Rhodes Scholar Reporting the News Show Discussion

[33kaitykaity]

I wish Rachel weren't quite so gleeful to "report" bad news about Bernie and/or Bernie-supported candidates. Rachel's bias always shows through in segments like the one tonight about how Canova is behind DWS by 5 points and no financial help has yet been forthcoming from Bernie.  I can almost watch her show now without wanting to smash my computer screen, but tonight reminded me just how in the tank for Hillary Rachel really is.  

Edited August 24, 2016 by 33kaitykaity

[nowandlater]

Here are more details on Bannon's fixation on Maddow.

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2016-08-23/trump-s-debt-to-brilliant-rachel-maddow

[Medicine Crow]

12 hours ago, 33kaitykaity said:

I wish Rachel weren't quite so gleeful to "report" bad news about Bernie and/or Bernie-supported candidates. Rachel's bias always shows through in segments like the one tonight about how Canova is behind DWS by 5 points and no financial help has yet been forthcoming from Bernie.  I can almost watch her show now without wanting to smash my computer screen, but tonight reminded me just how in the tank for Hillary Rachel really is.  

I really like that Rachel is clearly on Hillary's side & doesn't leave any doubt about it.

On the other hand, it took me a while to figure out just where Andrea Mitchell (string-neck) stood.  This morning, I loved Brian Fallon, Hillary's Press Secretary not letting her spew her negative rhetoric about the Clinton Foundation & went back at her in spades, disputing & correcting every shady point she made.

I'm also happy to see (my man) James Carville on every TV show known to man extolling the virtues of the Clinton Foundation & telling the talking heads the facts & saying "somebody's going to hell" (for lying about a Foundation that does so much good & saves lives).  Go James!

[33kaitykaity]

5 minutes ago, Medicine Crow said:

On the other hand, it took me a while to figure out just where Andrea Mitchell (string-neck) stood.  This morning, I loved Brian Fallon, Hillary's Press Secretary not letting her spew her negative rhetoric about the Clinton Foundation & went back at her in spades, disputing & correcting every shady point she made.

I will have to go find that and watch it.  Thanks!!

[car54]

I can't remember which Clinton scandal it was but some news broke a while back about Hillary and Andrea got caught with a hot mike when she thought they were on a break and she said something like "FINALLY! I've been waiting for this to catch up with her".

No, I'd say she is not fond of Hillary.

[represent]

3 hours ago, 33kaitykaity said:

On the other hand, it took me a while to figure out just where Andrea Mitchell (string-neck) stood.  This morning, I loved Brian Fallon, Hillary's Press Secretary not letting her spew her negative rhetoric about the Clinton Foundation & went back at her in spades, disputing & correcting every shady point she made.

Oh, they sent out Fallon, good. He should always be their go-to guy on all things email/foundation, he's good. They can't trip him up like they've done to Mook, probably because Fallon is  a former state department spokesman.  

They should send out Fallon, Carville, Steve Israel was fabulous the other day, he really took it to them, Barney Frank, Jennifer Granholm ...these people seem to be able to hold their own. They do not allow these reporters and other guests to bully them into silence.  They can get their point across clearly and concisely.  Simone Sanders is actually pretty good especially since she was a Bernie supporter, but she was pretty good on cutting down the bullshit.  Mook is a good guy, he's running a fine campaign, but sometimes he's not energetic nor spunky enough and I've seen a reporter or two get him to freaking stutter especially when it comes to anything having to do with emails and foundation. 

Edited August 24, 2016 by represent

[represent]

2 hours ago, car54 said:

I can't remember which Clinton scandal it was but some news broke a while back about Hillary and Andrea got caught with a hot mike when she thought they were on a break and she said something like "FINALLY! I've been waiting for this to catch up with her".

No, I'd say she is not fond of Hillary.

LOL, I love it. I love when my suspicions are proven correct, Jeff Weaver and now Andrea Mitchell.

I know I'm biased but she's just not good at hiding it, and she gets paid to do exactly that, pathetic.  Chris Jansing on the other hand, reigns supreme on this front; I can't figure out a damn thing about her politics, she's great.

[car54]

I believe Brian Williams is also a Hillary hater and closet republican.

