NBC's Williams Dismisses Holder Contempt Vote: 'Just Looks Like More of Our Broken Politics'
Leading off Wednesday's NBC Nightly News, anchor Brian Williams could barely conceal his contempt for Attorney General Eric Holder being held in contempt by the House Government Oversight Committee: "Washington has blown up into a caustic partisan fight....And for those not following the complexities of all of it, it just looks like more of our broken politics and vicious fights now out in the open."
NBC News should be included in the category of "those not following the complexities of all of it" when it comes to covering the Fast and Furious gun running scandal at the heart of the contempt charge. Wednesday night marked the first full story the network offered on the subject, having completely ignored the controversy until June 12, with a 30-second mention of the failed operation at the end of a report.
Despite Williams's dismissive introduction on Wednesday, the repor
t that followed by correspondent Kelly O'Donnell was fairly straightforward, explaining: "House Republicans say they have been waiting for eight months to get documents from the Attorney General and only today the White House stepped in. A key committee took an important step toward sending a message to the Department of Justice."
The ABC and CBS evening newscasts covered the contempt vote as well, however, neither saw fit to make it the lead story. It was particularly stunning that ABC's World News decided to lead with two reports on the weather before getting to the growing Obama administration scandal.
For ABC, it was the first time the network devoted any air time to Fast and Furious, a fact made obvious by the amount of catch-up reporting done by correspondent Jake Tapper. In his report, a clip played of Tapper interviewing President Obama on October 8, 2011 and describing the botched gun running as a "big scandal." Despite such an assertion, that question and Obama's response had never been aired on the network before Wednesday night.
The CBS Evening News led with news about the economy, but then devoted two full reports to the Holder contempt vote and a background on Fast and Furious. CBS has stood out in being the only one of the Big Three networks to actually provide detailed coverage of the scandal. In fact, it took 482 days for NBC and ABC to catch up to CBS and provide their first full reports on Fast and Furious.
Here is a full transcript of the June 20 NBC Nightly News coverage:
7:00PM ET TEASE:
BRIAN WILLIAMS: On our broadcast tonight, In contempt. The U.S. Attorney General in a huge fight with Congress over a gun case gone wrong. Now it's a showdown with the White House over executive privilege. And it's a story still developing.
7:01PM ET SEGMENT:
WILLIAMS: Good evening, while the rest of the nation watches, Washington has blown up into a caustic partisan fight and a showdown is coming over the power of the American president. Just tonight, a House committee voted to hold President Obama's attorney general, Eric Holder, in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over documents related to a badly botched sting operation involving guns and drugs in Mexico, called Fast and Furious.
This contempt vote comes after the Obama White House, for the first time, invoked executive privilege. Charges of stonewalling and coverups are flying, the kind of stuff we first learne
d during the Watergate era. And for those not following the complexities of all of it, it just looks like more of our broken politics and vicious fights now out in the open. We begin tonight with our Capitol Hill correspondent Kelly O'Donnell, who was there to see all of it today. Kelly, good evening.
KELLY O'DONNELL: Good evening, Brian. There were emotions and allegations of political motives flying today. House Republicans say they have been waiting for eight months to get documents from the Attorney General and only today the White House stepped in. A key committee took an important step toward sending a message to the Department of Justice. A rare and serious reprimand.
UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN [HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES]: 23 Ayes, 17 nos.
DARRELL ISSA [REP. R-CA]: The ayes have it.
O'DONNELL: Eric Holder could become the first attorney general ever held in contempt of Congress.
ISSA: The Attorney General has refused to cooperate.
O'DONNELL: Five months before the election, a power struggle between the Obama administration and Congress.
JASON CHAFFETZ [REP. R-UT]: It shouldn't have come to this. Nobody likes doing this.
CAROLYN MALONEY [REP. D-NY]: It shouldn't be a political witch hunt against the attorney general of our country and our president in an election year.
