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MSNBC Tag

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 27, 2015 10 Comments
MSNBC is dropping the Reverend Al Sharpton's program 'PoliticsNation' from its daily lineup and moving him to a weekly slot which will air on Sunday mornings at 8 am. Alex Weprin of Politico reports:
MSNBC moves Al Sharpton to Sunday mornings Sharpton's last weekday "PoliticsNation" will be Sept. 4. He moves to Sundays a month later on Oct. 4, according to a memo sent to MSNBC staff by the channel's president Phil Griffin Wednesday evening. "I want to congratulate Al and his team. For four years they have done a terrific job bringing his voice and a big spotlight to issues of justice, civil rights and equality. And as many of you know, The Rev never missed a show," Griffin wrote in the email. "I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do with a Sunday morning newsmaker program." The 6 pm hour will temporarily be filled by "MSNBC Live," the channel's weekday news program. A permanent replacement will be named "soon after" Sharpton moves, per Griffin.

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 05, 2015 42 Comments
On Monday, Elizabeth Warren took to the senate floor and made a series of bizarre accusations about the awful series of Planned Parenthood videos. Senator Warren apparently believes this is all part of a vast right-wing conspiracy to take away women's rights. Maybe progressives should find a different politician to clone. MSNBC's Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough called Warren out for hypocrisy and for suggesting that anyone who objects to the horror contained in the Planned Parenthood videos is against women's rights. Even the left-leaning Huffington Post took notice:
Morning Joe To Elizabeth Warren: 'Stop Insulting Our Intelligence' MSNBC's Joe Scarborough on Tuesday slammed Sen. Elizabeth Warren, accusing the Massachusetts Democrat of conflating support for women's rights with support for Planned Parenthood. "You can be against the funding of Planned Parenthood without being against the support of women's health," Scarborough said. "Nice try, Elizabeth Warren."

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 01, 2015 14 Comments
MSNBC has pulled the plug on three shows. The Cycle, Now with Alex Wagner, and The Ed Show will no longer grace the TV screens of the struggling network's viewers. Dylan Byers of Politico broke the story this week:
MSNBC cancels three shows amid transition Alex Wagner and Ari Melber, a "Cycle" co-host and MSNBC's chief legal correspondent, will remain with the network. Ed Schultz, the host of "The Ed Show," will leave the network, as will "Cycle" co-hosts Abby Huntsman, Krystal Ball and Toure. MSNBC President Phil Griffin announced the news in a memo sent shortly after the initial version of this item was published. The cancellations, which have been expected for some time, come as NBC News chief Andrew Lack moves to refashion the liberal cable channel as a straight-forward news and politics offering, at least in daytime. In September, MSNBC will add a 5 p.m. program hosted by "Meet The Press" moderator Chuck Todd, while Brian Williams, the former "Nightly News" anchor, will serve as the network's breaking news and special reports anchor.
In honor of this occasion, NewsBusters has opened up their vault to look for some "worst of" moments from Alex Wagner and Ed Schultz. Here are a couple of examples:

Posted by Mike LaChance on June 23, 2015 20 Comments
Back in the fall of 2014, when the news of Grubergate broke, Obama claimed that Jonathan Gruber was just some advisor who never worked on his staff. You don't have to take my word for it. Here's a video of Obama responding to a direct question on the subject from Ed Henry of FOX News: You might be shocked to learn that our president wasn't being entirely truthful.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 18, 2015 21 Comments
Brian Williams flamed out at NBC Nightly News when it was revealed he exaggerated or invented parts of his life story. Williams was put on leave, and now will be on MSNBC:
In its investigation of embattled “Nightly News” anchor Brian Williams, NBC found that the majority of his tall tales about his reporting took place on late night talk shows and in public appearances rather than while he was on the network. That distinction appears to have been a major factor in NBC’s decision to keep Mr. Williams, albeit in a diminished role at the network’s sister cable news channel MSNBC. Lester Holt, who has been filling in for Mr. Williams on “Nightly News” since February, was named the permanent anchor.... In his new role, Mr. Williams will anchor breaking news stories and special reports for MSNBC and primarily appear in the daytime. MSNBC’s evening schedule is mostly political talk shows. “Brian now has the chance to earn back everyone’s trust,” said NBC News Chairman Andy Lack. “His excellent work over 22 years at NBC News has earned him that opportunity.”
The move is being seen as saving Williams' career, but the real beneficiary might be MSNBC, which is in freefall:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 06, 2015 33 Comments
Remember when any criticism of a black man running for president was indisputable proof of racism? MSNBC doesn't. Progressives have forgotten everything that happened since the 2008 election and they think we have too. It's already obvious that Dr. Ben Carson, a renowned pediatric neurosurgeon, is not going to get the respect the left gave to America's most successful community organizer. Ken Shepherd of News Busters:
MSNBC Pundit Suggests Ben Carson an Affirmative-Action Case Who Drank the GOP's 'Kool-Aid' According to MSNBC pundit Michelle Bernard -- best known at NewsBusters perhaps because of her insistence that there is a "war on black boys" in America -- savaged newly-announced GOP presidential aspirant Dr. Ben Carson tonight by alleging his success is all owed to "affirmative action." She also suggested that he's a disgrace to his enslaved ancestors and to the black community in Baltimore, where he's lived throughout his career as an acclaimed neurosurgeon...
MICHELLE BERNARD: It is absolutely horrifying. You take one look at him and you say to yourself, well, your ancestors didn't come here on their free will, so how is the Affordable Care Act in any way comparable to slavery? Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina have the same problem. People are going to say, who is the real Ben Carson? The person who probably went to Yale and University of Michigan for medical school because of affirmative action and because of social problems and didn't end up like many of the black men that we see in prison today in Baltimore, where he came from, because of these same social problems.
Here's the video: You don't have to be a brain surgeon to know why Democrats will never be fair to Dr. Carson.

