On Schiavo, Politically-Motivated or Unpopular? CBS Can't Decide --3/24/2005

1. On Schiavo, Politically-Motivated or Unpopular? CBS Can't Decide
A night after the CBS Evening News devoted a story to how, as anchor Bob Schieffer put it, "members of Congress deny" their action on the Schiavo case "was a political move on their part, but some of their comments caught on tape suggest otherwise," Schieffer highlighted poll numbers which would indicate House Republican leaders are hardly following public opinion, yet CBS didn't re-examine the premise of their take from the previous night. Schieffer cited how a CBS News poll found that "an overwhelming 82 percent say Congress and the President should stay out of the Schiavo case" and "a majority of the people who voted for President Bush do not favor reinserting the feeding tube."

2. Unlike CBS, CNN Concedes Hit on DeLay Came from Liberal Group
Like CBS the day before, on Wednesday CNN dedicated a story to how what House Majority Leader Tom DeLay told a conservative group supposedly contradicted his publicly-stated motivation for pursuing the Schiavo case, but at least CNN acknowledged the liberal source of its evidence. CNN's Ed Henry asserted that while "in public Tom DeLay has repeatedly said the extraordinary congressional effort to save Terri Schiavo was motivated by principle, not politics....behind closed doors, DeLay has told fellow conservatives a different story, according to an audiotape obtained by CNN." Henry soon informed viewers that "the audiotape was secretly recorded by a liberal group, Americans United for Separation of Church and State." Indeed, the group's home page has a huge headline: "Caught Red-Handed!" Yet on Tuesday's CBS Evening News, Wyatt Andrews failed to cite the left wing source of the audio tape as he used it to support his contention that "there is evidence some Republicans saw a political opening in Schiavo by framing her plight in the context of pro-life or anti-abortion politics."

3. Olbermann: Schiavo Death Will Benefit "Grotesque" Republicans
MSNBC's Keith Olbermann on Tuesday night asked a former FBI agent whether, given all the political attention to the Schiavo case, he gets "angry about the comparative political disinterest in taking any steps...anything down to more money on counseling, anything necessary to prevent Columbine, Red Lake and whichever school is next?" Olbermann lamented how Schiavo is "a win-win for men like Tom DeLay. If she lives, well, good, they saved her. If she dies, the non-religious, the obstructionist judges, and any other boogeyman you want to name, killed her." Guest Craig Crawford charged: "I think if she dies, it's an even better political issue for those pushing this." Olbermann went on to wonder if, in how Republicans have exploited Schiavo, others "besides us see the grotesquery of this sort of sickening experience?"

On Schiavo, Politically-Motivated or
Unpopular? CBS Can't Decide

A night after the CBS Evening News devoted a story to how, as anchor Bob Schieffer put it, "members of Congress deny" their action on the Schiavo case "was a political move on their part, but some of their comments caught on tape suggest otherwise," Schieffer highlighted poll numbers which would indicate House Republican leaders are hardly following public opinion, yet CBS didn't re-examine the premise of their take from the previous night. Schieffer cited how a CBS News poll found that "an overwhelming 82 percent say Congress and the President should stay out of the Schiavo case" and "a majority of the people who voted for President Bush do not favor reinserting the feeding tube."

The March 23 CyberAlert recounted: CBS's Bob Schieffer on Tuesday night noted how "members of Congress deny" their actions on the Schiavo case represented "a political move on their part but," Schieffer charged, "some of their comments caught on tape suggest otherwise." Wyatt Andrews insisted that "there is evidence some Republicans saw a political opening in Schiavo by framing her plight in the context of pro-life or anti-abortion politics." His evidence? One memo with a political point and some comments by Tom DeLay to "a leading Christian group," which Andrews treated as scandalous and characterized as DeLay saying "the Schiavo case was sent by heaven to focus attention on the helpless." As if that's something to be embarrassed about. Schieffer apparently thought so as he soon asked Andrews: "Has Tom DeLay issued any statement since these comments of his became public?" Andrews replied that "he has not" and went on to assert that "there is a lot of buzz here on Capitol Hill that he spearheaded this over the weekend to change the subject from some of the ethics questions that he's facing." See: www.mediaresearch.org [1]

