NBC Profiles Mia Love's 'Historic' Run for Congress in Utah

Wednesday's Today show on NBC ran a four and a half minute piece profiling Saratoga Springs, Utah, Mayor, and congressional candidate Mia Love, who has a very good chance of being the first black female Republican elected to Congress.

MSNBC's Daily Rundown show on Tuesday ran a similar report on the Utah Republican.

On the July 4 Today, guest co-anchor Willie Geist introduced the report:

Back now at 7:41 with a name you may not know yet, a woman creating quite a buzz inside the Republican party. NBC's Craig Melvin has her story.

Correspondent Craig Melvin then began:

Her name is Mia Love, and the native New Yorker has adopted Utah as her home town. Now, as a small town mayor, she's making a historic run, trying to become the first African-American Republican woman in Congress.

After recounting that Love was elected mayor in a town that is 90 percent white, Melvin continued:

The mother of three would rather be known for her politics, a brand of conservatism rooted, she claims, in her faith. She became a Mormon when she met her husband ... and her upbringing. Her parents are Hatian immigrants.

After noting some of her conservative positions, the NBC correspondent devoted about a half-minute portion of the piece to critics from the left, including her opponent, incumbent Democratic Congressman Jim Matheson. First came a short clip of the Utah Democrat: "I think my opponent represents views that are way out there."

After informing viewers that Matheson has served 12 years in Congress and is from a popular political family, Melvin forwarded the Utah Democrat's complaints about Love's desire to reform Social Security without elaborating on what Love's plan actually is, as Matheson was simply shown asserting that she wants to "phase out" the program.

CRAIG MELVIN: He admits Love's story is compelling, but not her politics.

REP. JIM MATHESON (D-UT): I don't think Utah families who are counting on Social Security to be there want to support someone who says we should phase out Social Security. I don't think Utah families who value college education want someone who says we should stop doing federal student loans.

MELVIN: Another criticism, a few of her constuents worry the smalll town mayor might not be ready for prime time.

KYLE BROTHERSEN, RESIDENT OF SARATOGA SPRINGS: My concerns about Mayor Love is that she may be a little bit green or new, and she doesn't have maybe as much of a track record as some of the other politicians.

But the NBC correspondent then dismissed concerns about the Utah Republican's experience:

MELVIN: But Utah political experts aren't sure how much things like this will matter with Utahans who want to send a message.

PROF. QUINN MONSON, BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY: She is symbolically something of a stereotype buster. There's a sense by some of these Mormon Republican voters that electing a black Republican woman would demonstrate that whatever people say about Mormons and their history with race, maybe it's not so true.