Joe McGinniss defends his book against a rabid Piers Morgan.

Just click picture to watch video

Jesus I KNEW there was a reason I stopped watching CNN! It appears they have hitched themselves so firmly to the Tea Party's falling star, that they are now doing their dirty work for them!

The idea of Piers "phone tapping" Morgan calling Joe McGinniss out on "tabloid journalism" is the height of hypocrisy. 

Anyhow Joe has some interviews with much more reasonable, and professional, journalists coming up today and tomorrow.

Below is the schedule he sent for me to share with all of you.

Tuesday, September 20
“American Morning” 7:00 AM – 8:30 AM
“Inside Edition” 9:00 AM to 9:45 AM CBS-TV 
"Book TV” 2:00 PM to 2:45 PM C-SPAN
“Hardball with Chris Matthews” (between 5 and 6pm) MSNBC-TV 
The Alan Colmes Show 10: 15 PM Fox News Radio 
Wednesday, September 21 
“The View” TIME TK Hit Time (b/w 11am and 12pm)ABC-TV 
“The Joy Behar Show”4:40 PM to 5:00 PM Taping CNN HLN 
“The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell” TIME TK Hit Time (between 8 and 9 pm) MSNBC-TV 

(I will prove the rest of his schedule later.)


By the way for all of you who are currently reading "The Rogue" THIS would be the thread to express your opinions. By the way that is "express your opinions" NOT viciously attack Joe McGinniss!

Joe McGinniss to appear on Piers Morgan tonight. Update!

This week Joe starts his media tour, and it appears that his first stop will be CNN and a sit down with Piers Morgan:

Palin author Joe McGinniss and more 
Author of controversial Sarah Palin book "The Rogue," Norway Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and former Gov. Jennifer Granholm

As  a rule I tend to avoid CNN, but of course this time I will make an exception.

Joe sent me this e-mail to give me a heads up to where he will be making appearances:

I do Piers Morgan show on CNN Monday, with Colbert and Bill Maher down the line.Also next week, Chris Matthews, Lawrence O'Donnell plus daytime MSNBC.Also The View and Joy Behar. 

Joe tends to keep me in the loop, so I imagine he will firm up these dates and let me know in time to alert all of you.

By the way to the person who keeps sending me messages saying that Joe used me, let me  respond.

Why yes, yes he  did.

He used me to make contacts, to promote his book, and to bounce ideas off of.

But here is the thing, I used him as well.  I used him to reach out to sources that were afraid to go on the record with me. I used him to give me access to the deck of the house right next to the Palins where I got to sit, eat Yak burgers, and gloat. And I used him to get the babygate story out to a much wider audience.

Except that I don't think either one of us consider that "using" each other.  We both had an agenda, and did nothing to hide it from one another.

I believe that is called "cooperation."

Update: A lot of you have been sending me the Doonesbury strip from today, so I thought I would post it along with some quotes that show up on the website. (And before anybody asks me, no I don't know who the redheaded lady is.)

SAY WHAT?"Never hurts to rumormonger." — Sarah Palin, in an email musing on ways to prevent Alaska Senate President Lyda Green from being re-elected 

"Flippin' unbelievable. Wouldn't you think they'd be afraid of being proved wrong when they rumor around the building like that?" — Palin, in a subsequent email objecting to a (true) rumor that Bristol Palin was pregnant

Hypocrisy thy name is Palin!

Update 2: You have GOT to listen to this radio interview that Joe gives on the Leonard Lopate radio show!  He goes into MUCH more detail about Palin's fling with Glen Rice, and even says that Rice has a copy of "The Rogue" and called him to say that, "It's all good."

In other words the stories swirling around that Rice did NOT confirm the affair are bullshit.

McGinniss also says that he confirmed what is in the book with multiple sources ,and nothing was sourced to only one person. The Palin-bots can bitch and moan all they want, but Joe is no dummy and he had all of his ducks in a row before he sent his manuscript to the publisher.

