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1. Networks Express Concern About Where Roberts Stands on Roe v Wade Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' position on Roe v Wade most concerns the network news media, as expressed in Wednesday night stories. ABC anchor Charles Gibson teased: "What does President Bush's nominee for the Supreme Court really think about key issues like abortion rights?" Kate Snow relayed how "those trying to define Roberts' views on abortion rights are zeroing in on two pieces of his record" and she brought up his religion: "It's hard to know where he'll come down on abortion cases as a justice, though he is a practicing Catholic." CBS's Gloria Borger recited his comments on Roe v Wade before she tried to make him appear insensitive: "Roberts has often argued for big corporations in cases involving disabilities and patients' rights." CBS anchor John Roberts wanted to know of his namesake: "Has President Bush attempted to move the court further to the right with this pick?" NBC's Pete Williams warned that Roberts' wife is "a former board member of Feminists for Life." Chip Reid highlighted how one liberal activist "says he worries that Roberts might be a stealth candidate, moderate on the outside but as conservative as Justices Scalia and Thomas on the inside." 2. NBC's Today Frets About Roberts' Threat to Abortion "Rights" NBC's Today obsessed on Wednesday morning over Supreme Court nominee John Roberts potential threat to abortion "rights." Katie Couric declared to former Senator Fred Thompson, who will shepherd Roberts: "The real question is his position on abortion." She wanted to know: "Do you think he would support the overturning of Roe v. Wade?" Later in the show, Ann Curry asked law professor Jonathan Turley: "What effect do you think that this person, John Roberts, will have on abortion rights in America?" Curry fretted about whether Roberts will "be part of the movement to increase the restrictions on abortion rights which we've already started to see happening?" 3. ABC and CNN Raise Possible Influence of Roberts' Catholic Faith The Catholicism of Judge John Roberts concerned ABC's Barbara Walters and CNN's Miles O'Brien. On Wednesday's Good Morning America, Walters asked a friend of Roberts whether Roberts being a Roman Catholic "might affect him as a Supreme Court Justice?" Over on CNN's American Morning, O'Brien pointed out that Roberts is "a Roman Catholic who adheres to the tenets of that faith," and so asked former Senator Fred Thompson: "Do you suspect that he will advocate, when the opportunity comes up, reversing some of the key aspects of Roe vs. Wade, which provide abortion rights in this country?" 4. "Very, Very, Very Conservative" or "Very, Very Conservative"? There's no doubt in NPR reporter Nina Totenberg's mind that Judge John Roberts is "very conservative," it's just a matter of how "very." On NPR's All Things Considered on Tuesday night, she prefaced "conservative" with three verys, describing him as "a very, very conservative man." But in a taped soundbite on the next day's Good Morning America on ABC, she cut back to two modifiers, dubbing him merely "a very, very conservative man." 5. Assessing Economy, CBS Prefers Dire Anecdotes to Factual Stats Assessing the state of the economy, CBS News on Wednesday night preferred dire anecdotes and uninformed speculation by people on the street over upbeat economic statistics. Prompted by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's evaluation that "our baseline outlook for the U.S. economy is one of sustained economic growth," on the CBS Evening News reporter Trish Regan went to the streets of Manhattan "where reality trumps forecasts." CBS featured a woman who declared: "The economy's not doing good if they're laying off so many people, so it's not good at all." Regan asserted: "In June, nearly 111,000 jobs were lost, making it the worst stretch of job losses in nearly a year and a half." Regan ignored job growth and declining unemployment. A July 8 AP dispatch led: "Hiring around the country picked up in June with employers adding 146,000 jobs -- helping to push the unemployment rate down to 5 percent, the lowest in nearly four years." Networks Express Concern About Where Roberts Stands on Roe v Wade Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' position on Roe v Wade most concerns the network news media, as expressed in Wednesday night stories. ABC