Indecision Forever » MSNBC

Dennis Kucinich Has Done So Very Much for the Make-Believe People

Dennis DiClaudio — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:30:46 +0000

Markos Moulitsas — on Countdown with(out) Keith Olbermann last night — responded to Dennis Kucinich's promise to America that he will kill health care reform dead, but in a well-intentioned idealistic way…

Salon's Alex Koppelman responds to Moulitsas's response by quoting — right from the congressperson's own website — all the good super-idealistic legislation that Kucinich has introduced to Congress these past 13 years…

"In Congress, Kucinich has authored and co-sponsored legislation to create a national health care system, preserve Social Security, lower the costs of prescription drugs, provide economic development through infrastructure improvements, abolish the death penalty, provide universal prekindergarten to all 3, 4, and 5 year olds, create a Department of Peace, regulate genetically engineered foods, repeal the USA PATRIOT Act, and provide tax relief to working class families."

Notice that the bio never actually says whether any of that legislation actually passed. In fact, according to the web site GovTrack, of the 97 bills Kucinich has sponsored since taking office in 1997, only three have become law. 93 didn't even make it out of committee.

Yeah, but I'll have you know that according to the rules of quantum physics (as I understand them) those 93 bills are doing fantastically well in some alternate universe somewhere.

Rachel Maddow and Bill Nye Are Just Apologists for Big Weather

Dennis DiClaudio — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 17:20:27 +0000

Look at this shit! Here's admitted liberal academic Rachel Maddow talking to Bill Nye the ~~Blasphemy~~ Science Guy in an effort to prove away all the white fluffy proof of Global Warming's nonexistence that fell from the sky yesterday.

How pathetic…

I don't know about you, but I turned this off after the Sean Hannity clip. Whatever it was he was saying, that's good enough for me.

And it seems like Maddow's been on a roll of useless segments lately. After the jump, there's a clip from the other night about the GOP's Love-Hate-Love relationship with bipartisanshipiness that you should totally not bother watching…

If you're reading this far down, please do not watch the preceding clips.

Jon Stewart on Obama's GOP Lunch

Matt Tobey — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:04:48 +0000

As you may have heard, President Obama recently held a lunch conference where he fielded questions from Congressional Republicans. The event was televised and many have considered it to be a brilliant move on the President's part. It seems to have helped make progress with the GOP too. Instead of the party of "No," they've agreed to become the party of "Nah."

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Chris Matthews Is One Scotch Away from Being Ron Burgundy

Matt Tobey — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:33:23 +0000

Last night's Daily Show was devoted entirely to the State of the Union, including the GOP response and the media coverage. And if you saw the SOTU, you know it was a much-needed reminder in these difficult times, that despite our many differences, we Americans have in us the ability to unite behind the common goal of laughing at the boobs in Washington and the boners on cable news. Just as the founders intended.

The Daily Show's coverage of the SOTU continues below. And you can see The Colbert Report's take here.

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Fox News Is the Most Trusted Make-Believe News* Source

Dennis DiClaudio — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:46:57 +0000

I'm gonna warn you: If you're not already soaking in a bathtub full of water and plugged-in radios after reading yesterday's report that Fox News was the most watched cable network last week, you will be after reading this…

Our newest survey looking at perceptions of ABC News, CBS News, CNN, Fox News, and NBC News finds Fox as the only one that more people say they trust than distrust. 49% say they trust it to 37% who do not…

74% of Republicans trust Fox News, but no more than 23% trust any of the other four sources… [A] majority [of Democrats] trust all of ABC, CBS, CNN, and NBC while only 30% have faith in Fox News.

Please pass me the cyanide-laced Ebola bullets when you're finished with them, please. Why, yes, thank you. I would like a side of rusty wire noose.

^{* I feel that I should make a distinction between different types of make-believe news. I speak here of fake news masquerading as real news, as opposed to real news masquerading fake news.}

Keith Olbermann Apologizes for Being so Keith Olbermann-esque

Dennis DiClaudio — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:05:35 +0000

Apologies, but I've been very busy being very busy this past weekend — and even when I'm not very busy, I try to busy myself ignoring very much of what comes out of Keith Olbermann's head — so I completely missed the Countdown host's response on Friday to Jon Stewart's Special Comment from a few days ago.

But I just saw it now. And if you haven't seen it, you should see it…

"You know what, you're right. I have been a little over the top lately. Point taken. Sorry."

Really?! I mean, really really? Wow. I was not expecting that. Like, at all.

And, you know, I'm not sure if this says more about Olbermann's integrity or Stewart's reputation. Or liberals' ability to capitulate.

Sarah Palin, Fox News Only Manage to Completely Destroy MSNBC and CNN by a Little

Dennis DiClaudio — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:22:57 +0000

A lot of people were probably expecting Sarah Palin to be good for Fox News, but I doubt many people were expecting this…

Debuting on Tuesday's "O'Reilly Factor," the former vice presidential candidate drew almost 4 million viewers more than doubling the combined total of MSNBC's Keith Olbermann and CNN's Campbell Brown.

The following evening on "Glenn Beck," Palin attracted over 3 million — at 5PM!