Sarah Palin trots out new serious political pundit image, as illustated by her new serious political pundit wig.

To watch the video just click the picture. Warning, it does take you to a Fox News site so take your Maalox first.

According to Klondike Kardashian now that CNN has hosted this "Tea Party" debate they have moved from "Lamestream" media to the Teabagger ass kissing media, which greatly pleases this insignificant political prick teaser. Good job CNN!

Palin has a favorite new term that she just learned, "Crony Capatalism," which she uses repeatedly during this interview to essentially smear the whole group of GOP candidates at one time or another.

However she really brings out the long knives when Greta mentions Rick Perry, the HPV vaccine, and the suggestion that the reason he went with the program was due to possible payoff from the manufacturer of the drug. Here Palin goes for the jugular and starts throwing charges of, her new favorite term that she just learned about, "Crony Capitalism" all over the place like a Ninja star.

She even compares Perry's decision to make the vaccination semi-mandatory to HER decision, around the same time, to NOT go with the program.  Essentially creating as much space between Rick Perry's policies and hers as possible, which is a complete turnaround to how she described "Governor Good Hair" only  few short months ago. You know BEFORE he threw his Texas sized hat into the ring and rustled all of her Teabagger support away from her.

At the end of this interview Greta asks the question that she is apparently contractually obligated to ask concerning whether or not Palin is still considering throwing her wig hat into the ring to run for President? I almost feel sorry for Greta who appears to be very tired of this dog and pony show, but Palin leaps on the question like a feral Wasillian and implies that she LOVES the fact that by staying out she can still influence the subjects that the OTHER candidates take on, including her favorite new term she just learned about, "Crony Capitalism."

This interview was just as bizarre and full of misinformation, attacks on our President, and barbs thrown at her own party as usual, the only REAL news seems to be that she is now blatantly, and aggressively, attacking Rick Perry, which seems to suggest that the sources who have said she is angry with him for very personal reasons are probably dead on.

Oh and of course the OTHER news from this interview is that whatever was on Palin's head from her LAST interview has clearly escaped and is undoubtedly still at large in the greater Wasilla area.

Residents should remain vigilant!

While discussing the top GOP candidates, Jack Cafferty wants to know "Why does America seem allergic to brains?"

Okay I am having some real difficulty buying into Cafferty's assertion that Ron Paul is "talking sense," but other than that his assessment of the frontrunners is dead on.

(H/T to Mediaite.)

Tea Party denounces Christine O'Donnell for abruptly quitting CNN interview.

Courtesy of The New Civil Rights Movement:

Characterizing her performance as a “temper tantrum,” Judson Phillips, founder and head of Tea Party Nation writes, “if you are going to play in the big leagues, you have to play by the rules. CNN and Piers Morgan are pretty far to the left but this time Morgan is right and O’Donnell was not only wrong, but extremely unprofessional to walk out of the interview. 

“She was on the show to talk about her book, which Morgan commented on favorably. O’Donnell refused to answer the question about gay marriage, saying it is in the book. If you write a book, be expected to answer questions about what you put in the book.” 

“Piers Morgan was not asking anything inappropriate. Christine O’Donnell’s immature and unprofessional response makes the Tea Party movement look bad. Was she ashamed of her position on gay marriage? Did she not feel competent enough to defend her beliefs? We will never know. 

“Conservatives everywhere should be able to articulate their political positions and the reasons behind them without throwing a temper tantrum when they are asked to defend them. 

“We may have just seen Christine O’Donnell’s last prime time performance. I am sure she is a nice person but she does not understand what she has to do if she is going to be a national figure. 

“If she does not understand this, perhaps fading from the scene might not be a bad thing for her.”

Ooooh, THAT'S going to leave a mark!

Little girl beaten to death in the name of God.

I am not going to use this incident to slam Christianity, or the teachings of the Bible. But I am going to say that we have learned SO much more about how to raise our children in the thousands of years that have passed since those books were written that following the guidelines for parenting that are laid out in the Old Testament is just nuts.

