Discussing the G-8 summit with CBS's Jim Axelrod, Katie Couric on Wednesday night portrayed an “adamant” President George Bush as the antagonist causing Russian President Vladimir Putin to be “annoyed” about NATO plans to install a missile shield in Poland, a controversy, she fretted, that is distracting attention from global warming. “Economic issues and climate change were supposed to be the main topics,” Couric asserted on the CBS Evening News, “but they're being overshadowed by the dispute between President Bush and Russia's President, Vladimir Putin, over NATO plans to install a defensive missile shield in Eastern Europe,” a shield designed to protect Europe from missiles launched by rogue states.
Referring to Putin's threat to aim missiles at Europe, Couric pressed Axelrod, who was on scene in Rostock, Germany: “Putin is annoyed about this missile defense system. Why is President Bush so adamant about this?” Couric's next question displayed concern about the impact on an agreement on global warming: “I know that global warming was at the top of the agenda. Has that fallen off the radar screen, given all this chatter?”
The MRC's Brad Wilmouth provided a transcript of the exchange on the June 6 CBS Evening News:
KATIE COURIC: Turning overseas now, the G-8 Summit opened today at a resort in Germany. Economic issues and climate change were supposed to be the main topics. But they're being overshadowed by the dispute between President Bush and Russia's President, Vladimir Putin, over NATO plans to install a defensive missile shield in Eastern Europe. Late today, I spoke with our chief White House correspondent, Jim Axelrod, who's traveling with the President.COURIC TO AXELROD: Jim, six years ago, President Bush said this of Vladimir Putin: "I looked the man in the eye. I was able to get a sense of his soul." Apparently, he liked what he saw then, but these two guys have not been getting along at all. And there's been a real war of words. What's going on?
JIM AXELROD: Well, you know, the President said that six years ago, and stands by the need to have some sort of personal relationship, but he's the first one to say the relationship is good, but complex. Look, they've hit a rough spot. They're going to try to iron some things out in their one-on-one meeting tomorrow. Then they'll get together for a weekend, the first weekend in July, in Kennebunkport, and hopefully continue to make strides in bringing this relationship back together.
COURIC: Apparently, Putin is annoyed about this missile defense system. Why is President Bush so adamant about this?
AXELROD: The missile defense system, Katie, to be clear, which would be based in Eastern Europe, the President says, is designed to keep rogue states -- like Iran, North Korea -- from being able to fire a missile that would hit Europe.
COURIC: And, Jim, I know that global warming was at the top of the agenda. Has that fallen off the radar screen, given all this chatter?
AXELROD: Look, Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, is the host of the G-8. And global warming is critically important to her. Now, she's pushing a plan that would cap the emissions of the gases that cause global warming -- mandatory restrictions. And just today, he said he does not support Merkel's approach.
COURIC: Jim Axelrod reporting from Germany tonight. Jim, thank you. One reason President Bush opposes those mandatory reductions is they wouldn't apply to countries like China. Right now, the U.S. pumps out the most carbon dioxide, which causes global warming -- 22 percent of the world's share, in fact. But China is second, responsible for 16 percent, and, at the rate it's going, should overtake the U.S. in two to three years. All that pollution is creating a huge crisis, not just for China, but for the entire world, and could be on the way to a city near you.
—Brent Baker is Vice President for Research and Publications at the Media Research Center
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
I have never, ever heard of
June 6, 2007 - 21:14 ET by FairlightI have never, ever heard of a sinking news broadcast being allowed to do more of the same & in such radical form (..oh wait, MSNBC). It's like seeing an iceberg and not changing course. Moonves must have money to burn until 9/08.
I agree. If people like Bren
June 6, 2007 - 21:27 ET by saw the lightI agree. If people like Brent (those charged with monitoring the broadcasts) would stop watching, she would have what, three viewers?
"Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb (insert terrorist-supporting nation here)"
Couric
June 6, 2007 - 21:58 ET by elsieWhat a shock!!
And further more...
June 6, 2007 - 22:15 ET by goldenthroatFairlight, I totally agree - this pathetic excuse for an evening news anchor continues to plunge her network deeper and deeper into the sub-basement of the Neilsen ratings and she now comes up with baseless drivel like this to further solidify her standing!
And she still doesn't get it...