Ha! What a miserable failure. Well, I guess we won't be seeing any more of her again on Fox. I assume Roger Ailes has learned his lesson and will henceforth be changing the network's format.

Glad that national nightmare is over and is not just slowly building up a head of steam while the Democratic party slowly disintegrates. Whew!

Limbaugh, Robertson and Maddow Make Hay of Haiti

Matt Tobey — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:39:26 +0000

Leaping on a major tragedy like this week's Haitian earthquake to push your own ideological agenda is the kind of thing you expect from villains like Lex Luthor or Dr. Doom or Rush Limbaugh or Pat Robertson. So, it's a little surprising and a lot disappointing to see Rachel Maddow joining their ranks. Maybe she came in contact with a symbiote.

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Rachel Maddow on Rick Warren's Misrepresentation Driven Video

Dennis DiClaudio — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:33:57 +0000

Yesterday, in a very Christian-like manner, Rick Warren posted an open-video message to Uganda, asking them to please!!! please!!! not use his name while murdering gay people. (Oh, and also, please don't murder of gay people.)

Rachel Maddow examines some of the claims the good pastor makes…

MSNBC Zings Homeless Guy

Matt Tobey — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:49:37 +0000

If there's one group that needs to be taken down a peg, it's the homeless. They've had it too good for too long with their fancy bindles and their precocious daughters. Well, no one knows that more than the gang at MSNBC who took it upon themselves to have some good old fashioned yuk-em-ups at the expense of some homeless fellow. And just in time for the holidays too.

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Rachel Maddow Talks to the Man Behind the Man Behind Uganda's Anti-Gay Legislation

Dennis DiClaudio — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:29:29 +0000

I've been meaning to write about this whole American Christian politicians getting Uganda to jail its homosexual citizens and murder its HIV-positive citizens thing for a while now, but somehow I just couldn't find the funny side of a bunch of U.S. congresspeople speaking for America while trying to use an African country as a testing ground for their Christian wonderland fantasies.

At any rate, Rachel Maddow has been covering this on here show, and last night she had a nice long conversation with the "formerly" gay inspiration for hate and murder in the name of Jesus. And it is a terrible thing to witness.

Enjoy…

After the jump, you can watch Jason Jones's 2007 Daily Show interview with Richard Cohen.

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Was Jesse Ventura Paid by MSNBC to Not Oppose the Iraq War?

Dennis DiClaudio — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:43:11 +0000

Jesse Ventura — former governor of Minnesota and feather boa aficionado — is claiming that he was essentially paid by MSNBC to shut his notoriously big and famously loud mouth after only a short stint as a host on the network, because of his opposition to the war in Iraq…

LA Times: What happened to "Jesse Ventura's America," which ran briefly on MSNBC in 2003?

Jesse "The Body" Ventura: It was awful. I was basically silenced. When I came out of office, I was the hottest commodity out there. There was a bidding war between CNN, Fox and MSNBC to get my services. MSNBC ultimately won. I was being groomed for a five day-a-week TV show by them. Then, all of a sudden, weird phone calls started happening: "Is it true Jesse doesn't support the war in Iraq?"

My contract said I couldn't do any other cable TV or any news shows, and they honored and paid it for the duration of it. So in essence I had my silence purchased. Why do you think you didn't hear from me for three years? I was under contract. They wouldn't even use me as a consultant!

What? Not MSNBC, that towering beacon of serious journalism! But based upon Keith Olbermann's sign-off every night, I've been led to believe that MSNBC was not a complicit pawn of the Bush administration in allowing the U.S. to illegally invade Iraq with minimal opposition! Why, I never!

That said, how much would it cost to pay Ventura off and keep his new Truther show "Conspiracy Theory" off the air?

Sean Hannity and Keith Olbermann Have a Lot More In Common Than Massive Head Girth

Dennis DiClaudio — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:06:01 +0000

As a expatriate Philadelphian, I thought I couldn't possibly be any more disgusted after having to endure last night's game (and its aftermath) in the middle of Queens.

I was wrong…

If there's one thing that could bring Keith Olbermann and Sean Hannity together (apart from the occasional CNN-bashing), it's baseball…

Olbermann wrote about the game on his MLBlog, where he said of Hannity, "And lastly, a reminder that baseball does erase boundaries. The guy I'm taking a photo of, who's taking a photo of me – we get along perfectly at the ballpark – less so during our day jobs."

Sean Hannity and Keith Olbermann: big, big Yankees fans. That pretty much says it all.

Now, if you'll excuse me, this bowl of sour grapes isn't going to eat itself.

The Daily Show Nails Cable News Election Panels

Matt Tobey — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:02:41 +0000

As you've now heard, in last night's two high-profile gubernatorial elections, the GOP candidates emerged victoriously in what was a clear referendum against President Obama. Meanwhile, in the closely-watched Congressional race in New York's 23rd District, voters elected a Democrat for the first time in over a century in what was a clear referendum against President Obama. Where did I acquire such keen political insight? Cable news, of course.

The Daily Show airs Monday through Thursday at 11pm / 10c.

Joe Scarborough's Still Got It!

