Time's Mark Halperin Concedes: GOP 'Would Be Creamed' by Media for Not Passing a Budget

Time magazine's Mark Halperin on Thursday admitted that if Republicans were in control of the Senate, which has now gone over a thousand days without passing a budget, the liberal New York Times wouldn’t be giving them the same free pass that it is giving the current Democrats in the Senate. 

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough pondered, “What would the New York Times editorial page say about a Republican Senate that didn’t produce a budget in over a thousand days?”  Halperin, who is also an analyst for MSNBC, quickly shot back, “They would be getting creamed.”

It was actually Halperin that brought up the media’s blatant bias in regards to covering the Senate’s failure to pass a budget. Huffington Post reporter Sam Stein discussed White House Press Secretary Jay Carney’s comments regarding the Senate’s lack of a budget. Halperin pointedly asked whether this is a “question about the media?” 

Everybody else immediately understood Halperin’s sentiments, except Stein. Stein quizzically responded, “About the media?” as though it could do no wrong.  After clarification he stated, “I think it gets a fair amount of coverage,” much to the dismay of the rest of the discussion. Stein continued, “It’s always talked about, the fact that the Senate hasn’t passed a budget in 900 days,” a large understatement.

Unfortunately, neither Stein nor anybody else at the Huffington Post has spent much time covering this egregious failure on the part of the Senate Democrats. If he had, he may have known that it has actually been 1016 days since the Senate passed a budget...and counting.

Video of the segment can be seen here.

The relevant transcript follows:

Morning Joe

02/09/12

JAKE TAPPER (ABC NEWS REPORTER): I’m not actually asking your opinion, but the White House’s opinion.  The position of the White House is that– the White House has no position on whether or not the Senate should pass a budget?  The President’s going to introduce one, the Fed Chair says that not having one is bad for growth, but the White House has no opinion about whether –

JAY CARNEY: I have no opinion, the White House has no opinion on Chairman Bernanke’s assessment of how the Senate ought to do its business. 

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Sam Stein, no opinion on whether the White House after, the Senate after a thousand days should pass a budget.

SAM STEIN: I mean obviously they would love nothing more than for the House Republicans to introduce a budget so that they could just kill ‘em for it.  Obviously it’s the –

JOE SCARBOROUGH: They could kill ‘em.  The Senate’s gone over a thousand days.

MICHAEL STEELE: A thousand days without passing a budget.

SAM STEIN: I’m less concerned about that than the hypocrisy, obviously, of them just loving the idea of Paul Ryan reintroducing his budget so they can make it an election issue.  And then, you know–

MARK HALPERIN: Is it a question about the media?

SAM STEIN: About the media?

MARK HALPERIN: That if the Republican’s hadn’t produced a budget in a thousand days, it wouldn’t be–

SAM STEIN: Listen, I’m not speaking for the media, I just like pointed out an incredible–

MARK HALPERIN: Why doesn’t that get more coverage?

SAM STEIN: I think it gets a fair amount of coverage.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Ugh

 MICHAEL STEELE: I haven’t seen it.

SAM STEIN: It’s always talked about, the fact that the Senate hasn’t passed a budget in 900 days.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: By Republicans.  By Republicans.  Mark Halperin, let me ask you a question.

SAM STEIN: We’re on the media right now, aren’t we?

MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Last time I checked.   

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Seriously, Mark Halperin.  What would the New York Times editorial page say about a Republican Senate that didn’t produce a budget in over a thousand days?

MARK HALPERIN: They would be creamed.   What’s incredible is, is you know, the conventional wisdom is that nothings gonna happen this year except dealing with the payroll tax cut.  This is a quarter of the President’s first term, and maybe only term in office, and he’s going to put out a budget, the House is going to do a budget, the Senate probably won’t, and there’s almost no discussion of it.  A budget with huge implications for Federal policy, and fighting for deficit reduction. Incredible.