"Enormous Waste" to Not Use Clinton; "Top Ten" Bias?; Rosie's Rosy Embrace of Gore; Bush's Commercial Break Activity

1) ABC and CBS Friday night acknowledged Clinton's liability to Gore, but ABC's Terry Moran highlighted how "some Democrats feel Clinton, a superb campaigner, could help Gore." CBS's John Roberts warned: "For some Democratic strategists, it's an enormous waste of talent that could jeopardize Gore's chances."

2) Bias in picking which Letterman "Top Ten" items to showcase? ABC's Diane Sawyer was upset by Bush's "Give Oval Office one heck of a scrubbing." ABC's GMA and CBS's The Early Show both showcased the most derogatory entry about Bush while CBS had played only positive ones about Gore and ABC ran a balanced selection from Gore's list.

3) "I hope to see you in the White House come November," exclaimed Rosie O'Donnell at the end a laudatory interview of Al Gore in which she posed only questions which matched his agenda: "How are you going to continue to help lower-income families afford quality child care?" and "What rights could be at risk" from Supreme Court retirements? She was baffled by why Clinton's behavior "sort of tarnished you when it has nothing to do with you?"

4) On Friday night Letterman showed what odd thing Bush did with his glasses during a commercial break.

     >>> MRC on public radio Monday. Tim Graham, Director of Media Analysis at the MRC, will appear as part of a panel of guests on Monday's Diane Rehm Show to discuss campaign coverage. Her Washington, DC-based show airs on WAMU-FM (88.5) from 10am to noon and on public radio stations around the country at various times. Graham will appear during the first hour. For a list of stations which carry the show, but without the air times, go to:
    http://www.wamu.org/dr/affils.html
The Diane Rehm Show Web page: http://www.wamu.org/dr/index.html <<<

Correction: The October 19 CyberAlert confused the whole point about how the "Dr. Laura" character remained sitting when the President on The West Wing entered the room. It stated: "'President Bartlet' walked into the large room where most people were standing and talking, but 'Dr. Jena Jacobs' who was played by a blond women prettier and younger than the real Dr. Laura (though with the same hair style), remained standing, the relevance of which you'll soon see." Actually, she remained sitting. The relevance was that Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen, ended his diatribe against her: "One last thing. While you may be mistaking this for your monthly meeting of the ignorant tight-ass club, in this building when the President stands, nobody sits."
To watch a RealPlayer clip of this scene, go to:
http://archive.mrc.org/cyberalerts/2000/cyb20001019.asp#7

Clarification: George Bush and Al Gore did tape on Thursday spots for NBC's Saturday Night Live, as noted in an October 19 CyberAlert Special. Friday's USA Today, however, reported the taping was not for tonight but for a special to air on November 5, the Sunday night before the election.

 1

Not utilizing Clinton, "an enormous waste of talent." The rare appearance of Bill Clinton and Gore together Friday for the Mel Carnahan memorial service combined with a New York Times story on how Clinton feels slighted by the Gore campaign, led to full stories Friday night, October 20, on the three broadcast networks.

    All three included in their stories the soundbite of Clinton saying he "almost gagged" at how Bush answered a debate question. ABC and CBS acknowledged Clinton's liability, but stressed how his popularity could help Gore. ABC's Terry Moran highlighted how "some Democrats feel Clinton, a superb campaigner, could help Gore and the President himself is clearly raring to go." CBS's Dan Rather introduced a story by stressing the opposite of reality: "Vice President Al Gore said today he quote, 'welcomes' President Clinton's help in the final days of the campaign." John Roberts warned of not employing Clinton: "For some Democratic strategists, it's an enormous waste of talent that could jeopardize Gore's chances."

    Only NBC's Claire Shipman explicitly laid out the numbers behind the Gore separation strategy: "Polls tell the Gore team that Clinton is still liability for the Vice President, quote 'ice on their wings' on the issue of trustworthiness, especially with undecided voters."

