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Joe Soptic

R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. Column: Harry Reid's Cow and Joe Biden's Parrot

By R. Emmett Tyrre... | August 16, 2012 | 16:18

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A week passes, and thus far, the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has yet to tell us whether he is or is not having sexual relations with a cow. As was reported in this column last week, based on sources in the field, Reid has been involved with the cow for at least three months, possibly more. My sources cannot be identified for obvious reasons. Even The New York Times would not reveal their identities. The story is that hot.

It is, of course, possible that the relationship is purely platonic. On the other hand, possibly Reid is more involved with the cow than might have been anticipated. It is time for him to come clean. He owes it to the American people and conceivably to the Department of Agriculture. Preferably he should make his statement on the floor of the Senate, which he reserves for such solemn occasions. For instance, his recent charge that the probable Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, has paid no taxes for the better part of 10 years, was made there. His statement about the cow is no less important. Reid, we are waiting.

CBS Evening News Mentions Anti-Romney Cancer Ad, Fails to ID Producer as Obama Super PAC

By Brad Wilmouth | August 16, 2012 | 01:40

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Wednesday's CBS Evening News finally mentioned the controversial ad -- produced by an Obama super PAC -- which blames Mitt Romney for former steel worker Joe Soptic's wife dying of cancer, as CBS correspondent Nancy Cordes filed a report recounting negative campaigning from both the GOP and Democratic sides.

But she only vaguely referred to the pro-Obama super PAC, Priorities USA, as an "outside group," even though it was founded by former Obama advisors to support the President's reelection. Covering the same inflammatory ad for CBS This Morning on Friday, Cordes had made the group's partisan affiliation clear, describing them as "a top outside group supporting the President."

Networks Ignore Bogus Obama Attack Ad Blaming Romney for Cancer Death

By Brent Bozell | August 10, 2012 | 16:26

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Barack Obama’s campaign headquarters might as well be located in a sewer. The content of the Priorities USA Obama Super PAC ad blaming a woman's death from cancer on Mitt Romney is almost impossible to believe. The only thing more impossible to believe is that the so-called “news” networks can go two full days pretending that it doesn’t exist.

And even then, only ABC has mentioned it during their evening news broadcast. There’s still nothing from NBC Nightly News or CBS Evening News on this. The networks shouldn’t have to be dragged kicking and screaming into reporting the news.

CBS Downplays Obama Super PAC Cancer Death Ad As Part of 'Nasty' Blitz From Both Sides

By Matthew Balan | August 10, 2012 | 11:54

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Three days after CNN slammed the dishonest ad from the pro-Obama Priorities USA super PAC that blames Mitt Romney for a woman's cancer death, Friday's CBS This Morning finally got around to covering it. But correspondent Nancy Cordes downplayed the liberal group's spot by also targeting a Romney ad that was "panned" by unnamed fact checkers, and claimed that "other Romney ads have taken Mr. Obama's words out of context."

Cordes also dredged up the famous and entirely accurate anti-Michael Dukakis Willie Horton ad from 1988 as an example of negative ads being "a hallmark of presidential campaigns for decades."

WashPost Buries Damning New Soptic Facts Under 'Democrats Call Joe the Steelworker' Headline

By Tim Graham | August 09, 2012 | 15:01

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The Washington Post seemed to honor Obama-commercial star Joe Soptic in the news section Thursday. Nia-Malika Henderson’s article was headlined “For anti-Romney ads, Democrats call Joe the Steelworker.” The subhead: "New spot seems to tie his wife's death to plant's closure after Bain took over." Online, the headline was "Forget Joe the Plumber -- Meet Joe the Steelworker."

The Post couldn't find space for the Soptic story on Wednesday, even though Henderson interviewed him on Tuesday. Just like with the David Plouffe-scores-100-grand story this week, the Post headlines downplayed that Henderson found more details that make the Soptic ad look even more misleading: