Sheehan "Single-Handedly Bringing Iraq Debate to Bush's Doorstep" --8/15/2005

1. Sheehan "Single-Handedly Bringing Iraq Debate to Bush's Doorstep"
NBC Nightly News on Sunday devoted its "In Depth" segment to Bush-hater Cindy Sheehan's impact, as anchor David Gregory touted how she "has become both a magnet and a source of controversy in the President's hometown, single-handedly bringing the Iraq debate to Mr. Bush's doorstep." Reporter Kelly O'Donnell began with how "she's tiny Crawford's biggest draw. This woman said she drove 900 miles from Denver, compelled by Cindy's story." Earlier, filling in for Tim Russert on Meet the Press, Andrea Mitchell blamed Bush's communications team for what the news media has really done: "How did they let this one woman become the symbol for the entire anti-war movement?" Mitchell added: "It certainly doesn't help when you see the videotape of the motorcade rushing past the protesters on their way to a Republican fund-raiser at a neighboring ranch." On Saturday's World News Tonight on ABC, anchor Bob Woodruff introduced a story by trumpeting how Sheehan's "vigil for her son, killed in Iraq, has given new life to the anti-war movement and a place in Crawford called the 'Peace House.'"

2. Nets Trump Bush Driving by Sheehan on Way to Fund-Raiser
Several media outlets on Friday couldn't resist trumping up President Bush's motorcade passing by Cindy Sheehan's protest camp. CNN's Situation Room put "BUSH WALKS ON BY" and "PRES. BUSH PASSES UP CHANCE TO MEET WITH 'PEACE MOM'" on screen. Reporter Elaine Quijano highlighted how "Sheehan held up a sign saying, 'Why do you make time for donors and not for me?'" On ABC's World News Tonight, Geoff Morrell relayed how "the President's motorcade passed by Cindy Sheehan en route to a $2 million Republican fund-raiser" and asked Shehean: "Are you disappointed he didn't stop?" Morrell also pointed out how "in the eleven days Mr. Bush has been on vacation, at least 37 troops have been killed in Iraq." Hosting MSNBC's Hardball, NBC's David Gregory floated the idea that Sheehan's protest may "represent a kind of tipping point in the country where people are really getting frustrated with the progress of the war." Guest Dana Milbank of the Washington Post admired Sheehan's "extremely effective" PR strategy before he zinged President Bush: "The man has not been to a military funeral."

3. More False Claims of "Record High" Gas Prices, But NBC Admits...
On Friday night, reporting on the rise in the price of a barrel of oil to $66.87, CBS anchor Bob Schieffer inaccurately described that as a "record high," ABC anchor Bob Woodruff erroneously referred to it as "another new high" and NBC's Brian Williams fallaciously declared: "Oil prices at an all-time record again today." But NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell, in a piece on what is causing the rising prices of oil and gas, soon conceded the reality which her colleagues studiously avoid: "As bad as prices are now, the surprising fact is that gasoline is still cheaper than in 1981, at least adjusted for inflation." A barrel of oil will need to top $90 to set an actual record high price and gas will have to go over $3 a gallon.

4. NBC Re-Run: Tom DeLay a Hero to White Supremacist Murderer
Sunday night at 8pm EDT/PDT, 7pm CDT/MDT, NBC re-ran the May 25 season finale of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which portrayed House Majority Leader Tom DeLay as a hero to white supremacist gun nuts suspected of murdering two judges, one of them black, and who had expressed the view that the white woman judge who was murdered was a "race traitor" who raised her family in the "Zionist enclave of Riverdale." When the ballistics on the bullet which killed the black judge showed it was fired by the same rifle which was used to kill the white judge, New York City Police Department "Detective Alexandra Eames" suggested to her fellow detectives and an Assistant District Attorney: "Maybe we should put out an APB for somebody in a Tom DeLay T-shirt." Another detective then presented evidence the shooter came from the West, prompting Eames to point out: "Home of a lot of white supremacist groups."

