CNN's Cuomo Revolted By 'Price Is Right' Music at GOP Rally; Omits Bob Barker Backed Candidate

On Wednesday's New Day, CNN's Chris Cuomo played up how Florida Republican David Jolly's campaign played The Price Is Right theme music at his victory rally on Tuesday, and remarked that its use was somehow a perfect sign of the influence of big money in political races: "What a metaphor for what politics has become – that they are playing the theme song of The Price Is Right when they celebrate a victory, because it's about the money! It makes me sick."

What Cuomo didn't realize is that the former host of The Price Is Right, Bob Barker, endorsed Jolly. NewsBusters executive editor Tim Graham noted NPR's reporting on Barker's endorsement in a December 2013 item [1]: [MP3 audio available here [2]; video of Cuomo below]

Adam Wollner at NPR's It's All Politics [3] blog reported that longtime Price Is Right host Bob Barker is endorsing a Republican for Congress in the special election to replace Rep. C.W. "Bill" Young, who recently died in office.

Barker, who's just turned 90 and retired from the popular CBS daytime show in 2007 after 35 years, appeared in a television ad Thursday on behalf of David Jolly, a lobbyist and former general counsel to Young in Florida's 13th district.

Moments before Cuomo made his lament, correspondent Dana Bash played a clip from Jolly's rally – including the famous TV game show's theme – as she covered the results of the election. Co-anchor Michaela Pereira then pointed out the musical choice, as a lead-in for her colleague's rant: "Did you notice what they're playing there?"

Cuomo included the actual name of the music, as well some self-deprecating humor, as he expressed his outrage over big political donations:

CUOMO: We're watching the video there of the guy celebrating the win, and the song is called 'Sixth Finger Tune.' It is the theme song from The Price Is Right-

BALDWIN: How do you know the name of that?

CUOMO: They just told me in my ear what the name of the song is. I wouldn't know anything. (points to earpiece) You see this? There's my brain-

BALDWIN: (points to earpiece) The brilliant people talk to Chris in his ear – the smart people-

CUOMO: Here's the secret to Chris Cuomo's intelligence on TV– it's hanging right there. But here's the thing-

BALDWIN: Yes-

CUOMO: What a metaphor for what politics has become – that they are playing the theme song of "The Price Is Right"-

BALDWIN: The Price Is Right-

PEREIRA: From The Price Is Right-

CUOMO: When they celebrate a victory, because it's about the money! It makes me sick.

Too bad the "smart people" in Cuomo's ear didn't clue him in on Barker's endorsement.

Just over a week earlier, during an interview of former Senator Jim DeMint, the CNN anchor ripped [4] how supposedly, "since from the time that you were there [in Congress], obstructionism is just the name of the game for the Republican Party right now. And, obviously, that's not leading to any meaningful progress. The dialogue is so toxic, because that's all they have is the talk now, because they're not doing anything."