On her show tonight, Maddow made a mistake with regards to Alex Castellanos and their joint appearance on Meet the Press. With her usual due diligence, Maddow demonstrated that women, on average, only make 77% of the pay that men do. When Castellanos disputed Maddow's facts, Maddow attributed his obtuseness on this issue with "living in Republican World." In other words, poor Castellanos is living in a fantasy land; therefore, he is going to make stupid assertions.
I'm not buying it. I think that there is another explanation for Castellanos boorish behavior and statements, besides being a sexist. I think Castellanos was LYING in order to cover for the Republican Party's War on Women.
Don't take my word for it. Look at Castellanos resume for his truth telling abilities:
* Republican media consultant and strategist.
* Brags about being the "father of the attack ad."
* Designed the infamous "white hands" ad for U.S. Senator Jesse Helms of NC.
* Worked for George W. Bush's 2004 campaign.
* Worked for Mitt Romney's presidential campaign in 2008.
* Crisis consultant to BP Oil during that little mishap in the Gulf of Mexico.
The first point is axiomatic - Republican media consultant = liar. OK. Some, like Maddow, would consider that a cheap shot. But "father of the attack ad"? I think Maddow with her political science background would admit that attack ads can be misleading. Look at the ad Castellanos did for Jesse Helms.
And we all know how much of a straight shooter George W. Bush was.
But Castellanos loves us some Mitt Romney. Given that Maddow has shown that Romney tells outrageous lies, why would she give any credence to a man that has worked for Romney? If you are a so called "honest" person working for Romney, sooner or later you are going to have to lie for Romney. It is that simple.
Finally, there is the BP management consultant gig. Maddow covered this issue relentlessly, and she still hits Washington on not policing the oil industry. But here is Castellanos showing up on CNN as a political analyst while taking money from BP.
Given all of the above facts, I'm inclined to believe that Alex Castellanos is not living in some alternate universe. Castellanos is paid to lie, and if he has to cherry pick data and flat out lie on national TV, so be it.
Republican War on Women? He knows damn well there is one. Remember, this is a man who knows how to stoke white conservative resentment.
I'm sure that Maddow and her producers don't want to make this personal or delve into the "heart" of a so called pundit. In fact, Maddow may be playing nice so she can invite Castellanos on her show to rebut her. Frankly, I see nothing to be gained by that. It is not like we are going to discern any great truths by listening to Castellanos.