In a panel discussion on Sunday's NBC Meet the Press that included
left-wing bomb-thrower Al Sharpton, host David Gregory worried: "Where
has civility gone in politics?" He declared the source of incivility: "I
talked to John Lewis, the civil rights leader, recently, who said he
does think there's something particular, if it's racism or something
else, about Obama that brings out a level of hatred." [Listen to the audio [1] or watch the video after the jump]
The entire discussion focused on recent comments by Rush Limbaugh but completely ignored Sharpton's history of offensive remarks [2] as well as the vile insults continually hurled from million-dollar Obama donor Bill Maher [3].
The most Gregory could manage was this vague observation: "And let's be
clear, there are plenty of pundits and others on the Left who use, you
know, inflammatory and corrosive language."
Leading off the panel topic, Gregory held up President Obama as the
model of civility: "We had this moment this week, of the President at
the press conference talking about why he called Sandra Fluke after
Limbaugh had attacked her. And he was doing it for his daughters, he
said. And it brought up this question of where civility has gone in our
public discourse, in our political discourse, in the campaign and in
Congress."
For his part, Sharpton called on people to be "mature" and not to
"poison the atmosphere." He struck a somewhat remorseful tone in brief
reference to his own conduct over the years: "I learned that in my own
development. I used to say things that I really believed any kind of way
I felt them....As my two daughters got older I started worrying about
what I was saying because they would question me. It's not cute to just
exacerbate things."
Gregory came close to being introspective about the media fueling
incivility, but decided to just the blame the American public: "But do
we as voters celebrate the friction too much?" Replace the word "voters"
with "journalists" and the statement would be far more accurate.
Pushing back on Gregory's fawning over Obama caling Fluke, conservative
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan pointed out: "I wish the
President had had a real Sister Souljah moment and not just called
someone with whom he was politically sympathetic, who deserved his
sensitivity, but said, 'Wait a second, guys, left, right, and center,
it's getting horrible for women now. Let's stop it.'"
Liberal Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne shot back: "I wish Mitt
Romney had had a Sister Souljah moment in this case because what Rush
Limbaugh said, it wasn't just that he called her awful names, he said
she should put sex tapes up to reward us."
Dionne then exclaimed: "But, you know, the best line on civility was
John Kennedy's when he said 'civility is not a sign of weakness.'" Yes,
JFK was very civil when took sexual advantage of a 19-year-old White
House intern and forced her to perform oral sex on one of his advisors.
Here is a portion of the March 11 exchange:
10:30AM TEASE
DAVID GREGORY: Finally, our political roundtable is here to talk
politics and about something else, civility. Where has it gone and can
it return? Why the President called Sandra Fluke after Rush Limbaugh
attacked. He was thinking about his own daughters.
BARACK OBAMA: I want them to be able to speak their mind in a civil and
thoughtful way. And I don't want them attacked for – or called
horrible names because they're being good citizens.
GREGORY: We'll discuss it this morning with the Reverend Al Sharpton,
host of MSNBC's Politics Nation; Tennessee Republican Congresswoman
Marsha Blackburn; The Washington Post's E.J. Dionne; and The Wall Street
Journal's Peggy Noonan.
11:05AM TEASE
GREGORY: Coming up, in the wake of the heated rhetoric during the birth
control debate, President Obama this week made a plea for civility with
his daughters in mind. Where has civility gone in politics? And what
are the costs, not just to our political debates, but to the country at
large?
(...)
11:14AM SEGMENT
GREGORY:
Let me talk about something bigger, as I've been alluding to throughout
the program. We had this moment this week, of the President at the
press conference talking about why he called Sandra Fluke after Limbaugh
had attacked her. And he was doing it for his daughters, he said. And
it brought up this question of where civility has gone in our public
discourse, in our political discourse, in the campaign and in Congress.
Olympia Snowe talked about how polarizing Congress is as the reason she
wants to leave.
Reverend, you talked about it when you were down South this week in
Montgomery during your march. This was one of the points that you made
that had such resonance. I'll play it.
SHARPTON: We're not each other's enemies, we're not each other's
competition, we are not each other's adversary. If we lock arms like we
did coming down Highway 80 and cooperate rather than compete, we can
make America work for everybody.
GREGORY: A Democrat saying that, it could be a Republican as well. It's
a – it's a very important message. How does it ultimately resonate?
AL SHARPTON: I think the problem is that we've got to be mature enough
to say we can be passionate and we can have some firm feelings, but that
we don't have to poison the atmosphere. And I learned that in my own
development. I used to say things that I really believed any kind of way
I felt them. Ironically, the President mentioned his two daughters. As
my two daughters got older I started worrying about what I was saying
because they would question me. It's not cute to just exacerbate things.
You could be right and do it wrong, or say it wrong. And I think that
that would be the appeal that I would make, that yes, be passionate – I
still march, I still protest – but don't get in the way of your
message. And the ultimate goal should be to bring people together in
the country to make progress. Even if we disagree how, we don't have to
be disagreeable.
GREGORY: But do we as voters celebrate the friction too much?
MARSHA BLACKBURN [REP. R-TN]: I think that what we have to remember is
what was just said, learn to agreeably disagree to make your point,
because when the rhetoric gets too loud it's like I was saying, voters
are saying, "Don't yell at me, listen to me, and give me the facts."
They want to be well informed and they're seeking to be well informed.
That's why you've seen the rise of so many grassroots organizations. And
quite frankly, I think it speaks to E.J.'s point of why the pundits are
wrong so much now. Because the American people are going directly to
sources, getting their information and they want us to respect them. And
respect that they give us the opportunity to represent them. I seek to
honor that in everything I do every day.
GREGORY: You know, I talked to John Lewis, the civil rights leader,
recently, who said he does think there's something particular, if it's
racism or something else, about Obama that brings out a level of hatred.
And let's be clear, there are plenty of pundits and others on the Left
who use, you know, inflammatory and corrosive language.
PEGGY NOONAN: Yeah.
GREGORY: Is there something different now, Peggy?
NOONAN: I'll tell you how I see it. I think one of the big problems
with discourse in America is the way – forget left and right for a
second – it's the way women are being spoken of, women in public life,
women in politics, women in policy questions. It seems to me that women
who have been rising to positions of authority the past 20 years rose at
the same time as the Internet and the Internet was a sort of wild west
where anything could be said. And I think it came on to actually infect
our, our entertainment life, our political life, our journalistic life,
what is said on radio by commentators and comedians.
And I think somebody has to stop and notice this sounds like a horrible
misogynistic war on women. We have got to stop it. I feel like the
grown-ups have to step in. I wish the President had had a real Sister
Souljah moment and not just called someone with whom he was politically
sympathetic, who deserved his sensitivity, but said, "Wait a second,
guys, left, right, and center, it's getting horrible for women now.
Let's stop it."
GREGORY: Hm.
E.J. DIONNE: You know, when you – I wish Mitt Romney had had a Sister
Souljah moment in this case because what Rush Limbaugh said, it wasn't
just that he called her awful names, he said she should put sex tapes up
to reward us.
NOONAN: Oh...
DIONNE: And what kind of – it was wild. But, you know, the best line
on civility was John Kennedy's when he said "civility is not a sign of
weakness."
(...)
-- Kyle Drennen is a news analyst at the Media Research Center. Click here [4] to follow Kyle Drennen on Twitter.