Posted by Jay Caruso on April 30, 2015 21 Comments
When Al Sharpton is in front of an MSNBC camera, it's an adventure watching him try to read from the teleprompter ("Resist we much!"). However, when he's in front of other cameras, grandstanding, he does very well. Earlier, Sharpton had a run in with Fox News reporter Leland Vittert. Vittert was doing this odd thing called "journalism" and was attempting to question Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake when Sharpton decided to play palace guard: Sharpton of course, knew it was Fox News and as such, he knew millions were watching... unlike his show on MSNBC. But hey, at least Sharpton is punching up, right?

Posted by Jay Caruso on April 28, 2015 22 Comments
Peter Schweizer's book, 'Clinton Cash' has not even been released yet, but has created quite a stir in the DC community. With Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign officially launched, the book is raising a lot of questions about Hillary's time as Secretary of State and the Clinton Foundation.  Schweizer says his book lays out a pattern when foreign interests - both government and business - made large donations to the Clinton Foundation and paid Bill Clinton large sums of money while having business before the state department. Schweizer was on Morning Joe today and was being peppered with questions from Mika Brzezinski and Mike Barnicle about "proof", "evidence" and a "smoking gun" (like George Stephanopoulos did) Schweizer tried to remind them he's just an author and doesn't have the ability to do the digging to establish a legal case. They continued to press and that's when Joe Scarborough had enough:

Posted by Mike LaChance on April 25, 2015 8 Comments
The progressive hosts of MSNBC may like the idea of big government programs, but for some of them, paying taxes seems to be a challenge. Jillian Kay Melchior outlined the issue in a recent column for National Review:
MSNBC’s Touré Has the Taxman on His Case Touré Neblett, co-host of MSNBC’s The Cycle, owes more than $59,000 in taxes, according to public records reviewed by National Review. In September 2013, New York issued a state tax warrant to Neblett and his wife, Rita Nakouzi, for $46,862.68. Six months later, the state issued an additional warrant to the couple for $12,849.87. In January 2014, Neblett tweeted, “Regressive taxation & tax-avoidance & union crushing & the financial corruption of legislation has fueled inequality more than hard work.” In 2012, he also criticized Republican politicians, saying they were “all afraid to vote for a modest tax increase of people who can totally afford it.” MSNBC’s hosts and guests regularly call for higher taxes on the rich, condemning wealthy individuals and corporations who don’t pay their taxes or make use of loopholes. But recent reports, as well as records reviewed by National Review, show that at least four high-profile MSNBC on-air personalities have tax liens or warrants filed against them.
Melchior discussed the issue with Sean Hannity on Thursday night:

Posted by Mike LaChance on April 24, 2015 21 Comments
Wow. First David Brock and now Howard Dean. Is there something in the water at MSNBC? Dean is the former chair of the DNC, a role now filled by our favorite Democrat Debbie Wasserman Schultz. As a long time party loyalist, Dean appeared on Morning Joe yesterday and attempted to downplay new scandalous revelations regarding the Clintons. Hosts Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough could barely contain their skepticism. David Rutz of the Washington Free Beacon:
Mika Tires of Howard Dean’s ‘Jihad’ for Clintons: ‘The Facts Are The Facts’ The New York Times reported Thursday that the Clinton Global Initiative accepted millions of dollars from a Russian oil company when the State Department, then headed by Hillary Clinton, was approving a deal that would give Russians control of the company Uranium One and bring Vladimir Putin “closer to his goal of controlling much of the global uranium supply chain.” The charges are part of Peter Schweizer’s book Clinton Cash.

