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2. Roberts: Bush 'Said We Respect Human Rights. Do You Buy That?'
3. ABC: Cheney Playing Into Perception He's 'Shadowy Super Villain'
4. ABC Again Compares Bush Admin Actions to Illegal CIA of the Past
5. NBC Features Woman Blaming Wildfires on Environmental Regulations
6. Letterman's 'Top Ten Surprising Facts About Dick Cheney'
NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams matched Gibson's esteem for Lugar: "He's been around a long time, he doesn't speak out often, and so when he does, people listen up. Last night, in the U.S. Senate chamber, Senator Lugar gave a speech in which the respected Republican broke with the President on the Iraq war. Today, another Republican Senator did the same, and so tonight many are wondering if we're witnessing the beginning of some kind of turning point?" Williams earlier teased the newscast with the same formulation: "Is this a turning point in the war?" NBC, however, has a poor record of picking Iraq war "turning points." In 2005 the network hailed Cindy Sheehan's protest near Bush's ranch as a "turning point" and last October Williams heralded comments from Senator John Warner as he asked: "Is this a new turning point?" For Lugar's remarks: lugar.senate.gov [2] [This item was posted Tuesday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [3] ]
A little over a year later, on the October 6, 2006 NBC Nightly News, Williams highlighted Republican Senator John Warner's warning that Iraq is drifting "side-wise," a comment trumpeted by Williams in his tease: "When a key Republican Senator comes home from Iraq and says the U.S. has to re-think its strategy, is this a new turning point?" The MRC's Brad Wilmouth took down how the anchors led the June 26 evening newscasts on ABC, CBS and NBC: # Charles Gibson on ABC's World News (see first paragraph above for his tease): "Good evening. When it comes to the war in Iraq, President Bush needs reinforcements. There is no more respected Republican Senator in the area of foreign policy than Indiana's Richard Lugar. Senator Lugar took the floor of the U.S. Senate last night to say for the first time that he feels the U.S. Iraq policy is not working and U.S. troops should start coming home. Then, today, Ohio Republican George Voinovich expressed similar sentiments. And there are signs other Republicans might soon follow suit. Our Jake Tapper is joining us tonight from Capitol Hill. Jake?"
Smith then opened: "Good evening. Katie is off. Tonight, President Bush finds himself increasingly isolated on the Iraq war. In the past 24 hours, two more Republican senators have told the President in blunt language they believe the troop surge is not working, and they want American troops to start coming home. More now on this major development from our chief White House correspondent, Jim Axelrod."
The three featured Tuesday -- Mari Oye, Leah Anthony Libresco, and Colin McSwiggen -- all recently-graduated high school students, were among the one-third of the Presidential Scholars who signed a letter asking President Bush, among other things, "to do all in your power to stop violations of the human rights of detainees, to cease illegal renditions, and to apply the Geneva Convention to all detainees, including those designated enemy combatants." Roberts emphasized the apparent intelligence of the three. "And you want to talk about brain power, the collective group that you're seeing there. Mari and Leah going to Yale next year, Colin accepted to MIT." None from the remaining two-thirds who didn't sign the letter made an appearance on American Morning. Roberts mentioned that Oye's mother was a Presidential Scholar as well, who visited the White House during Lyndon Johnson's presidency in 1968, and supposedly "always regretted not saying something to him about the Vietnam war." In response, Oye commented: "That's something that weighed heavy on my mind, and I wanted to think about how we would feel 40 years from now if we had the opportunity to speak, and also the privilege to speak to the President of the United States, and to not use that privilege in order to make a difference." Roberts directed his "in response, the President said, 'we respect human rights,' do you buy that?" question to Oye, who replied: "We brought up some very specific points in the letter about the treatment of detainees, even those designated as enemy combatants, and we strongly believe that all of these detainees should be treated, according to the principles of the Geneva Convention. So, this was a very specific point. We asked him to remove -- I asked him to remove the signing statement attached to the anti-torture bill, which would have allowed presidential power to make exemptions to the ban on torture. I really feel strongly about this issue, and also about the treatment of some Arab and Muslim-Americans after September 11th. My own grandparents were interred during World War II, simply for being Japanese-American. And I think that my background really affected the way that I feel and the compassion that I have for other people who are in a similar situation." The June 26 CyberAlert recounted how on Monday's NBC Nightly News, anchor Brian Williams highlighted a "surprise" letter presented to President Bush by high school students visiting the White House who wanted the President to "stop the practice of torture." Williams: "When they got there, 50 of them [out of 141] presented him with a handwritten letter that they had signed demanding that the United States stop the practice of torture." See: www.mrc.org [5] [This item, by Matthew Balan, was posted Tuesday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [6] ] The full transcript of the interview from the June 26 American Morning on CNN:
Of course, Wright never identified the liberal, anti-Cheney leanings of the above individuals. Instead, he framed the Vice President's refusal to hand over the documents as indicative of an out of control politician who won't listen to anyone: "Quick civics quiz for you: Is the Vice President part of the executive branch of government? You might think the answer is obvious, but apparently not to the Vice President. The man who is a heartbeat away from the Oval Office thinks that some of the rules that apply to everyone else who works here do not apply to him."