O'DONNELL: Today the White House asserted executive privilege to shield documents from Congress. For more than a year, the House Oversight Committee has been investigating an operation known as Fast and Furious. Federal agents had allowed guns to cross into Mexico, intending to track them to cartels. But some of those U.S. weapons were found at the scene where Border Patrol Agent 
Brian Terry was killed in 2010.
SCOTT DESJARLAIS [REP. R-TN]: I don't think Agent Terry's family cares that it's an election year. I don't think the families of over 200 slain Mexican citizens care that this is an election year.
O'DONNELL: Operation Fast and Furious was ended by Attorney General Holder, who has testified and already provided thousands of documents. The conflict with Congress began because the Justice Department initially denied those gun-walking tactics had been used.
TREY GOWDY [REP. R-SC]: I can give them this.
O'DONNELL: That denial raised many questions about who had authorized the operation.
DAN BURTON [REP. R-IN]: Who knew about Fast and Furious? When did they know about it? And how high up did it go?
O'DONNELL: The White House insists Holder has made extraordinary efforts to cooperate. The Attorney General called the contempt citation a "divisive" "election-year tactic." Democrats defended Holder.
ELIJAH CUMMINGS [REP. D-MD]: For the past year, you've been holding the Attorney General to an impossible standard. You accused him of a cover-up for protecting documents that he was prohibited by law from producing.
O'DONNELL: The White House noted today that presidents of both parties have used executive privilege to protect some of their internal conversations. House Republicans say there's still time to avoid this and negotiate a deal, but they still want what they call a narrow list of documents. Brian, if there is no breakthrough, Speaker Boehner says the full House of Representatives will vote next week to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress. Brian.
WILLIAMS: Kelly O'Donnell starting us off from Capitol Hill tonight. Kelly, thanks.
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Comments
Criminal activity is
Submitted by LAM SON 719 on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 12:47pm.
Criminal activity is criminal, election year or not means nothing. More liberal jibberish condoning crime.
Since this is reporteldy all about partisan politics . . . .
Submitted by Galvanic on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:12pm.
. . . then perhaps network news anchor Brian Williams can answer these very basic investigative questions for us.
1. What was the actual purpose of Fast & Furious?
Holder says it was designed to track the flow of US-purchased firearms into Mexico and into the hands of drug cartels in order to gain intelligence on the routes and methods. But Holder says that there was no means for conducting that tracking. So, what in the world did anyone expect to gain from F&F?
2. Who approved Fast & Furious, and how high up in the DoJ and WH did knowledge of it go?
Holder has testified that neither he nor the President were aware of it, and he has not identified who authorized it. When facing a contempt of Congress threat, the President declared that the F&F documents would not be released under the Executive Privilege principle. But the evocation of Executive Privilege indicates the Holder and Obama were involved in the decision, the cover-up, or both. So what is it? If Executive Privilege can be extended to cover any and all documents in the Executive branch, then all Federal records can be denied to the Congress, which oversees the operation of said government.
3. How did the Justice Department plan and implement an international law enforcement operation without the knowledge of the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security (its Border Patrol would have to cooperate), and particularly the Government of Mexico?
If Holder is to be believed, we can only conclude that some low level DoJ officer ran F&F on his/her own authorization, resulting in 1000-2000 firearms getting into the hands of drug cartels. Was this rogue officer in cahoots with the cartels? If so, we have criminal activity for which no one has been arrested?
So, Mr. Williams, aren't you the least bit curious that after more than a year of inquiry, NBC cannot answer these questions? Neither can Issa's committee, because Holder has obstructed the investigation.
What Brian refused to admit
Submitted by kg on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:15pm.
"And for those not following the complexities of all of it [like myself and all of those at NBC] , it just looks like more of our broken politics and vicious fights now out in the open."
"DumbAssity of Dope"
"Our broken politics" ?
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 12:57pm.
Really lyin'brian?
Isn't the 'broken political system" driven by the corrupted 'news media' presenting a failed political agenda on a minute-by-minute basis trying to propagandize the American mindset?