Never dance on an empty stomach unless it's a liberal.
Insanity: doing the same th
June 7, 2007 - 08:58 ET by motherbeltInsanity: doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results.
Attributed to Albert Einstein, but also cited as an old Chinese proverb.
Katie annoys me why is she so
June 6, 2007 - 21:27 ET byKatie annoys me why is she so adamant?
She also equates CO2 to pollution
the U.S. pumps out the most carbon dioxide, which causes global warming -- 22 percent of the world's share, in fact. But China is second, responsible for 16 percent, and, at the rate it's going, should overtake the U.S. in two to three years. All that pollution is creating a huge crisis,
Supreme Court, National Security, Borders, Fiscal Restraint, my litmus test for President.
Global warming, Global warmin
June 6, 2007 - 21:39 ET by USA4freedomGlobal warming, Global warming. We all know that Global warming is sooooooo important. Tell me oh, perky one. What is the temperature of a NUCLER BOMB? I bet that would be rather warm. I have a feeling that you would not give a dam about how many polar bears are swimming if you under attack. But hay, what do I know….
And the ratings keep sliding down a hill on a rail.
I have a wonderful idea, just give the dam news with out all the dumb ass commentary.
These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc.
Ronald Reagan- 40th Anniversary of D-Day
Come on, USA. What happens a
June 6, 2007 - 21:42 ET by saw the lightCome on, USA. What happens after a nuclear explosion? Nuclear winter, of course! That would go a long way to restoring the pristine environment handed to the idiot Bush by the saintly Clinton and Gore in 2000 when Bush was selected President.
Katie is only hoping to save the environment. You should get on the bandwagon!
"Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb (insert terrorist-supporting nation here)"
I think I got it... the perk
June 6, 2007 - 22:00 ET by USA4freedomI think I got it...
the perky one for queen!
These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc.
Ronald Reagan- 40th Anniversary of D-Day
Rush had statistics on his
June 7, 2007 - 08:53 ET by motherbeltRush had statistics on his show yesterday that said CO2 accounts for 38/100,000 parts of the atmosphere. I was in my car and caught the segment in the middle, so I don't where the stats come from. But that seems to be a small amount, and if we contribut 22% of that, well, that's only about 7 parts per 100,000.
I have read in other places that CO2 only accounts for about 2% of what we consider "pollutants" and if we got rid of it all, which we can't, it would have very little effect on the atmosphere. Why have the enviro-wackos zeroed in on the substance that everyone exhales with every breath and started calling it a "pollutant"? What's the payoff in that?
Motherbelt, you're raising on
June 7, 2007 - 13:19 ET by dahliatraversMotherbelt, you're raising one of the critical facts about global warming that AGW advocates carefully do not broadcast. Man is responsible for less than 6% of greenhouse gases (CO2, methane, etc.) generated - far and away the smallest contributor.
http://mysite.verizon.net/mhieb/WVFossils/greenhouse_data.html
"...over NATO plans to i
June 6, 2007 - 22:12 ET by JPR1"...over NATO plans to install a defensive missile shield in Eastern Europe,”
Katie, Katie, Katie! No wonder your ratings are in the tank. It's not a NATO plan you silly girl; it's George Bush, Karl Rove and Halliburton! No one else. You're a major player now, get your facts/talking points right.
I have a real hard time belie
June 6, 2007 - 22:14 ET by general companyI have a real hard time believing Putin is real exited about global warming either?
Considering what Putin has been spending his time doing, you would think they might want to devote a few words talking about that.
But as long as it makes Bush look bad, maybe her rating's will go up? Talking ill of Putin would probably just bore the folks.
Couric
June 6, 2007 - 23:05 ET by iveseenitallKatie Couric is an ignoramus and she is the CBS News anchor. I just watched H&C and saw a guest billed as a "Hip Hop Scholar"...What the hell is that? What have we come to and where are we going? Sad.
NEVER,NEVER trust a liberal
I saw that too. His name w
June 7, 2007 - 03:43 ET by ApacheIPI saw that too. His name was Dr. Peterson, if I recall correctly. I rather doubt H&C tagged him as "Hip Hop Scholar". I suspect that is his own self-description and they ran with it.
