More than just that - it's pure scripted Dim political theater - get in your shots at Bush, defend your own incompetent hack, and then run away weeping before any rebuttal has a chance, and so that rebuttal looks like the mean old Republicans politicizing the tragedy by picking on the poor overwhelmed local official. It's in the playbook - all they had to do is find the right guy to pull off the acting job.
The real scandal is that Russert knows what's going on here but doesn't call it for the play it really is. Hell, he probably has a copy of the script!
LOL! Remember about a year ago, Dick Morris was on Hannity & Colmes and mentioned Dem "talking points"? Colmes huffily denied there were any such things, and Morris said, "Come on, now. I'm the one who used to fax them to you!"