Fwd: MRC Alert: ABC, NBC and CBS Mostly Ignore Obama's Recess Appointment of Pro-Health Care Rationing Doctor to Head Medicare

 

A daily compilation edited by Brent H. Baker, CyberAlert items are drawn from daily BiasAlert posts and distributed by the Media Research Center's News Analysis Division, the leader since 1987 in documenting, exposing and neutralizing liberal media bias.

 

Tracking Liberal Media Bias Since 1996
Thursday July 08, 2010 @ 09:15 AM EDT

1. ABC, NBC and CBS Mostly Ignore Obama's Recess Appointment of Pro-Health Care Rationing Doctor to Head Medicare
Barack Obama's decision to make a recess appointment of Dr. Donald Berwick to run Medicare has been vastly ignored by the mainstream news media, despite the fact Berwick has made controversial statements favoring rationing of medical care. There was no mention of the President's decision to make the recess appointment on Tuesday night's NBC Nightly News, CBS Evening News or ABC's World News. In fact the embargo on the information continued through Wednesday morning as there were zero mentions on ABC's Good Morning America and CBS's The Early Show. Only NBC's Today show mentioned the news as Lester Holt, in an 8am news brief on the July 7 show. (On Wednesday night, ABC, CBS and NBC again skipped Berwick, but all found time to mark Ringo Starr's 70th birthday.)

2. MSNBC Guest Host Absurdly Claims: President Obama More Conservative than Reagan
So is President Obama more conservative than the late Ronald Reagan? MSNBC substitute anchor Cenk Uygur thinks so. Filling in yesterday for Dylan Ratigan on his 4 p.m. show, Uygur moderated a segment based on the preposition that President Obama's policies have actually been more conservative than those of President Reagan. "That's the silliest thing I've ever heard," former Reagan White House political director Frank Donatelli said of the claims. "It's an incomplete and distorted picture of everything," he added. Uygur is a host of "The Young Turks," a left-wing internet political podcast.

3. MSNBC Fill-In Host: Conservative Liberal Media Claims Based On Racism
Cenk Uygur, host of the left-wing internet talk show 'The Young Turks,' filled in for MSNBC host Dylan Ratigan during the 4PM ET hour on Wednesday and decried the nation's "shift to the Right." He lamented: "...when I started out I was a liberal Republican. No such thing exists anymore." He wondered why the media hadn't reported on the supposed radical shift in American politics and quickly came up with this explanation: "Why the media didn't challenge it is because they [conservatives] kept calling them the liberal media, and why did they call them that? Because during civil rights, they [the media] said 'yeah, black people and white people are the same' and the conservatives at the time said 'damn liberal media,' and, you know, that intimidated the media into not recognizing this trend."

4. ABC's Jeremy Hubbard Hints at Conspiracy: Did Palins 'Get to' Levi Johnston and Make Him Recant?
World News Now co-host Jeremy Hubbard on Wednesday didn't accept the explanation that Levi Johnston has simply decided to apologize for his bad mouthing of the Palin family. The ABC anchor hinted at darker reasons: "You know, I'm a cynic. Did the Palins get to him, do you think?" Discussing Johnston's public apology in People magazine, Hubbard began, "Did they sit him down and-" He broke off and didn't finish the thought. What was Hubbard implying? The answer went unsaid.

5. After Promoting Levi Johnston in '09, CBS Ignores His Admission of False Statements
In an interview with People Magazine on Tuesday, Levi Johnston admitted: "I publicly said things about the Palins that were not completely true." On Wednesday, the CBS Early Show failed to make any mention of the admission, despite having provided a media platform for Johnston last year by conducting exclusive interviews with him. On the April 8, 2009 broadcast, co-host Maggie Rodriguez conducted her first interview with Johnston, and introduced the segment by proclaiming: "He [Johnston], along with his mother and sister, sat down with me last night for an interview to clear up the 'lies' they say the Palins have been telling about them."

