1. SC Primary Arranged to Boost "Conservative" Candidate? Which of the nine Democratic presidential candidates is "conservative"? On Sunday's ABC This Week, host George Stephanopoulos, in Columbia, South Carolina for the debate he moderated the night before, suggested that Democrats arranged an early Southern primary in the state because "they wanted to encourage the idea that you would get a conservative, strong on national defense, candidate through the primaries."

2. George Stephanopoulos: Raising Taxes Helps the Economy Minutes after insisting that "I keep my politics to myself these days," on C-SPAN's Washington Journal on Friday morning ABC's George Stephanopoulos declared that tax hikes help the economy. He credited President Clinton for the "deficit reduction plan that he put in place in 1993" which did "prevent the deficit from going up and probably helped spur the economic recovery along at the margins," and recalled how the first President Bush's breaking of his "'no new taxes pledge' probably did help the economy."

3. ABC Touts Democratic Theme of Bush Vulnerability on Economy
Two days after a new ABC News/Washington Post poll was released, ABC's World News Tonight/Saturday treated it as hot news, as anchor Bob Woodruff used it to tout a possible road to victory for Democrats on the economy without spelling out how it also found President Bush is trusted far more than Democrats on national security. Woodruff hyped: "An ABC News poll shows the President may be vulnerable on the economy in 2004. Tonight, his opponents face off in their first televised national debate."

4. ABC: Returning Sailors Face Bad Economy, Bush's "Giant" Tax Cut All the networks on Friday night stressed the jump in the unemployment rate from 5.8 to 6 percent, but ABC went the furthest to hype the plight of those without a job, distort Bush's tax cut plan and emphasize liberal spin arguments against it. The sailors on the ship on which President Bush spoke the night before, anchor Claire Shipman warned, "are coming home to a sober reality as well. An economy that, if anything, is struggling more than it was when they set sail." Betsy Stark highlighted e-mailers who think they'll have to flip hamburgers or leave the country to find a job before Shipman described Bush's tax cut as "giant," a tax cut, Terry Moran stressed, most think "favors the rich."

5. CBS Backs Up Dean's Claim He's Not Liberal, But...
CBS on Friday night let former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, a Democratic presidential candidate, deny he's a liberal, a claim CBS reporter Jim Acosta backed up by relaying how "he opposes strict gun control laws. And Dean would send troops into battle, he says, for the right war." But Acosta at least allowed a New Hampshire reporter to point out how Dean is "coming across as a true left-wing believer."

6. Belafonte and Glover Come to Castro's Defense Against Bush President George W. Bush poses a graver danger to the world than Fidel Castro does to the world or the people he oppresses, 160 "artists and intellectuals" argued in a two paragraph statement released last week, only weeks after Castro carried out executions and imprisoned dozens for daring to speak against his dictatorship. Amongst the signers: Actors Danny Glover and Harry Belafonte. They warned: "At this very moment, a strong campaign of destabilization against a Latin American nation has been unleashed. The harassment against Cuba could serve as a pretext for an invasion."

7. "Top Ten Things Never Before Said By a Pulitzer Prize Winner" As announced by Robert Caro, Letterman's "Top Ten Things Never Before Said By a Pulitzer Prize Winner"

SC Primary Arranged to Boost "Conservative"
Candidate?

     Which of the nine Democratic presidential candidates is "conservative"? On Sunday's This Week, host George Stephanopoulos, in Columbia, South Carolina for the candidate debate he moderated the night before, suggested that Democrats arranged an early Southern primary in the state because "they wanted to encourage the idea that you would get a conservative, strong on national defense, candidate through the primaries."

     Stephanopoulos made his comment during the roundtable portion of the show from the debate stage, after ABC News Political Director Mark Helperin cited concerns about the national security image of the Democratic Party after the Bush aircraft carrier photo-op and how Senator Joe Liebermaan said his party has a problem with its image on national security. Stephanopoulos then opined, referring to the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee:
     "That was part of the thinking of Terry McAuliffe in actually bringing the primary here to South Carolina this early in the primary process and it's led to one of the first, earliest debates ever in the primary process, they wanted to encourage the idea that you would get a conservative, strong on national defense candidate through the primaries."

     First, they need a "conservative" candidate to enter the race.

George Stephanopoulos: Raising Taxes
Helps the Economy

     Minutes after insisting that "I keep my politics to myself these days," on C-SPAN's Washington Journal on Friday morning ABC's George Stephanopoulos declared that tax hikes help the economy. He credited President Clinton for the "deficit reduction plan that he put in place in 1993" which did "prevent the deficit from going up and probably helped spur the economic recovery along at the margins," and recalled how the first President Bush's breaking of "'no new taxes pledge' probably did help the economy."