Gladstone — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:38:24 +0000

It's easy to call MSNBC's Joe Scarborough names. For example, here's just a few off the top of my head…

* Second string political pundit who couldn't hack it on Capitol Hill

* Disingenuous messenger for the Republican agenda, tempering his views with the political winds to create the false impression of objectivity; and, of course

* Lumpy

But none of those barbs can rob the man of his keen political insight. Offering views on the close New Jersey gubernatorial race, Scarborough writes…

"[T]he Democrats' turnout operation should keep this race tight all night. If the race is instead a blowout, that can only be bad news for the Democrats."

See? Some people couldn't offer that kind of insight. Y'know, people who have spent their entire adult life huffing heavy metal industrial isotopes.

So the next time you're tempted to stick it to old Joe, c'mon, show some respect.

MSNBC Anchor Confuses Al Sharpton for Jesse Jackson (or the Other Way Around, Maybe)

Dennis DiClaudio — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:47:34 +0000

Somebody play Contessa Brewer off, please…

Glenn Beck and Keith Olbermann's Epic Battle for Title of Biggest Jay-Oh on Tee-Vee

Dennis DiClaudio — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:22:05 +0000

Uh oh! Have you heard? Glenn Beck is unleashing his army of true blue American patriots to go out into the world and drum up some bad news for Obama's picks for Information and Regulatory Czar, FCC Diversity Czar and Energy Czar…

Watch Dogs: FIND EVERYTHING YOU CAN ON CASS SUNSTEIN, MARK LLOYD AND CAROL BROWNER. Do not link before burning to disc.

He's rebelling against a bunch of czars! I've never heard of anything so non-Bolshevik-sounding. Hopefully, he'll draw blood by sometime next month. Then he and his comrades can celebrate their own Red October like real American patriots.

So, what's the progressive movement to do in the face of such brazenly douche-like behavior? Luckily, it has MSNBC's Keith Olbermann around to douche-taliate by taking the high road and asking Americans go out and dig up harmful personal information on Beck as well as other non-government-employees…

I don't know why I've got this phrasing in my head, but: Find everything you can about Glenn Beck, [Beck's radio producer] Stu Burguiere, and [Fox News president] Roger Ailes… Tuesday we will expand this to the television audience and have a dedicated email address to accept leads, tips, contacts…

This becomes necessary after this in order to prove various cliches about goose and gander, and to remind everybody to walk softly and carry a big popsicle, and most particularly to save this nation from the Oligarhy of The Stupid.

I can't say exactly why, but this whole thing puts me in mind of that new human centipede movie.

Some Conservatives May Not Have the President's Best Interests in Mind When Trying to Stir Up Violence

Dennis DiClaudio — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 21:55:11 +0000

Dan Savage was on The Countdown with Keith Olbermann (starting about three minutes into this clip), talking about the three-way intersection of the GOP's opposition to health care, misguided religious fervor and full-asshole total insanity…

At around the seven-minute mark, he hits what I think is the thesis statement of his argument…

"I really do think that the Michele Bachmanns of the world and the Glenn Becks of the world are actively and consciously, or subconsciously, trying to get — I'm just going to say it — trying to get the president killed.

That's why they're setting this up as kill or be killed arguments. 'He's gonna kill your grandma,' 'pull the plug on grandma,' 'death panels that little children have to go in front of.'"

In response, M.J. Rosenberg, over at TPMCafe, remembers Yitzhak Rabin, the former Prime Minister of Israel who was assassinated in 1995…

Democrats and the media should challenge any rightwing hint that sounds like a call to assassination. If that is not what they want, they should be forced to say it isn't.

Remember Rabin. First came the incitement (Netanyahu spoke at a rally where Rabin was portrayed as an Arab terrorist and as a Nazi). Then the religious nuts held ceremonies praying for Rabin's death. Finally, murder.

Asked about who she blamed for her husband's death, Leah Rabin said, "the right. They kept screaming he was selling out the country. Of course, I blame them."

Oh, well, that doesn't sound anything like what's happening at these town hall meetings. Whew! Everybody can just relax now, I guess.

From the Pork Barrel: More Cowbell from the White House?

Dennis DiClaudio — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 21:45:08 +0000

* Somebody at the White House is obviously less than a million years old.

* John Oliver is the Usain Bolt of making fun of Glenn Beck.

* Remembering the Kennedy boys: Who was the most do-able?

* Behind every great Massachusetts politician is about 800 or 900 women.

* Keith Olbermann's quest to become the liberal Bill O'Reilly is going exactly according to plan.

* But do these conservative politicians really love Chuck Norris for Chuck Norris?

From the Pork Barrel: Zombie Armageddon

Dennis DiClaudio — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:05:49 +0000

* Keith Olbermann predicts zombies in America's future.

* An open letter to Old People from Young People: "We don't want to kill you."

* Jesus fired from Kentucky Office of Homeland Security.

* What is best in life? To crush your enemies, to see them driven before you, and to keep your Conan the Barbarian sword in the governor's office.

* Ugh! I don't wanna read The Death Book. Can't I just wait for The Death Movie to come out?