David's Disdain: 'Is Anybody Really Going to Buy' Romney's Social-Issue Change?

As we noted here, within minutes of Mitt Romney having announced his candidacy this morning, MSNBC, in the person of Chip Reid, branded him "far right."

David Gregory has now made it a one-two punch. A bit later on MSNBC, Gregory played clips from 1994 of Romney expressing pro-choice and pro-gay rights views. Noting Romney's subsequent change to a pro-life position, Gregory expressed this opinion, in the guise of a question, to his two MSM guests:

"With all respect to Governor Romney, is anybody really going to buy that, buy the timing of that, that that was some genuine change of heart?"

Words don't do justice to the contemptuousness of Gregory's tone. View the video here.

I'll admit to being dubious myself about the timing of Romney's abortion change of heart, which coincided conveniently with his switch from Massachusetts politician to Republian nomination-seeker.

But was it appropriate for Gregory, whom MSNBC bills as chief White House "correspondent," not commentator, to express his personal cynicism in such thinly-veiled manner? His profession of "all respect" to Romney notwithstanding, Gregory couldn't have been much more disrespectful.

Syntax Aside: Note that Gregory managed to pull off the rare feat using the same word, "that," three times in a row -- and did so grammatically!

Contact Mark at mark@gunhill.net