6. ABC's George Stephanopoulos Hectors Netanyahu, Saddles Israel With Responsibility for Peace
Good Morning America's George Stephanopoulos on Wednesday repeatedly berated Benjamin Netanyahu as to what the Israeli Prime Minister will do for the peace process. Focusing almost entirely on Israel, while excluding the U.S. and the Palestinians, he hectored, "What are you prepared to do? More security autonomy for the Palestinians on the West Bank? Prisoner releases?"

7. CNN Again Omits Pro-Illegal Immigration Stance of 'Public Defender'
On Wednesday's Newsroom, CNN's Tony Harris omitted the pro-illegal immigration activism of guest Isabel Garcia, just as his colleague Suzanne Malveaux did more than two months earlier. Harris twice referred to Garcia as merely the "deputy public defender in Pima County, Arizona," and didn't mention her involvement in the beating and decapitation of a pinata effigy of Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio. The anchor brought on the activist, as well as Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce, the author of the state newly-passed anti-illegal immigration law, for two segments starting 10 minutes into the 11 am Eastern hour. After asking Senator Pearce's position on the federal government's new lawsuit against the enforcement of his law, Harris turned to the public defender: "Isabel, you've been patient. Weigh in here."

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Fwd: Morning Bell: Federal Government Overpaid $47 Billion a Year

07/08/2010 Federal Government Overpaid $47 Billion a Year Today, the White House is launching its second annual SAVE Award, which encourages federal employees to submit ideas on how to save taxpayer dollars. Federal employees will be able to rank the submissions submitted by colleagues, and then the general public will be able to vote on the top submissions later this year. Last year's contest generated more than 38,000 submissions from government employees and more than 84,000 votes. Last year's winner? A Department of Veterans Affairs employee from Colorado who suggested that VA medical centers should permit patients to take home extra bandages and medication when they are discharged. Estimated savings: $14.5 million by 2014. Not bad. But we have a better idea. How about paying federal employees what they would be worth in the private sector? Potential savings: $47 billion a year. In March, USA Today reported that Federal employees earn higher average salaries than private-sector workers in more than eight out of 10 occupations that exist both in government and the private sector. Instead of taking the news as an opportunity to save taxpayers money, the Obama administration pushed back against the news and dispatched Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag to defend government employee pay. Orszag told reporters: "I think the key thing to remember about that is the federal workforce is more highly educated than the private workforce. ... Basically the entire delta between private sector and public sector federal government average pay can be explained by education and experience." The problem is, this is just not true. Heritage Foundation senior labor policy analyst James Sherk has just released a paper analyzing data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Current Population Survey (CPS) for 2006 through 2009. The data show that even after controlling for education and experience, federal employees get paid 22% more per hour on average than private-sector workers. And that does not include the significant non-cash benefits government workers receive. Federal employees not only can enroll in a Thrift Savings Plan that works like a 401(k), but they also get a "defined contribution" plan, which lets a worker with 30 years of experience retire at 56 with full benefits. And don't forget the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, paid leave, group life insurance and on-site child care. To be sure, many private employers offer similar benefits but not all of these at the same time. All told, while the average private-sector employee gets $9,882 in annual benefits, federal government employees get $32,115 on average. Adding cash and non-cash compensation together, federal employees earn approximately 30 to 40 percent more in total compensation than comparable private-sector workers.

Fwd: Fact Checking Sen. Kerry (D-MA)