Schieffer announced on the March 23 CBS Evening News: "The American people have been following this case closely and have some very strong opinions about it. In a CBS News poll out tonight, 66 percent say Schiavo's feeding tube should not be reinserted; 62 percent say that, in general, a spouse should have the final say in cases like this, where there is no living will. And an overwhelming 82 percent say Congress and the President should stay out of the Schiavo case. When Congress passed the emergency legislation that moved the Schiavo case to the federal courts this week, the President flew back to Washington to sign it in the middle of the night. Today, he had this to say about the case."
George W. Bush: "This is an extraordinary and sad case. And I believe that in a case such as this, the legislative branch, the executive branch ought to err on the side of life, which we have. And now we'll watch the courts make its decisions."
Schieffer: "And elaborating on that, the President's spokesman said, 'There really are no other legal options available to us.' The President is back at the ranch in Crawford, Texas, tonight. Our White House correspondent Bill Plante is there with him. Bill, I must say, what we heard from the President and the White House today is very much in contrast to what we heard over the weekend."
Bill Plante, from Crawford: "Well, exactly, Bob. It's a far cry from him rushing back to sign the bill that Congress passed. But certainly what drove the Congress and the President was at least in part compassion for this terrible situation. But that said, we know that the White House keeps a very close eye on public opinion. And we have to assume that they're reading the same polls that we are, which show that the public just doesn't want them involved."
Schieffer: "One of the extraordinary things I found in this poll that came out today is that a majority of the people who voted for President Bush do not favor reinserting the feeding tube. Republicans drove this, but not all Republicans."
Plante agreed: "Well, Bob, our poll shows that across the board people don't think the federal government should have been involved here. Republicans as well as Democrats, conservatives as well as liberals, even a majority of evangelical Christians. And a lot of conservatives fear that this is the camel's nose under the tent, that this will be a precedent for future federal action where they think it's simply not warranted."

Indeed, to the question, "Should Congress and the President be involved in the Schiavo matter?" no said 72 percent of Republicans and 76 percent of conservatives.

For the full rundown of the CBS News poll: www.cbsnews.com [2]

Unlike CBS, CNN Concedes Hit on DeLay
Came from Liberal Group

Like CBS the day before, on Wednesday CNN dedicated a story to how what House Majority Leader Tom DeLay told a conservative group supposedly contradicted his publicly-stated motivation for pursuing the Schiavo case, but at least CNN acknowledged the liberal source of its evidence. CNN's Ed Henry asserted that while "in public Tom DeLay has repeatedly said the extraordinary congressional effort to save Terri Schiavo was motivated by principle, not politics....behind closed doors, DeLay has told fellow conservatives a different story, according to an audiotape obtained by CNN." Henry soon informed viewers that "the audiotape was secretly recorded by a liberal group, Americans United for Separation of Church and State." Indeed, the group's home page has a huge headline: "Caught Red-Handed!" Yet on Tuesday's CBS Evening News, Wyatt Andrews failed to cite the left wing source of the audio tape as he used it to support his contention that "there is evidence some Republicans saw a political opening in Schiavo by framing her plight in the context of pro-life or anti-abortion politics."

Leading into an audio clip from DeLay, Andrews had highlighted how "House Leader Tom DeLay told the Family Research Council, a leading Christian group, the Schiavo case was sent by heaven to focus attention on the helpless." For a full rundown of the March 22 Andrews story, see the March 23 CyberAlert: www.mediaresearch.org [1]

The home page for Americans United for Separation of Church and State is topped by the screaming headline: "Caught Red-Handed!" The site then declared: "Top congressional leaders are working hand in glove with the Religious Right to implement its controversial political agenda." See: www.au.org [3]

For the audio clips of what DeLay told the Family Research Council: www.au.org [4]

The MRC's Ken Shepherd noticed Henry's attribution, for the source of his evidence to undermine DeLay, in a story run on Wednesday's Inside Politics. Rich Noyes of the MRC recalled seeing Henry include the same attribution on CNN's American Morning.

