MSNBC’s Martin Bashir just might be the most biased and intellectually dishonest person to anchor a so-called “news” program on television today.
On the show hilariously bearing his name Thursday, Bashir actually asked a liberal guest, “Is Darrell Issa determined to become the most repugnant politician in the history of American politics, or has he already achieved that feat?” (video follows with transcript and commentary):
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONGRESSMAN DARRELL ISSA (R-CALIFORNIA): I'm always shocked when the ranking member seems to want to say - like a little boy whose hand’s caught in the cookie jar – what hand, what cookie? I've never said that it leads to the White House.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MARTIN BASHIR, HOST: Joining us now is David Corn, Washington bureau chief for Mother Jones magazine, and Jonathan Capehart, a political writer for the Washington Post.
Jon, after a break, Mr. Issa apparently apologized publicly, but how do you interpret what he said about Mr. Cummings being like a boy with his hand caught in the cookie jar?
JONATHAN CAPEHART, WASHINGTON POST: Not just a boy - a little boy. Look, Darrell Issa should know that putting the words "boy, little boy" in referencing them to a black man is problematic. But when that black man is the ranking member on your committee, it's beyond problematic. It's myopic. It just shows that Darrell Issa is not only out of touch in terms of what his committee should be doing, but it just shows he is out of touch just generally, culturally it seems.
BASHIR: Yeah. David, is Darrell Issa determined to become the most repugnant politician in the history of American politics, or has he already achieved that feat?
DAVID CORN, MOTHER JONES: That's a pretty high bar. So I’m not sure if he’s even within reach given the long history of repugnancy.
BASHIR: Really? You don't think he’s as bad as some of his predecessors?
CORN: Well, I'm not saying he’s not as bad. There, there, he still has I think a ways to go.
As my colleague Scott Whitlock asked in response to this segment, "So, George Wallace was better? Aaron Burr, who killed Alexander Hamilton, was better?"
Apparently to Bashir, Scott. So too must be Rod Blagojevich, Eliot Spitzer, and Anthony Weiner.
Such is the mind of Martin Bashir.
No wonder he has one of the lowest rated "news" programs on cable TV.
