I think someone may have spiked my Diet Coke with something extra special tonight because tonight's diary prep went to 2 pages - again. Goody for us all - I hope!

So, let's Countdown for the night before payday for me!

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic.

The latest trash making the circle of the Obama-hating Klinton Kultists purports to be a letter from Brian Williams to his mother (!) about how much he and the rest of the media are in the tank for Obama.

This morning on Meet The Press, Brian Williams announced that Tom Brokaw will be the moderator of the show through the 2008 November elections. Brian added that it was an honor to host the show this morning and said that he may be back from time to time to fill in as moderator.

While it remains unclear whether Brokaw will maintain the position through the 2008 elections I'd say that the odds are probably better than 50/50 that he stays on. What are people's thoughts about Brokaw taking the position if this is true? I think its a far better option than say, Chris Matthews for the MTP format and would be content with it. While he may not be Russert I think he can maintain the tradition of hard questioning and journalistic objectivity that Tim was able to juggle for so many years.

I wanted to see how NBC-GE would treat MTP after the passing of Tim Russert. So, I watched today and was pleasantly surprised by Brian Williams skill at keeping things interesting, on topic and perhaps most important, letting people speak and make their points. I think Mr. Williams did as well as he could considering the boring, totally predictable guests he was stuck with, Joe Biden and Lindsy Graham. Both Biden and Graham stuck to typical party lines and defended their respective candidates.

To drill for oil or not drill for oil seemed to occupy most of the discussion. There of course was no mention of what's really wrong with the price of OIL and that is our Monetarist institutions blatant not so behind the scenes manipulating. I think it would shock Americans at least for a brief moment, perhaps not enough to actually wake anybody up, to realize that our own FED was complicit in supplying cash money to drive up the price of Crude OIL in these insulated, rigged Futures markets. Think Fed bail out money, when the FED started in earnest and look at the time line for the latest spike in Crude Futures. Coincidence? I'm sure most will believe so.

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Our prayers and condolences go out to the family and staff of MSNBC's Tim Russert, host of "Meet The Press." Tim's passing on June 13 shocked us, and he will be missed.  

For those of you who don't already know, NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams will fill in as host of "Meet The Press" until a permanent host is announced.

Tune in this Sunday, June 22, as he interviews former Democratic presidential candidate, and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Joe Biden, and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Topics will include the Iraq war, the U.S. economy and rising gas prices.

No one can fill Tim Russert's shoes, but as they say in show biz, "the show must go on."  We'll keep our fingers crossed that whoever MSNBC chooses to replace Mr. Russert will maintain the trademark "tough but fair" interview style.

Tim, we will miss you.  God bless.

As many of you are no doubt aware by now, Barack and Michelle Obama did a celebratory fist pound just before the victory speech in Minnesota on Tuesday. The moment struck me as funny, charming and strangely symbolic on an evening when the first African American secured the nomination from a major party.

But the fist pound has started to become a hot topic and was even brought up in last night's interview with Brian Williams. I've even seen a lot of straight up racist responses to the fist pound, in which many are responding with xenophobic paranoia and black stereotypes.

So what do you think of it? Was it a political gaffe? An affectionate moment between Barack and Michelle? I personally enjoyed it but I'm sure others will react differently.

Here is the video of the fist pound along with Brian Williams' question to Obama:

I just heard NBC's Brian Williams portray Montana, my home state for 28 years, as portrayed by him visiting the motorheads at Gallatin Motor Speedway in Bozeman , Montana.

Brian Williams has proven himself as a complete idiot. Next to no one in Montana spends their weekends doing motorsports in Montana. A scant few people do, including a few of my friends. The vast majority of Montanans are out fishing and camping not watching race cars here in Big Sky Country!

The 'who could have known' defense

I'm not even going to search if this is up - are you kidding me? After ALL that has happened the press wants to pin this on the moron?
"His (GWB) reading of the 'secret' memos "we" (as in we members of the exhalted 4th estate) were not privy to" is some sort of protection?
Are you kidding me again; to claim that none of the information from Hans Blix (who was practically begging - no one there remembers that?) that we pursue additonal ground inspections - "hell no" get the f out of there before you become our first Wilson "yah, before that Wilson?"
I am practically vomiting thinking that Bro Caw imagines himself as not complicit in this - and lets bring all the Hillary stuff up now "hey Jimmy are we gonna get a feed on the latest PR poll?" (puerto rico or public relation my lickspittle?")
For the major stations (CBS,NBC and Abc?) to claim some separation from the defining moment in our nations complete clusterf!*%& is unconscienceable.
"HIS" - my ass, you enabled, acquiesced (and for the new catch phrase of the week) appeased this monstrosity -------upon children.
I'm sorry - new at this, but it seems that Brokaw wants cover for "Scrowcroft, CIA insisted", "everyone would like to go back" ad nauseum - HE should have gone up against the "opaque world"        

In her interview with Brian Williams just before John Edwards officially endorsed Barack Obama in Michigan this evening, she spun out a torrent of points in response to being asked about her overturning the voters will in the elections, but by doing so tacitly answered that she would be quite happy to do so.

(Read the transcript below the fold)

CBS must ask two very different questions. The obvious: who should replace her? The more difficult: should we even bother?

I could not believe what I was hearing.

Yes, Churchill was basically a political nonentity in England in 1938, and yes he then emerged as the the great leader that unified England and Allies to triumph in WWII.

But............holy hyperbolic punditry.

To compare McBush's dead campaign a few months ago to now official Rethug candidate and subsequently imply his future is now as a 'great leader' to get us through this time of peril.....etc, etc..

Brian Williams added  

"I heard you make that comparison to Churchill earlier Keith, and I just loved it

"

I swear, I'm swearing off all visual and media coverage of this election.

Inner tubes for me from now on, it'll help keep my blood pressure down. (I hope).

Update  edited the title to be clear that the comparison was to McCain not Bush

Typical. So frickin' typical. Hillary always has two sets of rules: one that applies to her and one for her opponents.

After lecturing Barack Obama about denouncing and rejecting at the debate last night (Barack actually used the more appropriate term by the way) she changes her tune when she finds herself in a similar position less than 24 hours later.

She claimed at the debate that she rejected an endorsement in her New York run even though it could have been at her own peril.  I don't know about that but that's sure not what she did today.  Quotes after the fold.

Millionaires like Tim Russert and Brian Williams just don't get it.  

The media problem in this country is not Fox News or right wing talk radio.  The media problem in this country is NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, the NY Times, the Washington Post, and most so called mainstream media outlets which have the duel purpose of constantly spewing right wing hogwash while being called "liberal" by Fox News and right wing talk radio.  Make no mistake about it, there is little difference between a host on Fox News and Tim Russert or Brian Williams.  Last night's debate was just another example of this.

All night long, Russert and Williams cited unsourced or unsubstantiated rumors as if they were fact.  Russert and Williams would twist words, twist quotes, twist voting records, or inject their right wing opinions into purported questions. It was truly shameful.

Kudos to both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama for handling these smears well and both acting presidential.  The entire transcript can be seen here.  Examples follow.

I'm under no illusions this it will have a tremendous impact, but I feel that something has to be done to fight back against the horrendous performance of "Anchors" and "Journalists" Tim Russert and Brian Williams.  

You may be dreading yet another DKos piece on the AP's scurrilous Obama flag lapel pin story, but I'd like to offer my suggestion as to how Obama can use this to his advantage. There's a debate later tonight, and it seems to me that Tim Russert, being who he is, could scarcely resist the temptation to ask Obama about this story. While Obama has given a perfectly fine, intelligent response, I think he can do more with it.