Posted by Mike LaChance on April 22, 2015 25 Comments
David Brock of Media Matters appeared on MSNBC's Morning Joe program yesterday and attempted to defend Hillary Clinton from claims made in the new book Clinton Cash. Even the reliably liberal Mika Brzezinski wasn't buying Brock's hollow defense. Alyssa Canobbio of the Washington Free Beacon:
Mika Brzezinski Corrects the Record on David Brock’s Laughable Defense of Hillary Clinton Brock defended Clinton’s comments that when a person runs for president that they come under scrutiny and Brock asked people to look at Clinton’s record. Host Mika Brzezinski said no one could look at Clinton’s record because Clinton scrubbed the personal server she used during her time as secretary of state. Brock continued, arguing that the 55,000 pages of email that Clinton has turned over was enough to show her record. Brock said that the actions Clinton took after leaving the State Department all fell under regulations. “No, actually, David, you don’t have to give me a lesson on the regulations of the State Department,” Brzezinski said. “She scrubbed emails because she felt like it and that went against regulations.”
Watch the video:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on April 13, 2015 41 Comments
Yesterday we featured Carly Fiorina's instantaneous reaction to Hillary Clinton's announcement. Or should we say John Podesta's announcement followed up by Hillary. Fiorina exhibited what is becoming her trademark: Taking the fight right to Hillary Clinton's supposed strength, the gender card. Fiorina, as the only woman likely to become a Republican candidate for President, is uniquely able to make the argument that Hillary is abusing the gender card to cover up lack of actual accomplishment. It was only a matter of time before Fiorina's audaciousness would make her a target. So when I read Jazz Shaw's tweet that Mika Brzezinski on Morning Joe went after Fiorina, it didn't surprise me one bit. What's most important is not that she was attacked, but that she responded well: Here is the video:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 19, 2015 31 Comments
The distortion of Benjamin Netanyahu's pre-election statements on a two-state solution and Arab voting was a classic Obama and media distortion. If you take the actual text of Netanyahu said, he never ruled out a two-state solution and never discouraged Arab voting. But those were the headlines and the foaming-at-the mouth hyperbole, fomented by the Obama administration in numerous anonymous statements to the media. Schmuel Rosner has the analysis, from earlier today, Is Obama getting ready to throw Israel under a UN bus?:
Prime Minister Netanyahu has no "newly declared opposition to a Palestinian state". If the White House wants to use a badly framed statement by Netanyahu as an excuse for a change in American policy – if it wants, as the WH hinted, to "turn to the U.N. to help force a deal" with the Palestinians on Israel – it should not come as a great surprise. But Netanyahu's words are the excuse, not the reason, for the change. The reason is Netanyahu's victory and the administrations' vindictive mood toward him and toward the country that elected him.... Netanyahu said a couple of regrettable things in the last, desperate days of his brilliant campaign. ... The second statement was just a poor call for action for the right-wing voters. Netanyahu's record when it comes to policies aimed at integrating Arab Israelis into society is not bad. The first statement was merely an assessment of the situation. Netanyahu did not say that he opposes the two state solution – he said that under current circumstances he doesn't see a Palestinian State established in his coming term as Prime Minister. And he is probably right in this assessment.
The Times of Israel reports on an interview Netanyahu gave today, in which he explained that nothing had changed:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on March 18, 2015 30 Comments
This might be the most deliciously awkward thing I've ever witnessed on cable news. Although Lawrence O'Donnell pretending to be a Boston southie and challenging Tag Romney to a fight is still at the top of that list. Yesterday, MSNBC's Chris Hayes discussed Starbucks' disastrous social justice campaign -- 'Race Together.' Meant to encourage baristas to engage customers in conversations about race, 'Race Together' received an overwhelming amount of criticism from both the left and right. Hayes brought guests Nancy Giles of CBS Sunday Morning, and culture commentator and DJ, Jay Smooth to share their thoughts on Starbucks' latest social endeavor. Smooth is the founder of the longest running hip-hop radio show in New York City. "I agree, the intentions seem noble and I want to keep an open mind," said Smooth talking about 'Race Together', "but I think there's this strange fixation on "conversation" when it comes to race that you don't see with other issues that we want to take seriously. I think it's telling that when Howard Schultz wanted to help veterans, he didn't just tell people to have conversations about how much they like veterans, he committed to a plan of action to help veterans... He talked about being inspired by what happened in Ferguson and other places, but if you look at the DOJ report on Ferguson, it does not describe issues that can be addressed by increasing the number of chats in coffee shops. We're talking about institutional, systemic issues." Conversation ensued, then Hayes played a previously recorded clip of Smooth discussing the best way to discuss race. After watching the clip, Nancy Giles turns to Smooth, begins gyrating her shoulders and says, "I can't help but tease Jay about the kinda like, brotha way he was trying to talk, like "hey" with the rap music in the background and like, down with people."