Sheehan "Single-Handedly Bringing Iraq
Debate to Bush's Doorstep"

NBC Nightly News on Sunday devoted its "In Depth" segment to Bush-hater Cindy Sheehan's impact, as anchor David Gregory touted how she "has become both a magnet and a source of controversy in the President's hometown, single-handedly bringing the Iraq debate to Mr. Bush's doorstep." Reporter Kelly O'Donnell began with how "she's tiny Crawford's biggest draw. This woman said she drove 900 miles from Denver, compelled by Cindy's story." Earlier, filling in for Tim Russert on Meet the Press, Andrea Mitchell blamed Bush's communications team for what the news media has really done: "How did they let this one woman become the symbol for the entire anti-war movement?" Mitchell added: "It certainly doesn't help when you see the videotape of the motorcade rushing past the protesters on their way to a Republican fund-raiser at a neighboring ranch." On Saturday's World News Tonight on ABC, anchor Bob Woodruff introduced a story by trumpeting how Sheehan's "vigil for her son, killed in Iraq, has given new life to the anti-war movement and a place in Crawford called the 'Peace House.'"

Full rundowns of the Sunday, August 14 NBC coverage:

# NBC Nightly News. Anchor David Gregory: "NBC News 'In Depth' tonight. Anti-war protesters in this country have witnessed the emergence of a new spokeswoman this week. Cindy Sheehan whose son Casey was killed in Iraq, has become both a magnet and a source of controversy in the President's hometown, single-handedly bringing the Iraq debate to Mr. Bush's doorstep. NBC's White House correspondent Kelly O'Donnell tonight 'In Depth.'"

O'Donnell, over video of people crowding around Sheehan: "This what sudden fame, or some would say sudden notoriety looks like. Her sone killed in war, her cause to speak out against it. Cindy Sheehan has quickly become a lightning rod."
Sheehan: "I had no idea it would turn out like this. No idea."
O'Donnell: "This weekend, she's tiny Crawford's biggest draw. This woman said she drove 900 miles from Denver, compelled by Cindy's story."
Woman: "I have a great deal of empathy for her. If nothing else, Cindy does deserves answers."
O'Donnell: "Empathy delivered in food as well. Iraqis living in the U.S. prepared traditional dishes for her today. She had critics who support the President's Iraq policy trek to her camp site too. Gary Coles [name?] calls lost his son, a Marine in Fallujah last November."
Coles: "She needs to have more respect for our country, our people and yet alone President Bush."
O'Donnell: "Heated moments have been few. But some Crawford residents have had enough of crowds and chaos. One Bush neighbor, who leases access to his ranch to NBC News, fired his shotgun in the air today in what appeared to be frustration. The Secret Service came by to talk to him, but rancher Larry Matlidge [sp?] broke no law."
Matlidge, on dirt road: "If you had your brother-in-law in your house for five days, wouldn't it start stinking after a while? You're ready for him to go home, won't you."
O'Donnell: "Many demonstrators on both sides have tried to keep calm."
Woman: "Blessed are the peace-makers."
O'Donnell: "Today, a prayer vigil. Political analysts say the President is stuck: Refusing to meet Sheehan a second time may look bad while giving in to her could open a floodgate of similar demands."
Charlie Cook: "This is getting pretty ugly for him and there's really no, politically no way out right now."
O'Donnell concluded: "The President has nearly three more weeks in Crawford, but no more scheduled events for several days. That may give Mr. Bush some needed distance. But Cindy Sheehan vows to stay right here. Kelly O'Donnell, NBC News, Crawford."

# Meet the Press. Andrea Mitchell with Washington Post columnist, and former New York Times reporter, E.J. Dionne, as well as Byron York of the National Review:
"Well, the President goes on vacation and he goes down to Crawford, and look at what he encounters. Some vacation. He's got anti-war protesters on his doorstep and, of course, this woman, whose son died so tragically, Cindy Sheehan. Let's take a look at this recent ad that she prepared, and the people around her now, the political movement around her, prepared this ad for local television down in Texas."

NBC played the 30-second Gold Star Families for Peace Ad, with Sheehan, in full: "Mr. President, my name is Cindy Sheehan. On April 4th, 2004, my son Casey was killed in Iraq. Mr. President, I want to tell you face-to-face how much this hurts. I love my country. But how many more of our loved ones need to die in this senseless war? How many more soldiers have to die before we say 'Enough'? I know you can't bring Casey back, but it is time to admit mistakes and bring our troops home now."

