Geoff Dickens noted that last weekend's CNBC's Tim Russert show featured NBC diplomatic correspondent Andrea Mitchell being anything but diplomatic in asserting that the Republican base is eagerly in favor of torture, and that conservative answers are not "thoughtful" answers. David Gregory said the Republicans will have to come around and propose a plan to withdraw from Iraq, to which Mitchell replied:
But you saw the way they responded to the hard questions about torture in the Republican debate in South Carolina. They came up with easy -- and hard-to-defend in a general election campaign -- answers. They just played to the base. They played to, 'Let's torture 'em! Let's-' I mean, they, they didn't say that literally, but that was the subliminal message, and also, 'Let's, you know, expand, double the size of Guantanamo,' said, said Mitt Romney. I mean they are absolutely not giving thoughtful answers, as you would suggest, on those tough questions.