Posted by Mike LaChance on March 14, 2015 7 Comments
As we've seen time and time again, there's no Democrat problem that can't be solved by Republican overreach. Here's how it works: A Democrat gets caught in a scandal, Republicans react to it, and suddenly the story is all about the Republicans. MSNBC is particularly fond of this practice. David Rutz of the Washington Free Beacon has put together a clip video you can watch below. You may notice a pattern:
MSNBC Is Overplaying Its Hand It didn’t take long for MSNBC to unveil one of its favorite talking points in response to Hillary Clinton’s email scandal at the State Department. Wednesday, the day after a grisly press conference where Clinton tried to answer for deleting thousands of emails and why she had a personal server in the first place, host Alex Wagner posed a question the network loves when Democrats are in tight spots. “To the Trey Gowdy part of the equation, there is a danger here for Republicans which is a frequent danger, that of overplaying their hand,” she said. “The fact that Trey Gowdy has said before Secretary Clinton’s testimony has even begun that he may need to talk to her twice, is he at risk of overstepping here?”
Here's the video:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 06, 2015 10 Comments
Long time Legal Insurrection readers know that for years we have been sounding the alarm over the connection between the gross anti-Israel propaganda which demonizes and dehumanizes both Israeli Jews and supporters of Israel, and anti-Semitism. Scroll through our Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) tag for several dozen over 200 stories over the years. We reported on February 12, 2015, that UCLA student gov’t candidate challenged for being Jewish. Now the story has gone mainstream, with an article in The NY Times, In U.C.L.A. Debate Over Jewish Student, Echoes on Campus of Old Biases:
It seemed like routine business for the student council at the University of California, Los Angeles: confirming the nomination of Rachel Beyda, a second-year economics major who wants to be a lawyer someday, to the council’s Judicial Board. Until it came time for questions. “Given that you are a Jewish student and very active in the Jewish community,” Fabienne Roth, a member of the Undergraduate Students Association Council, began, looking at Ms. Beyda at the other end of the room, “how do you see yourself being able to maintain an unbiased view?” For the next 40 minutes, after Ms. Beyda was dispatched from the room, the council tangled in a debate about whether her faith and affiliation with Jewish organizations, including her sorority and Hillel, a popular student group, meant she would be biased in dealing with sensitive governance questions that come before the board, which is the campus equivalent of the Supreme Court.
As I have pointed out, this is part of a larger movement to ban pro-Israel and almost always Jewish students from involvement in campus politics. Morning Joe addressed the situation (note - the video they mention was taken down, but Legal Insurrection has posted a complete version of that portion of the event):

Posted by Amy Miller on March 04, 2015 38 Comments
In case you missed it, yesterday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech before Congress eviscerating Obama's policy toward Iran and triggering a complete meltdown amongst Democrats and liberal talking heads. I included the rail-jumping from MSNBC institution Chris Matthews in a previous post, but something he said during his rant has been nagging at me ever since I blew it off and hit "publish":
Speaking to Thomas Roberts shortly after Netanyahu’s speech ended, Matthews said definitively, “This man from a foreign government walked into the United States legislative chamber and tried to take over foreign policy.” “He said you should trust me, not your president on this,” Matthews continued, describing the tone of Netanyahu’s remarks. “I’m the man you should trust, I’m your true leader on this question of U.S. geopolitics. If you want to protect yourself, you must listen to me and not this president.” Calling the situation “startling,” Matthews said, “It’s a remarkable day when the leaders of the opposition in Congress allowed this to happen. Think it through, what country in the world would let a foreign leader come in and attempt to rest from the president control of U.S. foreign policy?” “This was a takeover attempt by Netanyahu with his complying American partners to take American foreign policy out of the hands of the president,” he concluded.
Watch:
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