Shuster Suspended For "Pimped Out" Comment

That might have been a poor choice of a word but hardly so horrible that a reporter should be kicked off the air. Give me a break. Are these not the people that called millions of Americans “trailor park trash” and coined the term “Bimbo erruptions?”

Just in case anyone else missed the dialog

(WARNING: SHOCKING DIALOG BELOW. WARNING!!!)

DAVID SHUSTER: Bill, there’s just something a little bit unseemly to me that Chelsea’s out there calling up celebrities, saying support my mom, and she’s apparently also calling these super delegates.

BILL PRESS: Hey, she’s working for her mom. What’s unseemly about that? During the last campaign, the Bush twins were out working for their dad. I think it’s great, I think she’s grown up in a political family, she’s got politics in her blood, she loves her mom, she thinks she’d make a great president...

DAVID SHUSTER: But doesn’t it seem like Chelsea’s sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?

—This is what we’ll get with McCain or Clinton as president. It won’t be a simple ban from a network either, they’ll pass legislation with nice punishments for speaking out against the social engineering and collectivist programs they have planned for us.—

This is what happens when the US Supreme Court refused to go the extra mile. The First Amendment shoud be extended to the private sphere, so that private censorship, not just government censorship, can be forbidden. What Shuster engaged in was political speech, NBC should not be allowed to punish him for that, just as CBS should not have been allowed to punish Don Imus for his “nappy headed ho’s” remark. Bad taste never killed anybody; the answer to speech you don’t like is more speech, not censorship. Right now, if a store clerk comes to work wearing a “I’m pro-life and I vote” button, her employer can force her to remove it on the grounds it might offend some customers. We had a “Religious freedom restoration act” passed some years ago, maybe it’s time for a “Freedom of speech restoration act” that would extend the 1st amendment to the private sphere once and for all. Fat chance of that happening, sadly.

BTW—Some people on these boards are confusing David Shuster with NBC white house correspondent (and no friend of W) David GREGORY. Hope this clears that up.

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