    -- ABC's World News Tonight. Terry Moran marveled at how the Carnahan service brought Clinton and Gore together for the first time since the "passing of the torch" rally in Michigan during the Democratic convention. Moran reported:
    "Gore officials say there will be no more joint appearances before election day and the President will not be asked to hit the trail on his own for the Vice President because Gore and his strategists have decided that Bill Clinton could hurt them more than help them. But some Democrats feel Clinton, a superb campaigner, could help Gore and the President himself is clearly raring to go as he demonstrated yesterday when he attacked Governor Bush after Tuesday's debate."
    Clinton: "I almost gagged when I heard that answer on the patients' bill of rights in Texas. Could you believe that?"

    Moran asserted Clinton has volunteered to help Gore, "but the Vice President, speaking to reporters on Air Force II, made it clear he doesn't want the President's help."
    Gore: "This is a campaign that I am running on my own and as I've said on previous occasions I am who I am. I'm running in my own right with my own vision about the future of our country."
    Moran concluded: "And so for better or worse this political marriage, forged on a merry bus tour eight years ago, is over. The question is: Will voters embrace Al Gore on his own?"

    ABC followed up with just over two minutes worth of clips of Bush and Gore jokes told during Thursday night's Al Smith dinner, an event ignored by CBS and NBC. Peter Jennings set up the highlight reel: "Which brings us to the question asked in every presidential campaign: Will Americans vote for a man they like or an unlikeable man whom they prefer on the issues? And how much of a difference does a sense of humor make?"

    -- CBS Evening News. Dan Rather introduced CBS's campaign story of the day with a backward lead: "Vice President Al Gore said today he quote 'welcomes' President Clinton's help in the final days of the campaign. So what's going on here? CBS's John Roberts reports the context and why this was even raised as a question."

    John Roberts stressed Clinton's worthiness: "With polls tilting toward George W. Bush, the Democrats, desperate for a breakout, have called in their big gun."
    Clinton: "Our strategy should be clarify the issues and we'll win big."
    Roberts acknowledged: "But wary of scandals and his tendency to blow the Vice President out of the headlines, the Gore campaign has insisted that Mr. Clinton be relegated to a supporting role -- to get out the vote and raise money. No stump speeches and no joint appearances."
    Gore: "This is a campaign that I am running on my own and as I've said on previous occasions, I am who I am."
    Roberts: "The President denied widespread reports that he was hurt not to be more involved."
    Clinton: "I can tell you categorically that's not true."

    Roberts then outlined the risk Gore is taking by not linking himself to Clinton: "For some Democratic strategists, it's an enormous waste of talent that could jeopardize Gore's chances."
    Bob Beckel: "What Clinton can do is turn out the Democratic base by attacking George Bush. Clinton can do that and Gore can't."
    Roberts: "As he did yesterday, hammering Bush on a statement from the last debate."
    Clinton: "I almost gagged when I heard that answer on the patients' bill of rights in Texas. Could you believe that? Here's a guy takes credit for a bill that he vetoed."

    Sort of like signing a welfare reform bill you oppose so you can get the credit and then undermine it later?

    Roberts picked up: "That criticism, aides say, was also aimed at the Vice President. Mr. Clinton is frustrated that Gore has let the Governor off easy, failed to defend the record and articulate the differences between himself and Bush."
    Beckel: "Clinton believes Al Gore can win this race. But Clinton needs to be a part of that."

    Roberts concluded: "Republicans are already crowing that Al Gore can't win this on his own and even a former Clinton strategist says that bringing in the big man 'trivializes' the Vice President by making Gore look like the younger brother, just when he's emerged from the shadow."

    -- NBC Nightly News. Tom Brokaw briefly noted how the latest MSNBC/Reuters tracking poll found a tie at 44 percent each for Bush and Gore.

    Claire Shipman reported: "There's word tonight that in the final days of this cliffhanger campaign, Bill Clinton is feeling underutilized. And far from denying it, the Gore campaign says it wants him to keep his distance."

    After showing them together at the St. Louis airport, asserting that Clinton denied he's feeling left out, and running a soundbite of Gore saying he's running on his own, over video of Gore at the Democratic convention, Shipman intoned: "Gore aides say their campaign polling shows voters prefer to see him like this."
    Gore at convention: "I stand here tonight as my own man."