There is NO excuse for brutalizing a child, and if you believe in a God that condones or encourages such behavior, than my tolerance for your religious choice has to come to an end.

As hard as it is too watch this video I think it is important, because there are forces in this country that are demanding that we go back to a time when we received out instructions for how to live our lives, raise our children, and treat our spouses, from religious leaders instead of educators, scientists, and therapists.

There is a real attempt these days to discredit intelligence and to replace it with faith. In other words to believe, rather than to think. And in my opinion it is that kind of slippery slope which ultimately results in this kind of tragedy.

(H/T to CNN.)

Christine "I'm not a witch" O'Donnell walks out of interview with Piers Morgan over questions about gay rights.

I have a confession to make.

Of all of the Teabaggers I have seen, Christine O'Donnell offends me the very least.

Sure she is ignorant, politically incompetent, and an opportunist, but she just never seemed as dangerous, or vindictive as a Sarah Palin, Rick Perry, or Michele Bachmann to me.

She kind of reminds me of that girl in high school who JUST got "saved" at church and cannot stop talking about how cool Jesus Christ is, and how much she wants you to come to her next church barbecue/flea market/tent revival.

Having said that, I still think it is funny that she simply cannot stand up to ANY scrutiny about the things that she believes or writes in her book.In other words, EPIC FAIL, Miss "I am not a witch."

CNN reporter Don Lemon manhandled by Marcus Bachmann. NO it's not what you think.

Courtesy of CNN:

After talking for about three minutes, Bachmann waded into the crowd filled with adoring supporters.

Moments later, as she tried to exit the area back to a waiting drive cart, Bachmann found herself in the middle of a mob of people: among them many supporters and members of the press including this reporter and CNN anchor Don Lemon. 

As both CNN staffers tried to question Bachmann, Lemon said he was pushed by two members of Bachmann’s staff. Lemon also said that Marcus Bachmann, the congresswoman’s husband, pushed him. 

“She came out, after speaking for just a couple minutes,” Lemon said. “There were other reporters and cameras there. And I asked her very respectful questions: ‘How do you think you did in the debate last night?’ and ‘How do you think you’re going to end up in the Ames Straw Poll?’ And her two campaign aides started elbowing me.”Lemon continued: “I told them, asked them not to elbow me. And then her husband Marcus started doing the same thing. And then he elbowed me into the cart. And I said, ‘You just pushed me into the cart.’ And he goes, ‘No, you did it yourself.’ 

“It was just, I don’t know, why they would choose to do that. We weren’t asking any ‘gotcha’ questions,” Lemon added.

Gee I wonder what got the Bachmann campaign so "wee'd wee'd up?"

Perhaps a reporter from Des Moines Register can clear this up:

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann was 30 minutes late to speak at her scheduled soapbox event and spoke for three of the 20 allotted minutes. 

She said she was going to shake hands, but left the makeshift stage quickly when 17-year-old Gabe Aderhold of Edina, Minn., loudly questioned her husband, Marcus, about counseling techniques at his clinic to “pray the gay away.” 

Uh oh, it looks like the unscientific, and potentially damaging, "therapy" sessions that the Bachmann's use in their "pray away the gay" clinics might be a sore spot for the campaign to deal with. Well gee if I were a reporter in Iowa I know exactly which question I would keep bringing up.  

It has been too long since Jack Cafferty has graced IM with his presence.

Cafferty asks "Are Sarah Palin and Donald Trump the answer to the country's problems?"

I think most of us could easily answer that question, but let's hear what Jack has to say about that.

My favorite portion was  as he referenced the poor performance of "The Undefeated."

"The popcorn stand at the theater took in more money."

Somehow despite Wolf Blitzer's involvement CNN manages to be exciting for once.

You can read more about this exchange here, including this rather interesting bit of information:

Morgan later used his show to press his point further. He also flashed the excerpt from his book in which he recounts how someone had warned him that his phones could be hacked.