Why do you, and your equally inept cohorts actually report what "REALLY WENT ON" instead of 'your opinion' or "what you really wished had been said or done"?
The American people would be better served if the original requirement of your broadcast licenses were reinstated.
"The news will be presented as a PUBLIC SERVICE as a condition of this broadcasting license."
There was no advertising, and the networks reported the NEWS AS IT HAPPENED in a half hour time slot to get back to PAID broadcast time.
Then... in the early 60's the FCC changed that rule to allow a PROFIT by selling ad time during the 'news', and in order to sell more, as well as charge more, during the 'news spot' the news became a big money maker with the advent of 'news department generated race riots'.
When the media discovered their newly found cash cow, HONESTY and INTEGRITY went out the door in search for higher advertising rates.
All it would take would be is a 'stroke of the pen' to reverse that change.
And wouldn't the screeching and howling reach a crescendo within seconds of the announcement?
The PEOPLE, theoretically, own the airwaves, and THE PEOPLE have a RIGHT to FAIR AND ACCURATE reporting of real news, and the opinions can be presented as OPINION and try to sell that to the advertisers brian.
99% of the fools and other talking heads would be off the air.
Too bad that the political parties will not allow a PRESIDENTIAL candidate on the ballot.....
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
So
Submitted by grammajane on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:01pm.
according to williams the death of a young border patrol agent and hundreds of Mexican people laying dead in the the street is "broken politics" I thought you radical libs were for compassion and care of people. Williams, had this been a Conservative AG, you would be jumping up and down reporting this disgraceful situation caused by a very un-lawful DOJ. You, by your sour puss, couldn't be more obvious to have to finally report the truth. And you call yourself a journalist?? Check again..........you are so far from being a reporter. Sad, truly pathetic
Gramma
Submitted by Model850 on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:36pm.
Williams, had this been a Conservative AG, you would be jumping up and down reporting this disgraceful situation caused by a very un-lawful DOJ.
Not only that, had this been a conservative AG the entire alphabet soup of so-called news organizations would have been leading their nightly broadcasts, every single night, with stories about F&F, from the day the story first broke.
BRIAN TERRY
Submitted by ferv888 on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:08pm.
NEED I SAY ANYTHING ELSE?????
Yes Idiot
Submitted by JustAl on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:09pm.
"Something" is broken. But we're going to fix it in a few months.
Stop Picking on Williams
Submitted by Conservator on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:09pm.
Everyone should recall how upset he was when a Democratically control Congress cited Harriet Miers for contempt - right?
When Harriet Miers, White House Counsel under Bush, was cited for contempt of Congress for her failure to appear before the Senate Judiciary in response to its subpoena regarding the firings of U.S. attorneys. And, the full House of Representatives voted to cite her for contempt as well.
Don't recall Williams reports on Miers? Too bad, because he praised Congress for the contempt vote of a Republican. That's media bias.
Yeah, yeah, who cares, right?
Submitted by jon_torlin on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:11pm.
Broken politics, who cares, people died, who cares, no explanation given, who cares, trying to get rid of the second amendment, who cares.....
Yeah, right, who cares?
That kind of attitude makes me puke.
-Jon
And this fool gets paid $25M a year!
Submitted by Mary Louise Turner on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:32pm.
How on earth can the National Barack Channel justify Brian Williams' outlandish $25M a year salary?! He is merely a "journalist" hack who spends more time kissing Ears' butt than reporting real news. It is outrageous, but not surprising, that Mr. Williams defends a law-breaking AG (and perhaps POTUS, too) simply because he is a Democrat.
But then we don't have to watch him, either - we have NewsBusters to take care of that.
mary louise turner
Submitted by grammajane on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 6:05pm.
he probably gets paid that amount because he is dumb enough to sit there in front of his teleprompter and report right from the white house. It's getting to the point all the media must be getting checks from the obama campaign to try and get him elected. Thought williams had a few brains but, obviously that is a joke as is his "news." The more he spews, the bigger the check
Little Does He Know
Submitted by HardRightTurn on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 1:52pm.
