Warm Welcome for Hillary on MSNBC: 'You Have Been a Unifying Force'

Photo of Mark Finkelstein.
  • Bookmark and Share

Boycotts are falling everywhere. With the French having elected Sarkozy, American conservatives are feeling good about buying Beaujolais again. And with Imus gone from MSNBC, Hillary Clinton has ended her one-woman boycott of the network's morning-show slot. Hillary had famously shunned the shock-jock's show in the wake of his suggestive shtick at a Radio & TV Correspondents dinner with Pres. Clinton and the First Lady in attendance.

Hillary did a lengthy phone interview at 8:09 EDT today on "Morning Joe," the latest in MSNBC's revolving morning-chat shows in the old Imus slot, hosted by Joe Scarborough, a former Republican congressman who hosts a regular evening show in the MSNBC lineup. At one point during the interview, Joe told Hillary "I'm not kissing up to you at all. Those who know me know I certainly don't do that." But if there were any questions that put Hillary on the spot, I must have missed them. There were points of agreement on health care and other issues. Joe blamed himself for being part of the impeachment effort and closed with a bouquet for Hillary's "unifying" presence.

View video here.

Story Continues Below Ad ↓


Here are some annotated excerpts. Readers will judge as to the kissing-up or lack thereof.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON [D-N.Y.]: No matter what you thought about the original authorization, or the president's decision to rush to war before the inspectors were able to tell us whether there was any WMD, it is clear that whatever the mission used to be, it is either accomplished or over."
Joe didn't call Hillary on her suggestion that Pres. Bush "rushed to war" and that she had really only authorized inspections. In fact, as noted here and elsewhere, at the time of the war vote Hillary left no doubt she believed Saddam had WMDs and was a serious threat. Anyone in the Senate at the time knew the resolution was one for imminent war, not more inspections.
SCARBOROUGH: I think you just blew your opponents away in the last debate. I'm not kissing up to you at all. Those who know me know I certainly don't do that.

CLINTON: I read a story recently about drug companies pushing all these drugs on kids.

SCARBOROUGH: Right!

CLINTON: We don't do adequate testing. I passed the first laws back in the Clinton administration and then now that I've been in the Senate.
Joe let slide Hillary's boast that "I passed the first laws" on child drug regulation when she was in the Clinton administration. Whenever the Clinton administration is accused of mistakes or worse, look for Hillary to claim that she can't be held responsible for the actions of others.
CLINTON: We are set up to treat people once they're already sick. It's just not sensible anymore.

SCARBOROUGH: It's insane! It's false economy.

SCARBOROUGH: We've been through so much as a country, a lot of it not good. We had the Clinton wars as you know very well for eight years, we're going to have eight years of the Bush wars. It doesn't matter who's to blame. OK, I'll take blame, part blame for the Clinton wars. '95, '96, not my best years.
SCARBOROUGH: There's been such a division in this country. I really do think that people are exhausted, and they're looking for a president who can unite the country. . . And a lot of people who probably said some very nasty things about you in the 1990s, are extraordinarily impressed with the type of leadership you provided since you've been in the Senate, how you have been a unifying force.
SCARBOROUGH [in conclusion after Hillary had left the line]: She's been seen as a unifying force, and I think it's going to come back, it's going to pay off in spades as we move through this election.

Hmm, so Joe feels people are "looking for a president who can unite this country," and Hillary has been "a unifying force." Little wonder she's happy to come on!

Aside -- it's not nice to tease: Hillary was certainly a good "get" for MSNBC and it was understandable that the network would promote her upcoming interview throughout the show. However, more than once the show teased Hillary's interview as being "next" when it wasn't.

Contact Mark at mark@gunhill.net

Update 11:19 | Matthew Sheffield. Is it just me or did anyone else notice that Clinton apparently believes that America's mission in Iraq is "accomplished?" That's quite a reversal considering that just 10 days earlier she said that when President Bush said something to that effect back in 2003 it was "one of the most shameful episodes in American history."

—Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters contributing editor and host of Right Angle. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net.


Comments Policy

All comments are owned by whoever posted them and are subject to our terms of use. They should not be assumed to represent the views of NewsBusters.

Viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.

Hillary Clinton: I passed the

Hillary Clinton: I passed the first laws back in the Clinton administration...

So, she was the President afterall?

Scarborough is a moron.

Joe's already been "re-educated"

How are the soldiers in Easy Company there Sgt. Rock?  Say hello to Ice Cream Soldier for me.  That was one of my favorite comic books.  I also liked "Nick Fury and His Howling Commandos", which was kinda similar to "Sgt. Rock".

Joe actually used to have a very good show I thought.  He doesn't scream or pout, and lets people talk, and would have both sides presented pretty well.  He really seems to have changed though.

 I think Joe has been "re-educated" already, and won't be in any danger of being sent to any re-ecuation camps, if Hillary decides to use re-education camps once she comes into power.