[jjj]

27 minutes ago, represent said:

LOL, I love it. I love when my suspicions are proven correct, Jeff Weaver and now Andrea Mitchell.

I know I'm biased but she's just not good at hiding it, and she gets paid to do exactly that, pathetic.  Chris Jansing on the other hand, reigns supreme on this front; I can't figure out a damn thing about her politics, she's great.

I love that they are giving Chris Jansing an hour of anchor time every weekday now -- although the actual hour does shift around -- I hope she is not just doing summer fill-in work.  She is doing great interviews with both sides, eliciting information without needing to bloviate on her own views.

And because I am watching today's Chris Jansing hour, I can report (OT!) that MSNBC is promoting the Rachel Maddow/Kellyanne Conway interview this evening. 

[represent]

Rachel don't let Conway off the hook. You were about to pin her down on policy.  What does extreme vetting mean? What does the new extreme vetting look like in a way that it would be constitutional?  She wants people to consider it, but what is "it" exactly? What are the details? I still don't know, do you Rachel? That's where we were going. Damn you were almost there, and she wouldn't have had an answer except for TBD.

LOL, Pence? No one knows who he is, what the hell is Conway talking about.

Governor Christie? Are you fucking kidding me? And then Rachel doesn't have an in your face response to that? Who gives a fuck what that shady, thug thinks. Talk about a politician who deserves to be in an orange jumpsuit, loser.

At least she transitioned into Trump's taxes. 

Edited August 25, 2016 by represent

[car54]

I thought Kellyanne was on her best behavior.  I've seen her much angrier/more aggressive with other interviewers.

Rachel did better with her than I expected---she's very slippery.

[Dianaofthehunt]

Slippery, indeed! I've never seen Ms. Conway speak in any other context, so I don't know her angry/aggressive side. She spewed blather, but didn't break a sweat doing it. After Trump sinks in November, Ms. Conway will be in demand for her poise and speaking ability, I'm thinking.

[represent]

10 minutes ago, car54 said:

I thought Kellyanne was on her best behavior.  I've seen her much angrier/more aggressive with other interviewers.

Rachel did better with her than I expected---she's very slippery.

Yeah, I truly did think she was getting somewhere with that extreme vetting policy, to actual make the point that it needs details. He can't use the old extreme vetting policies because they were deemed unconstitutional, so what's the new policy going to look like?

What is the vetting policy in place right now, you have to know the details if you're going to say it's not effective enough and your policy will be better. I keep hearing the GOP criticizing the vetting policy of Syrian refugees yet I never hear them doing it with details. The Dems. will come back with who is involved in the vetting and how long the process takes, as well as which states are taking in the refugees and the number of refugees that have been placed so far, but then the Reps. never respond with details on what they would add, change, make the vetting more effective, safer. I'm listening. Then they talk about border security, what exactly do they need? More boots on the ground, more helicopters flying over to monitor the border..... because they claim that they won't consider any immigration laws until the border is secure. But what exactly does that look like outside of that ridiculous wall which everyone on both sides knows won't be built.

Edited August 25, 2016 by represent

[car54]

Every time she said that Hillary has no substantive plans I was yelling at her to go look at the damn website.  Hillary has a plan for pretty much anything you can think of.

[represent]

1 minute ago, car54 said:

Every time she said that Hillary has no substantive plans I was yelling at her to go look at the damn website.  Hillary has a plan for pretty much anything you can think of.

Like Cher said on LOD last night, "I don't like that chick."  I died laughing.

[Medicine Crow]

14 minutes ago, represent said:

Like Cher said on LOD last night, "I don't like that chick."  I died laughing.

I think we should just nickname her KY & leave it at that!!!

[jjj]

I was amazed that she said she just got her first piece of hate mail at home.  That means another Kellyanne Conway has received several bags of mail not intended for her.

I have to say that unlike so many of the Trump defenders, there was some level of intelligence behind her eyes, and a couple of times Kellyanne seemed to recognize that something was ludicrous, although she could not say so.  The doctor's astonishing letter, for example. 

