As I noted here, Scarborough and panelist Willie Geist blasted Media Matters on today's "Morning Joe" for using a "phony story" to go after Rush for his "phony soldiers" comment. Joe and Willie recognized the truth of the matter: that Rush had been speaking of one phony soldier indeed, Jesse Macbeth, and not of anti-war soldiers in general.
Later, at 8:03 A.M. EDT, in the context of the Media Matters-inspired attack on Rush, Joe and Mika made clear that they have NewsBusters on the noggin.
Video (0:52): Real (1.41 MB) and Windows (1.60 MB), plus MP3 audio (404 kB).
JOE SCARBOROUGH: [The Media Matters attack on Rush] just like the MoveOn.org ad [attacking General Petraeus], it will whip up the base and they will get a lot of contributions, they will make a lot of money. And that's what these organization are all about, on the left and on the right. We've got organizations on the right always viciously attacking poor Mika [who could they have in mind?]. We have to stand here and defend her honor. But you know what?
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I enjoy it.
SCARBOROUGH: They make money, they make money doing that.
WILLIE GEIST: You're no phony soldier, Mika.
SCARBOROUGH: You are no phony soldier.
BRZEZINSKI: It's kind of fun to read that stuff. It keeps you sharp.
SCARBOROUGH: It does keep you sharp. I always like reading Media Matters and I also like reading NewsBusters to see if I did something that was over the line. And usually I disagree when --
BRZEZINSKI: You're a star at NewsBusters!
SCARBOROUGH: [continuing thought] they say I'm over the line, but sometimes they get it right.
BRZEZINSKI: That's right.
My only quibble, speaking for myself and my colleagues at NewsBusters: we aren't mercenaries; we believe passionately in what we write. That said, we're glad to count the "Morning Joe" crew as fans.