anchor Charles Gibson teased: "What does President Bush's nominee for the Supreme Court really think about key issues like abortion rights?" Kate Snow relayed how "those trying to define Roberts' views on abortion rights are zeroing in on two pieces of his record" and she brought up his religion: "It's hard to know where he'll come down on abortion cases as a justice, though he is a practicing Catholic." CBS's Gloria Borger recited his comments on Roe v Wade before she tried to make him appear insensitive: "Roberts has often argued for big corporations in cases involving disabilities and patients' rights." CBS anchor John Roberts wanted to know of his namesake: "Has President Bush attempted to move the court further to the right with this pick?" NBC's Pete Williams warned that Roberts' wife is "a former board member of Feminists for Life." Chip Reid highlighted how one liberal activist "says he worries that Roberts might be a stealth candidate, moderate on the outside but as conservative as Justices Scalia and Thomas on the inside." Both ABC and CBS, but not NBC, noted conservative concerns about how conservative Roberts really is, recalling the case of David Souter. Highlights from Wednesday night, July 20 coverage on ABC, CBS and NBC, as tracked by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth: # ABC's World News Tonight. Charles Gibson teased: "On World News Tonight, the critical debate begins. What does President Bush's nominee for the Supreme Court really think about key issues like abortion rights? Democrats promise John Roberts will not get a free pass." After a piece from Linda Douglass on the reaction from Capitol Hill, Gibson insisted: "The critical question, of course, do Senators know exactly where Roberts stands on crucial issues like abortion, civil rights, states rights? He is generally seen as quite conservative, but even some conservatives today were cautious in their praise. He's relatively new to the federal bench, but he has an extensive legal background. ABC's Kate Snow reports there are a number of important issues which he has ruled on and argued for."
Snow began with abortion: "Those trying to define Roberts' views on abortion rights are zeroing in on two pieces of his record. In a legal brief Roberts approved when he worked as a government lawyer under the first President Bush, he argued Roe versus Wade was 'wrongly decided and should be overruled.' But in confirmation hearings in 2003, Judge Roberts was asked to clarify. Roe versus Wade, he replied, 'is the settled law of the land. There's nothing in my personal views that would prevent me from fully and faithfully applying that precedent.'"
Borger asserted: "It was the face-to-face interview that convinced the President that John Roberts was the right pick for the high court."
Following Gregory's story, Pete Williams provided a profile of Roberts: "He met his wife, Jane Sullivan Roberts, on a blind date. She's a Washington lawyer and a former board member of Feminists for Life, a group that counsels against abortion and pushes for legal rights of mothers. But it's Roberts' own views on abortion that Democrats will pursue. As a lawyer in the first Bush administration, this is the Supreme Court brief Roberts helped file in the 1990 abortion case. It said Roe V. Wade 'was wrongly decided and should be overruled.' But at his confirmation hearing two years ago for a federal appeals court judgeship, he said he was representing his client, the government, and that he saw it otherwise." Brian Williams set up a third story: "And now, over to Capitol Hill. That's where the votes are, of course, that will be needed to confirm the President's nominee. It is a process that means a federal judge must make those House calls, visiting the senators who will vote him up or down. And the interest groups that apply the pressure today turned up the volume. From Capitol Hill, here is NBC's Chip Reid."
Reid: "The hearings may be weeks away, but liberal activists today were already in full swing. In the first Supreme Court battle of the Internet era, emails by the millions were fired off by the liberal group MoveOn.org, declaring, 'We've got to stop Roberts.' And while the liberal Leadership Conference on Civil Rights has yet to take a position, Executive Director Wade Henderson says he worries that Roberts might be a stealth candidate, moderate on the outside but as conservative as Justices Scalia and Thomas on the inside."