    Shipman suggested Clinton can help at boosting get-out-the-vote rallies without Gore as "polls tell the Gore team that Clinton is still liability for the Vice President, quote 'ice on their wings' on the issue of trustworthiness, especially with undecided voters."

    A third Clinton term? FNC's Special Report with Brit Hume on Friday delivered evidence of why Gore wants Clinton far away from him. Anchor Tony Snow read the answer to a Fox News/Opinion Dynamics question: "Would you want a third Clinton term?" Yes, replied just 25 percent; no said an overwhelming 73 percent.

2

Bias in picking which Letterman "Top Ten" items to showcase? On Friday's Today David Gregory highlighted how one of George Bush's "Top Ten Changes I'll Make in the Whiter House," included: "Give Oval Office one heck of a scrubbing." But CBS's The Early Show didn't play that anti-Clinton one and on ABC's Good Morning America Antonio Mora referred to it well into the show, but Diane Sawyer scolded him for mentioning it.

    A comparison of which entries ABC and CBS chose to highlight the mornings after the Gore and Bush appearances on Letterman found both shows showcased the most derogatory one about Bush while CBS played only positive ones about Gore and ABC ran a balanced selection from Gore's list.

    -- CBS's The Early Show on Friday ran only a clip of Bush reading a single self-derogatory entry: "Make sure the White House library has lots of books with big print and pictures."

    But the morning after Gore's Letterman appearance, The Early Show played clips of Gore reading two self-promotional items from his "Top Ten Rejected Gore-Lieberman Campaign Slogans." Viewers saw Gore announce, "With Lieberman on the ticket you get all kinds of fun new days off" and "We know when the microphone is on." Bill Plante added on the September 15 show: "And number one, quote, he'd be twice as cool as that President guy on the West Wing."

    -- ABC's Good Morning America. Back in September GMA opened with Gore's self-deprecating entry ("Remember, America: I Gave You The Internet, And I Can Take It Away. Think About It") and in a segment with George Stephanopoulos, played Gore announcing one unfavorable and two favorable to him: "Vote For Me Or I'll Come To Your Home And Explain My 191-Page Economic Plan To You In Excruciating Detail"; "With Lieberman on the Ticket, You Get All Kinds of Fun New Days Off" and "I'll Be Twice As Cool As That President Guy on 'The West Wing.'"

    Five weeks later, however, GMA led at 7am, straight from the station ID, with Bush announcing the one about getting books with big pictures. GMA later showed Bush reading this one: "Will not get sick on Japanese leaders like other President Bushes I know."

    At about 7:50am, after running some clips of Bush and Gore jokes at the Al Smith dinner, with some trepidation, news reader Antonio Mora raised the anti-Clinton item in Bush's Top Ten: "Bush did a Top Ten List yesterday on Letterman also, and my favorite, I don't know if I can say this on morning television, it's about what Top Ten things he'd do when he became President, and he said he'd give the Oval Office a very good scrubbing. Sorry, Diane, couldn't resist."
    Jack Ford: "I don't know if you can say that or not."
    Diane Sawyer, feigning outrage: "I never met these people. I just walked in this morning."

    For the record, here are the complete lists from which networks producers had to select:

    -- George Bush's October 19 "Top Ten Changes I'll Make in the White House."

10. To save taxpayer dollars, calls to winning sports teams will be collect
9. New rule at cabinet meetings -- you can't talk until you ride the mechanical bull
8. Goodbye boring presidential radio address -- hello "Dick Cheney Spins the Hits of the 80's, 90's and Today"
7. Make sure the White House library has lots of books with big print and pictures
6. Just for fun, issue executive order commanding my brother Jeb to wash my car
5. First day in office my mother's face goes up on Mount Rushmore
4. Look into hiring a security guard for our nuclear secrets
3. Will not get sick on Japanese leaders like other President Bushes I know
2. Give Oval Office one heck of a scrubbing
1. Tax relief for all Americans -- except smart aleck talk show hosts

    -- Al Gore's September 14 "Top Ten Rejected Gore-Lieberman Campaign Slogans."