Mitchell: "E.J., Mrs. Sheehan, for all of her suffering, has she now become part of a political movement? And is this an unfair approach to the President?"
Dionne: "Well, I don't think it's unfair. In fact, I am still surprised that the president, when she first went down there, didn't say, 'Come on in. Talk to me.' He can be a very charming guy. And instead, he's let her sit out there. The fact is, that one mother who lost a loved one is more effective than 200,000 demonstrators or God knows how many politicians or commentators."
Mitchell: "Now, he did meet with her once. He met with her during a meeting in Seattle, I believe."
Dionne: "Right. But to have her, when she went down there and said, 'I want to talk to you' -- there are a lot of Americans who have doubts about this war, including people who may still want to support it. Things aren't going well over there. The polls show that the country has a lot more doubts now than it did six months ago. It seems to me that it would be a good idea, and perfectly legitimate, for the President to say, 'Come on in, let me talk to you.' He wouldn't persuade her, but I think he would show a lot of Americans that, yes, he understands, a lot of people, including people with kids over there, have doubts about the war."
Mitchell: "Byron York, it does seem a little ham-handed, politically. This is the crowd that's supposed to be so smart politically. How did they let this one woman become the symbol for the entire anti-war movement?"
York bought up some of Sheehan's extreme views which most of the media have ignored: "Well, the White House points out that the President has met personally with hundreds of family members of servicemen and women killed in the war. But this has become a very political event. The White House has to deal with her very sensitively because she did suffer this terrible loss, and her son did die in service to the United States. So they, she has standing to be doing what she's doing. On the other hand, the White House knows that the only person who can really damage her credibility is Cindy Sheehan herself. She took part in a conference call I think on Wednesday, which I listened to. It was moderated by Joe Trippi, the Democratic strategist, and another Democratic strategist, Bob Fertig, of a Web site called-"
Mitchell: "This was a conference call with bloggers. So she was setting off another storm about-"
York: "-of a site called Democrats.com. And she said, she thanked her anti-war bloggers for all their support. She said, 'Thank God for the Internet. Without it, we'd already be a fascist state because one party controls everything, and the mainstream media is the propaganda tool of the government.' Now, this is the kind of rhetoric that you normally associate with fringe elements on the left. And if she does more of that, I think she'll diminish her own credibility."
Dionne: "But the point is that she has still started this out as a mother of a son who served the country. And I think that any kind of attack against her has the potential of backfiring because she did suffer this loss, regardless of what she says."
Mitchell: "And it certainly doesn't help when you see the videotape of the motorcade rushing past the protesters on their way to a Republican fund-raiser at a neighboring ranch. That's not great PR."

To comment on this article or the Sheehan coverage it documents, go to the MRC's new blog, where it soon will be posted: www.newsbusters.org

Nets Trump Bush Driving by Sheehan on
Way to Fund-Raiser

Several media outlets on Friday couldn't resist trumping up President Bush's motorcade passing by Cindy Sheehan's protest camp. CNN's Situation Room put "BUSH WALKS ON BY" and "PRES. BUSH PASSES UP CHANCE TO MEET WITH 'PEACE MOM'" on screen during a story in which CNN viewers were treated to blurry video taken from inside a car in the caravan to show what Bush might have seen out his window. Reporter Elaine Quijano highlighted how "Sheehan held up a sign saying, 'Why do you make time for donors and not for me?'" On ABC's World News Tonight, Geoff Morrell relayed how "the President's motorcade passed by Cindy Sheehan en route to a $2 million Republican fund-raiser" and asked Shehean: "Are you disappointed he didn't stop?" Morrell also pointed out how "in the eleven days Mr. Bush has been on vacation, at least 37 troops have been killed in Iraq."

Hosting MSNBC's Hardball, NBC's David Gregory floated the idea that Sheehan's protest may "represent a kind of tipping point in the country where people are really getting frustrated with the progress of the war." Guest Dana Milbank of the Washington Post admired Sheehan's "extremely effective" PR strategy before he zinged President Bush: "The man has not been to a military funeral."

(This item was posted Friday night on the MRC's new blog, NewsBusters.org. To see some still shots from these stories, and/or to speak out with your comments on this coverage, go to: newsbusters.org )

# CNN's Situation Room. Blitzer, with "BUSH WALKS ON BY" on screen, set up the 4pm EDT story: "Up first, the President's decision to walk on by or at least drive on by in this case. At his Texas ranch today, the President opted not to have a close encounter with a protester whose son was killed in Iraq. CNN's Elaine Quijano is joining us now live from Crawford with what happened. What did happen, Elaine?"