[jjj]

Okay, this is fascinating -- the Washington Post published a transcript of the entire Maddow/Conway interview, with annotations -- click on the yellow highlighting to get to the annotations:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/25/rachel-maddows-fascinating-duel-with-trump-campaign-manager-kellyanne-conway-annotated/

[M. Darcy]

I don't know what's funnier - her statement that they will win on substance or the pretending that Trump will ever appear on Rachel's show.

[Grommet]

The WaPo annotated transcript was brilliant. Now I don't have to watch the show. Somehow reading it was easier than watching it would be.

When was the last time Trump talked to any media type other than Sean Hannity? Even with all his "stamina," he couldn't keep up with Rachel.

[represent]

Yeah, Trump gives press conferences, and answers what and how ever the fuck he wants to answer, when he's not telling reporters to be quiet. I'm looking at you Katie Tur.  What a joke this campaign season is....

Quite frankly,I don't remember any press conferences from the 2008 election season, I really can't recall any. I recall interviews, there have always been interviews, but press conferences? 

Not unless there's scandal, so yeah, Hillary needs to give a press conference on this foundation, LOL. She already did one for the emails and no way should she have one every time they release a batch and they try to make shit up in between the lines. But yeah, she can have one to address the foundation. But I feel like they are once again allowing Trump to decide the criteria for campaigning. His orange ass is always hogging up screen time with his pointless rallies and press conferences where he tells reporters to shut up. Yet the long standing criteria for releasing your taxes, he has not fulfilled, along with that fraudulent doctor's note. However, Hillary still needs to roll out press conferences because the orange dipshit does them?  Get the fuck out of here.

Maybe I'm wrong but I just don't recall any press conferences the way I recall interviews in all the years that I've watched elections.

And how in the  hell are these journalists allowing the Kelly Conway's of this election season to form their lips to say that Hillary Clinton doesn't have detailed policy plans WTF Rachel?

Just like this delusional Conway bitch and the rest of Trump's surrogates have been all over these sorry networks forming their lips to say that Hillary hasn't taken her ass to minority communities, are you fucking kidding me? They just let his surrogates spout that blatant lie without batting an eye.

Again, you have got to be kidding me, this literally made my head spin around and that's saying something in this election year. 

Edited August 25, 2016 by represent

[sadiegirl]

I wish Rachel had asked about the NY Times story about how the rent for the campaign space in Trump Tower went from $40K (or close to that) to $250k (or close to that) once that rent was being paid for by donations.  He really is in this to make money. 

[car54]

Brian Fallon was on some show this morning about the press conferences and basically he said---"we gave press conferences and people complained, so we started doing more one on one interviews, then people complained so then we started doing small pools of the reporters who travel with her, and then people complained some more, so we'll probably be doing a formal press conference soon and probably people will complain some more, and we'll do something else.

In terms of Trump spending donated money--he also spent a large % on "digital consultants" who turn out to be a company who is owned by whoever makes his business website--and they've never worked on a political campaign.

[NewDigs]

3 hours ago, sadiegirl said:

I wish Rachel had asked about the NY Times story about how the rent for the campaign space in Trump Tower went from $40K (or close to that) to $250k (or close to that) once that rent was being paid for by donations.  He really is in this to make money. 

I'd take this reply to the correct thread but can't remember where I saw it BUT either someone on Morning Joe (doubtful) or later on MSNBC reported on that. Unfortunately he felt that, even though it's possibly actionable, the FEC would not go after some of that stuff. He also mentioned Trump does not understand how a "blind trust" works.

[jjj]

6 minutes ago, NewDigs said:

I'd take this reply to the correct thread but can't remember where I saw it BUT either someone on Morning Joe (doubtful) or later on MSNBC reported on that. Unfortunately he felt that, even though it's possibly actionable, the FEC would not go after some of that stuff. He also mentioned Trump does not understand how a "blind trust" works.

I do not know how much coordination happens between TRMS and other shows, but I think Lawrence O'Donnell had a segment on that expanded office space yesterday also, talking to someone actually from the Trump campaign, and noting that personnel has hardly increased at all (so why all the extra space?).  Someone did a segment on this yesterday.  It all starts to blur, except Rachel and Chris Hayes.    Best retort I've heard this week was from Ari Melber, who had the new 11:00ET/8:00PT hour -- Trump bloviator said "maybe you've never worked on a presidential campaign," and Ari replied,  "well, yes, I have." That ended that attempt to shut down Ari Melber.  I also will take observations to the general MSNBC thread. 

