Fox & Friends and Fox & Friends First were in lockstep with Republican leaders in sneering at President Obama's nuclear deal with Iran. Each show suggested this morning that the deal with Iran was an effort to distract from his Affordable Care Act ("ObamaCare") woes. Even though just yesterday, Fox's own Chris Wallace and Republican guest Senator Bob Corker, noted that diplomatic efforts have been underway for months.
As Media Matters pointed out, Republican Senator John Cornyn tweeted about the deal, "[a]mazing what WH will do to distract attention from O-care." Then, from Cornyn's twitter feed to Fox News mouths, including birther-conspiracy theorist Heather Childers:
On Fox News' Fox & Friends First, co-host Heather Childers said "the nuke deal has dominated political talk, which means focus has shifted away from Obamacare. This now sparking many to believe that it is yet another attempt to distract from the disastrous rollout and the looming deadline to get the site up and running at full speed." Reporter Peter Doocy highlighted Cornyn's tweet, saying he "looks at the whole announcement very suspiciously."
Later on Fox & Friends, co-host Steve Doocy also parroted the argument during an interview with White House deputy national security advisor Tony Blinken, saying that "some" were critical of the proposal and had suggested that the White House was "trying to change the subject," and shift the conversation away from health care.
As you can see in the clip below, Blinken pushed back nicely on the attack. He said, "I think we can probably figure out a way to insure tens of millions of Americans and prevent Iran from getting the bomb at the same time." He also went on to explain why it was important to strike a deal now.
But it's curious how eager Childers and both Doocys were to regurgitate Republican spin when information on their own network indicated otherwise. From yesterday's Fox News Sunday transript:
WALLACE: Finally, and let me ask you both briefly. There is a remarkable news story today from Associated Press that turns out the top U.S. diplomats had been meeting face to face in secret talks in Oman with top Iranian diplomats for the last year, even before the so- called moderate President Rouhani came into office, under President Ahmadinejad.
Senator Cardin, you first, what do you make of that?
CARDIN: Well, I don't think we're surprised. We knew there was communications taking place. I think the United States made it very clear that the only way to reach an agreement with the United States on sanctions was to dismantle their nuclear weapon program.
WALLACE:And, Senator Corker, briefly, your reaction to the idea that there were these secret negotiations going on for the last year?
CORKER: I -- you know, I don't know how to react to that. This news has just come out. I think -- you know, there have been statements of overtures that have been made for some time. So, I don't have much reaction to it.
Again, I want to see what we accomplish over this section six months. I know the administration has been trying to set the framework for these discussions for sometime and I guess I'm not really particularly shocked that this has occurred.
But maybe Fox thinks that Obama knew in advance he'd need a distraction so he timed the whole thing to coincide with the ObamaCare rollout. You know, just like his grandparents did when they "fraudulently" planted his birth announcement in a Hawaii newspaper, apparently knowing he'd need the "phony" proof 40+ years later when he'd run for president.
Videos below via Media Matters.
“Certainly he must know that the only deals with Iran that have the right wing good housekeeping seal of approval is when you deal arms for hostages.”
Yes indeed doors 17 — especially when, like the rightwing’s patron saint Ronald Reagan and his VP George H.W. Bush, you know from the very beginning you have a FILTHY STINKING RICH media mogul like Herr Goebbels II (i.e. Rupert Murdoch) and a SYMPATHETIC SUPREME COURT protecting your a*s.
And really, outside the Foxworld echo chamber, it doesn’t come close to passing the laugh out loud test. Really? Obama does a deal over nuclear weapons in the diciest part of the world to “distract” from ginned-up nonsense about health insurance? It’s astounding even the Fox people can say this over and over again with a straight face.
And late last week, Harry Reid — all by his lonesome, to hear Fox — abolished the filibuster for appointments for entirely the same reason, to “provide cover” for Obama on the “disastrous” health care rollout.
(It’s clear one o’ those memos came down from on high that the word “disastrous” must be appended to any mention of the ACA on pain of firing. I’ve not heard them mention it without using that word in weeks.
Kerry and Obama started these negotiations right after the website failed, didn’t they?
They didn’t?
Well, the plot to make Obama president started in the 60’s, so maybe they planned this then, too. You just can’t underestimate the treachery of those black people!
If this is the best spin they could conjure up then they are truly delusional.
Now if you’d used “who couldn’t be bothered with keeping up on the progress of Katrina while attending a birthday party”…….Just sayin’, you know?
