Enough with the Softball Questions; It's Time We Start Really Questioning Cecile Richards

After watching Andrea Mitchell’s softball interview with Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood, I was hoping Andrea Mitchell, or anyone, would ask her the following questions:

With more than 300,000 abortions per year and only about 1,800 adoption referrals per year, does Planned Parenthood provide equal counseling regarding both options for women?  Which option provides more revenue and donations for Planned Parenthood?  Is this what Cecile Richards means when she says “the facts are on our side”?

Many couples endure long waiting lists to adopt an adopted child and will assist birth mothers.  How is this addressed with pregnant women at Planned Parenthood?  Does this fulfill Cecile Richards’ statement that Planned Parenthood “helps women plan their family”?

Does harvesting fetal tissue or organs make the abortion less safe or create more discomfort by virtue of possibly increased time in doing the harvesting procedure or different harvesting techniques?

When fetal tissue or organs are harvested with consent, can the consent be given by minors without parental, guardian or judge approval?  Can a minor alone agree to a potentially riskier abortion procedure that involves harvesting organs?

Do the companies purchasing the fetal tissue and organs from Planned Parenthood make financial donations to Planned Parenthood?

Senator Claire McCaskill stated on the “Morning Joe” show that they “have already cleared Planned Parenthood in an investigation in Indiana.”  Were they cleared on all the issues I have raised here?

Via: CNS News

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Iran Deal: Andrea Mitchell's Mushy Softball to Kerry About Vietnam

Andrea Mitchell had the chance to ask John Kerry, on live national TV, any question she wanted about the Iran deal. She could, for example, have confronted him over the lifting of the conventional arms and ballistic missile embargoes that were included as a nice little parting gift to Iran. Instead, in a moment of media malpractice, Mitchell lobbed up the mushiest of softballs on today's Morning Joe, asking Kerry "what that moment meant to you" when at the final negotiation meeting, he reminisced about going to Vietnam as a 22-year old "and that you never wanted to go to war without having exhausted the diplomacy."  A shame Andrea and John weren't in the same room so they could have exchanged a heartfelt hug.

Note that Kerry, so diplomatic with his Iranians friends, didn't hesitate in the course of responding to take a gratuitous swipe at George W. Bush regarding Iraq.

ANDREA MITCHELL:  Mr. Secretary, there were so many ups and downs, emotional roller coaster and the 18. 19 days were. There are reports that at that final meeting on Tuesday of all the ministers, they went around the table. And when they came you to, you talked about being a 22-year old going to Vietnam and that you never wanted to go to war without having exhausted the diplomacy. Can you speak to that, to what that moment meant to you? 

JOHN KERRY: Andrea, I believe that the alternative to what we are trying to do here is conflict. If we are not able to hold on to this, then the Iranians will say, well, the United States can't be trusted. You can't negotiate with the United States. And they will feel free to go forward with their program. I can hear everybody clamoring. So what you are going to do now? If they start to enrich, you know that every presidential candidate appearing on your show WILL say it's time for President Obama to show how tough he is and bomb there. There will be no alternative and the president said it the other day. This is a choice between diplomatic solution and war. And military action.

And so, yes, I did talk about the lesson I learned, before you sebd people off to put their lives on the line, you need to exhaust all of the remedies available you to. George Bush promised that there would be a last resort of war in Iraq. And obviously it didn't turn out that way. People are bitter about that. So I really believe that is an imperative of diplomacy and public life and I vowed when I came back and opposed the war that if I ever had an opportunity to be in a position of responsibility, I would fight for that principle.

Via: Newsbusters

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FIORINA: ‘TITLES ARE JUST TITLES,’ HILLARY’S ‘TRACK RECORD’ IS ME COLLAPSE AND THE RUSSIAN RESET

Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina argued that “titles are just titles” and Hillary Clinton’s “track record” includes the collapse of the Middle East and the failed Russian reset on Wednesday’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports” on MSNBC.

Fiorina said, “I come from a world where titles are just titles, and talk is just talk. It’s only in politics where titles and words mean a lot. In the rest of the world, it’s actually about what have you done, actions speak louder than words. People want to know are your words and your actions consistent and are they consistent over time. And so, I think when 82% of the American people now believe that there is a professional political class more interested in preserving its own power and privilege than it is in serving the American people, people expect basic questions to be asked of anyone running for president. ‘What have you done, are you trustworthy, are you transparent, will you answer questions?'”

Fiorina said that while Hillary Clinton has said some “wonderful things” as Secretary of State, “it’s also true that as Secretary of State she took women’s rights and human rights off the table for discussion with China. It’s also true as Secretary of State that she called Bashar al-Assad a positive reformer. It’s also true that in 2011, when she was Secretary of State, she said that Iraq was a free, stable, sovereign nation. And now we have a nation falling apart, Iranian influence growing, ISIS growing. It’s true that she said that she could reset our Russia — our relationship with Russia and Vladimir Putin is on the march. So, I think all of those things I just named go fundamentally to what is her track record.”