Given that they called him, "Dr. Peterson", and he calls himself a "Hip Hop Scholar", one has to wonder what his Doctorate is in. Do they offer a Doctorate in "Hip Hop"?
What's next? A Doctorate in disco?
If true, it is very sad. Where are we going as a culture? And do we really want to go there?
Well, if I lived in Russia,
June 7, 2007 - 02:07 ET by Conservative VoiceWell, if I lived in Russia, I would be praying that Global Warming is not only true, but hurry up! All that wonderful coastline, but too cold to surf.
Katie is hemorrhaging viewe
June 7, 2007 - 01:22 ET by daveinbocaKatie is hemorrhaging viewers by about 100,000 a week and should be approaching five million in about four months. CBS can't stem the bleeding while this airhead ditz keeps running her big mouth out of an empty head.
CBS mutilates self - promotes Couric
June 7, 2007 - 01:30 ET by Cool ArrowCouric to Nicole Contos: "Have you considered castration as an option?"
Appears CBS castrated itself to show its embrace of diversity.
The peterless principle?
they deserve it daveinboca
June 7, 2007 - 01:43 ET by SportPoliticsThey deserve it daveinboca. She was such a moron to ask the audience for help in coming up with a slogan for signoff. At least the dubious Dan Rather - the can't do 2 digit math on election night moron had the idea that he was somehow courageous, and came up with " Courage "... which didn't go over to well... but he at least thought he knew what he was about. I interpret it as the courage to lie his yakker off at any moment as long as he was convinced by his own Rather biased attitude that he could get away with it and deserved to.
But Couric, she is such a floosey and a juvenile and a moron - yes a complete MORON - that she needs help from the public to tell her WHO SHE IS - or what she's about... what a clueless ditzy dumpy beanbrained punky spinster.
It makes me angry just thinking about it. If you're too stupid to come up with your own signoff, WTH are you doing in that job ? I'm still infuriated just thinking about it.
Now onto her "look". Well let's take that picture above. She has a collared shirt on with way too big flappy collar pointies sticking out over her " fen-fen suitcoat" ... and it'sgot goofy stripes, and she has the loser "one button open" for a woman...look - either let it down for effect and show us some cleavage, or keep it buttoned up with a nice womanly shirt and overvest then the suitcoat thing you bland moron. Make up your mind ! Yeah, we know you have trouble thinking on your own.
Second,look at the frumpy inturned hair. Ok, look, you're a blonde you ditzy twerp ! Make use of it ! Some of the older guys watching you can barely HEAR anymore - for pete sakes make it worth someone's while.
I have NEVER watched an entire "episode". I say episode because she makes it seem like it's an eposide or something. I've tried like 2 or 3 times and can only make it through a few minutes. It's a total LOSS.
I actually liked watching Dan Rather because he tried so hard to sound authentic or serious or something, and you could see the deer in the headlights stupidity coming through, I was waiting for the "frequency Kenneth !" to be revealed. He was comical on some level.
Couric, you're just irritatingly off or bland or something. you're not even sure what you're doing there. You haven't a clue even how to pretend. You can't even dress properly. Your hair is wrong, and initially you went kookoo on above the eye blue loon shadowing.
Whatever, get gone already. Go back to stupid morning baking shows and meeting the circus people out on the citywide sidewalk. Oh yeah, and the new band girls -- on their green carpet rock em up musical morning air jams you love so much.
Honest to pete, can you imagi
June 7, 2007 - 13:31 ET by dahliatraversHonest to pete, can you imagine Walter Cronkite or any contemporaneous anchor editorializing like this? I know it turned out Cronkite was quite liberal. But as I understand, it didn't show much when he (or any of the others) was on the air.
Presumably, she thinks she is being compassionate. But not only is her personal opinion on any subject not welcome, she needs to update her research on global warming. She looks both inappropriate and foolish when she talks about it.
COURIC: Apparently, Putin is
June 7, 2007 - 01:34 ET by bigtimerAXELROD: The missile defense system, Katie, to be clear, which would be based in Eastern Europe, the President says, is designed to keep rogue states -- like Iran, North Korea -- from being able to fire a missile that would hit Europe.
COURIC: And, Jim, I know that global warming was at the top of the agenda. Has that fallen off the radar screen, given all this chatter?
