As NewsBusters reported, President Obama praised Mika Brzezinski Friday after she participated in a White House forum regarding the President's performance on women's issues.
CNN's Howard Kurtz on Sunday's Reliable Sources took issue with this asking his guests, "Should an MSNBC anchor be moderating a White House event and talking about celebrating what the administration has accomplished?" (video follows with transcript and commentary):
HOWARD KURTZ, HOST: I want to get to one more element here in this segment, and that is the president held a day-long, at least a lengthy event at the White House about women, trying to make the case the administration has cared a lot about this important voting bloc, and the Republicans perhaps not so much.
And moderating a discussion over at the White House was MSNBC co- host of "Morning Joe," Mika Brzezinski. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT: I thank Mika for helping moderate today and proving on your show every morning that women really are the better half.
We have clearly a lot of work still to do and many challenges before us. And the key is to talk about them, address them and overcome them as soon as possible, but also to celebrate what has been done, especially in the past few years by this administration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KURTZ: Debra Saunders, should an MSNBC anchor be moderating a White House event and talking about celebrating what the administration has accomplished?
DEBRA SAUNDERS, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE: No. She shouldn't be doing it.
For some giggles, watch the perilously liberal John Aravosis totally strike out.
JOHN ARAVOSIS, AMERICABLOG: You know, Fox hosts do this and they have in the past.
KURTZ: Not at the White House.
Strike one.
ARAVOSIS: Not at the White House, but they go to campaign events.
Strike two - journalists from both sides of the aisle report from campaign events.
ARAVOSIS: I don't necessarily like it. I think what -- I agree with you to some degree, OK?
Mika Brzezinski's on a show which leans right, obviously, so maybe the White House thought, hey, we're getting somebody from a right-wing show, so there's the balance right there.
I do think that it depends how she carried herself. If she was a real journalist and asked them tough questions, then I think it is good.
"Mika Brzezinski's on a show which leans right?" Why, because she has a sometimes conservative co-host who likes to play from both sides of the fence with predominantly liberal guests?
Sadly, this is how liberal media members "think": if there's one person on a television program expressing a conservative view, the show is right-leaning despite the number of lefties represented.
Strike three. But I digress:
KURTZ: Well, Mika Brzezinski is entitled to have opinions. She's on an opinion show. She's no longer a reporter for CBS News. But I just think the optics of moderating at the White House are not ideal.
No, they certainly aren't, Howie.