After host Andrea Mitchell stated, “You could also argue that a lot of Republicans in the White House and in Congress supported those policies –” Fiorina responded, “absolutely, that’s right. And by the way, every single Republican candidate has been asked about their vote for the war in Iraq. The one person who’s not been asked  that question, because she won’t answer the question is Hillary Clinton. One person who was on the job in 2011, when Iraq started to fall apart, was not the Republican nominees or — candidates for president, it’s Hillary Clinton. she hasn’t been asked yet. What would she do now in Iraq?”

Via: Breitbart

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Wasserman Schultz: Millennials Will Gradually Embrace Obamacare And It Will Be "Incredible"

ANDREA MITCHELL: Congresswoman, what about this poll? It shows that, first of all, among the millennials, many of them think that it will be more expensive. Only 13% say they will definitely enroll, 16% will probably, 41% are split. They're also concerned about costs. We see in this poll that 40% think the care will be worse, 37% think care will be the same, 18% think it will be better. Don't we have to -- doesn't the White House have to get more support from these young people in order to make the risk pool work effectively?

REP. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (D-FL), DNC CHAIR: Well, over the next weeks and months, the White House as well as Democratic members of Congress and folks across the administration are going to be continuing to get the word out about the opportunity to sign up for coverage, the benefits of signing up for coverage. 

You know, for millennials, young adults in particular, because they have an opportunity to stay on their parents' insurance until they're 26 years old, many of them need to be aware they can do that. That's going to give them comprehensive coverage that so many of them don't have now. 

And the focus needs to be on making sure that we can get young people who are often healthier into the pool so that it lowers the overall cost of health insurance. Whether it's making sure they get access to preventive care like mammograms without a co-pay or deductible or making sure -- or a well-woman visit without a co-pay or deductible, or birth control for free so they can plan their families in the way they want to. That's why I think gradually you'll have millennials fully embrace the Affordable Care Act, and it's going to be really an incredible opportunity.

Via: Real Clear Politics
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MOTHER OF SANDY HOOK VICTIM: BACKGROUND CHECKS WOULDN'T HAVE PREVENTED TRAGEDY

Nicole Hockley, whose child was tragically murdered at Sandy Hook last year, said that background checks would not have prevented shooter Adam Lanza from getting the guns he used to carry out the atrocities. She also stated that the 911 tapes from that day should not be released. 

Appearing on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports on Tuesday, Hockley and Mitchell both conceded tha background checks would not have prevented Lanza's mother from purchasing the guns Lanza eventually used at Sandy Hook. Hockley said Lanza's mother should have been more responsible with her guns and noted that Lanza's mental illness made the situation a "perfect storm" for the tragedy. 

Hockley, who lobbied for more gun control legislation after the Sandy Hook tragedy, said it was "disappointing" that Congress could not pass gun control legislation that called for more background checks and said gun control advocates are now committed "to make further changes happen" by "changing the hearts and minds" of those in their communities. She said legislation is not the only answer to making "further changes" happen regarding gun control. 

She also said the ban on plastic guns, which will expire on December 9, should stay in place. She also hoped the Sandy Hook families would protect their children from hearing the 911 tapes that will be released on Wednesday.

Via: Breitbart

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Alan Greenspan: What Went Wrong

Alan Greenspan Melissa Golden for The Wall Street Journal, Grooming by Melissa Schwartz Jones

Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve, goes to a lot of parties. He and his wife, the TV journalist Andrea Mitchell, "sort of get invited everywhere," he says, sitting in front of the long bay window in his office on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C. Lately, though, cocktails and dinners seem to have guest lists drawn almost exclusively from one political party or the other. "It used to be a ritualistic 50-50 at parties—the doyennes of culture and partying were very strict about bipartisanship," he adds. "That doesn't exist anymore."

In his new book "The Map and the Territory," to be released on Tuesday, Mr. Greenspan, 87, goes on a hunt for what has gone wrong in American politics and in the U.S. economy. He doesn't blame the current administration for today's partisan divide. The culprit? "It's the benefits," he says, pointing to the disagreements between Republicans and Democrats over how to deal with the growth of entitlements.

In the book, he also ponders why the Fed failed to predict the financial crisis, where he himself went wrong and how that discovery has completely changed his worldview.

Mr. Greenspan's biggest revelation came one day about a year ago when he was playing with gross domestic savings numbers. What he found, to his surprise and initial skepticism, was that an increase in entitlements has closely corresponded to a decline in the country's savings. "We had this extraordinary increase in benefits, with each party trying to outbid the other," he says. "That practice has been eroding the country's flow of savings that's so critical in financing our capital investment." The decline in savings has been partly offset by borrowing from abroad, which brings us to our current foreign debt: "$5 trillion and counting," he says.

