The fact that he "cleared it" most certainly does make his remark more offensive, and suspect.
What a strange thing to say, and yet--consider the network. The hate-Americ-first thinking seems to be their mindset, so maybe it's one of those "go along to get along" situations.
Agreed. I don't sense that Insana's instinct would be to trash America, but he is surely well aware of the prevailing political culture at his workplace, and wants to show that his heart is in the right place. And what better way to do it than suggesting that the country with the most powerful economy in world history is really nothing more than a cheap -----?