Since I cannot use italics or bold here....just pretend I did above...
All I have to say to anybody who read this or caught how everything just went ZING right over Couric's head after Jim's response.
She is not there whatsoever in the real world of any kind....nothing registered, it didn't phase her...she just went immediately to an irrelevant non-important made up leftist subject.
Talk about empty-headed...she takes the prize.
Earth to Katie
June 7, 2007 - 01:38 ET by Cool ArrowPutin is upset because this he suggested building this same shield with the US a couple of years ago and now it looks like Bush is the hero to the Czechs.
Reasons that Mr. Putin made the threat
June 7, 2007 - 02:06 ET by Ten7sThere many reasons that Mr. Putin made the threat he did at that time. Off the top of my head: Politically, at home it stokes the old Cold War fires in his favor. Abroad, last weekend, right after his threat, a meeting of some note but little notice took place between about 10 dozen of the most powerful people from America and Europe. Putin wanted them to talk about missles and NOT broken oil/gas agreements when Russia came up. Also, he wanted to drive a tiny wedge between EU and America and see where the fault-lines lie (just before this year's G8). The Russians get a very good idea of everything discussed there one way or another.
In addition, he figured rightly that the Bush Administration would offer to open the shield technology to Russia AGAIN. Oh, also the EU is planning high-level wargames soon. He'll no doubt get the skinny on what goes on there one way or another, and probably wants to see how if it all they factor Russia into the planning.
Yeah, sportspolitics, I was
June 7, 2007 - 01:54 ET by daveinbocaYeah, sportspolitics, I was always expecting Dan to explode his head on camera. I worked with CBS for a short time just after Dan made his brave dash to Afghanistan [actually one of his producers told me that they hired a local Paki stage movie production crew to simulate the gunfire and artillery just outside Peshawar about 50 miles from the Afghan border] and he was moving his clothes back out of a female CBS producer's expensive condo while I was in NYC. Or so i was told. Dan was authentically a second-rater with Promethean ambitions. Katie has had greatness thrust in her direction, and is punching way over her weight, which is at least fifty pounds lighter than Hilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby.
Katie is more like a Billion-Dollar Flash-in-the-Pan.
Very interesting dave
June 7, 2007 - 02:56 ET by SportPoliticsYes thanks very interesting. I was just so thoroughly tainted when I read that 50 page or whatever it was CBS analysis on the fake docs, and I could pick their endless lying right out of it. I'm getting it. They live in a world where they say all these angles seventeen different ways so they and noone else can blame anyone or anything, as that would be offensive and/or expensive, and prove them to be the corrupt organization that they are so they just 15 ways to Tuesday.
ps - No wonder Dan was ok with slick willies honesty...bonin' the help...
Yeah everyone should have known when they made it a law they were really insane. Lock people futher into caste classes, and drive down the birth rate some more, and criminalize workers...
Yep that DC Madame - and all the newsheads shrieked that will ruin lives to release the list.... it makes me so sick to hear these pathetic puking liars. All their moral craptalk, then when it comes down to exposing the criminals and liars and pervs and cheats they all clam up like triple locked safes and claim to do so would be robbing lives.
The FEDS steal all the DC Madame's assets first thing (innocent until proven guilty my a**), then the last thing she has to defend herself ( the list)they get some corrput SOB judge to rip away her last chance for justice, then the news media screws her and lets off 12,000 of their connected buddies (except 5 or 6 republicans they have a hardon for)and the entire DC corruption racket. What spineless criminals and charlatans.
So now that alphabet network has 12,000 arm twisting threats they can make use of, and I don't for a second believe they aren't already doing that very thing. I'm sure they have more power than J Edgar Hoover's FBI, the endless list of thousands of secrets they make use of anytime they need to quietly remind someone what could happen if they don't cooperate.
I can't stand it anymore. The secret Press.
Very good point, I had not th
June 7, 2007 - 07:58 ET by general companyVery good point, I had not thought of that, but it makes sense. I just figured their were probably more Dems on the list, of course that is probably true too
If there's a million dollar
June 7, 2007 - 08:12 ET by sarcasmoIf there's a million dollar reward out there -- and there is -- I predict the interesting parts of the list will somehow find a way to emerge. A million bucks of Hustler's money can motivate a lot of people.
JMR