Whatever one thinks of the contention that the VP is not part of the executive branch, wouldn't it make sense to have some sort of balanced discussion about the issue? Instead, Wright chose to highlight silly and childish attacks on Cheney from Comedy Central programming: "On Comedy Central's Lil' Bush, Lil' Cheney is the spawn of Darth Vader. Jon Stewart casts him simply-" [This item, by Scott Whitlock, was posted Tuesday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [10] ]
Clearly, this is a program that piqued the interest of those inside ABC. Finally, Wright's segment looked at legislation being crafted by Democratic Congressman Rahm Emanuel that would cut funding to Vice President Cheney's office. The ABC reporter treated the bill seriously and failed to note that it has zero chance of becoming law. It wasn't until the next segment, with political correspondent George Stephanopoulos, that this salient point was mentioned:
Juju Chang: "Let's start with the bottom line. Is this just political theater, a political stunt, or will it really have an impact on the Vice President's power?" In 1993, then First Lady Hillary Clinton had some executive branch issues. The major networks certainly didn't resort to citing cartoons to portray her as a power mad politician. A transcript of the David Wright segment, which aired at 7:12am on June 26: Juju Chang: "We turn now to Vice President Dick Cheney, who is under fire in a high-stakes showdown with the Democratic Congress. One powerful Democrat is proposing a drastic and unprecedented measure, pulling the plug on the Vice President's budget, cutting his allowance of taxpayer money to zero. ABC's David Wright is at the White House with more. Good morning, David." ABC Graphic: "Dems Move to Close Cheney's Office: Battle Over Funding This Week"
David Wright: "Good morning, Juju. Quick civics quiz for you: Is the Vice President part of the executive branch of government? You might think the answer is obvious, but apparently not to the Vice President. The man who is a heartbeat away from the Oval Office thinks that some of the rules that apply to everyone else who works here do not apply to him. So almighty and elusive is this Vice President, the New Yorker once ran a cartoon in which theologians debated the existence of Cheney. Now, the White House is having its own bizarre version of the same debate."
The June 25 CyberAlert conveyed: On ABC's World News Sunday, during a story about the release of classified information regarding the CIA's "cloak and dagger" past in the 1960s and 1970s, correspondent Liz Marlantes suggested that the Bush administration engages in abuses that are worse than the illegal activities detailed in the documents: "But this all comes when the CIA is under fire for an alleged array of current abuses, including the use of secret prisons and torture. Some say the activities of the past may look mild by comparison." See: www.mrc.org [11] [This item, by Brad Wilmouth, was posted Tuesday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [12] ] Below is a complete transcript of Moran's report from the Tuesday, June 26 World News with Charles Gibson: CHARLES GIBSON: Well, the nation's spy agency, the CIA, revealed many of its older secrets today, releasing documents known within the CIA as the "family jewels." Much of what is outlined in the documents has been known for some time, but it's still sobering to see confirmation that the nation's spy agency was breaking the law in the 1960s and '70s, plotting assassinations and spying on Americans. Nightline co-anchor Terry Moran is here with the story.
TERRY MORAN: On page after page, some of the darkest chapters of the CIA's history are described in chilling detail -- the efforts to assassinate Cuban president Fidel Castro and other foreign leaders, extensive spying on civil rights leaders and Vietnam War protesters in the U.S., surveillance of journalists, opening mail, wiretapping, break-ins, all in violation of the law.
[This item, by Brad Wilmouth, was posted Tuesday night on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org [13] ] Below is a complete transcript of the report by George Lewis, withe the unusual recognition of a downside to regulations, from the Tuesday, June 26 NBC Nightly News:
GEORGE LEWIS: As the fire has jumped those lines, additional evacuations of people who live here are under way. This, as people who live in the previously burned areas were trying to get back home. This morning, after she pleaded, argued and reasoned with the authorities, Sue Abrams was granted permission to return to her home, still standing in one of the burned out areas.
