The CBS Evening News continued advancing the inaccurate and liberal spin on Thursday that the letter signed by 47 Republican Senators and sent to Iran concerning the Obama administration’s nuclear talks is an “unprecedented” example of “direct interference with diplomatic negotiations.”
Anchor Scott Pelley touted how “[t]he leader of Iran and Secretary of State John Kerry found one thing in common” as “both condemned that letter 47 Republican Senators sent to Iran to warn it against a nuclear deal with the Obama administration.”
After chiding the GOP for trying to “scuttle” any deal two days earlier, Pelley ruled that “[t]his sort of direct interference with diplomatic negotiations may be unprecedented” and proceeded to spotlight the fact that the author of the letter in Republican Senator Tom Cotton (Ark.) “has been in the Senate only two months.”
CBS News congressional correspondent Nancy Cordes repeated the point that Cotton just began his time in the Senate by noting that “he's still working out of a temporary basement office and yet, with one letter, he made himself known to diplomats worldwide.”
Cordes then rattled off quotes from two European diplomats opposed to the letter to Cotton and in turn posed this question: “Does that bother you? At all?” When he began giving an answer that wasn’t satisfactory to her, Cordes shot back: “But this is still the international reaction – from our allies.”
Once, the CBS correspondent ran through Cotton’s background as a Harvard graduate and infantry officer in the U.S. Army with tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, she again played up his brief tenure in the Senate by citing his single term in the House “where he was known for his hawkish views.”
Returning to her interview with Cotton, Cordes openly doubted that he would “be all that upset if this letter ended up interfering with the negotiations” to which Cotton brought up his opposition to any deal, but made the crucial point that: “[W]hat we all said in the letter is if we don't approve the deal, we won't accept the deal. We did not speak about the terms of the deal.”
Cordes wrapped up her report by telling Pelley that “none of” the signers “have told us they regret it.”
As it’s been documented numerous times over the past few days, the idea that what Cotton and his Republican colleagues did being “unprecedented” is both liberal spin and simply not accurate.
One of the very examples that the networks failed to point out is then-Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) met with Sandinista president Daniel Ortega in 1985 to undermine President Reagan’s foreign policy. In addition, then-Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) wrote to the Soviet Union in 1983 in attempt to thumb his nose at Reagan administration ahead of Reagan’s reelection campaign.
ABC’s World News Tonight also covered the topic on Thursday, but was only a news brief pertaining to Khomeini’s response. Other than summarizing a portion of the letter’s content, anchor David Muir offered a portion of Khomeini’s statement without opposition:
Now, to another controversy in Washington that has now spread well beyond. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini blasting the 47 Republican Senators who signed a letter warning that any deal struck with Iran over nuclear weapons with President Obama could be reversed by the next U.S. President. Khomeini calling it a sign of, quote, “the collapse of political ethics in Washington.”
NBC Nightly News did not report on this story on its Thursday show. The night before, it promoted a tweet by Hillary Clinton going after Republican presidential contenders who signed the letter as well as a petition to charge the Senators with treason and violating the Logan Act.
The full transcript of the segment from the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley on March 12 is transcribed below.
CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley
March 12, 2015
6:42 p.m. Eastern[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: Condemning the Letter]
SCOTT PELLEY: The leader of Iran and Secretary of State John Kerry found one thing in common. Today, both condemned that letter 47 Republican Senators sent to Iran to warn it against a nuclear deal with the Obama administration. This sort of direct interference with diplomatic negotiations may be unprecedented, and the man behind it, Senator Tom Cotton, has been in the Senate only two months. We asked Nancy Cordes to tell us about it.
NANCY CORDES: Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas is so new he's still working out of a temporary basement office, and yet, with one letter, he made himself known to diplomats worldwide. [TO COTTON] Germany's foreign minister called your letter, “unhelpful.” A French diplomat said “you undermined U.S. negotiators.” Does that bother you? At all?
REPUBLICAN SENATOR TOM COTTON (Ark.): Well, all we said was the basic facts of constitutional law under our constitution are –
CORDES: But this is still the international reaction – from our allies.
COTTON: Well, maybe we need to send a message to the entire world.
CORDES: Cotton is Harvard-educated lawyer who also led troops in Iraq and Afghanistan as an Infantry Officer, a background that gives him clout with his GOP colleagues.
COTTON [TO CORDES]: I was a First Lieutenant in Iraq –
CORDES: It doesn't hurt that he just defeated a long-time Democratic Senator by 18 points after serving just two years in the House, where he was known for his hawkish views, he has called the talk with Iran –
COTTON [at a Heritage Action event]: These sham nuclear negotiations.
CORDES [TO COTTON]: You probably wouldn't be all that upset if this letter ended up interfering with the negotiations?
COTTON: Well, what we all said in the letter is if we don't approve the deal, we won't accept the deal. We did not speak about the terms of the deal. I personally oppose the terms that President Obama has already foreshadowed.
CORDES: Those terms include Iran possibly being allowed to keep some of its nuclear infrastructure. I asked Senator Cotton today how he got so many Senators to sign on. He said he went to them one by one, Scott, and by the way, none of them have told us they regret it.
PELLEY: Nancy Cordes with the newsmaker on Capitol Hill today. Nancy, thank you very much.