This is just the beginning, Brian. This will bring your man down.
To more fully comprehend the Left, one must read “Leftism As Psychopathy” by John Ray, M.A., Ph.D. Caution, it might scare you a little bit.
http://jonjayray.tripod.com/psycho.html
Isn't it an amazing coincidence that liberals only lament broken
Submitted by lsudolemite on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 2:08pm.
politics when they're losing?
It's Bushes fault...someone
Submitted by rockyracoon on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 2:54pm.
It's Bushes fault...someone had to say it!
Facts are like kryptonite to the liberal.
Holder and Jackie Robinson
Submitted by thinkingobserver on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 3:58pm.
Eric Holder is another Jackie Robinson experiment gone bad. And for that comment Jackie Robinson deserves an apology. Robinson, unlike Obama and Holder , was a man of character and integrity. He met adversity with “high road” honesty and proved his detractors wrong with honest actions and not a tsunami of empty words, distortions and outright lies.
half of the government is a result of Affirmative Action.
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 4:08pm.
There are a few people in congress that actually EARNED their way there, but if you look at, and listen to, a minority democrat, you know it was not intellectual prowess that got them elected.
From sheelah jaxsun leeee, to that idiot that think Guam would tip over if the Marines were stationed there, to the thieving Louisiana congress weasel with the frozen money, they do not possess enough intelligence to blow there own noses.....
Yet they got elected...?
HOW STUPID are the voters in their districts? sorry... I forget... public 'education'... THAT explains a lot doesn't it?
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
Just think, if the House had
Submitted by celator on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 4:07pm.
Just think, if the House had a democrat majority, F/F would have been swept under the rug. There would have been nothing like what the Republicans are doing now to get to the bottom of this sad story. Holder would never, ever have testified before the committee.
Next time someone says, "It doesn't matter which party has the majority, they are all the same", remind them of what's going on right now with a Republican majority.
Black Superman
Submitted by mark trail on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 6:08pm.
This whole deal is actually burnishing Obama's street cred as Black Superman who came to DC to bring down "White Man Law."
"Street" in this case, also includes the useful idiots of academia, whose Black Liberation Theories often override any evidence of American Exceptionalism in their fevered imaginings of a Brave New World.
This was NOT a "gun walk," it was a gun buy, straight up.
Congress better step up or step off; Black Superman ain't dead yet.
Hopefully F & F will end up sending Obama and Holder for a...
Submitted by Dave. on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 6:43pm.
...25-year stay somewhere in Kansas.
They should be held responsible for every single death that has resulted from this heinous act.
And don't even try to tell me this insanity wasn't instigated by the Dear Ruler, and I'll bet dollars to donuts that the documents being withheld by they utterly corrupt, lying sos Holder would prove that.
The MSM gun-grabbers know exactly what Fast and Furious was designed to bring about - an excuse for a massive gun-grab by the feds..
-Dave
Vote for the American in November
I'm holding out for a live broadcast of "waterboarding 101"
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 6:49pm.
Featuring, unrehearsed performances of obama and holder telling What they knew, and WHEN they knew it, and the Questions not limited to 'pre-approved' questions, but questions taken directly from the live audience..
Should be the MOST-WATCHED EVENT OF TELEVISION HISTORY.
The media gets "highest evr recorded" ratings as well as tons of advertising cash, and The American people GET SOME STRAIGHT ANSWERS for a change....
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
The only people confused by
Submitted by tecumseh75 on Thu, 06/21/2012 - 6:43pm.
The only people confused by the "complexities", is the media. Its a sad state, when the public was better informed and way out in front of the media on this story. Ive been pleasantly surprised to see how informed and outraged the public is. I think it shows how people no longer rely on paper and TV media as much anymore. They must be getting it off the Internet.