Lauer Pelts Pelosi's Foreign Fling: 'A Lot of People Think She Messed Up

NewsBusters ^ | Mark Finkelstein

[governsleastgovernsbest]

I suppose you could chalk it up to his concern for the Dems' long-term best interests, but there's no denying that on this morning's "Today," Matt Lauer absolutely unloaded on Nancy Pelosi and her ill-conceived venture into foreign policy.

The segment was entitled "Democratic Diplomacy: Has Pelosi Gone Too Far?", virtually answering the question by its very asking. In the set-up piece, David Gregory rolled two telling clips. The first was of VP Cheney's comments on the Rush Limbaugh show yesterday to the effect that Pelosi's statement regarding her trip was"nonsensical." The second was of former congressman Lee Hamilton, warning that if his fellow Dems box in the president on foreign policy, Americans might conclude that the Democrats have gone "too far."

Interviewing Tim Russert at 7:06 AM ET, Lauer came out guns ablazin'.

LAUER: Vice-President Cheney called Nancy Pelosi's trip to Syria "bad behavior," a Washington Post editorial on Thursday called it "counter-productive and foolish," and op-ed in the Wall Street Journal this morning goes a step further and suggests her trip may actually have been a felony, that it may have violated something called the Logan Act. Tim, is this the way the Democrats wanted to get off the mark in terms of foreign affairs?

View video here.

RUSSERT: No, they clearly wanted to distinguish themselves from the president's policies, but you have to be careful, as Congressman Hamilton suggested. One ranking Democrat, Matt, said "we have an alternative Democratic foreign policy." That is going to be very difficult to articulate and put into place when you don't control the White House. On the other hand, Speaker Pelosi issued a statement last night on behalf of the bi-partisan delegation she is leading. Her delegation includes Republican congressmen. She is saying she has done nothing wrong or inconsistent with American foreign policy.

LAUER: Well, that's their side of the story. However, if you look back at the mid-term elections, clearly some voters in this country were unhappy with the administration's foreign policy, specifically in Iraq; it's one of the reasons we think Democrats took control of Congress. But if the Democrats and Speaker Pelosi appear to be acting irresponsibly or incompetently, and let's face it, a lot of people think she messed up on this one, what's the impact for Democrats overall?

RUSSERT: It's considerable. The Democrats have always had a difficulty being competitive with the Republicans in the public voter's mind on national security and foreign policy issues. And if the people perceive missteps, it's going to create and underscore that perceptual problem of Democrats.

LAUER: And let's go back to the point you touched on a second ago. If it's seen . . . what is the bigger and longer-term issue here if a political party is seen as usurping presidential power in designing and implementing foreign policy?

RUSSERT: As we learned in 1994 Matt, when Republicans took control of Congress with the Republican revolution and the Contract With America, people voted for change. But the voters are also willing to turn that around on its head, if they believe people have gone too far. That's why this debate is so important.

Message to Speaker Pelosi: how do you know when you've messed up? When David Gregory and Matt Lauer respectfully cite VP Cheney's criticism of you.

Contact Mark at mark@gunhill.net

[justiceseeker93]

Appropriate that black radicals like Maxine Waters and Barbara Lee are on the list. Their agenda has always been a destructive one. They might have gotten their inspiration to visit Syria from Jesse Jackson, who did so a few years ago.

[DCPatriot]

You’re a saint, GLGB!

[governsleastgovernsbest]

I greatly appreciate the sentiment, but please don’t tell my Rabbi Eli ;-)

[maryz]

She added that Hobson feels strongly such overseas trips should be bipartisan.

Sounds as if Hobson might have seen his role as a kind of damage control!

[justiceseeker93]

Seems as if the MSM has got its usual "feeding frenzy" going on, with the WaPo editorial yesterday giving other outlets tacit "consent" to criticize Pelosi.

I'd be (pleasantly) surprised, however, if this stuff lasts much longer.

[DCPatriot]

[justiceseeker93]

Another Pelosi alert ping!

[Lancey Howard]

Message to Speaker Pelosi: how do you know when you've messed up? When David Gregory and Matt Lauer respectfully cite VP Cheney's criticism of you.

Yow! That's gotta hurt, lol.
Good piece! As always, thanks for the ping.

[Polyxene]

Liberal Democrat journalists wringing their hands over what’s become of their vaunted 2006 election “victory” with its supposed concomitant “mandate.”

AND

It only took the RATs 3 months to screw the pooch!

[DCPatriot]

To be hung in Nancy's office.....

[Lancey Howard]

Hillary is probably raging that Pelosi is getting so much attention.

EXCELLENT point!
Pelosi's vanity world tour (as "FIRST woman in charge") has really taken the shine off of Hillary's run - - she and her candidacy just don't look so special and unique to the ignorant chattering class anymore. Hillary must be frothing at the mouth.

[justiceseeker93]

LOL!

[ExTexasRedhead]

The Liberals are “stabbing” our troops in the back and playing political games with their lives and that makes my blood boil. The GOP leadership better start articulating the danger Liberal actions are creating for our troops including idiot Pelosi’s actions. If they would do that, the American peoples’ blood would be boiling as well. The DemoRATS keep screwing up and the GOP doesn’t capitalize on it. That, too, makes my blood boil. IMO, the leadership of the GOP are all eunuchs.

[RobbyS]

She;s so full of this first-woman-speaker-of- the- House stuff. She forgets that when she walks out of the capitol building she ceases to have any more authority than any other congresscritter, a true case of first among equals. The Constitution gives the President authority; the speaker has no right except to preside over the House. How little that can be can be seen with the British Speaker, who is a mere referee.

[PGalt]

Pelosi words and deeds bump.

[FixitGuy]

"I don't recall Condi Rice ever wearing a head scarf."

Perhaps she's not a "believer".

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Thanks, Lancey, glad you enjoyed it; my pleasure as always.

[elhombrelibre]

Pelosi’s trip and her alternative foreign policy is no doubt designed to appease the loony Left in her own party as much as to appease the dictator Assad. Once you start appeasing these types of morons and bullies, its just a habit. I find many parts of it disturbing and these are some: she craves power and fame so much she’ll debase herself for it; while being used as a pawn by Assad and his allies to divide the American public Pelosi and her Leftwing supporters think there is nothing wrong with being duped by dictators on the International stage; finally, the Democrats are fundamentally no longer a pro-American party and they’re quite pleased that they’re not.

[ken21]

it does seem a bit

1960’s

juvenile

jane fonda

jesse jackson

like, dodn’t it?

[janereinheimer]

Okay, so she just conveniently defied the Logan Act and went anyway. That makes it pretty grave even for the Biggest Bully on the Block.

But didn’t she take an oath of office to uphold the Constitution of the United States. Is she having another memory lapse.

And for that matter, didn’t President Bush take an oath to also defend and protect the Constitution? Wouldn’t defending it also include doing something — anything — about Pelosi’s clearly contemptuous act of defiance?

This is a serious constitutional matter, not just the silly political game they all engage in — Democrats and Republicans alike.

If they all want to be Secretary of State, or even Under-Secretary, why don’t they send their resume on over to the White House. See if Karl Rove could put in a good word for them.

But they sure as h### can’t practice foreign policy just because they think it would be a good photo-op with The Dentist.

Absurd! Absolutely absurd.