Chuck Todd, NBC News Chief White House correspondent, political director, and host of The Daily Rundown on MSNBC is at it again minimizing the investigation into the terrorist attack in Benghazi.
Appearing on The Daily Rundown on Monday, May 12, Todd proclaimed that the recent scandal engulfing the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) “has legs and is very dangerous for the White House, much more so frankly than the partisanized Benghazi.”
Todd made his comments at the end of the broadcast during his “Takeaway Time” segment. Todd appropriately condemned the VA where “Two facilities now under investigation due to allegations that vets were ignored, mistreated, may have died while waiting for treatment.”
Despite his accurate criticism of the VA, Todd then claimed that because both Democrats and Republicans are outraged by the scandal, it "has legs" unlike Benghazi:
More Republicans and Democrats are expressing concerns over Shinseki's leadership. And it’s this bipartisan outrage that’s the reason why this VA issue and scandal is a much story right now frankly than the investigation in Benghazi.
The NBC Chief White House Correspondent then doubled-down on his dismissal of Benghazi:
It’s the outrage from both sides of the aisle coupled with the competency issue of the Obama administration that they were facing since the health care website debacle that could be actually a real political problem for this presidency and perhaps for Democrats moving forward. But this one has legs and it's very dangerous for the White House much more so frankly than the partisanized Benghazi.
This was not the first time that Todd has attempted to dismiss the Benghazi investigation. On May 1 [1], Todd did his best to provide cover for the White House over the latest Benghazi emails and on May 7 [2]he called the Benghazi Special Committee “Nothing more than a partisan stunt.” On September 16, 2013 [3] the MSNBC host expressed similar sentiments when he lamented that Republicans “have not dropped” Benghazi as an issue.
See relevant transcript below.
CHUCK TODD: It is “Takeaway Time”, and it’s an issue that we haven’t touched on the show yet, and it is the scandal that surrounds the VA. It’s growing. Two facilities now under investigation due to allegations that vets were ignored, mistreated, may have died while waiting for treatment.
Now here’s what we know. Two whistle-blowers, alleged workers at the Phoenix VA Medical Center developed a secret waiting list to hide delays. And in Cheyenne, Wyoming an email written by a VA staffer appears to instruct other employees on how to adjust dates. Admitting the practice is quote gaming the system a little bit, unquote. So facing this increased pressure, Secretary Shinseki has ordered inspector generals to review the activities as Shinseki himself is scheduled to appear before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee this Thursday. This is going to get probably a little ugly. On the Sunday shows, former and current Defense Secretaries Gates and Hagel defended Shinseki but said he must hold those responsible for their actions accountable.
Meanwhile, more Republicans and Democrats are expressing concerns over Shinseki's leadership. And it’s this bipartisan outrage that’s the reason why this VA issue and scandal is a much story right now frankly than the investigation in Benghazi. It’s the outrage from both sides of the aisle coupled with the competency issue of the Obama administration that they were facing since the health care website debacle that could be actually a real political problem for this presidency and perhaps for Democrats moving forward. But this one has legs and it's very dangerous for the White House much more so frankly than the partisanized Benghazi. [4]
— Jeffrey Meyer is a News Analyst at the Media Research Center. Follow Jeffrey Meyer on Twitter. [5]