CNN Hypes 'Tsunami' of Romney Campaign Problems

NewsBusters.org ^ | September 18, 2012 | Matt Hadro

[Kaslin]

After CNN pounded away at the latest media-manufactured Mitt Romney gaffe, CNN's Brooke Baldwin remarked on Tuesday that the campaign faces a "tsunami" of "myriad issues."

"Can they right this?" she questioned the Romney campaign's ability to weather the media storm, adding that they face "a tsunami, if you add up the myriad issues within the campaign." [Video below the break. Audio here.]

CNN Hypes 'Tsunami' of Romney Campaign Problems

Baldwin was interviewing GOP strategist Chip Saltsman, who interestingly enough implicated the liberal media in his words without actually calling out the media for their bias.

"[S]ince the convention, it's been one after the other after the other. And obviously this is a video from several months ago, but still it's just they dropped it, whoever dropped it knew exactly what they were doing," he said. Liberal magazine Mother Jones leaked the video in an obvious play to gin up negative headlines for Romney.

"They were trying to kind of see the Romney campaign get back on their feet, so they sent them another jab. And again, they're off message yet another day," Saltsman added.

A transcript of the segment, which aired on September 18 on CNN Newsroom at 3:06 p.m. EDT, is as follows:

BROOKE BALDWIN: Because joining me is Republican strategist Chip Saltsman. He formerly managed the Mike Huckabee presidential campaign. So Chip, nice to see you.

CHIP SALTSMAN, Republican strategist: Good to be with you.

BALDWIN: How big a problem is this for Mitt Romney? You laugh.

SALTSMAN: Well, it's not – you know, well, because it is a problem in itself, but then you tack it on to the last week, and then he's had not only a bad couple of days, he's had a bad couple of weeks and the campaign's really not only just kind of stopped, everybody is now instead of talking about a very close presidential election which we're at, they're talking about how Mitt Romney has messed up the campaign and all this kind of stuff. And the really – this campaign is completely off message. They haven't been on message in a couple of weeks. They're responding, they're defensive. And we need a little bit of a game changer here to kind of get us right back on message.

BALDWIN: If you were running the Romney campaign, what do you do? And I hear you laughing, and I know Mitt Romney is not laughing about this. But what would you do to make this go away?

SALTSMAN: You know, I might say, hey, let's everybody let's not talk for 24 hours. It seems like they're just kind of talking themselves into problems. Look, this is a real challenge because you're talking about earlier about how just a few conservatives at the Washington level and a couple of candidates have kind of criticized and kind of moving past this. Well, these kind of things happen in tidal waves. And first of all, it's a couple of – it's one or two people and then all of a sudden it's 10 or 12 and then all of a sudden it's the whole caucus is jumping. And so they've got a real challenge here to kind of right this ship. They've got time to do it. That's a good news, is they've got 49 days to do it. But they've got to –

BALDWIN: Can they right this? I mean, this is, you know –

SALTSMAN: -- stop the bleeding.

BALDWIN: – a tsunami, if you add up the myriad issues within the campaign, can they stop this within the next 49 days?

SALTSMAN: Yeah, I mean I think they can. But at some point you got to say today it stops. And they haven't been able to do it. It's been since the convention, it's been one after the other after the other. And obviously this is a video from several months ago, but still it's just they dropped it, whoever dropped it knew exactly what they were doing. They were trying to kind of see the Romney campaign get back on their feet, so they sent them another jab. And again, they're off message yet another day.

[MeganC]

When Romney wins the election I certainly hope that he remembers that these vermin in the media are not his friends.

[rod1]

They are absolutely desperate to distract from the worst Foreign Policy ineptness since Carter.

[kingattax]

Brooke who ?

[Viennacon]

I just can’t wait to hear Alan Colmes opine on Romney’s truth-telling. /SARC

[Proud2BeRight]

When CNN does this kind of crap it could influence both of their viewers.

[timestax]

[cardinal4]

What bad week? What Disarray? I remember an Obama appointed Foreign service worker getting sodomized and killed while Husseins pals in the Muslim Brotherhood rioted at a number of US Diplomatic posts.I remember Hussein yukking it up with JZ and Beyonce while the Jihad flag flew over the the US Embassy in Tunisia. In fact all I have heard of Romney is this non story..

[Paperdoll]

On a lighter note, here is an enjoyable interview with the Romneys:

Skip to comments.
Complete Interview with Mitt and Ann Romney on “LIVE! with Kelly and Michael
The Right Scoop ^ | 9/18/2012

[Shady]

They think they are shaping opinion amongst Americans...howcum only 45,902 people watch?

[Shady]

They think they are shaping opinion amongst Americans...howcum only 45,902 people watch?

[EGPWS]

CNN?

They appear to support Romney compared to PMSNBC!

It's only going to hurt 0bama in the long run so I hope they keep it up.

[EGPWS]

When CNN does this kind of crap it could influence both of their viewers.

CNN won't stop them from supporting Chavez.

[Tucker39]

Speaking of a tsunami; Wanna’ SEE a tsunami? Just wait until the polls close on November 6th in The Year of Our Lord 2012! There are sooo many people in this Country who have the cruds of Zero and his scumbag sidekicks so bad that they could puke! They are just itching for election day to arrive so they can vent their frustrations on the voting machine!

For a peek into this approaching damburst, that has been building up pressure for a long time now, check out the preview trailer for the movie: “THE HOPE AND THE CHANGE.” 42 Americans of all sizes, shapes, ethnicities and colors, who VOTED FOR OBUMMER IN 2008, who give detailed reasons as to why they will NOT vote for him this time.

[blueunicorn6]

Dear Advertisers; CNN is willing to cover for the liars in this administration. What makes you think they won’t cover for lying about their ratings? Yep, that’s right, why do you give money to people like this?

[mrsmith]

CNN knows it can win it’s ‘dumb sluts’ viewers back if it tries hard enough.
...MSNBC has so many letters!

The Obama campaign is counting on the networks fighting for ‘dumb sluts’ to sell to their advertisers to boost Obama’s chances.

[Tucker39]

We record Kelly & Mike on the DVR while we take our morning hike, and then the missus watches it later, and I listen out of “the corner of my ear” while I surf the net.

On Monday’s show they almost apologized on ahead for the Romney segment coming up today, which was pre-recorded. They said that most of the good meaningful parts had been edited out, and K & M almost apologized in advance and assured the audience that THEY had nothing to do with the editing. So I was feeling a bit down in anticipation of what I expected to be another screw-over of the Romneys by ABC. So today I was standing in front of the TV with my fists clenched, prepared to become HIGHLY PO’d!

WRONG! I don’t know if Kelly & Mike were confused, or if someone had second thoughts about the editing after being deluged with emails after Monday’s show, or what, but I was very pleased with the content of the interview and impressed with the way the Romneys came across.

Anne was her truly beautiful self, with a beauty that radiates from the inside; and Mitt looks fit and glowing with good health and clean living, and ready to take over the levers and do to our economy what he did to the financial train wreck of The Olympics that he took from bankruptcy to a huge surplus. But he needs a House and Senate who will work with him.

[Venturer]

Of course CNN is working against Romney. All of the Media is.

When the SHTF take out the Media first.

[Fedupwithit]

Anyone who is watching CNN at any given time isn’t voting for Romney anyway, so I wouldn’t think that this is any big whoop...’preaching to the liberal choir’

[cookcounty]

The problem for CNN and its allies is that Romney’s 47% already is convinced (and more convinced every day) that the press is mostly composed of dishonest lying creeps and their assessments are idiotic, bigoted and worthless.