"I've always been crazy, but it's kept me from going insane"  Waylon Jennings

She also took credit for Pa

She also took credit for Pat Moynahan's health care program. Amazing woman.

Funny though how she didn't answer a single question during the debate.

Great tap dancer!

Did anyone see if Hillary a

Did anyone see if Hillary actually dropped her drawers so Scarborough could kiss her ass? I saw the ass kissin, but missed the drawer droppin. OMG!

"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...

Not even a shred of class. 

Not even a shred of class.  Nice MM.

Sorry I have had to dumb it

Sorry I have had to dumb it down lately to accomodate "classy" posters like you Leon.

"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...

Whatever helps you justify us

Whatever helps you justify using inappropriate, schoolyard, immature language

Thanks, I am glad you agree

Thanks, I am glad you agree.

"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...

Hey Joe's the one that starte

Hey Joe's the one that started it all, with his 'I'm not kissing up to you' business.  MM's just stating the obvious.  If Joe's NOT kissing up, what the hell IS he doing?

Leon,When responding about so

Leon,

When responding about some one as low class as Hillary, throw in the likes of classless Scarborough...what the heck do you expect.

Both are liars too.

Perfect pair to draw to.

Agenda, agenda, agenda.

Whew. I am sooooo glad someon

Whew. I am sooooo glad someone is FINALLY standing up and denouncing all this name-calling. Thankfully, Leon is one of the few here at Newsbusters who would NEVER use a derogatory nickname or make a disparaging comment about, say, a Conservative talk show host like Rush Limbaugh or Bill O'Reilly, or a cable news network like, say, Fox News, for example.

I am also very very very happy that a bastion of proper thread-posting etiquette like Leon would also never resort to grousing or carping over someone poking fun at one of his/her role models.

If we all could be more like Leon, the sun would shine a little brighter, the grass would be a little greener, and the puppy dogs a little bit cuter!

I'll tell you who doesn't hav

I'll tell you who doesn't have a shred of class: both Clintons, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Jesse, Rev Al, Al Gore, Howard Dean, and Dick Durbin to name a few. Get to know what they say and stand for and then come back and talk about "class".

"Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."

- President George W Bush September 2001 speech to a joint session of Congress.

Scarborough is a worthless se

Scarborough is a worthless sell-out. They must be paying pretty well on that Air Pravda station for him to be selling his soul. I cannot stomach people like him or Tucker Carlson.

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON [D-N.Y.]

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON [D-N.Y.]: No matter what you thought about the original authorization, or the president's decision to rush to war before the inspectors were able to tell us whether there was any WMD, it is clear that whatever the mission used to be, it is either accomplished or over."

LETS look at what Hillary and her hubby said about MWD:

Bill Clinton > December 17, 1998

"Earlier today, I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq.... Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors." 

Senator Hillary Clinton > October 10, 2002

"In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock. His missile delivery capability, his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists including Al-Qaeda members. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons."

Tom Daschle > February 11, 1998

"The (Clinton) administration has said, 'Look, we have exhausted virtually our diplomatic effort to get the Iraqis to comply with their own agreements and with international law. Given that, what other option is there but to force them to do so?' That's what they're saying. This is the key question. And the answer is we don't have another option. We have got to force them to comply, and we are doing so militarily."

Hillary Clinton > January 22, 2003

"I voted for the Iraqi resolution. I consider the prospect of a nuclear-armed Saddam Hussein who can threaten not only his neighbors but the stability of the region and the world, a very serious threat to the United States."  

Bill Clinton > February 17, 1998

"We have to defend our future from these predators of the 21st Century.... They will be all the more lethal if we allow them to build arsenals of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. We simply cannot allow that to happen. There is no more clear example of this threat than Saddam Hussein."

Hate when this stuff comes back and bites on that big old behind.

"Life's tough, it's even tougher if you're stupid."
-John Wayne

That's right.  Hillary didn'

That's right.  Hillary didn't just support the war with her vote in the Senate.  She helped make the case for the war.

http://www.slate.com/id/2159572/

you have been a unifying forc

you have been a unifying force.

I guess that's why her negatives are through the roof.

She's a unifying force all right . . . for all the people who despise her and what she stands for.

Joe like Tucker know who si

Joe like Tucker know who signs their checks..which means their conservatives in name only...and there expected to bash Bush and kiss Dem a**.

Glenn Beck is not afraid to b

Glenn Beck is not afraid to beat up CNN when they need it, though.

Glenn Beck is a welcome addi

Glenn Beck is a welcome addition to the radio waves.

While on the subject, I also have to reluctantly salute CNN for giving Beck a show.

