate’s approval. When you see what’s going on and kind of the tail wagging the dog so to speak, what’s the Obama’s campaign take on the sloppy messaging here?”

Roberts, who just last week brought on a cancer survivor to tout the benefits of ObamaCare continued the softball “interview” claiming that the Supreme Court ruling was a “big win for the president and reelection,” going so far as to ask LaBolt how the president can convince the American people that this law was good for the country in the first place.

CNN actually showed journalistic integrity when an Obama campaign official appeared on the network, whereas MSNBC continued to be a mouthpiece for Obama.

See relevant transcript below.

CNN
Starting Point w/ Soledad O’Brien
07/05/2012
8:05 a.m. EDT

O’BRIEN: OK. Ben, so does President Obama consider this to be a penalty as his spokesperson told me the other day? Or does he think that it is a tax as the Supreme Court has now said?

O’BRIEN: Yeah but I’m not talking about Mitt Romney. I’m not talking about Mitt Romney. Let me stop you there, because I’m talking about President Obama.

LABOLT: OK.

O’BRIEN: Does he believe this is tax? Or does he believe it’s a penalty? He actually hasn’t said yet, as I’m sure you know. He has not specifically said. His spokesperson sitting here with me said it’s a penalty. Supreme Court has said it’s a tax. What does he believe?

RYAN LIZZA: Ben, it’s Ryan Lizza, how are you doing this morning?

LABOLT: Doing well.

LIZZA: I wanted to go back to something Soledad said there when she was pressing you on the government’s argument was before the Supreme Court. Now, Chief Justice Roberts pressed your Solicitor General or the Obama solicitor general on this issue. Verrilli had an opportunity to say this was a penalty but instead he said, Chief Justice, this is administered by the IRS. They talked about how it was under the tax code. The argument before the Supreme Court was, if you don’t agree that this is constitutional under the Commerce Clause, surely you agree it is constitutional under Congress’ power to levee taxes. And that is the argument that the Supreme Court took. So how can you sit there and say that you guys didn’t go before the Supreme Court and make that argument?

LIZZA: But he said it’s administered by the IRS. What does the IRS do?

O’BRIEN: On April 15th, Tax Day, I believe, if I’m not mistaken on that.

LIZZA: What did he mean when he said it’s administered by the IRS?

MSNBC
MSNBC Live
07/05/2012
11:03 a.m. EDT

THOMAS ROBERTS: I want to start out with Mitt Romney’s campaign reversal on the president’s health care law. And his comments he gave out to CBS. Take a listen.

ROBERTS: When you see what’s going on and kind of the tail wagging the dog so to speak, what’s the Obama’s campaign take on the sloppy messaging here?

ROBERTS: Alright Ben that was a big win last week for the president and reelection.