[car54]

YESS!!!!!!  Rachel is covering the whole Mercer story--I was kind of hoping she'd do this when Kellyanne was on.

Better late than never.

[jjj]

Okay, the conversation of Rachel and Larry O'D about having a gastroenterologist as your primary care doctor -- that is actually advice I got from the head of a major medical center, that having a gastroenterologist as your primary care physician is actually good advice once you get to 40 or so. 

[M. Darcy]

Quote

When was the last time Trump talked to any media type other than Sean Hannity

I think he actually had an interview with Anderson Cooper last night but I don't know how it went.

Seriously?  Americans don't know about Merkel.  That can't be right because of Kate's awesome imitation of her on SNL and also, sadly, she's the one that President Bush gave that unwanted neck rub to.

Man, Rachel made me feel like I was weird because I actually know all about British politics.  But I follow a lot of Brits on twitter and they have been very worried even before the Britex Vote about the rise of right wing groups. 

Quote

Okay, the conversation of Rachel and Larry O'D about having a gastroenterologist as your primary care doctor -- that is actually advice I got from the head of a major medical center, that having a gastroenterologist as your primary care physician is actually good advice once you get to 40 or so. 

But probably a real gastroenterologist :-)  I have my doubts about that guy Trump used - if he's even really a doctor.

[jjj]

Oh, this is fantastic (in the sense of, fantastical, "is this a dream?") -- the famous doctor wrote the letter about Trump's health in five minutes "and did not proofread it" while Trump's limo waited at the door of the building.  In an interview, he "went on to say that the Oval Office has been occupied by presidents with dementia or tumors or even men who were 'paranoid' or 'psychotic.' " And there are more pictures.  I hope Rachel is in her seat tonight:

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-doctor-wrote-health-letter-just-5-minutes-limo-waited-n638526

Oh, yes, M. Darcy, I agree that my medical advice came from someone who was suggesting a "real" gastroenterologist!  But if I need a health certificate in a hurry, oh, say, for a high-profile, high-responsibility job, apparently Trump's doc is the place to go. 

7 hours ago, M. Darcy said:

But probably a real gastroenterologist :-)  I have my doubts about that guy Trump used - if he's even really a doctor.

Edited August 26, 2016 by jjj

[jjj]

Rachel will have video of the Trump MD -- I saw it on Chris Hayes's show, and it looks like they got the NBC videographer and camera lens from "To Catch a Predator".  I don't think it was Skype, because there are two camera angles.  Who would go to him for medical care?  Maybe just prescriptions...

Rachel said she is "in fine fettle", which is a phrase we do not hear nearly often enough.  And about the MD letter, she said: "That letter reads like a fortune cookie that wants to be a science fiction writer."

Difference between Chris and Rachel?  In editing the Maine Governor's "vile language" (Rachel's term), Chris displayed a certain word as "c---------" (all bleeped) and Rachel displayed it as "----sucker", with only the first syllable bleeped.  It is like friggin' (the Governor's word) Wheel of Fortune, putting the pieces of the words together!  (I got it from Chris's version, alas.)

Also, the Governor's "you little son-of-a-bitch" was aired on both shows; did not know Standards Dept. allowed that in prime time! 

Edited August 27, 2016 by jjj

[represent]

Bwaah, he said he knows Hillary's doctor so he knows Hillary's health is not so good, LOL.  Make sure when you get him on your show Rachel, to ask him if he thinks it ethical to talk about the patients of his "fellow" doctors.  

Yes, he does look like a predator, sleazy. Just about every person I see associated with Trump looks sleazy in appearance, ewww.

"Governor DMoney/Shifty" over there in Maine is the gift that keeps on giving.

Edited August 27, 2016 by represent

[jjj]

1 minute ago, represent said:

Bwaah, he said he knows Hillary's doctor so he knows Hillary's health is not so good, LOL.  Make sure when you get him on your show Rachel, to ask him if he thinks it ethical to talk about his "fellow" doctor's patients.  

Yes, he does look like a predator, sleazy. Just about every person I see associated with Trump looks sleazy in appearance, ewww.

