Obama just had an hour with Timmy

[Auntie Bush]

I bet there will be complaints about the Wright section and that would be typical. However, I think that interview was nothing more than a FREE hour of advertisement. Russart just gave Obama ANOTHER chance to explain himself. Timmy never once interrupted him, raised his challenging voice, kept it calm and let him evade questions as he normally does...but Tim usually doesn't let people get away with that. I think Obama might just have gained thousands of votes because of that interview. The light shown brightly on Tim's bias toward Obama. That was a million dollar interview and I'll bet Hillary is rightfully pissed.

Bet Tim's whole TONE would have been very different if he had been interviewing Hillary. He'd have been firing off rapid challenging questions and making her defend them after many follow up questions. He let Obama brush off his questions and just skirt his positions and answers. I still don't know where he stands on many positions. That was one of the easiest interviews I've ever seen...except for Dick Chaney's.

[msongs]

1. did they play...basketball? You do know Obama plays...basketball nt

[saltpoint]

2. I disagree with your basic premise that MSNBC / NBC / Russert is/are

against Hillary Clinton and for Obama.

I would suggest it's the other way around, with a generous dose of incompetent journalism to go around including but not limited to Tim Russert.

ABC is often the worst offender on shoddy journalism, but in fairness, it isn't the lone offender.

The further left you go in media, the fewer people watch/listen to a given medium, such as THE NATION or THE PROGRESSIVE etc., but the more Obama-leaning it becomes. A year ago and through last summer and well into the fall, Hillary Clinton enjoyed the longest, most puffy free ride in American media in my lifetime. She had piles of money, global name recognition, and an unchecked lead as the Democratic frontrunner. You didn't hear the name 'Obama' nearly so much on radio & tv and you didn't hear Edwards, Biden, Richardso, Kucinich, Gravel, and Dodd hardly at all.

She's squandered most of that advantage. Thick as the mainstream media often seems, they know she's lost the nomination and are keeping it alive in Victim Hillary mode to crank up the Her versus Him ratings scam.

[speedoo]

9. Well said, OC. OP is just speculating. nt

[tiptoe]

27. Do any of the TV "journalists" confront Hillary and/or inform their audiences of the "Simple MATH"?

Or is the truth unuseful for prolonging their (and Hillary's) "ratings scam"?
Simple MATH and Graphs: What Obama needs to Clinch

[saltpoint]

33. There is the question of who arrives in Denver with how many delegates,

but also of the long-term notion of building the party around the temperament of a candidate, much in the matter of RFK's and McCarthy's challenge to Johnson in 1968.

They build constituencies on the issue of the war, certainly, but also in their message to activist voters. I should really say activist "citizens," since they had the wind at their back on more than one key, crucial, deep-bones issue. The photographs of Robert Kennedy reaching out and clasping the hands of Afro American voters is astonishing. I have never ever seen any kind of deeply-felt affection by any minority voter for anyone since on the same scale.

There are Democrats who reflect Kennedy's policy emphases but lack his charisma and abiity to inspire such a deeply-felt emotional following.

Until Barack Obama. Clinton is a damned intelligent soul and an accomplished success as a career woman. But her words this winter and spring have been Nebraska-line harrangues, her campaign has been in old-school kitchen-sink attack mode since Feb. 5th, and she's lost both a huge lead and a shitpile of cash.

She may do better in NC than I expect, but even so, it isn't going to be enough to reverse History's inclination toward Barack Obama.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

38. I was actually pleasantly surprised

at the Meet the Press interview this morning. The Wright thing went on way too long for my taste, but questions were VERY fair considering Russert's terrible record. I think Barack was best in describing the differences in average families from 40 years ago and now. There was a time when one income took care of all of a family's needs. Not any more. And he was right on about the summer "vacation" from high gas prices - it ain't gonna happen because Bush will veto anything that doesn't profit his oil buddies.

[saltpoint]

39. Hi, Iwillnevergiveup. Agree -- Russert's record is rocky. I'm spoiled,

of course -- I want Bill Moyers and Judith Swallow to conduct almost all interviews!

Agree also on the oil price tension. I think it's interesting that McCain and HClinton's positions on the gas tax holiday are so alarmingly close and I think it's crass pandering by those two, while Obama is talking sense.

I hope voters in IN and NC are listening.

[rodeodance]

36. Still crying I see

[Forkboy]

42. So is the OP, but you agree with that crying so it's ok.

More from DU's biggest hypocrite.

[Window]

3. Oh, bullshit.

Sen. Obama answered every question plainly, completely and with ease. Your bias is glaring.

[still_one]

4. So what questions do you think Obama evaded? /nt

[tabatha]

5. Or maybe it was just a civilized discussion

without any gotcha politics.

Rather like Obama has been trying to do with Clinton.

[Kahuna]

6. It was great. I'm about to dash off a thank you email to Russert..

Words I thought I'd never say! :wow:

[zanne]

7. I'm very happy that Obama had a good interview...

After the shellacking he's been getting from the press for (how many weeks now)? It's time they let him talk about the issues.

[BklynChick]

8. That was a great interview overall. Annoyed that it was 20 mights of pastorbaiting, but he handled

it well. Gobama!

[NotThisTime]

18. Precisely!

20 minutes of Wright, but good energy and foreign relations discussions. There were no subjects he evaded, and if there were, I'd like to know which ones?

