The Monday after CNN fired Chris Cuomo for a combination of journalistic malpractice regarding his brother, disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) and new sexual misconduct allegations, CNN installed weekend host and route Cuomo-fill-in Michael Smerconish as the official temp. And in his first outing in that role, Smerconish channeled Cuomo’s attitude and hatred towards Republicans as he used the death of former Senator Bob Dole to bash the party.
But before he got to his GOP bashing, Smerconish had to address the roid-raging gorilla no longer in the room and announce that the network was resurrecting the old name of Don Lemon’s show before the lame rebranding:
This is CNN Tonight. And first, a note about the timeslot. As you've certainly heard, Chris Cuomo is no longer with CNN. But our job is to continue to bring you the news and that's what we'll do tonight.
He then pivoted to lamenting Dole’s passing and using it to attack Republicans.
“Is there a Bob Dole among us today in either party? Could a Bob Dole, a model of decorum, get nominated in his party? No way,” he declared. “Which is why his passing should be reason to hit the pause button. A reflection point as to what's changed since people like him ran for office out of a sense of duty and obligation.”
After going through some of Dole’s legislative accomplishments and history-making votes, he praised how Dole took the long way to “bide your time, get reelected, establish seniority, get choice committee assignments, and get things done.”
But according to Smerconish: “Today, it's easier and potentially quicker to get your job. You say something provocative, you get on cable television, you become a fundraising magnet. In short, you act like a talk show host. Why spend time trying to pass complex legislation, when instead, you can be a verbal or social media bomb-thrower?”
“It's hard for me to imagine Senator Bob Dole in the same Capitol building with House member Lauren Boebert [R-CO],” he chided as he listed off some of the more controversy-prone members of the Republican Caucus like Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
The only time he mentioned Democrats was when he whined about Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) bringing up their bad behavior:
He would have never been comfortable in that environment, of course. When the House moved censure Gosar, GOP Minority Leader McCarthy singled out five Democrats and detailed their behavior, which he said didn't set the high standard being set for Gosar. He then summarized the conduct of Ilhan Omar, Adam Schiff, Maxine Waters, Eric Swalwell, and Hakeem Jeffries.
But at no point did Smerconish mention what those five actually did.
Smerconish could spout off about how there’s no one like Dole in either party and how he wouldn’t be welcomed in the GOP, but he’s conveniently ignoring how Democrats were actively trying to push out moderates like Senators Joe Manchin (WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (AZ).
With or without Cuomo, this is CNN.
This channeling of Chris Cuomo’s hatred for Republicans was made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from E-Trade and Chase. Their contact information is linked so you can tell them about he biased news they fund.
The transcript si below, click "expand" to read:
CNN Tonight
December 6, 2021
9:00:12 p.m. EasternMICHAEL SMERCONISH: Anderson [Cooper], thank you. I am Michael Smerconish. This is CNN Tonight. And first, a note about the timeslot. As you've certainly heard, Chris Cuomo is no longer with CNN. But our job is to continue to bring you the news and that's what we'll do tonight.
You also know that America lost one of the greats of the greatest generation yesterday, former Senate majority leader, war hero, one-time Republican presidential nominee, Bob Dole, will now lie in state Thursday at the U.S. Capitol.
But his passing was not the passing of just one man. It's a metaphor for the demise of America's productive and civilized governing class. Think about it. Is there a Bob Dole among us today in either party? Could a Bob Dole, a model of decorum, get nominated in his party? No way!
Which is why his passing should be reason to hit the pause button. A reflection point as to what's changed since people like him ran for office out of a sense of duty and obligation. Bob Dole ran to serve, not to be.
Consider Dole cast more than 12,000 votes in Congress. And while he was a loyal Republican, he was not always predictable. Yes, he opposed many of the great society programs of President LBJ, but he supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He joined forces with Democratic senator, Daniel Patrick Moynihan in 1983 to save Social Security from insolvency. And it was Dole who handed Reagan a veto-proof 78 votes to enshrine Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday as a national holiday.
In Dole’s era, the way you got to stay in Washington was to bide your time, get reelected, establish seniority, get choice committee assignments, and get things done.
Today, it's easier and potentially quicker to get your job. You say something provocative, you get on cable television, you become a fundraising magnet. In short, you act like a talk show host. Why spend time trying to pass complex legislation, when instead, you can be a verbal or social media bomb-thrower?
It's hard for me to imagine Senator Bob Dole in the same Capitol building with House member Lauren Boebert, who likened one of her colleagues on the other side of the aisle to terrorists. Or Paul Gosar, who tweeted an anime murder fantasy video that depicts him killing a Democratic congresswoman. Or Marjorie Taylor Greene, who compares House mask mandates to the holocaust.
He would have never been comfortable in that environment, of course. When the House moved censure Gosar, GOP Minority Leader McCarthy singled out five Democrats and detailed their behavior, which he said didn't set the high standard being set for Gosar. He then summarized the conduct of Ilhan Omar, Adam Schiff, Maxine waters, Eric Swalwell, and Hakeem Jeffries.
And so it goes. Dole was so much that is missing today. Not the least of which is pragmatism and flexibility. His life was a canvas providing a poignant backdrop for comparison what’s gone wrong in Washington.
(…)