Oh, I did not hear that he knows Hillary's doctor!  (Blinded by the sleaze.)  Want to bet that "Hillary's doctor" will be issuing a statement that (1) he/she would never violate a patient's privilege, and (2) see previous exhibit attesting to Hillary's excellent health.  And (3) as long as you are taking the time to read her health testimonial, why not take a look at the tax returns SHE HAS RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC.

[car54]

I bet this is Trump's Dr Feelgood.

[represent]

1 minute ago, jjj said:

Oh, I did not hear that he knows Hillary's doctor!  (Blinded by the sleaze.)  Want to bet that "Hillary's doctor" will be issuing a statement that (1) he/she would never violate a patient's privilege, and (2) see previous exhibit attesting to Hillary's excellent health.  And (3) as long as you are taking the time to read her health testimonial, why not take a look at the tax returns SHE HAS RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC.

Yep, he said it, with all the other bullshit he mumbled. 

He said that Trump told him that Hillary's Dr. would be putting out a note for her and since he knows her Dr. and knows that her health isn't all that good.... which was completely a digression from what he was asked. He was asked about how he came to write the note for Trump and he of course thinks mentioning Hillary's health is part of that answer. 

Edited August 27, 2016 by represent

[jjj]

Golly, this is fun.  If only the future of civilization were not at stake, this would be dandy summer viewing. 

[represent]

2 minutes ago, jjj said:

Golly, this is fun.  If only the future of civilization were not at stake, this would be dandy summer viewing. 

LOL, I agree, this is good tv, yet terrifying at the same time.

[3pwood]

Trump's doctor looks kind of like the "venal doctor" played by Peter Sellers in The Wrong Box, hired by the villains to sign a blank death certificate.  Only that movie was a comedy, so he meant to make us laugh at him.

[Quilt Fairy]

Did anyone else think he looked stoned?

Edited August 27, 2016 by Quilt Fairy

[movingtargetgal]

Yes I did.  I also thought he looked like the love child of Jerry Garcia and Tommy Chong.

[stormy]

I'm calling BS on the voters in Maine.  The Portland newspaper reporter says now the people are taking notice of what he's saying because if they paid attention to LaPage for every crazy thing he's said for the nearly 7 years he's been in office, they'd go crazy.
They re-elected this nut.  They knew he was nuts from the start.

[Quilt Fairy]

What confuses me is that Maine is apparently a reliably blue state in Presidential elections but votes a right-wing Republican crazy man like this as Governor.

[movingtargetgal]

I was raised in Maine, however, I moved away the day after I graduated high school.  My niece, who still lives there, told me that during the past two elections there was a third party candidate funded by republican interests that screwed up the election.  This third party candidate was more democratic leaning thus splitting the democratic vote.  Dirty Tricks

[Sharpie66]

Re: Yanks knowing who Angela Merkel is, back in 2012, I had been following the news about Merkel having the EU hold back on bailing out Greece without severe austerity measures being put in place. That summer, Mom and I spent a few weeks in Britain. I had promised Mom I wouldn't talk politics when chatting with the locals or other travelers, but that went out the window when everyone wanted to discuss the U.S. election with us!

On our last B&B stay, in Orkney, Scotland, we had a large communal breakfast table for everyone to sit around. This led to several days of fascinating discussions with Belgians, Canadians, and a young German couple, who were flabbergasted that I not only knew Merkel's name and could pronounce it properly, but knew about the EU bailout topic. 

[j5cochran]

21 minutes ago, Sharpie66 said:

Re: Yanks knowing who Angela Merkel is, back in 2012, I had been following the news about Merkel having the EU hold back on bailing out Greece without severe austerity measures being put in place. That summer, Mom and I spent a few weeks in Britain. I had promised Mom I wouldn't talk politics when chatting with the locals or other travelers, but that went out the window when everyone wanted to discuss the U.S. election with us!

On our last B&B stay, in Orkney, Scotland, we had a large communal breakfast table for everyone to sit around. This led to several days of fascinating discussions with Belgians, Canadians, and a young German couple, who were flabbergasted that I not only knew Merkel's name and could pronounce it properly, but knew about the EU bailout topic. 