Quijano checked in: "Hello to you, Wolf. Well, it's not unusual when the President has public events for protesters to turn out along the motorcade route, but it is unusual for that to happen here in Crawford. Now today, it only took a matter of seconds for the President's motorcade to roll by a group of about 50 demonstrators as the President left his ranch on his way to a Republican fundraiser at a neighboring ranch, an event, by the way, which raised more than $2 million for the RNC. Now, the protesters were kept at a distance, cordoned off by yellow tape. Law enforcement officials there, as well. President Bush knows the name of the woman who initially started this demonstration. Cindy Sheehan is her name. He was asked about her yesterday at a news conference and he said he sympathized with her.
"As the President went by today, Cindy Sheehan held up a sign saying, 'Why do you make time for donors and not for me?' Now, since Saturday, Sheehan has been camped out a few miles from the president's ranch, protesting his Iraq policy and vowing to remain put until she can speak with him. Sheehan's son Casey was 24 years old when he was killed in Baghdad last year. And Cindy Sheehan says the best way she feels that the president can honor his sacrifice is to bring U.S. forces home immediately. But the president has made clear he thinks that would be a mistake, that it would be a betrayal to the Iraqis and it would only embolden the insurgents -- Wolf."

Quijano then explained as CNN played video, taken from inside the motorcade, of the protesters: "You get a little bit of the perspective of what it looked like from inside that motorcade. Now, this wasn't actually where the President was sitting, but it gives you a sense of what it looked like from the perspective of the motorcade as the President passed by back and forth from his ranch to that event and back.".

Blitzer plugged two upcoming guests: "Later here in the Situation Room, I'll speak live with Cindy Sheehan about her anti-war protest and the pressure she's putting on the president. We'll also from hear from a mother who also lost a son in Iraq and still supports Mr. Bush."

Interviewing Sheehan at about 5:30pm EDT, Blitzer did press her: "A lot of our viewers are e-mailing us with this question -- and I'd like to give you a chance to respond, Cindy. More than a year ago, the President did meet with you, and at that time you emerged from that meeting and you were quoted by your hometown newspaper as saying this -- you said: 'I know he's sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis. I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith.' Do you still believe all that?"

Sheehan rambled from her roadside spot: "I think he might, he might believe about freedom and democracy, but I know, I know he knew he lied to the American public when he was talking about weapons of mass destruction and terrorism, because the Downing Street memo proves that. He's probably a man of faith. And I still agree with that, but you know, June of 2004 and August of 2005 are two different times. I have studied. I've informed myself. And I have seen the reports come out that prove that his positions are wrong. And the more that, the more the proof comes out that he lied, or the policies were not true to get us into this invasion, occupation of Iraq, the more I become more focused to bring the rest of our kids home, because my son should still be alive. You know, tens of thousands of other innocent people should be alive. And our -- he's using our troops, who are brave and honorable and good, in a dishonorable cause, and that's the occupation of a country that was no threat to the United States of America."

# NBC Nightly News. Brian Williams read this short item: "Anti-war protesters camped out near President Bush's Texas ranch, the western White House, got a glimpse of his motorcade today, but the President and his security detail did not stop to talk to Cindy Sheehan, the mother who lost her son in the war last year. The President was on his way to a fund-raiser for the Republican National Committee, passed by the growing camp of war protesters there without incident. He said yesterday he sympathized with Mrs. Sheehan, but that it would be a mistake for the U.S. to pull its troops out of Iraq."

# ABC's World News Tonight, August 12. Anchor Woodruff: "The anti-war demonstration outside President Bush's ranch in Texas grew larger today. The leader of the protest, Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed in Iraq, has been outside the ranch for days seeking a sit-down with Mr. Bush. She did not get that meeting today, but for a fleeting moment their paths did cross. ABC's Geoff Morrell is in Crawford, Texas."

Morrell began, as corrected against the closed-captioning by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth: "The President's motorcade passed by Cindy Sheehan en route to a $2 million Republican fund-raiser." Morrell to Sheehan: "Are you disappointed he didn't stop?" Sheehan, Gold Star Families for Peace: "No, I didn't think he would stop. I don't want him to stop. What would he do, just walk over and shake my hand and leave?"
Morrell: "Sheehan wants a meeting with the President and came to Crawford from California a week ago determined to get one. Her son Casey was killed in Iraq last year, and since then, she has been campaigning to bring the troops home. Dozens of people have now joined her here, as has a public relations team. And today, Sheehan released a television commercial with one viewer in mind."
Sheehan in television ad: "Mr. President, I want to tell you face-to-face how much this hurts."