[Johnny__Motown]

10. It was a good interview. He seemed to be fair but to ask all the right questions

Maybe you should stick to watching ABC and FOX.

[LaurenG]

11. Oh for crying out loud. Did I not hear that Billo and Senator Clinton

had a love fest last week?

I bet Tims whole tone would have been different if his higher up had told him to annihilate Senator Obama.

It is so obvious in most cases that we're all a little one sided about our candidates don't you think?

[oviedodem]

12. I was going to blast you but I realize that you are upset that Obama did so DAMN well!!

[TexanDem]

13. Answers were concise and to the point. What didn't you get?

[Vinca]

14. I just finished watching it and while I groaned at Rev. Wright

being front and center again, the back half of the interview was excellent. Obama was very intelligent and thoughtful when responding to foreign policy questions and, quite frankly, looked presidential.

[bklyncowgirl]

15. I thought it was a fair interview. Russert asked questions, Obama answered them.

I think if Obama had failed to provide full convincing answers, Russert would have been all over him.

I don't know what the interview would have been like had he been interviewing Hillary. Frankly I don't remember anything particularly good or bad about Hillary's appearances on Meet the Press.

[TexanDem]

16. If Russert so softball in favor of Obama, then why didn't he shake his hand? He always has others.

[TahitiNut]

17. Poor Nell

Such a victim ... even in the Land of ShouldaWouldaCoulda. If the facts just aren't there, just trot out conjecture and supposition. What the Hell! Why not?

:eyes:

[Hawaii Hiker]

19. Oh bull-shit; Russert grilled Obama for 25 minutes on Rev. Wright

before getting to anything about Iraq, gas prices, etc...

If you want to complain about someone getting a free ride, that person is John McCain...I've never seen him in a tough interview on any network...

[DAGDA56]

20. I just turned on ABC, and it looks like HRC is doing a one on one...

...with George Steph, studio audienc as well. What do you suppose THIS is worth?

[Dr. Strange]

30. I can't believe it!

It's bad enough that Obama gets a full hour with Russert, but then to make matters worse, Hillary has to face the incisive hard-hitting questioning of Stephanopoulos by herself. Poor Hillary.

[monmouth]

21. Ole Tim may have started to realize he's talking to the next "White House"

guy and doesn't want to have problems down the road. Memos are in the making. After Tuesday, MSM will change its tune towards BHO and rein in their bias, at least a little I would think.

[Frank Booth]

22. You're mistaking Obama's excellence for softball questioning.

Obama was asked tough questions, and he responded exactly how our next president should repond.

[stray cat]

23. Educational or fox-news style baiting - I'll take MTP over fox hijinks anyday

[Tribetime]

24. It just goes to show you that 2 people can look at the exact same thing

and have opinions 180 degrees different. But I will try to look at it from your point of view.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

25. What's typical is your whining about Obama's ability to deflect. God, your OP is pitiful.

[Warren Stupidity]

26. I have a suggestion: turn the tv off.

Other than that, I think you are suffering from a severe case of biased viewpoint. Ever notice how the refs are always out to get your team?

[Thickasabrick]

28. TIMMAH!!!!!

[Catherina]

29. Pathetic. Enjoy those sour grapes.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

31. Staphylococcus doesn't count?

An interview with an ally vs. an interview with a hostile potato.

?

[tishaLA]

32. In other words, Obama did well on the show

you've gotten so small during this primary process that you're practically microscopic.

[wrando]

34. russert went easy

NBC is deep in bag for Obama, but it really didn't do BO any good. He came off unsure, and stuttered his way through the interview. I'm sure he was happy when it was over.

Cool and collected is not how I would describe BO in this interview.

bill from ct

[neverforget]

35. And Hillary got a free hour on ABC with Stephanopoulos.....

[Missouri Girl]

37. Au Contrare

I thought Obama did a really good job and answered in such a way that Tim could not be as aggressive as he might be with other candidates. It's hard to be an ass to someone who is very polite and thoughtful and extremely civil. I only saw the first half before I left for church, but the part I saw, I was very pleased. So pleased, in fact, that I called my older, nearly 60 year old, high-school only education, below $30k a year income, Roman Catholic, Bill Clinton-lovin', white mother, who is also for Obama now, so she could catch it before Mass.

What is that old saying - you reap what you sow?

[stillcool]

40. Sorry for your loss.

I myself don't watch television, but reading your words I sense some disappointment that things did not go the way you had thought they might. Maybe next time?

[saltpoint]

41. One notion about Russert is that he must sense he can't play

his cheap gotcha games with someone like Barack Obama.

Russert can get away with it with a lot of politicians, but not all.

I'd like to see Russert kicked upstairs at the network and give that hour each week over to a panel of better journalists.

[Auntie Bush]

44. I agree with you! on this post

I was just trying to say he was easy on Obama and it was a million dollar gift...not a nightmare for him to have to explain Wright again as others had complained. He even got a fair chance...without interruptions to explain the Wight controversy. I'm just jealous as I know he wouldn't have given Clinton that same opportunity and that he favors Obama. I just hope he continues (to favor Obama) after the primary. :hi: Sorry we're on opposite sides on this.

[walldude]

43. Are there any actual issues you have with Obama?

I don't mean made up media crap like Wright or your strange idea that Obama is getting a break in the media. You want to change someones mind? Come up with an issue that Hillary is more liberal on than Obama and you might get more liberals to vote for her. This faux outrage is obnoxious.