I have run into the same attitude all over Europe.  There is a common assumption that we Yanks are undereducated and unaware of history, geography, and politics.  I had a bunch of Brits once claim that I was the historical equivalent of illiterate, that I probably didn't even know the Gettysburg Address.  I stood up and recited the entire speech from memory.  It was glorious!

[car54]

Thank you Rachel, your summary of the recent poll made me laugh, and I needed that today.   

[jjj]

So glad she devoted the final minutes to the ridiculousness of Trump having rallies in Washington State tomorrow (Tuesday).  He will never even get close to winning this state, and the state House (D) and Senate (R) have razor-thin majorities that each party is desperate to hold onto or reverse.  So, the down-ticket elections are vitally important, and the only ones benefitting from Trump's visit are the Democrats, because any Republican in a close race wants nothing to do with Trump.  So, his visit is not just wasting time, but affecting elections that will determine the majorities in the state legislature.  There is one former (*former*!) state senator who has developed a "friendship" with Trump (he is not a friend, but an echo chamber that Trump craves, and he gets to ride in the Trump jet), and that is the only reason we can think anyone talked Trump into this idiotic visit.  A number of the originally announced "hosts" of Trump's fundraisers here distanced themselves from the campaign when their names went public.  ("Ooops, we released a *draft* of *possible* hosts, not the actual hosts.")

A commentator on an MSNBC show last week said someone should be charged with campaign malpractice for taking Trump to the states where he is guaranteed either a win (Texas) or loss (Washington State). 

[Quilt Fairy]

3 hours ago, jjj said:

that is the only reason we can think anyone talked Trump into this idiotic visit.

I think someone on the Last Word speculated that the Trump campaign has a bingo ball machine and at 5pm every day they pull out a ball to determine what the next day's speech topic or campaign stop will be.  It makes as much sense as any other theory. 

[Sesquipedalia]

Tonight's episode was an overdose of crazy. First of all, Paul LePage thanking the person he just called a c********* at the end of that call is never not funny. I know all the violent stuff he said was terrible and disgraceful and it's not really a laughing matter. But still, lololol.

I am obsessed with the interview with Trump's doctor. There's so much going on between the lines! I mean, the real story is probably pretty close to what the doctor said--Trump's people called him up and asked him to write the letter, and then he procrastinated all day and didn't start on it until they arrived to pick it up. Knowing that Trump expected a glowing health endorsement, he sat down and wrote that bizarre document in five minutes, thinking "astonishingly excellent . . . Trump will love that!" He definitely seems crazy enough to have written it himself, and he uses phrases somewhat similar to Trump's when he speaks, as when he describes Clinton's health as "not so good."

The timeline aspect doesn't bother me as much as it does Rachel, because the doctor seemed pretty vague on it. He began his statement about Hillary releasing a doctor's letter with "I guess." I think he was literally just guessing.

But, there were also a lot of suspicious things in that interview. For example, the doctor hesitated when the reporter asked if he wrote the letter himself, and the wife had to jump in and answer for him. Also, when he read the part aloud about Trump being the healthiest president in history, he acted like he was reading it for the first time--"I like that sentence actually." Was he high when he wrote it, or did he not write it at all?

And what was with the wife's defensiveness? I guess she was upset that the letter has been ridiculed in the media and become an embarrassment to her husband. At one point in the interview she says, "It's not who he is.". Did she mean he didn't write it, or that it's just not representative of his brilliance as a physician? She was really on edge! 

Regardless of how the letter came to be, the whole situation is extremely sketchy. It seems pretty obvious that this doctor has not examined Trump in a good long while. As a 70-year-old billionaire, Trump can have any physician in the world, including ones who don't act like they just dropped a lot of acid. Why didn't someone in the Trump campaign look at the letter and say "hey, this is nutso" and just get someone else to write it?

[M. Darcy]

And, the thing I look most to in a doctor is one that gets panicky under pressure.  

Really? Eisenhower had polio?   And, no matter what you think of President Obama - you have to at least admit, that except for the smoking (which he has given up I believe) he is a very healthy person. 

[car54]

My theory is that Trump gave the doctor some kind of outline or draft of the letter he wanted and they just entered it onto their letterhead.   And the wife was there to keep him from admitting anything about whatever really happened.