From the June 26 Late Show with David Letterman, the "Top Ten Surprising Facts About Dick Cheney." Late Show home page:
10. Every morning eats a case of Slim Jims 9. Shares three heart attack anniversaries with Larry King 8. Sent Paris cigarettes and nylons while she was in stir 7. Went bald at age 12 6. In 1983, he accidentally shot himself in the nuts 5. Wrote pilot for ABC: "Let's Torture Mick Jagger" show 4. Is the only member of the Bush administration to have seen Ford and Nixon naked 3. Banned from D.C. area IHOPs 2. Spends bulk of his time yelling at White House visitors to "get off the lawn" 1. Made half a dozen adult films under the name "Chain Dickey" -- Brent Baker
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The network anchors have found their new favorite Republican: Senator Richard Lugar, whose call for a change in policy direction on Iraq led the ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts on Tuesday. Referring to Lugar's remarks Monday night on the Senate floor which were later echoed by Republican Senator George Voinovich, ABC anchor Charles Gibson engaged in some hyperbole as he teased: "Tonight, a Republican rebellion over the war: More Senators say the mission in Iraq is no longer in America's best interest." With "Tipping Point?" on screen, Gibson bucked up Lugar's credibility: "There is no more respected Republican Senator in the area of foreign policy than Indiana's Richard Lugar. Senator Lugar took the floor of the U.S. Senate last night to say for the first time that he feels the U.S. Iraq policy is not working and U.S. troops should start coming home." 
On the August 25, 2005 NBC Nightly News, reporter Carl Quintanilla asserted: 
Williams led: "Good evening. In this current media age of nonstop sound and fury and videotape, where sometimes it seems like everybody in Washington steps in front of a camera every day to make their opinions known, Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana is decidedly old school. He's been around a long time, he doesn't speak out often, and so when he does, people listen up. Last night, in the U.S. Senate chamber, Senator Lugar gave a speech in which the respected Republican broke with the President on the Iraq war. Today, another Republican Senator did the same, and so tonight many are wondering if we're witnessing the beginning of some kind of turning point. We begin our coverage here tonight with NBC's Chip Reid on Capitol Hill." 
Just over 12 hours after Monday's NBC Nightly News found newsworthy that 50 out of 141 high school seniors visiting the White House presented President Bush with a handwritten letter asking him to "stop the violations of the human rights of...all detainees, including those designated enemy combatants," CNN's American Morning had 3 of the 50 students on for an interview. Co-host John Roberts asked the students to recount their experiences writing the letter, obtaining signatures, and handing it to the President, and asked one student, "[I]n response, the President said, 'we respect human rights,' do you buy that?" 
JOHN ROBERTS: The White House has heard criticism of its policies for detaining suspected terrorists before, but yesterday it came from an unexpected source. President Bush was meeting this year's high school presidential scholars, when one of them slipped him a handwritten letter, signed by several dozen of the teens. It read in part, 'We have been told we represent the best and brightest of our nation. Therefore, we believe we have a responsibility to voice our convictions. We do not want America to represent torture.' Some of the students behind the letter are with us this morning from Washington. They are Mari from Massachusetts, Leah Anthony Libresco from New York, and Colin from Ohio. So, whose idea was this? Speak up. 
COLIN MCSWIGGEN, PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLAR: Well, the one who originally handed the letter to the president was, of course, Mari. She -- we were lined up for a photo-op, and he came right before the photo and started speaking to us. We had a very casual discussion. He said that it's important to treat others as you wish to be treated, and he said that we really need to think about the choices that we make in our lives. And as he lined up to take the photo with us, Mari handed him the note, and said, '€˜Mr. President, some of us have made a choice, and we want you to have this.' He said all right, I've have it. After the photo, he asked if he should read the note, and Mari said well, that's up to you. But he read it right there, and we had a very casual discussion with him about it, right there front of the White House lawn. 
This isn't the first time that GMA has touted Lil' Bush. On June 14, reporter Dan Harris previewed the show's Move-On style characterizations of conservatives: "That's Lil' George, the leader of the gang. There's also Lil' Rummy, Lil' Cheney, who barely talks and chews the head off chickens, and Lil' Condi, who has an unrequited crush on George." 
Two days after ABC correspondent Liz Marlantes suggested that the Bush administration engages in abuses that are worse than illegal CIA activities from decades ago, on Tuesday's World News with Charles Gibson, ABC's Terry Moran made his own comparison between the past when the CIA was "running amuck" and modern times: "But many experts say they [documents] also shed light on this era, on the question of what the agency should and shouldn't be doing at a time when the CIA is running secret prisons, using coercive interrogation techniques like waterboarding and expanding its role in the war against al-Qaeda and other terrorists." 
On Tuesday's NBC Nightly News, while reporting from Lake Tahoe, correspondent George Lewis relayed one homeowner's complaint that environmental regulations had contributed to the danger of wildfires in the area. She further contended that the only reason her home survived was because she had cleared away brush near her home in violation of the law. Lewis: "She blames environmentalists and bureaucrats for creating rules that, in her opinion, increased the fire hazard. Says she had to break the law to clear brush off adjacent federal land." 