Via: WSJ

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Congressman and Former MTV Star Schools Andrea Mitchell on ObamaCare, Leaves Her Speechless

In a heated Obamacare discussion today, Congressman Sean Duffy turned the tables on MSNBC anchor Andrea Mitchell about the ongoing government shutdown.

Mitchell was left virtually speechless in the exchange.

The Republican lawmaker from Wisconsin was an MTV Real World cast member before he became a district attorney and subsequently elected to Congress. He is married to another Real World alum, Rachel Campos.

The interview got its start with Mitchell raising the disturbing issue that the Pentagon, as it stands now, won’t be sending benefits to the families of brave soldiers who died in battle in Afghanistan during the government shutdown.

According to AP, “The Pentagon typically pays out $100,000 within three days of a soldier’s death. But it says the shutdown means there is no authority now to pay the money.”

Duffy said the House will pass a bill tomorrow that will reauthorize the continuance of those payments to the families who have lost loved ones in combat. Mitchell criticized piecemeal spending bills of this kind, and Duffy agreed with her, but pointed out that President Obama has announced that he won’t negotiate an end to the impasse between the House and the Senate. Mitchell pushed back, claiming the GOP was making a non-negotiable demand about Obamacare, a.k.a. the Affordable Care Act.

Via: The Inquisitr

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The World According to Andrea Mitchell

In an incident ignored by the media, race-baiter extraordinaire Andrea Mitchell and other big-name journalists candidly exposed their bigotry and racial prejudices at a friendly forum in the nation's capital last year.

In an unusually candid conversation, mainstream media stars Mitchell, David Gregory, and Dana Milbank let loose in an orgy of Caucasian self-flagellation during a panel discussion titled, "Media: Race & Politics - The Impact of Race in Politics 2012," at the National Action Network's conference in Washington, D.C.  The left-wing street thug group is headed by none other than Jew-hating homophobe and Obama ally Al Sharpton.

Now's a good time to bring this up as Mitchell, one of the biggest Obama supplicants on the boob tube, improbably receives the National Press Club's highest honor, the Fourth Estate Award, at a gala banquet tonight in the capital city.  Mitchell is receiving the prize even though it is designated for "a journalist who has made significant contributions to the field through a lifetime of excellence."

Mitchell is NBC's Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and host of MSNBC's "Andrea Mitchell Reports."

The panel discussion, which took place April 13, 2012, ought to be old news, but it didn't make the news at all: no media outlets got around to reporting it at the time.  Presumably they weren't interested because they agreed with the speakers and didn't consider their comments controversial.  Of course, April 13 last year was two days after George Zimmerman was chargedwith second-degree murder in the death of Trayvon Martin.  (Martin's mourning parents made an appearance at the conference.)

Via: American Thinker

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[VIDEO] ANDREA MITCHELL, CHUCK TODD: WH 'WISHES THEY HAD YESTERDAY BACK'

   

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MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell and NBC News Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd discuss the White House's decission to go ahead with the President's partisan speech while the Navy Yard was still an active crime scene...Via: BreitbartContinue Reading....

Dem Senator to MSNBC: ‘We Aren’t Trusting Assad, We’re Trusting the Russians’

Appearing on MSNBC with Andrea Mitchell, Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and Joe Manchin(D-WV) explained their opposition to PresidentBarack Obama’s push for intervention in the Syrian civil war. They expressed their hope that the so-called Russian solution may avert a crisis. When pressed about the lack of enforceability or accountability of the Russian plan, Heitkamp said that the U.S. was not trusting Syrian PresidentBashar al-Assad to make good on his word. “We’re trusting the Russians,” she explained. 

“Why would you trust Assad,” Mitchell asked Heitkamp. “Assad has, until this initiative, denied there was an attack, denied he was part of it, denied he has chemical weapons. Why on earth would we trust this man to tell us he’s turned them all over to international monitoring and that he is signing a treaty that he’s never redesigned?”

“We’re not trusting Assad,” Heitkamp explained. “We’re trusting the Russians to come to the table…”

“Whoa,” Mitchell interjected. “You’re trusting the Russians?”

RELATED: CNN’s Arwa Damon: Russian Solution to Syria Crisis ‘Not Realistic’ or ‘Executable’

“We’re trusting Russia’s intent at this point to actually deliver the right set of circumstances,” Heitkamp clarified.

Manchin stepped in and clarified that the U.S. does not have a trusting relationship with Moscow, but the international community should back up the Russian proposal.

Heitkamp further explained that she does not believe “we should trust what anyone says,” but that “we should trust what they do.”

