Posted on 12/09/2006 2:36:28 PM PST by Phsstpok
Preview and Analysis of the Weekend Talk Shows for December 9 and 10, 2006
The Iraq Survey Group has delivered their tablets from the mountain and it is time for all of us to accept the fact that we have been defeated in Iraq and to stop worshipping the false god of democracy and freedom! It's just too hard! Instead we must accept Realpolitik and turn over all of the Middle East to the Islamists because we want to keep the oil flowing. Those annoying Jews will just have to get over that whole Israel thing. They should go back to their European ghettos homes, where they'll be safe and cared for. They'll even be given jobs, after all, "work makes one free." Oh, and Americans must accept rule by the unelected committees of wise men like the ISG because they simply know what's best for us. Or at least that's what the Sunday shows want us to believe.
Inside the beltway and the halls of the DBM there has been a feeding frenzy attacking Republicans in general and conservatives in particular, which started well before the elections. Since the elections there has been a growing chorus of triumphalism among the Dhimmicrats in general and their left wing is particularly exercised about their return to power. Both trends are now spinning out of control. Trotting out Jimmy Carter last weekend and promoting his lie and hate filled anti American and anti-Semitic book was the opening shot by those who feel they have been denied their right to rule over the rest of us. They are shoving our faces in all of the "errors" they think we made in rejecting them over the last 30 years.
I think they have gone far beyond any possible relationship to reality and are in for some very harsh lessons . They don't realize how razor thin their November victories were. They don't realize how they are now shouting at the top of their lungs how stupid they think the people are who they fooled into either voting for them as "moderates" or not voting at all as a way to "punish the Republicans and deliver a message to them." The "buyers remorse" for this election is going to be a bitch.
But this week they think they have the President on the ropes and they want to try to go in for the kill. They got Rummy. They got Bolton. Next they want Rove then Cheney. They may even have visions of impeaching both Bush and Cheney and setting Nancy Pelosi in the Presidency in a coup disguised as a Constitutional succession. But in looking at the grass roots reaction to the ISG report that appears to be catching on I think their play this weekend may go too far. And when even Imus gets it that the DBM is deluding themselves when they think they now wield the same power as Cronkite, I think (no, I hope) that we may be watching a tragedy unfold for them.
On to the shows. I present them in the order they start in my market.
NBC Meet The Press offers up one of four appearances for the co-chairs of the ISG. No doubt they will be given ample opportunity to hand down their received wisdom to us lesser intellects with nary a hard question about trivialities like "right and wrong" or consequences. For this session expect Lil Timmah to completely avoid "the hunch." MTP then assembles a panel of experts, three who have come out violently against the war and President Bush and one who has conceded that we are likely losing.
<sarcasm> Ah, balance and intellectual honesty. A hallmark of Meet The Press </sarcasm>.
CBS Face The Nation is stop number two for the Magi of the ISG. It's only a 30 minute show, so expect Bob to simply let them expound, sans reproche. And they also have to make room for Carl Levin and Trent Lott. Carl will undoubtedly praise the ISG as wise and noble, though he'll insist all it does is convince him the Bush is wrong and he is right, so we should run away now. Trent will touch his forelock like a good submissive minortiy party leader should in the presence of his masters and dutifully condemn the President for not immediately surrendering to the wisdom of those smarter than himself. As an aside, I have sent emails of protest to Lott's office as well as inquiries to my own senators and to Mitch McConnell's office asking why Lott is allowed to be the face of Senatorial Republicans.
Fox News Sunday is Melchior and Balthasar* Baker and Hamilton's third go around on Sunday. Based on Chris Wallace's increasingly "mainstream" performances the last couple of months I expect that this may be their friendliest venue of all. The other segment on FNS has Dodd and Brownback, two senators with presidential ambitions, but little or no chance of success. It was interesting how little I found on Dodd in recent news stories and how many and contradictory were the stories on Brownback. There seems to be a major industry building up around defining Sam Brownback coming from both sides of the question of whether he's good or bad. The regular panel, including Brit, is back for the roundtable. I'm most interested to see if Brit has recharged his batteries some in his time off after the election. His interview with Bush was quite good and he seemed more animated this last week, when he was on, but I will be watching for any signs that he's winding down his tenure at Fox or in front of a camera.
CNN Late Edition is stop number four on the news show merry go round for the "Two Great and Wise Leaders of the ISG®." I wonder if they'll have anything new to say? It's amusing to me that CNN reverses the billing from everyone else, putting Hamilton before baker on their web site show lineup. Is there a message there? Wolfie broadens the talent pool, as usual, to include more "real people" (you know, non-Americans and people with violently anti-American view points he can promote, or not anti-American ones he can ridicule). I will actually be interested to hear from Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution of Iraq and member of the Iraqi coalition government, who met with President Bush this week. A lot of criticism has been thrown at the President for receiving the other Shiite militia leader, besides the Mookster (Al Sadr). After all, both are anti-American. But Bush may remember Nixon "playing the China card" and messing with the Kremlin psychologically and geopolitically way back when. There's Realpolitik and then there's Realpolitik. CNN also brings back Bob Woodward, beginning his rehabilitation after the humiliation of his book tour the last few months. The meme there is that Woodward (like Carter and all the rest) was right and everyone who criticized him was wrong. I'm also interested in seeing how Jane Harman is treated and whether she is allowed to talk of anything except her cat fight with Nazi Pelosi. If she is asked only about the issues, particularly the ISG, then you can view this as CNN allowing her to begin her rehabilitation.