     The MRC's Tim Graham caught Stephanopoulos' comments which MRC analyst Patrick Gregory later took down.

     After a caller stated that Stephanopoulos is "more of a social Democrat than an actual Democrat," Stephanopoulos maintained during his May 2 appearance to plug his then-upcoming Democratic presidential debate: "I wouldn't use the labels that you use, and I keep my politics to myself these days, but beyond that I guess I would say social engineering if that's the phrase you want to use, rarely does work. But I do believe that one of the purposes of government has to be to buffer, cushion the inefficiencies of the free market."

     The post-1994 Republican takeover of Congress probably had something to do with limiting federal spending growth.

     A bit later, Stephanopoulos praised the positive results of raising, over cutting, taxes: "I think that one thing that Democrats and Republicans have given President Clinton credit for is that deficit reduction plan that he put in place in 1993 did at least help, help prevent the deficit from going up, and probably helped spur the economic recovery along at the margins. Just as President Bush's, the first President Bush's deficit reduction plan in 1990 and 1991, though it probably hurt him in his presidential campaign because he had to break his 'no new taxes pledge,' probably did help the economy."

ABC Touts Democratic Theme of Bush Vulnerability on Economy

     Two days after a new ABC News/Washington Post poll was released, ABC's World News Tonight/Saturday treated it as hot news, as anchor Bob Woodruff used it to tout a possible road to victory for Democrats on the economy without spelling out how it also found President Bush is trusted far more than Democrats on national security.

     Woodruff teased the May 3 show: "On World News Tonight this Saturday, an ABC News poll shows the President may be vulnerable on the economy in 2004. Tonight, his opponents face off in their first televised national debate."

     Woodruff opened the broadcast by hyping a poll result favorable to Democrats: "A new ABC News/Washington Post poll underscores just how big a role the economy could play in the next presidential election. Nearly half of Americans today say most people are worse off than they were when President Bush took office. Nearly half also say the President doesn't understand the problems of average people. This as nine Democratic candidates are meeting in South Carolina for the first presidential debate."

     In fact, the poll was not "new" by TV standards. ABC and the Washington Post had the numbers on Thursday, with Friday's Post carrying an article on it.

     As Woodruff relayed the results, ABC put the supposedly bad numbers on screen, though both questions showed Bush getting a slight majority:

     -- "Since Bush took office, most Americans have become: "Better or same: 51 percent "Worse off: 48 percent"

     -- "Does Bush understand the problems of average people? "Yes: 51 percent "No: 48 percent"

     Unmentioned by ABC: When asked, "Who do you trust to do a better job handling the economy, Bush or the Democrats in Congress?", respondents said Bush over Congress by 51 to 41 percent.

     From the site of Saturday's then-upcoming Democratic presidential debate moderated by George Stephanopoulos and sponsored by ABC News, Linda Douglass trumpeted: "The Democrats think they could beat the President if they can shift the country's focus away from national security to his weakest issue, the economy."

     ABC News is doing what it can.

     Douglass proceeded to outline how "Democrats hope to pound the President with the question that has proved fatal to incumbents in the past: Are you better off than you were four years ago?"

     Douglass noted how the poll showed Bush is popular and would beat any Democrat in the race because he has made people "feel safe in a time of fear," and after Douglass, Stephanopoulos told Woodruff that Bush has a "huge advantage on the issue of national security," but ABC didn't offer any specific numbers as they did for Bush's economic vulnerability.

     To the question, "Who do you trust to do a better job handling [fill in topic] Bush or the Democrats in Congress?", those polled picked Bush by wide margins on national security issues:

     -- "The U.S. campaign against terrorism." Bush 72 percent, Democrats 21 percent.

     -- "The situation in Iraq." Bush 72 percent, Democrats 20 percent.

     -- "Homeland security." Bush 63 percent, Democrats 30 percent.

     -- "The situation with North Korea." Bush 62 percent, Democrats 28 percent.

     -- "Defense and the military budget." Bush 63 percent, Democrats 32 percent.

     For the full results of the poll completed on April 30: www.washingtonpost.com

ABC: Returning Sailors Face Bad Economy,
Bush's "Giant" Tax Cut

     All the networks on Friday night stressed the jump in the unemployment rate from 5.8 to 6 percent, but ABC went the furthest to hype the plight of those without a job, distort Bush's tax cut plan and emphasize liberal spin arguments against it.

