When it comes to family members of Republican presidential candidates, looks like the MSM has decided they're fair game for attacks. Yesterday we noted how ABC's Bianna Golodryga claimed that Paul Ryan's mother was campaigning in a "very calculated" manner.
Today we offer Joan Walsh into evidence. Appearing on the weekend edition of MSNBC's "Hardball," the Salon editor accused Ann Romney of throwing a "tantrum" over her husband's decision to release no more than two years of tax returns. View the video after the jump.
Watch the video, which includes the clip of Ann Romney's supposed "tantrum," and see if you don't agree that Walsh's depiction of it was way over the top. But hey, the MSM is going to do whatever is necessary to try to push Barack Obama over the finish line. And if that includes unfairly attacking a candidate's wife, so be it.
Note also how Walsh works to twist Romney's remark about the Obama campaign being "small-minded" in wanting to switch the subject to Romney's taxes and away from Obama's failures into a supposed Romney attack on Americans at large.
JOAN WALSH: Every time [Mitt Romney] opens his mouth to talk about this, he sounds more and more entitled. I mean, calling those 63% of Americans who would like to see more taxes "small-minded" and Ann Romney's tantrum last night? I mean, it's just not --
MICHAEL SMERCONISH: I want to show it. Because last night on NBC's Rock Center Ann Romney made clear that she and Mitt will not release more tax returns. Here's what she said.
Cut to Rock Center clip.
ANN ROMMEY: The more we release, the more we get attacked. The more we get questioned, the more we get pushed. So we have done what's legally required and there's going to be no more tax releases.
SMERCONISH: Is she not correct as far as she took the argument? The more they release, the more they will be subject to this kind of scrutiny?
WALSH: Well, sure, to the extent that we talk more about anybody's policy plans or backgrounds, they may get more scrutiny. You know, it's possible for them to get less. It's possible. It's possible --
EAMON JAVERS [of CNBC, off-camera]: No, it won't. I'm sorry.
WALSH: It's possible we will see things and it will be just the same stuff that we saw in the other two years and we will all move on. I doubt it because if that were the case then I think they would have made these records available to us sooner. I think there's got to be something a little more off-putting that what we've seen so far.
