Over the weekend, CNN anchors and guests blamed Republicans for the shutdown and smacked them for "holding the American people hostage" while opposing ObamaCare. That extended CNN's streak of pounding Tea Party Republicans for igniting the shutdown.
Below are some of the worst quotes from CNN anchors or guests on Republicans, the shutdown, and ObamaCare:
Republicans Just Want to 'Destroy' Government
"It seems like the game has changed down there. It used to be that the two sides went at it, but at the end of the day, they all believed in government. It seems now that what's motivating the Republican Party is a belief that government has to be destroyed. You know, that it's just bad in and of itself."
– New Day co-host Chris Cuomo on Monday, October 7. [Audio here.]
Tea Party Republicans Are Like Hostage-Takers
"You don't hold the American people hostage because you are not getting your way....The members of the Tea Party are holding the American people hostage and holding the Republican party hostage as well. The rational thinking people in the Republican party, Howard."
– CNN anchor Don Lemon in an interview with PR expert Howard Bragman on The Situation Room, Saturday October 5. [Audio here.]
Media Not Tough Enough on 'Extreme' GOP, Afraid to Appear Biased
"The political media's aversion to doing anything that might be seen as taking sides – combined with its obsession with process – led them to actively obscure the truth in their coverage of the [Congressional] votes."
– Former washingtonpost.com editor Dan Froomkin in an Al Jazeera America column "Shutdown Coverage Fails Americans"
"There's been very little of reminding people of the very basics, which is this is a manufactured crisis. Every story should almost lead with the fact that this is day X of a manufactured crisis of an unprecedentedly extreme act by a party that is trying to subvert democratic legislation."
– Froomkin explaining his column on CNN's Reliable Sources, October 6. [Audio here.]
Communism At Least Gave People Health Care
"Well I'm proud to be American, but I really can't figure out why this is going on in that growing up in a Communist country, one good thing about it was that we had government health care. And certainly, we're not trying to go that way here, but to have that security, to know that you're going to be able to get health care and access to it and we're actually striking down the government because we don't want poor people to be healthy? We don't want people to be taken care of? It's crazy."
– Former tennis player Martina Navratilova on CNN Newsroom on Saturday October 5. Navratilova grew up in Czechoslovakia. [Audio here.]
GOP Opposition to ObamaCare "Almost a Form of Anarchy"
"John Boehner has to start taking a macro step towards the American people, away from the more radical elements of his party. You know, it's almost a form of anarchy. We have a law that was passed by Congress. We have a law that the Supreme Court said was legal. It's been implemented. And I'm sorry they don't like it. There's been a lot of laws in the past the Democrats didn't like. But that's what this country is about. You pass laws. And if they are deemed legal, you respect them and you move forward."
– Howard Bragman during his October 5 interview with CNN's Don Lemon. [Audio here.]