     Anchor Claire Shipman tied the rising unemployment to the returning sailors on the ship on which President Bush spoke the night before, though they all have jobs. The sailors, Shipman warned, "are coming home to a sober reality as well. An economy that, if anything, is struggling more than it was when they set sail."

     To illustrate the new unemployment number, on the May 2 World News Tonight Betsy Stark highlighted some extreme anecdotes: "Jobless Americans who contacted us on abcnews.com find it maddening and depressing. 'I'm worried that I'll be flipping hamburgers before long,' wrote one. Another is considering working out of the country."

     Next, though Bush tax cut would, at most, reduce federal revenue by barely three percent over the next ten years, anchor Claire Shipman referred to how President Bush "was pushing for his giant tax cut."

     Reporter Terry Moran proceeded to focus on the parts of an ABC News/Washington Post poll which matched liberal class warfare themes: "An ABC News poll shows that while the President enjoys a 71 percent overall approval rating, 57 percent of Americans think his tax plan favors the rich, and six in ten say large business corporations have too much influence in his administration."

     Shipman opened the May 2 broadcast, as taken down by MRC analyst Brad Wilmouth: "Good evening. Tonight, war and the economy. Thousands of sailors are coming home. It's one of the most powerful signs that a war is really ending. And today in San Diego, the supercarrier USS Abraham Lincoln, finally docked after nearly 10 months at sea. We'll have more on the reunion with eager loved ones in just a moment, but these soldiers, of course, are coming home to a sober reality as well. An economy that, if anything, is struggling more than it was when they set sail. The government said today the unemployment rate is up to six percent. More than half a million jobs were lost in the last three months. And ABC's Betsy Stark is here with the details. Betsy, those are the sort of numbers you usually see in a recession."

     Stark agreed: "Well, Claire, in fact, we've never seen job losses this big outside a recession. And while technically the economy is not in recession, for millions of Americans it's become so hard to find a job, it feels like one. The average time it takes to find a job increased to nearly 20 weeks last month, the longest in 19 years. Jobless Americans who contacted us on abcnews.com find it maddening and depressing. 'I'm worried that I'll be flipping hamburgers before long,' wrote one. Another is considering working out of the country...."

     Next, Shipman set up another story: "While President Bush is sharply changing his focus from running a war to fixing the struggling economy, yesterday he declared a victory in Iraq. Today he was in California's Silicon Valley where the unemployment rate is a whopping 8.4 percent. And he was pushing for his giant tax cut, which he says will make things better. Here's ABC's Terry Moran."

     Moran began: "The President left the USS Abraham Lincoln this morning wearing a sober business suit rather than the flight suit he wore yesterday. The change symbolizing his shift of focus from war to the troubled economy. Later, at the Silicon Valley company where Bradley fighting vehicles are designed, Mr. Bush argued the grim, new unemployment rate confirms the need to pass his big tax cut."
     George W. Bush: "That six percent number should say loud and clear to members of both political parties in the United States Congress we need robust tax relief so our fellow citizens can find a job."
     Moran: "But some economists, including Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, as well as many members of Congress, don't think a tax cut is the answer. And the Congress under Republican leadership has been shredding the President's tax cut plan, slashing it by hundreds of billions of dollars, and radically trimming Mr. Bush's central proposal to abolish all taxes on dividend income. The White House hopes that events like this one will help advance their main political goal: to leverage the President's support on national security issues into support for his domestic agenda. But that is a very iffy proposition. An ABC News poll shows that while the President enjoys a 71 percent overall approval rating, 57 percent of Americans think his tax plan favors the rich, and 6 in 10 say large business corporations have too much influence in his administration. Those numbers worry White House officials who know that by election day next year, the glow of victory surrounding Mr. Bush now will likely have faded. Terry Moran, ABC News, with the President in Santa Clara, California."

CBS Backs Up Dean's Claim He's Not Liberal,
But...

     CBS on Friday night let former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, a Democratic presidential candidate, deny he's a liberal, a claim CBS reporter Jim Acosta backed up by relaying how "he opposes strict gun control laws. And Dean would send troops into battle, he says, for the right war." But Acosta at least allowed a New Hampshire reporter to point out how Dean is "coming across as a true left-wing believer."

     May 2 CBS Evening News anchor John Roberts, in a self-fulfilling introduction, maintained that Dean is "getting a lot of attention. CBS reporter John Acosta reports why."