10. "Vote For Me Or I'll Come To Your Home And Explain My 191-Page Economic Plan To You In Excruciating Detail"
9. "Remember, America: I Gave You The Internet, And I Can Take It Away. Think About It"
8. "Your Vote Automatically Enters You In Drawing For The 123 Billion-Dollar Budget Surplus"
7. "With Lieberman On The Ticket, You Get All Kinds Of Fun New Days Off"
6. "We Know When The Microphone Is On"
5. "Vote For Me, And I Will Take Whatever Steps Necessary To Outlaw The Term, 'Whazzzup!'"
4. "Gore/Lieberman -- You Don't Have To Worry About Pork Barrel Politics"
3. "You'll Thank Us In Four Years When The Escalator To The Moon Is Finished"
2. "If I Can Handle Letterman, I Can Handle Saddam Hussein"
1. "I'll Be Twice As Cool As That President Guy On 'The West Wing'"

    For Letterman's Top Ten archive, go to:
http://www.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/topten/archive.shtml

    To watch a RealPlayer clip of how David Letterman badgered Bush politically, something he did not do to Gore, go to the October 19 CyberAlert item about Bush's appearance where MRC Webmaster Andy Szul has added a video:
http://archive.mrc.org/cyberalerts/2000/cyb20001020.asp#3

3

Rosie's rosy embrace of Gore. Rosie O'Donnell not only tossed softball questions to Al Gore which matched his political agenda, during his Friday appearance on her Warner Brothers-produced daytime TV talk show she complimented and endorsed his answers. Gore could not have dreamed of a more amiable showcase.

    O'Donnell didn't hide her hope he wins as she introduced him on the October 20 program:
    "With the election less than three weeks away, I'm delighted that our first guest decided to pay us a visit. He's received the support of the American Federation of Teachers, the National Association of Police Organizations, the AFL-CIO, Jim and Sarah Brady, the Sierra Club, and me."

    At the end of the first segment, which mainly consisted of small talk about Gore's family, O'Donnell trumpeted the Clinton-Gore record: "A lot has been said about what's been done in the last eight years. A lot of good if you ask me."

    For the next two segments, interspersed with her own liberal comments, such as denouncing school vouchers, O'Donnell posed questions to Gore selected from ones submitted on her Web site and by fax. Every inquiry matched a Gore agenda point. Amongst her topics: "How to you plan to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors?"; "How are you going to continue to help lower-income families afford quality child care?" and "What rights could be at risk" from Supreme Court retirements?

    The only thing approaching a negative question was about Clinton's behavior, but O'Donnell only wanted to know why it "sort of tarnished you when it has nothing to do with you?"

    MRC intern Ken Shepherd painstakingly went through Gore's appearance to take down excerpts of O'Donnell's admiring approach:

    -- "Here's question number one: 'As a parent, I'm concerned about violence my kids are exposed to on TV and movies and video games and the Internet. What do you propose to be done to protect kids from these dangerous influences?'"

    After Gore claimed he's taken a tough line with a crackdown on marketing to kids, O'Donnell observed: "You know, when I was a kid, it seemed that all the violent shows or the cop shows had to be on after 10 o'clock. So that, you know, if you were up then, if you were a kid, you shouldn't be up then, that's bad parenting. But, you know, it's not like a kid can come home from school and see violence on TV like they can now, which is sad."
    Gore: "...some kids have nightmares when they see violent stuff. Some kids are vulnerable to acting out and imitating what they've seen."
    O'Donnell: "Well, worse, they're desensitized and they think it's no big deal to bring a gun to school or what not."
    Gore: "Yeah!"

    -- O'Donnell: "Here's another question for ya, 'How to you plan to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors?' We seem to get that question a lot."

    After Gore outlined his plan, O'Donnell chipped in: "That's simple and easy. You know, we had some issue in our family, my nephew was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis."
    Gore: "I'm sorry."
    O'Donnell: "Yeah, my brother was with an HMO, and you know, to go, to try luckily to have the resources they have through me and financial and the contacts to get the baby the best treatment but not everybody has that luxury."
    Gore: "Right, that's right. And it's outrageous that the recommendations of doctors are now routinely being overruled by clerks working for HMOs who sit behind computer terminals. They don't have a license to practice medicine, they shouldn't have the right to play God. We need a piece of legislation, known as the Dingell-Norwood bill, a bipartisan Patient's Bill of Rights, that takes the medical decisions away from the HMOs and gives them back to the doctors."