Inside Politics anchor Candy Crowley set up the March 23 piece: "House Majority Leader Tom DeLay was the driving force behind legislation designed to keep Terri Schiavo alive. But a recording of recent remarks about the case has captured the attention of DeLay's political opponents. We're going to get more from CNN's congressional correspondent Ed Henry."

Henry began: "In public, Tom DeLay has repeatedly said the extraordinary congressional effort to save Terri Schiavo was motivated by principle, not politics."
Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX): "I say again, the legal and political issues may be complicated, but the moral ones are not. A young woman in Florida is being dehydrated and starved to death."
Henry: "But behind closed doors, DeLay has told fellow conservatives a different story, according to an audiotape obtained by CNN."
DeLay, in audio tape: "One thing that God has brought to us is Terri Schiavo. To elevate the visibility of what is going on in America. That Americans would be so barbaric as to pull a feeding tube out of a person that is lucid and starve them to death for two weeks, I mean, in America, that's going to happen if we don't win this fight."
Henry: "The Majority Leader delivered this private speech to the Family Research Council Friday just hours before Schiavo's feeding tube was removed. DeLay, who has been under fire for allegations of various ethical lapses then tied the attacks on him to the Schiavo case."
DeLay, in a second audio clip: "This is exactly the issue that is going on in America, that attacks against the conservative movement, against me, and against many others. The point is, the other side has figured out how to win and to defeat the conservative movement. And that is to go after people personally, charge them with frivolous charges, and link that up with all these do-gooder organizations funded by George Soros and then get the national media on their side. That whole syndicate that they have going on right now is for one purpose and one purpose only and that's to destroy the conservative movement."
Henry acknowledged: "The audiotape was secretly recorded by a liberal group, Americans United for Separation of Church and State."
Rev. Barry Lynn, Americans United for Separation of Church and State: "He's linking his own ethics challenges with the case of Mrs. Schiavo and I think that is just morally and completely inappropriate."
Henry: "One day after his speech, DeLay forcefully dismissed questions about a memo suggesting republicans wanted to gain politically from the schiavo case."
DeLay: "I know no one in my staff put it out. And if anybody on my staff had put it out they'd be immediately dismissed. This is not a political issue. This is life and death. And this is a bipartisan attempt to save this life."
Henry: "DeLay spokesman Dan Allen responded that there was quote, 'absolutely no political motivation' behind Mister DeLay's involvement in this case. The spokesman said the liberal group is taking the comments out of context, noting the Congressman spent about the first nine minutes of his speech on the legislative machination of the Schiavo case and only a brief portion on his battles with Democrats."

One wonders about the ethics of such a "secretly recorded" tape and of the media being so eager to use it.

Olbermann: Schiavo Death Will Benefit
"Grotesque" Republicans

MSNBC's Keith Olbermann on Tuesday night asked a former FBI agent whether, given all the political attention to the Schiavo case, he gets "angry about the comparative political disinterest in taking any steps...anything down to more money on counseling, anything necessary to prevent Columbine, Red Lake and whichever school is next?" Olbermann lamented how Schiavo is "a win-win for men like Tom DeLay. If she lives, well, good, they saved her. If she dies, the non-religious, the obstructionist judges, and any other boogeyman you want to name, killed her." Guest Craig Crawford charged: "I think if she dies, it's an even better political issue for those pushing this." Olbermann went on to wonder if, in how Republicans have exploited Schiavo, others "besides us see the grotesquery of this sort of sickening experience?"