Morrell, without saying who paid for the ad, continued: "Over the last seven days, this one-woman protest has gone from being a roadside distraction to a potential political problem for the President. In the 11 days Mr. Bush has been on vacation, at least 37 troops have been killed in Iraq. And as the bloodshed continues, his approval ratings are falling, but the White House is reluctant to take on a grieving mother, preferring to point out Mr. Bush has met with 900 family members of fallen soldiers, including Sheehan herself two months after her son's death."
George W. Bush: "Listen, I sympathize with Mrs. Sheehan. I've heard her position from others, which is 'Get out of Iraq now.' It would be a mistake for the security of this country." Morrell offered a differing perspective: "There are many families who've lost loved ones and still support the war. The Boskovitches laid their son to rest today."
Jim Boskovitch, father of soldier killed in Iraq: "It is very, very important for our country to remain steadfast and complete the mission."
Morrell: "Sheehan disagrees and pledges to remain here through the month. But if today is any indication, she's unlikely to get another meeting. Geoff Morrell, ABC News, with the President in Crawford, Texas."

# MSNBC's Hardball, hosted by NBC News White House correspondent David Gregory.

Gregory ruminated: "All week long, in the slow August days, we've been talking about Cindy Sheehan, whose been outside the President's ranch. Important to point out she met with the President once before but has been holding vigil and wants another meeting and she's not going to get it, though she met with two senior officials of the White House. What does her vigil represent? What does the attention she's getting represent? Does it represent a kind of tipping point in the country where people are really getting frustrated with the progress of the war?"
Chuck Todd, Editor-in-Chief of The Hotline, sitting in studio, responded: "Well I think so. But the White House, they brought this problem upon themselves. They knew this woman was there. They knew it was going to happen. They could have taken this in one day. They bring her into the White House -- they bring her into the ranch and they have their meeting and she goes away and this is a one-day story."

About a minute later, Washington Post reporter Dana Milbank, at the newspaper, piped up: "It is important to remember, she's been bouncing around for months, sort of tied up with the Downing Street memos, all these other issues. This is a change in strategy for her and for the people who have been handling her. And it's been extremely effective. And as Chuck is pointing out, I think the White House was not expecting it. We'll really, this may be crystallizing things in a way it hadn't before. Of course, this unfortunate flurry of violence and deaths of many troops over there in Iraq has added to this as well. The President realizes, because he's seeing his own sinking popularity numbers in the polls, that he has to address this. The man has not been to a military funeral."

More False Claims of "Record High" Gas
Prices, But NBC Admits...

On Friday night, reporting on the rise in the price of a barrel of oil to $66.87, CBS anchor Bob Schieffer inaccurately described that as a "record high," ABC anchor Bob Woodruff erroneously referred to it as "another new high" and NBC's Brian Williams fallaciously declared: "Oil prices at an all-time record again today." But NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell, in a piece on what is causing the rising prices of oil and gas, soon conceded the reality which her colleagues studiously avoid: "As bad as prices are now, the surprising fact is that gasoline is still cheaper than in 1981, at least adjusted for inflation." A barrel of oil will need to top $90 to set an actual record high price and gas will have to go over $3 a gallon.

The preceding was posted Friday night on the MRC's news NewsBusters blog, as an introduction to a reprint of a Friday CyberAlert item, "Nets Falsely Cite 'Record High' Gas Prices, Target Oil Profits," about Thursday night and earlier mis-reporting of energy prices. For the NewsBusters node: newsbusters.org

NBC Re-Run: Tom DeLay a Hero to White
Supremacist Murderer

Sunday night at 8pm EDT/PDT, 7pm CDT/MDT, NBC re-ran the May 25 season finale of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which portrayed House Majority Leader Tom DeLay as a hero to white supremacist gun nuts suspected of murdering two judges, one of them black, and who had expressed the view that the white woman judge who was murdered was a "race traitor" who raised her family in the "Zionist enclave of Riverdale." When the ballistics on the bullet which killed the black judge showed it was fired by the same rifle which was used to kill the white judge, New York City Police Department "Detective Alexandra Eames" suggested to her fellow detectives and an Assistant District Attorney: "Maybe we should put out an APB for somebody in a Tom DeLay T-shirt." Another detective then presented evidence the shooter came from the West, prompting Eames to point out: "Home of a lot of white supremacist groups."

For a full transcript of the scene, MP3 audio as well as Real and Windows Media video, check the May 26 MRC CyberAlert: www.mrc.org

-- Brent Baker