    -- O'Donnell: "That seems sensible enough to me. How do you plan to make schools accountable for quality."
    Gore: "Well, I think testing is important but it's not good enough in itself...I think that education ought to be the number one priority for our country...you need more one-on-one time, that means you need fewer kids in each class which means two things in turn: you got to recruit new teachers and that means treating teachers like the professionals they are."
    O'Donnell: "And increasing their pay."
    Gore: "Absolutely."
    O'Donnell: "Without a doubt."
    Gore: "In return for better performance. Absolutely. And also, you've got to build new schools and modernize existing schools and local communities find it very hard to do that on their own..."
    O'Donnell: "And you are against school vouchers."
    Gore: "I am simply because it's the wrong time to drain money away from public schools."
    O'Donnell: "Public schools, and I couldn't agree more. I think it will be the death of public education in America."
    Gore: "It would be, it would be."

    -- O'Donnell: "How are you going to continue to help lower-income families afford quality child care which is a huge problem for most of the women watching TV here?"

    O'Donnell: "Some of my friends are working so that they can pay for the daycare. Like, you know a married couple and the wife is working just to pay for the daycare."
    Gore: "And the daycare workers are not earning enough..."
    O'Donnell: "It's wrong."....
    O'Donnell: "We have very skewed priorities when it comes to education, I think, and it is my opinion as well, the most important issue."

    -- O'Donnell: "...A lot of people were writing in questions that would try to like incorporate into one question about, you know, their disappointment in the lack of morality from President Clinton and how they feel that's an important issue and why has that sort of tarnished you when it has nothing to do with you?"

    O'Donnell: "I definitely think the last eight years the country has been a much better place than it had been in a long time."

    -- O'Donnell: "This is my passionate issue as you might know. 'You've done so much to advance the cause of gun control. How do you plan to make schools gun free and will you be able to really stand for gun control when it seems that the forces against it have so much power.'"

    O'Donnell: "There was a question at the debate the other night where someone said they saw an ad that the NRA had claimed that if George Bush is elected they would have an office in the White House. They did in fact make that statement."
    Gore: "They did."
    O'Donnell: "Yes. Good to know. Okay."

    -- O'Donnell: "'There's been some talk this campaign that Texas ranks low in health care for women and children. It didn't seem to be answered in the debate, true or not true?"

    -- O'Donnell: "'Okay, one of the President's most important functions is to appoint Supreme Court justices. What rights could be at risk now that three or four appointments are on the verge."
    Gore: "A woman's right to choose is hanging now by a 5 to 4 balance in the current Supreme Court... I want to make abortion safe, legal, and rare...but I am totally opposed to having the government come in and substitute its judgment about a woman's own body, and her destiny, and her own future. A woman should have that right to choose."
    O'Donnell: "Yeah, I happen to agree with you on that as well although I personally feel I could ever bring myself to have an abortion, I've luckily never been in that position. I under-"
    Gore: "And you know, it's different from your personal view..."

    -- O'Donnell: "'What do you plan to do for working parents whose children may not have someplace safe to go after school?'"
    Gore: "...this is crazy to leave kids to their own devices in those vulnerable afternoon hours when nobody is watching."
    O'Donnell: "Yep, I agree with that. 'You helped enact the Adoption in Safe Families Act which greatly increased the number of children in foster care who were adopted. How do you plan to keep this trend going?' Something close to me."

    O'Donnell ended her love fest: "It is thrilling to have you here sir. I hope to see you in the White House come November. Thank you very, very much."

    Gore should be thanking her very, very much.

4

And one last Bush on Letterman development: On Friday night David Letterman showed what Bush did with his glasses during a commercial break during Thursday's appearance. As Late Show producer Maria Pope leaned over the front of the desk to talk to Letterman, with her back to the audience, Bush leaned forward in his chair, grabbed a corner of her lightweight cloth jacket, and wiped his glasses with it.

    She didn't even notice, but Letterman played the tape back twice.

    Maybe the campaign could provide Bush with a Kleenex or two to keep in his pocket. -- Brent Baker

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