"Apparently, if you don't change the standard security code that every phone comes with, then anyone can call your number and, if you don't answer, tap in the standard four-digit code to hear all your messages," he wrote. "I'll change mine just in case, but it makes me wonder how many public figures and celebrities are aware of this little trick.

One commentator on a British gossip website asked: "Why would he mention such a trick unless he was smugly hinting at what was taking place while he was an editor?" Another wondered if Mensch had "hit a nerve?"

Among the pair's Twitter messages, Morgan asked journalists to buy his book, saying it was a "good read."
Mensch Tweeted: "New American readers may wish to know the circumstances in which Morgan left the Mirror."

He was fired in 2004 after authorizing the publication of photographs allegedly showing British Army soldiers torturing Iraqis — but which were actually fakes.

I am not personally a fan of Piers Morgan, and have not bothered to watch the time slot that once belonged to Larry King, except for once when Bill Maher made an appearance on the program.  I liked Maher, but found Morgan insufferable.

Personally I do not find it much of a stretch to consider that Morgan might very well have been involved in the phone hacking, and it is my hope that law enforcement should investigate him to find out one way or the other.

Seems fair, right?

BTW I should admit that I AM a fan of MP Louise Mensch, and found her grilling of Rupert Murdoch while he was testifying before Parliament to be perhaps the most compelling part of what was a VERY entertaining piece of history.

Some chilling words from Bill Maher.

I tend not to agree that Palin has a chance to become President, and I am always taken aback by the fact that there are many well educated people who believe it is not an impossibility.

I will say that if there was a devastating terrorist attack, and Obama was perceived to have not reacted adequately, that all bets are off as to how terrified and stupid the American people would suddenly become in response.

In THAT climate even an idiot like Sarah Palin, who did nothing but talk about God and American exceptional-ism, might actually have a shot.

However I have great confidence that Obama WOULD react appropriately, so this scenario is unlikely to present itself.

Anybody of a different opinion?

Math hates Rick Santorum.

The other day GOP Presidential candidate, and mathematical wizard, Rick Santorum had the following back and forth with CNN's Ali Velshi:

SANTORUM: [Obama] passed a huge stimulus package that now we know, over the past two quarters, has actually cost American jobs, and that’s from the report of his own administration. They claimed in December that, uh, by the end of last year that they created 280 million jobs, and now they’re saying that they created only 240 million jobs. So look, in this, you’re talking about huge increases in spending.

ALI VELSHI: Senator, I’m going to ask you to restate that, I’ve never heard that in my life. Tell me again, what you just said.

SANTORUM: If you look at the report that came out on Friday, the President’s own economic advisers said that the jobs stimulus package actually created fewer jobs over the period of time, since the uh, since the stimulus package went in place than it did when they reported back in December. In other words, there’s 30 million less jobs as a result of the stimulus package.

VELSHI: That’s not a loss of jobs, Senator, that’s a smaller aggregation of jobs. You can’t go on a campaign, a national campaign with this kind of math Senator. It’s just incorrect…I know you’ve got a lot of interviews to do. You might want to check that math.

Here is the video of the exchange.



As ridiculous as Santorum appears during this argument with Velshi, Think Progress points out that Santorum just gave the Obama administration credit for completely solving the jobs crisis and is too ignorant to realize it.

Velshi is absolutely correct that Santorum needs to check his math, but he missed the huge problem with Santorum’s numbers. The entire American civilian labor force is about 153 million people. There are currently 13.9 million people unemployed. If the Obama administration had created 240 to 280 million jobs, the unemployment crisis would have been solved several times over, and America would have so many jobs that it would need to start employing workers from all over the world just to fill all the available positions.

So either Barack Obama is the greatest President in American history, and can solve economic problems with a wave of his hand, or Rick Santorum is an under educated douchebag.

Sadly it appears the latter is more likely.

(Though to be fair, if we give him a second term in office Obama just might prove to be the former as well. I still have hope.)