CNN's Candy Crowley, in her hour-long "Broken Government" special tonight featuring the NC-11 Congressional race, faithfully recited every Republican talking point and then made Democrats argue first why the talking points were correct then argue why they were wrong. Crowley's narrative was based on the fiction of a strong Republican party. Using RNC language and playing Charles Taylor's advertisements, Crowley painted the Democrats as weak on national security and as utterly out-of-touch with rural America. When Crowley wasn't wondering about Democrats' weaknesses with rural voters, she was wondering about whether liberal, urban voters will be turned off by Shuler's rural values. Even when showing Shuler's grassroots, door-to-door campaigning, Crowley trumpeted the greatness of Republican party efforts to do the same.
She used our beloved Asheville chapter of Drinking Liberally to support her anti-Democrat narrative by choosing only those quotes that underscore her preconceived notions. EM, Photoshop Guru, MyGothLaundry - It was great to see you on CNN, and it was great to see you speaking genuinely. What sucked was seeing Candy Crowley edit out anything that didn't fit her screenplay.
The good news is that Heath Shuler came across, despite Crowley's tilted editorializing, as a passionate, intelligent, values-driven contender. And Taylor? He wouldn't talk to her. He's completely MIA. And without Taylor on the program, Crowley must have decided it was up to her to carry the Republican banner. The program was a hit piece on Democrats in which Shuler comes out as a Democrat who can win.