The one line I can't get over

The one line I can't get over is that Hillary Clinton has been a "unifying force." Can anyone look at the Senate and seriously claim that it has become more united? Hillary's record is that she's smart and tough, and almost everyone gives her credit for working hard. But she avoids any scenario in which she might be challenged, and the media happily shelters her. When she's in her cocoon (talk about a president in a bubble) she fires off shot after shot against anyone who might threaten her.

Hillary Clinton is the ultimate partisan. That doesn't bother me; after all, if you believe in your side, cheer on. What bothers me is trying to pretend you're not partisan when you so obviously are.

  • Kind of like when someone says, "I'm not kissing up to you at all. Those who know me know I certainly don't do that."  The only reason you're pre-defending yourself against charges of being a kiss-up is that you know in your heart that that's exactly what you're doing. You just want to do it without paying the penalty for it.
  • Is it any wonder why Scarborough lost?

CLINTON: We don't do adequate

CLINTON: We don't do adequate testing. I passed the first laws back in the Clinton administration and then now that I've been in the Senate.

Tell me she wasn't the President all along...just try it.

I heard this beyond pathetic phony BS this morning, Joe made me ill, as usual, but more so this morning, adn I hadn't had my coffee yet.

Hillary just magically came on msnbc finally after helping to rid the other leftist Imus, whom she detested with all her might...her mission accomplished!

...another thing that made me sick to my stomach and I was yelling at the television was her/Joe's claim to being a unifying source...oh puhleeeeze, her and her other half have been the most divisive people to ever be in the WH, and the country is still that way with all of the vitriol she has purposely brought to this country, all for her own purpose and agenda to be Prez again....

Lastly...this complete lying BS love-fest, Joe never once questioned her outright lying claims about this war, the words she said on the Senate floor, let alone the words her own husband has said regarding Iraq, Saddam and WMD's, along with members of her own party.

What a lying human piece of trash.

I cannot believe this is what msnbc is going to settle for, the only show that they had on since Imus got canned was Larry Elder's, that was a class act.

I am only being sarcastic when I say I can't believe this is waht msnbc is going for, of course I do, it is their liberal agenda, ratings and money matter not.

Scarborough sold his soul long ago, the slit-eyed guy is gonna have answering to do to a higher force, his time will come.

BT, when the attack occurred

BT, when the attack occurred in OKC, I was station at Tinker AFB at the time.  They land AF1 at the base and I get one of the patrol guarding it.  So we get to talking to the SS guy about what the Clintons were really like. The guy looks at us and goes, "Ever lived in a trailer park?'

"Yes"

"Well there are the couple that yells and argues all the time."

He also told us Bill was not running the show.

Now that was funny.

"Life's tough, it's even tougher if you're stupid."                    
-John Wayne

Morning Af,Exactly about the

Morning Af,

Exactly about the Clinton's marriage or pretence at one.

My Uncle had (he has since passed on) a very good friend that knew intimate details about them too from flying detail...it was not pretty, in the least.

The Shrillster has always run everything, those who do not believe she was President already need to wake up to reality...although I know that is a hopeless feat.

There is no wake up needed. T

There is no wake up needed. The femanatzi's love the fact she ran the show and didn't bow down to her man.  It is all the same.  He had no backbone and she had his (insert body part here).

"Life's tough, it's even tougher if you're stupid."                    
-John Wayne

 

Did I miss something? She sai

Did I miss something? She said "I passed the first laws back in the Clinton administration"  Since she was elected to the Senate in 2000 and not sworn in until the beginning of the Bush administration, how could she do this?

"You can lead a man to Congress, but you can't make him think." - Milton Berle

“Hillary is a unifier”Tha

“Hillary is a unifier”

That’s laughable.

It just occurred to me.  The MSM seems to pick their favorite candidate, in this case Hillary, and claim she is everything that they painted President Bush and the rest of the Republics as not being.  In this case, they have spent 6 years painting George Bush as anything but a “unifier”.  Therefore, their candidate just happens to be a “unifier”.  Reality has nothing to do with it.  The MSM says it, so it’s true.

Jimbo says - "There is a fine line between freedom of speech and treason"

I'm almost glad that Scarboro

I'm almost glad that Scarborough has been absorbed by The Collective. I didn't care for his style or personality when he presented himself as a Conservative - I thought he was stiff and hokey. Now, I can feel completely free to dislike him... 

The dogs bark, but the caravan moves on.

- Arabian Proverb

“Resistance is futile. You

“Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.”

The Borg

Sen Clinton defines politic

Sen Clinton defines political philosophy based upon focus groups and polls. Her ultimate goal is to be everything to everyone. The best of the very best have never achieved such a goal, it is ludicrous. One must define objectives and make decisions. The decisions will not appease everyone nor will they always be correct, they are are based on a philosophical foundation which people respected. Who is Sen Clinton?

JDW

News media: Scoreboard for terrorists

Mark Levin was all over this

Mark Levin was all over this today on his radio show. What is happening, are some Republicans falling under Hillary's spell?  I am very worried.