Fact Checking Sen. Kerry (D-MA) Senator Kerry (D–MA) penned an op-ed in the Washington Post making the case that ratification of the New START Treaty is in the best interest of U.S. national security. His article is in response to former Governor Mitt Romney's (R–MA) recent op-ed calling the treaty Obama's biggest foreign policy mistake. Sen. Kerry refers to Mr. Romney's objections as "uninformed" and "political" as he engages in a "footrace to the right against Sarah Palin." Opposing this treaty is not political and there are several informed reasons to not support ratification. Missile Defense News Obama's Worst Foreign-Policy Mistake?   Iran Whines About Sanctions But Vows Defiance   Iran's Ticking Nuclear Time Bomb   Five Reasons to Hate New START   Recess Appointment for Philip Coyle 1. Missile Defense The Administration has stated from the beginning that this treaty in no way impedes upon missile defense. Then they backed off, admitting that Article V of the treaty prohibits conversion of ICBM launchers into missile defense launchers. Now, as the Senate continues to scrutinize the treaty it has become clear that the treaty as is limits ballistic missile defense test target missiles. As noted by Baker Spring, "Any missile defense target that includes the first stages of the specifically identified existing ICBMs and SLBMs or new ICBMs and SLBMs will be subject to restrictions—including the first stages of the Minuteman II and Peacekeeper ICBMs, despite the fact that they are retired." That the treaty will impede upon America's missile defense system is undeniable. 2. Less than Full Public Disclosure Senator Kerry said there is a clear public record from 10 committee hearings outlining support for treaty ratification. What has not been made available to the Senate, however, is the most important document of all, the negotiating record. The Senate has a constitutional duty to fully vet any treaty, yet this Administration has consistently denied the Senate an opportunity to do so. Releasing this document is not without precedent. It was provided to the Democratic-controlled Senate under President Reagan. Given all that is at stake, this case clearly warrants the release of the negotiating records. Click here to read the rest of the report Take Action! Support Missile Defense! A ballistic missile attack is one of the greatest threats facing our families and communities today.  Here are three ways you can take action and support missile defense in your hometown. Host your own 33 Minutes screening!  Invite members of your community, your neighbors and your friends to watch 33 Minutes and discuss the need for missile defense. We'll give you everything you need. Our 33 Minutes screening kit includes a DVD of the full-length documentary, a poster to advertise your screening, feedback cards for you and your guests to comment on the film and plenty of 33 Minutes brochures and pens!  Go to 33minutes.com for details.   forward message visit 33minutes.com Facebook Twitter YouTube The Heritage Foundation - 214 Massachusetts Ave NE, Washington, DC Call us at 202-546-4400 Add 33minutes@heritage.org to your address book to ensure that you receive emails from us.

Fwd: Census Director Admits ?We May Have Duplicates?