The MRC's Brad Wilmouth caught the comments and exchanges on the March 22 Countdown on MSNBC.

Interviewing former FBI agent Clint Van Zandt during his opening segment on the Minnesota school shooting, Olbermann wondered: "When you see, lastly, and this is a question I'm asking you because it's based on your experience and the frequency with which you have dealt with this first professionally and now in an analyst's role, when you see Congress go into special session and the President break off his vacation to address the survival of one woman who, best case, may or may not ever recover, do you get angry about the comparative political disinterest in taking any steps -- I'm not talking about necessarily gun regulation -- but anything down to more money on counseling, anything necessary to prevent Columbine, Red Lake and whichever school is next?"

A half hour later in a look at the Schiavo case, a segment titled "Capitol Intervention," Olbermann asserted: "And now, to those continuing politics that are being played here at full speed and at full volume. MSNBC analyst, Congressional Quarterly senior columnist Craig Crawford joins me. Craig, good evening."
Crawford: "Hi. Back at the intersection of law and politics."
Olbermann: "Yeah, am I even right, though, in using that word, 'continuing,' to describe the politics? I mean, have not the politicians who have used this woman really accomplished what they wanted from her?"
Crawford: "Well, they certainly gave the constituency voters out there they're trying to appeal to, what they wanted was something out of Congress to try to save her life. The trouble is, it didn't work, as Pete Williams noted. This judge didn't take the bait, so to speak, the way they wrote this. They thought they had made it virtually impossible for him to avoid reinserting that tube while he looked at the case anew. And so it didn't work the way they wrote it. But certainly, in their sentiment in what they were trying to do, appealed to these pro-life voters in the Republican Party. They did that much."
Olbermann: "But as this appeals to that constituency, this sort of evangelical-political nexus, even under the circumstances, as you described them, where they did not get what they were going to get from the judge and may or may not get it from the full appeals court -- is this not still a win-win for men like Tom DeLay? If she lives, well, good, they saved her. If she dies, the non-religious, the obstructionist judges, and any other boogeyman you want to name, killed her."
Crawford: "In some ways, Keith, I think if she dies, it's an even better political issue for those pushing this. I say that because then it will become a true cause celebre, a martyrdom, almost, that they will be able to provoke among those pro-life voters they're seeking to hold in the fold in the Republican ranks."
Olbermann: "You know, I've only been doing this off and on eight years with politics, but I'm just wondering as we talk about this, does anyone else besides us see the grotesquery of this sort of sickening experience? We've seen these poll numbers: 70 percent of the public said Congress shouldn't have gotten involved, 67 percent saying Congress got involved for political gain. It's huge damage, and yet we have it continuing, and yet also, here's Senator Frist coming out and saying what he did, saying he was disappointed with outcomes today. But Senator Warner, another Republican, comes out today and reiterates, he's not happy Congress got involved."
Crawford: "Senator Frist is an interesting case here, Keith, because this is someone who's making no secret of his presidential ambitions. There's an opening in the Republican Party that this case goes to, and that is, the mantle for the conservative leadership, the heir apparent to George Bush. That's a wide opening, especially among those considering a presidential bid. So this is an early opportunity to appeal to voters who are very influential in Republican primaries. Now, that's three years down the road. Just a year away is the control of Congress and that battle at the ballot box. And so this case goes to that, as well."
Olbermann: "But there's no one in politics who's saying -- certainly, not on the side that has introduced this, there's no one that is saying that putting this woman on this sort of stage is a grotesque and inhuman act by itself."
Crawford: "I think, on the whole, this is politics, this is Congress. No matter how dramatic and personal the story, you know, you can give a bad dog a good name, but it's still a bad dog. It's still politics. And that's what Congress is all about."
Olbermann: "Craig Crawford of Congressional Quarterly and MSNBC. One of the few honest guys in the circuit. We appreciate that, sir. Always a pleasure."

-- Brent Baker [5]