ABC This Week must have offended someone somewhere because the ISG chairmen won't be gracing their studios. Did Steffie diss them somehow? Instead Steponallofus substitutes an interview with outgoing British PM, Tony Blair. I expect a lot of conversation about regrets over Iraq and a lot of fishing for sound bites that can be spun as criticism of Bush. For inside the beltway wisdom they bring us Joe "plugs" Biden and the suddenly respectable Gordon Smith. It's amazing how you don't hear a person's name mentioned when they support Bush but they utter one statement critical of this President and suddenly they are Solomon reborn. Besides the semi classic roundtable of George Will, Cokie Roberts, Sam Donaldson and Fareed Zakaria, they also have a sentimental segment designed to prove that left wing extremists really do hate the war but not the soldiers (despite that whole spitting incident that was reported on this week). Ed Asner, lovable Lou Grant his own self, will be touting a program to send greeting cards (not Christmas cards, for darn sure) to the troops overseas. Of course, my guess is that the holiday cards will have Lenin, Stalin and Mao as the three magi and a baby picture of Mumia Abu-Jamal sleeping in the manger. Boy, do I miss David Brinkley!
The Saturday shows are again following their well worn pattern. Mort and Fred dole out the conventional wisdom on The Beltway Boys, though they do get to take on Jimmy Carter second hand. They probably won't criticize him themselves so much as comment on the criticism by others. It will give them plausible deniability. Lil Timmah turns the tables to sell his own book as a Christmas gift, with the aid of Tom Brokaw. I think this is a repeat from several months ago when the book first came out. Fox News Watch has some semi interesting stories, while completely ignoring, again, the faux news coming out of the Middle East from so many of the DBM venues, particularly AP. This is a scandal to rival Enron, but like good insiders they choose to pretend it doesn't exist and protect their dying "profession." The Journal Editorial Report does it's usual interesting and informative job of covering what others won't, or can't, or covering the stories the others cover, but don't get right. Yep. It's Saturday all right.
So, the DBM has given up all pretense of casting the Dhimmicrats as "reasonable centrists" as they did in the run up and immediate aftermath of the elections. Or at least that's true in that they are no longer trying to actually fool people into thinking that the newly elected Dhimmicrats will support real centrist positions. Instead they are moving on to tell us that we have been wrong all these years for not supporting the most extreme American leftists progressive Democrats and that they're positions are the true American mainstream. After all, the European Socialists told Howard Dean this when he joined them for their annual meeting this last week.
We are moving on from the election and the DBM are trying to make out as if hundreds of seats changed hands in the House and that the Dhimmicrats have a veto proof majority in the Senate. They didn't and they don't. Watch for stories about "Republican obstructionism" to dominate coverage for the next two years. Question: does anyone have a link to a single story in the DBM about "Democrat obstructionism" from the last 5 years? The DBM's effort now is about trying to make the Dhimmicrat's dominance of the agenda a foregone conclusion, particularly as it relates to Iraq and the War on Terror. Their intention is to do to us now what Uncle Walter did to us in Vietnam, namely cause us to lose. The difference is that in Vietnam the Pajama Media didn't exist. It appears we have our work cut out for us.
This will (probably) be cross posted to my blog at Wizards.townhall.com (eventually). This post exists primarily as a heads up for who is on the weekend talks shows, what they've been invited on to push (based on their recent pronouncements) and the spin (meme) the DBM is likely trying to push based on that information. All of this is prep work for the weekly Sunday Morning Talk Show thread posted by Alas Babylon!. That thread provides a live commentary and analysis of the Sunday talking head shows, with rare insight and exceptional fact checking. we are the Jedi Council of FreeRepublic, at least in regards to these DBM gabfests. You wanna know what was said and what it meant, as well as where they messed up? Read that thread!
Mark Kilmer has posted his excellent Sunday preview over at RedState.COM.
Happy Chanukah, A Blessed Christmas and Happy New Year to all!
Wow, that little devil. Neat beyond words.
Color me green. I would like to be anywhere with Rummy.
Me too....I can't think of anything neater than to go to a bar-b-que at Crawford Ranch..and have Pres. Bush, Laura, and the Cheney's and the Rumsfeld's...wouldn't that be a hoot???
FMCDH(BITS)
Instead of Beltway Boys, etc, I am reviewing a video of MTP from March 1996
Dick Armey
Trent Lott
Tom Daschle
Dick Gephardt
Really substantial conversation -- very little input by Tim Russert
There really seems to have been a serious deterioration of Sunday show dialogue from this real debate by animated congressmen to today's tired old
men saying nothing new.
I cannot bring myself to watch any of tomorrow's shows - I'll just live in the past - much less boring!
Condemning Carter Brings FNW Together: 'He Should Have Stopped A Few Books Ago'
Meet the Press mailbox (web page for comments)
Speaking of Rummy, cspam will replay his farewell town meeting at the Pentagon again tomorrow afternoon - about 3:40pm.
LOL!
OK
Thanks for the heads up...I didn't see it the other day.
Neither did I.
Now I am watching Brit Hume in a trench coat with a mic in his hand, standing in front of the White House -- only it is 1991 and he, Peter Jennings and ABC crew in Baghdad are waiting to learn if the land war of Gulf War I has started.
Guess what: the reporter in Baghdad is saying that the people there are very angry with Americans. I thought that only happened after Bush43 became President!!!
Maybe since you are back at Gulf War 1....you can change Poppa Bush's mind...and have him go all the way to Baghdad and take out Saddam!!
LOL
This weekend talk show preview is my favorite site on FR. Thanks for doing it.
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