     Giving him some attention, Acosta proposed that Dean says his anti-war talk "tapped into the rage of angry Democrats." Acosta added: "Dean denies he's an old-fashioned liberal. While he wants to expand health care coverage, he opposes strict gun control laws. And Dean would send troops into battle, he says, for the right war. But New Hampshire reporter John DiStaso says the war has pigeon-holed Dean."
     John DiStaso, Union Leader: "He's coming across as a true left-wing believer."
     Acosta to Dean, over video of Michael Dukakis: "You know what happened the last time a liberal Governor from New England ran against a guy named George Bush."
     Dean, over video of Bill Clinton: "I also know what happened the last time a Governor from a rural state ran against George Bush."

Belafonte and Glover Come to Castro's
Defense Against Bush

     President George W. Bush poses a graver danger to the world than Fidel Castro does to the world or the people he oppresses, 160 "artists and intellectuals" argued in a two paragraph statement released last week, mere weeks after Castro carried out executions and imprisoned dozens for daring to speak against his dictatorship. Amongst the signers: Actors Danny Glover and Harry Belafonte.

     The letter warned: "At this very moment, a strong campaign of destabilization against a Latin American nation has been unleashed. The harassment against Cuba could serve as a pretext for an invasion."

     Bob Novak made the statement his "outrage of the week" on Saturday's Capital Gang on CNN and Tony Snow cited it in his "Below the Fold" segment on Fox News Sunday.

     An excerpt from a May 1 Reuters story by Marc Frank in Havana about the defense of Castro:

More than 160 foreign artists and intellectuals, including Nobel Prize winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez, have come out in defense of Cuba even as many of their peers condemn recent repression on the Communist-run island, one of the campaigners said on Thursday.

Latin American Nobel laureates Garcia Marquez, Rigoberta Menchu, Aldolfo Perez Esquivel and South African writer Nadine Gordimer, also a Nobel prize winner, have signed a declaration of support, Mexican sociologist Pablo Gonzalez said.

U.S. singer Harry Belafonte and U.S. actor Danny Glover are also among the personalities who have signed the two-paragraph declaration "To the Conscience of the World" so far, Gonzalez announced to a May Day rally in Havana.

"A single power is inflicting grave damage to the norms of understanding, debate and mediation among countries," the declaration says, referring to the United States and the war in Iraq.

"At this very moment, a strong campaign of destabilization against a Latin American nation has been unleashed. The harassment against Cuba could serve as a pretext for an invasion," it continues....

At the Thursday rally Castro told critics, particularly on the left, that their words could be used to justify a U.S. invasion.

The intellectuals who signed the declaration defending Cuba apparently agree, though they did not specifically express support for Castro's policies.

The declaration concludes with a call to governments and others to "uphold the universal principles of national sovereignty, respect for territorial integrity and self-determination, essential to just and peaceful co-existence among nations."...

     END of Excerpt

     For the Reuters story in full: story.news.yahoo.com

     For a picture and rundown of Belafonte's career, see his Internet Movie Database page: us.imdb.com

     For Danny Glover: us.imdb.com

     As recounted in the February 12 CyberAlert, Glover charged that President Bush is a "racist" as he complained to a Brazilian magazine about how Bush has pushed a "conservative program designed to eliminate everything Americans had accomplished so far in matters of race and equality." Details: www.mediaresearch.org

     Last September Glover was amongst a bunch of left-wing celebrities who helped pay for a full page New York Times ad denouncing President Bush's war on terrorism. The ad screeched: "We call on all Americans to RESIST the war and repression that has been loosed on the world by the Bush administration. It is unjust, immoral, and illegitimate." The signers also equated 9/11 with the terror inflicted by the U.S. military in Baghdad, Panama City and Vietnam. For details: www.mediaresearch.org

"Top Ten Things Never Before Said By
a Pulitzer Prize Winner"

     From the May 1 Late Show with David Letterman, as announced by Robert Caro, winner of the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in Biography for Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson, the "Top Ten Things Never Before Said By a Pulitzer Prize Winner." Late Show Web site: www.cbs.com

10. "I'm gonna blow all my prize money on Yoo-Hoo and gum"

9. "Wow, all this praise for a book that's completely plagiarized"

8. "Having a Pulitzer is great, but I'm most proud of my collection of porcelain kitties"

7. "Dickens -- what a hack"

6. "Dude, you've been Punk'd"

5. "Can't do a book-signing -- I have to watch the Neil Sedaka tribute on 'American Idol'"

4. "Dammit, the tractor pull's sold out"

3. "I've named my Pulitzer Prize 'Barry'"

2. "The new Snoop Dogg album is off the hiz-ook"

1. "Fact-checking, my ass"

-- Brent Baker