[december12]

My problem with Chris Wallace is that we remember what HE said, rather than what the GUEST said. I thought he attacked Card and Dean equally. The trouble is, the response to his "gotcha" approach was bland, boiler-plate pap.

Wallace needs to learn how to encourage the guests to make newsworthy comments. They are the story, not him.

[Zansman]

I thought Dean did say something newsworthy but Wallace never thought to press him on it.

From the transcript:

WALLACE: But aren't those legitimate issues, whether it's a woman's right to choose versus right to life, whether there should a national ban on assault weapons, gay rights?

I mean, aren't those issues -- I have to say, I remember back in 1988, because I was covering the campaign, when Michael Dukakis said that the campaign is about competence, not ideology, and the Republicans killed him on that.

Don't American voters care about values?

DEAN: They care about values. And there are a lot of different kinds of values. My attitude is, each state's going to make their own kinds of decisions about these difficult issues that we're -- you know, the social issues that divide us.

My take on this was that Dean appeared to be saying abortion laws, gun laws, gay marriage laws all should be left up to the states , all contrary to everything the left believes.

If Wallace had been paying attention to Dean's BS, he could have pressed him on this which would have at least provided Kerry, Gephardt, et al with some fun ammo for the next debate. The worse they chew each other up in the primary, the easier it'll be for W.