Watch the clip below via MSNBC:

Via: Mediaite.Com

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CONGRESSMAN: OBAMA'S TAX INCREASES FUND GOVERNMENT FOR EIGHT DAYS

President Barack Obama has proposed raising taxes on the rich to put America's fiscal house in order, but critics say federal spending is so massive that the wealthy don't have enough money to cover the nation's unprecedented debt.

In an interview with MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell, Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) said President Barack Obama's plan to raise taxes on the wealthy would only generate enough revenue to fund the federal government for eight days.

"The president’s plan to increase taxes on the upper two percent covers the spending by this federal government not for eight years, not for eight months, not for eight weeks but for eight days. Eight days only," said Mr. Price. "It’s not a real solution. So, again, I’m puzzled by an administration that seems to be more interested in raising tax rates than in gaining economic vitality."

The problem is that the rich don't have enough money to put so much as a dent in America's $16 trillion national debt. "If the IRS grabbed 100 percent of income over $1 million, the take would be just $616 billion," writes John Stossel. "That’s only a third of this year’s deficit. Our national debt would continue to explode."

Still, Mr. Obama's supporters persist in proposing tax hikes on the wealthy. On Sunday, billionaire Warren Buffett proposed a minimum tax for America's top earners. "We need Congress, right now, to enact a minimum tax on high incomes. I would suggest 30 percent of taxable income between $1 million and $10 million, and 35 percent on amounts above that."

There's just one problem with such an approach, says author Mark Steyn:

If you took every single penny that Warren Buffett has, it'd pay for 4-1/2 days of the US government. This tax-the-rich won't work. The problem here is the government is way bigger than even the capacity of the rich to sustain it. The Buffett Rule would raise $3.2 billion a year, and take 514 years just to pay off Obama's 2011 budget deficit.

Indeed, even Mr. Buffett seems to concede that he and the president's "soak the rich" proposals are more an act of political theater designed to generate an emotional response than serious solutions: Mr. Buffett told Matt Lauer he believes his proposal would boost the "morale of the middle class." 

Via: Breitbart

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MSNBC Host 'Lucky' to Get Paid Half as Much as Her Male Co-Host

This morning, as MSNBC's Morning Joe came to an end, co-host Mika Brzezinski had some praise for colleagues and the company she works for. "We've been talking a lot this week about women and equal pay and all these issues," she said. "I have to say, in all seriousness, I'm very lucky to be working with you [co-host Joe Scarborough] and for a company [MSNBC] who has actually dealt with this problem transparently."

Which basically amounts to Brzezinski saying that she is "lucky" to get paid half as much as Joe Scarborough.

After all, according to the Daily Beast (whose editor, Tina Brown, is a frequent guest on the show), Scarborough makes a cool $4 million per year, while Brzezinski's salary is half as much, coming in at $2 million per year.

Brzezinski's colleague Andrea Mitchell made this point on air yesterday--that pay disparity exists at MSNBC. Politico reports:

During an interview Thursday, Mitt Romney senior adviser Barbara Comstock told Andrea Mitchell that “we know here at MSNBC the guys get paid more" — and the MSNBC host replied, “We certainly do.”

For Brzezinski's part, it's more than a bit odd that she would play down the problems at MSNBC now.

After all, her public dispute with MSNBC about pay equity has been well known. In fact, she's made it herself on her own show.

"We make less than our male counterparts," said Brzezinski last year. "I found out on this show that I made a lot less than Joe. 14 times less."

Via: Weekly Standard

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So Helpful! Media offers questions, advice to top Obama campaign strategist

'DEVOID OF HONESTY': Obama campaign relaunches character attack on Romney

VIDEO: Obama: Last night was not the 'real Mitt Romney'

DNC: Romney wants to 'go back to war in Iraq ... Al Gore blames altitude

LIE DETECTOR TEST: Inconclusive ... RNC ad attacks Obama's 'smirk'

Surrounded by whooping Republicans and suddenly unfavorable data, chief Obama campaign strategist David Axelrod called in the media cavalry today.

And several reporters on the 11:15 a.m. phone conference promptly offered questions that bordered on advice.

“Axe, I’m not sure you can hear me, David,” said NBC’s Andrea Mitchell, when she was invited to ask a question Oct. 4.

“I’m wondering whether the president, whether you have rethought the strategy of not bringing up either women’s issues, or the 47 percent or some of the other issues that have worked so well for you in your campaign advertising and in your stump speech?”

“I understand that there are a lot — particularly our supporters … who would have liked him to have, you know, entered into the record Bain, the tax returns and certainly the 47 percent” issues, Axelrod replied.

Early in the conference, “Axe” urged the reporters to investigate Romney’s statements during his win at the Denver debate against President Barack Obama.

“We are going to hold Gov. Romney accountable for the things he said last night … as I hope you will make him justify those claims, because we need a honest and a genuine and realistic plan to move forward as a country … not just a bunch of lines designed to get you through a debate.”

Via: Daily Caller

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