Different party, different treatment
Reported by Chrish - August 21, 2008 -
The "Veep Sweepstakes" continues on FOX and Friends 8/21/08, with all aboard the speculation express. The couch commen'tators briefly mentioned kinsman Rush Limbaugh's fervent wish for a Joe Biden nomination, then promptly tore into the esteemed Senator's alleged failings. But later, when Mitt Romney's name was mentioned as a possible Republican veep, they listed his successes. See, they balance their fairness to Republicans with commensurate bashings of Democrats.
With video.
Limbaugh wants Biden as VP so he can repeat ad nauseum (which I understand from the 'tators he already does) a few quotes from Biden which can be taken in an unflattering manner. Limbaugh thinks it would be easy to dredge his "mountain" of audio clips from the Senator, and teaming his "arrogance" with Obama's "messiah" caricature would be "delicious." Gretchen Carlson said because everyone is favoring Biden, it probably won't be him, but the Friends tore into him anyway, choosing one controversial quote (that Obama was the first articulate African-American to run) to attach to him and making sure to note that Biden initially supported the Iraq war. Carlson suggested that Obama "has to" choose someone who was anti-war from the start, which would of course severely limit his pool and leave him open to later criticism from the Friends when/if he chooses someone who was not, like Evan Bayh, another rumored "frontrunner."
Steve Doocy wanted to bring it back to Biden, "a barrel of gaffes," and quoted another infamous comment about the ethnicity of 7-11 owners, and reminded viewers of Biden's alleged plagiarism in the 1980s. Brian Kilmeade did allow that Biden is very well-respected in foreign affairs and policy, but Carlson reminded that he was for the invasion of Iraq.
There was a diversion to a website that is making odds on who the VeeP picks will be you can see in the video. When it came to Republican picks, the tone changed from nitpicking mistakes to presenting a glorious overview, with the Friends citing Mitt Romney's supposed extensive business experience as a recommendation for Americans concerned about the economy.
This segment could stand alone as a poster-child for FOX's alleged fair and balanced look at all sides of an issue. The negatives are invariably directed toward Democrats while the praise is reserved for Republicans.
