CNN Hypes GOP Links of Military Obama Critics

CNN is harping on the "partisan" connections of a group of military veterans criticizing President Obama, likening it to Swift Boat, yet it has helped further liberal partisan attacks in the past through its own biased coverage.

"A new group of veterans, including former Navy SEALs, accuses President Obama of taking too much credit for the killing of Osama bin Laden. The group says it's nonpartisan. But a CNN investigation finds it has close links to the Republican Party," reported Joe Johns on Thursday's The Situation Room.

"I know you know some of the criticism, and the criticism is that even though you claim to be nonpartisan, that this group is actually very partisan," anchor Soledad O'Brien grilled former Navy SEAL Scott Taylor on Friday's Starting Point.

And CNN's words played into the White House talking points of a "Swift Boat" attack. "And this sort of has shades of 2004 and John Kerry," noted Joe Johns," to which correspondent Brian Todd added "And the Swift Boat campaign."

Todd later reported, "The Obama team denies taking part in any leaks and says the Republicans are resorting to Swift Boat tactics, a reference to the blistering 2004 attacks on John Kerry's Vietnam War record."

And CNN should look more closely at its own double standard, having praised and given generous airtime to Democratic talking points versus grilling veteran soldiers over their alleged GOP agenda.

For instance, CNN had praised a "nice clip" of President Clinton lauding Obama's leadership in the bin Laden killing, out of a "very slick" Obama campaign video.

Days before that, CNN aired two uninterrupted minutes of an Obama campaign video that touted the President's leadership. "It has the look and feel of a Hollywood blockbuster," hyped Wolf Blitzer, "but it's really an Obama campaign film."

In June, CNN aired four uninterrupted minutes of President Clinton praising Obama at a Democratic fund raiser.

And when liberal nuns launched a bus tour slamming the Ryan budget and saying it will "devastate our country," CNN did label them "liberal" and reported that the nuns supported ObamaCare – and actively cheered them, as anchor Carol Costello gushed "You go, girls."