Has CNN's Piers Morgan had a revelation? Or is he simply praising Mitt
Romney in the British press while peddling Democratic talking points on
CNN?
Romney "just might save America," Morgan proclaimed [1] over the weekend in Britain's Daily Mail. "His track record as a businessman is better than almost any presidential candidate ever."
Morgan
ripped Obama's economic record. "But – and it’s a big but –
unemployment is still running at a scarily high 7.8 per cent, meaning 23
million Americans are out of work. Meanwhile, the country’s national
debt has risen to a staggering $16 TRILLION, up $5 trillion from when
Obama took over.
"Factor in a still severely deflated housing market, and petrol prices
double what they were in 2008, and it all adds up to a pretty miserable
economic picture," he lambasted the Obama economy.
CNN viewers have seen a completely different Piers Morgan, though. The
Obama economy that he trashed overseas he's excused on CNN, by relaying
Democratic talking points on the economy.
"Well their [the Democrats'] argument is now that they inherited the
mother of all hospital passes, and you don't dispute that, right?" he challenged [2] a Romney aide during the DNC.
"You have to give President Obama a bit of time just to get things back on track," Morgan told Paul Ryan [3]
in September, suggesting the Democrats compare the current economy to
three years ago, and not four. "[T]here, I think, the Democrats have a
much more compelling argument – look at the auto industry, and so on –
to say, you know what, once we were able to stabilize things, we haven't
done too badly," he sounded.
Morgan gushed [4] to David Axelrod last December that "A lot of things are just perfect about Barack Obama."
Piers helped further the Obama campaign's talking points on other issues, like trashing Mitt Romney's "47 percent" comments and supporting Obama's wish to raise taxes on the wealthy.
"Mitt Romney has clearly hit a bit of a buffer moment here. Could be a game-changing moment. Could be an election-ending moment," Morgan hyped Romney's "47 percent" comments before former Clinton operative George Stephanopoulos tempered [5] his enthusiasm. "Wow. That's going a little far actually," he insisted.
"I'm going to play a new Obama ad which basically sums up how he's going to attack him [Romney]. And it's very, very damaging. Watch this," Morgan told [6] his guests after again touting Romney's "monumental gaffe" about the 47 percent of Americans paying no income taxes. Who needs campaign staff when CNN will herald your "very, very damaging" attack ad?
"[I]f a country's in real financial strife, as America is right now,
what is wrong with those at the richer end of society paying a little
bit more than those at the poorer end?" Morgan asked [7]
Republican guest Tim Pawlenty in July, in lock-step with the
President's proposal that the rich pay more taxes. "Why is it unfair?
That those who've got more help out a little bit more?"
"And I think there's this mantra you guys almost sound like you're an
extension of the Obama campaign," GOP guest Newt Gingrich told [8] Morgan who had hit the Ryan plan for "scratching the backs of the rich."