Less than twelve hours after getting caught reading from a liberal blog during a heated debate with a Romney adviser, CNN's Soledad O'Brien was back on the air Tuesday echoing Democrat talking points.
In fact, things got so hot with former New Hampshire Governor John Sununu (R) on CNN's Starting Point that he ended up saying, "Put an Obama bumper sticker on your forehead when you do this" (video follows with transcript and commentary):
O’Brien wanted to start the discussion with the announcement that Governor Chris Christie (R-N.J.) is going to be doing the keynote speech at the upcoming Republican National Convention.
Sununu had other things in mind:
JOHN SUNUNU: Well, let me start first of all with the clip you showed of the president. You're aiding and abetting his dishonesty. Paul Ryan and the Republicans did pass a bill to take care of the drought problem, but it's the Democratic Senate that hasn't passed it. And so when you show that clip and you show the President lying through his teeth, then you are aiding and abetting a distortion.
SOLEDAD O’BRIEN, ANCHOR: The original bill was not passed. Since you've taken us off track from my Chris Christie question.
SUNUNU: The drought bill was passed.
O’BRIEN: It was passed.
SUNUNU: The drought bill was passed.
O’BRIEN: And people in the Senate would tell you that they did not want to pass a bill that they thought was a short-term answer because what they had on the table earlier that Democrats supported was a longer term provision, as you know sir.
SUNUNU: But it’s the Senate that’s holding it up not Republicans.
Indeed. But that’s not what O’Brien and the rest of the liberal media want the public to think.
Regardless, the fighting wasn’t done, for minutes later when O’Brien echoed Democrat talking points about Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan’s plans concerning Medicare, Sununu continued to fire back:
O’BRIEN: I'm telling you what Factcheck.com tells you. I’m telling you what the CBO tells you. I’m telling you what CNN's independent analysis does.
SUNUNU: I’ve got the CBO report right here.
O’BRIEN: And I'm telling you what it says. I've read it several times.
SUNUNU: Put an Obama bumper sticker on your forehead when you do this.
O’BRIEN: You know, let me tell you something, there is independent analysis that details what this is about.
SUNUNU: No, there isn't.
O’BRIEN: Yes, there is.
SUNUNU: No, there’s Democratic analysis.
O’BRIEN: Sir, let me finish.
SUNUNU: There’s Democratic analysis.
O’BRIEN: Let me finish. There's independent analysis: Factcheck.com, the CBO and CNN has also done its own independent analysis, and name calling to me and somehow acting as if by you repeating a number of $716 billion that you can make that stick when that figure is being stolen from Medicare, that's not true. You can't just repeat it and make it true, sir.
For the record, this was the second day in a row O'Brien claimed the $716 billion figure has been debunked. As NewsBusters reported Monday, that's nonsense.
But I digress:
SUNUNU: It says it’s a reduction in services and a reduction in support for Medicare Advantage.
O’BRIEN: A reduction in the expected rate of growth. Reduction in the expected rate of growth.
SUNUNU: It’s a reduction in services and a reduction in support for Medicare Advantage. That is taking money from the program.
O’BRIEN: Which by the way, Paul Ryan, right, has in his budget, which by the way, virtually every single Republican has voted on.
SUNUNU: But Mitt Romney does not. And it is not part of the Romney plan.
O’BRIEN: Which Romney has said in the quote I just read to you, he thinks it's brilliant.
SUNUNU: But he likes the Ryan plan for its guts, but he has his own plan out there which is carefully crafted to protect the seniors from 55 and up and does not take the $700 billion that Obama took.
O’BRIEN: John Sununu, always nice to have you joining us, Governor. Pleasure.
SUNUNU: Yep.
O’BRIEN: Well, that doesn't sound like you mean it.
She seems surprised after her behavior a Romney adviser wouldn't think it was a pleasure going on CNN only to have the anchor spout Democrat talking points.
And the folks at this so-called "cable news network" wonder why their dismal ratings continue to plummet.
(HT @virtualaudrey)