Today's Headlines Thursday, July 8, 2010

Census Director Admits 'We May Have Duplicates' (CNSNews.com) - U.S. Census Bureau Director Dr. Robert Groves told CNSNews.com on Wednesday that the Census has "no way, unfortunately, of knowing whether or not homeless individuals were counted twice," and added, "we may have duplicates." As CNSNews.com reported on June 10, the Census Bureau's inspector general published a report indicating that Census workers were instructed to recount people who said they had already been counted. Obama Science Czar Called for Carbon Tax to Redistribute Wealth from Global 'North' to 'South' (CNSNews.com) – Five months before Barack Obama nominated Dr. John P. Holdren as director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Holdren called for a global climate-change agreement that would allow wealth to be redistributed from countries in the global "North" to countries in the "South."  "It's important that we have a global agreement on how we are going to limit the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases going forward, and an agreement ... that will include ways to transfer some of the revenues from carbon taxes or carbon emission permits in the North to pay for reduced deforestation in the South," he told a TV interviewer. Obama's Unconfirmed 'Recess' Appointee to Run Medicare Advocated Rationing, Redistribution of Wealth (CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama today circumvented the Senate confirmation process by granting a recess appointment to Dr. Donald Berwick to be director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency that runs Medicare and Medicaid. Berwick has expressed disdain for free-market medicine and his "love" for Great Britain's government-run health-care system, while advocating health-care rationing and using the health-care system to redistribute wealth. Abbas, Fatah Say Mastermind of Munich Olympics Attack Was A Hero (CNSNews.com) – Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah organization say the man who masterminded the terrorist attack on Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics in 1972 was a hero. Mohammed Oudeh, better known as Abu Daoud, died in Syria last weekend at the age of 73. Clinton Offers Georgia A Change of Terminology, But Little Else (CNSNews.com) – In an attempt to stave off criticism that the Obama administration is too soft on Russia, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Tbilisi, Georgia, used the words her hosts wanted to hear when she expressed concerns about the invasion and occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Moscow criticized Clinton Wednesday for her comments on the two breakaway Georgian regions. And if Georgia's leader regarded Clinton's statements as a victory, he may have missed the underlying message during her visit that the U.S. can do little beyond speak its mind. House-Passed Financial Overhaul Allows for GM-Style Bailouts of Big Banks (CNSNews.com) – The House-passed financial regulation bill would allow the government to save the profitable assets of a failing bank and spin them off into a new company – a power that mirrors the government's action in saving General Motors and Chrysler. The provision is part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which passed the House on June 29. Patching Up Differences Vital for U.S.-Israeli Security and Politics, Experts Say (CNSNews.com) – "The bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable," said President Barack Obama on Tuesday at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. That reaffirmation of U.S.-Israeli commitment is important for the political and security interests of both countries, experts said, because it comes at a time of apparent friction between the historically strong allies.   CNSNEWS.COM VIDEO Kagan on Whether Catholic Church Could Recruit at Harvard Law (CNSNews.com) - When asked whether the Catholic Church would have been able to recruit at Harvard Law even though it does not allow female priests, Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan said all recruiters needed to sign a form saying they did not discriminate based on gender and sexual orientation. OTHER CNSNEWS.COM HEADLINES Three Arrested in Al-Qaida Bomb Plot in Norway Arizona Governor Cancels Border Meeting After Boycott Obama Campaigning for Democrats Again in Missouri, Nevada Catholic Church Says Cuba Has Agreed to Free 52 Political Prisoners Congress Requests Dozens of 'Studies' Before Regulating the Financial Industry Pennsylvania Begins Selling Wine in Grocery Store Vending Kiosks Study: Pot Prices Would Plummet If California Legalizes It Tax on Large Government Contractors Proposed As Way of Paying for Public Campaign Finance System Federal Prosecutors Appeal 'Lenient' Sentence Given to Philadelphia Democrat Solar Plane Lands After Completing 24-Hour Flight CNN Fires Middle Eastern Editor Over Tweet Russian-U.S. Spy Swap Expected Soon Donate Today! Please help CNSNews.com keep bringing you 'The Right News - Right Now!' Make a contribution to CNSNews.com today. It's fast, simple and secure. Help CNSNews.com and Donate Today!  NEWSPAPER ROUNDUP S.F. considers banning sale of pets except fish May soon be easier to get pot-laced brownies than sugary soda in San Francisco Some College Park, Md., residents still waiting for census to count them Pa. taxpayers will help pay for library to house Arlen Specter's papers President's recess appointment reignites debate over healthcare Happy Meals here to stay, McDonald's says First lady planning first Gulf oil spill trip Sen. Barbara Boxer touts value of incumbents Civil rights panel to pursue federal probe in Black Panther Case Mexico schools teach lessons in survival Obama tries to sell 'recovery summer' amid sluggish economy Bill allowing Native Hawaiians to form their own gov't heading for U.S. Senate vote Gov. Bobby Jindal signs guns-in-church law Backlash over national education reforms is growing in Colorado Pot advocates ask Colorado to allow medical-marijuana use for PTSD Missouri files lawsuit against federal health care law Federal officials kill geese to prevent fouling of shorefront property ACLU sues Pawtucket, RI, over drug testing of employee COMMENTARY A True Moderate Muslim And Why Obama Sides Against Him By Ben Shapiro On July 7, 2010, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, publisher of the anti-Islamist newspaper the Weekly Blitz, strode into court in Bangladesh to argue his case. Choudhury is charged with blasphemy, treason, and sedition for attempting to fly from the Zia International Airport in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, to Tel Aviv, Israel, to attend a peace conference in 2003. Choudhury is a self-proclaimed Muslim Zionist and is ardently pro-American. But President Obama is uninterested in the Choudhury case. Why? Because Choudhury represents the true face of moderate Islam – and that isn't the kind of Muslim Barack Obama likes. He's fonder of the two-faced Muslims who pretend to oppose terror while secretly aiding and abetting it. Representation Without Taxation By Ed Feulner In the real world it makes little sense to punish success or reward failure. Yet that's exactly what the federal government's tax policy does.