NBC's Today Frets About Roberts' Threat to Abortion "Rights" NBC's Today obsessed on Wednesday morning over Supreme Court nominee John Roberts potential threat to abortion "rights." Katie Couric declared to former Senator Fred Thompson, who will shepherd Roberts: "The real question is his position on abortion." She wanted to know: "Do you think he would support the overturning of Roe v. Wade?" Later in the show, Ann Curry asked law professor Jonathan Turley: "What effect do you think that this person, John Roberts, will have on abortion rights in America?" Curry fretted about whether Roberts will "be part of the movement to increase the restrictions on abortion rights which we've already started to see happening?" Couric inquired of Thompson in the 7am half hour of the July 20 Today: "Senator Thompson, as you know some liberal groups have already raised some concerns about his record on the environment, civil rights, and civil liberties. But of course the real question is his position on abortion and we've heard two really, almost conflicting, statements about his position on Roe v. Wade. At one point back in 1999 he, he wrote a brief that said the right to an abortion, quote, 'finds no support in the text, structure or history of the Constitution,' but later he did say it was the settled law of the land. Do you think he would support the overturning of Roe v. Wade?" Thompson, from Washington, DC, replied that Roberts will have to address that, but when confirmed for his current appeals court seat he explained that in arguing against Roe v Wade he was representing his client, the Bush administration. Two hours later, the MRC's Geoff Dickens noticed, Ann Curry quizzed George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley about Roberts' threat to abortion "rights." Curry set up the session with Turley, who appeared from Washington, DC: "He's being called the 'Cautious Conservative,' so what will it mean to women if President Bush's 50-year-old nominee, Judge John Roberts, is confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court? Here with some answers is NBC's legal analyst, NBC News legal analyst and George Washington University constitutional expert Jonathan Turley. Jonathan, good morning." Curry's questions:
-- "Pleasure to have you. Many people expected that the President would nominate a woman. In fact let's take a listen to what the First Lady had to say about this topic when I spoke to her last week."
-- Curry: "Well let's talk about some of that because in fact you've written that he is a blank slate but Roberts has said that he supports Roe v. Wade as the law of the land in a Senate hearing in 2003 but on the other hand he signed off on a brief that stated that the same law was wrongly decided and should be overruled. So what effect do you think that this person, John Roberts, will have on abortion rights in America?"
-- Curry: "Well so that's, I guess the other issue there. There's the issue of whether or not he would be a part of the movement to overturn Roe v. Wade but also there's the other question which is will he be part of the movement to increase the restrictions on abortion rights which we've already started to see happening, happen here in this country. I mean what, what can you tell women who are listening now who, who are interested in this particular issue in terms of how he will decide?"
ABC and CNN Raise Possible Influence of Roberts' Catholic Faith The Catholicism of Judge John Roberts concerned ABC's Barbara Walters and CNN's Miles O'Brien. On Wednesday's Good Morning America, Walters asked a friend of Roberts whether Roberts being a Roman Catholic "might affect him as a Supreme Court Justice?" Over on CNN's American Morning, O'Brien pointed out that Roberts is "a Roman Catholic who adheres to the tenets of that faith," and so asked former Senator Fred Thompson: "Do you suspect that he will advocate, when the opportunity comes up, reversing some of the key aspects of Roe vs. Wade, which provide abortion rights in this country?" As noted in item #1 above, on Wednesday's World News Tonight, ABC's Kate Snow remarked that "it's hard to know where he'll come down on abortion cases as a justice, though he is a practicing Catholic." From Highlands, North Carolina, Dean Colson, best man at Roberts' wedding, came aboard to discuss his friend. Amongst the questions from substitute co-host Barbara Walters: "John Roberts is a Roman Catholic. How important to him is his religion? Do you think it might affect him as a Supreme Court Justice?" Colson assured Walters that Roberts will have no trouble separating his personal views from what is in law books.
The MRC's Megan McCormack caught how, on CNN's American Morning, co-host Miles O'Brien saw Roberts' religion as a legitimate topic. After asking Fred Thompson about the nominee's views on abortion, O'Brien countered Thompson's assurance Roberts will follow the law: Thompson reminded O'Brien of how we've had counsel for the ACLU get confirmed to Supreme Court based on the assumption they would be objective.
"Very, Very, Very Conservative" or "Very, Very Conservative"? There's no doubt in NPR reporter Nina Totenberg's mind that Judge John Roberts is "very conservative," it's just a matter of how "very." On NPR's All Things Considered on Tuesday night, she prefaced "conservative" with three verys, describing him as "a very, very conservative man." But in a taped soundbite on the next day's Good Morning America on ABC, she cut back to two modifiers, dubbing him merely "a very, very conservative man." (As recounted in the July 20 CyberAlert, on Tuesday night ABC's George Stephanopoulos and Ted Koppel described Roberts as not just conservative, but as "very conservative." See: www.mediaresearch.org )
A CyberAlert reader who thinks George McGovern would still make a great President, but is able to recognize liberal bias, alerted us to Totenberg's description of Roberts on NPR. The MRC's Rich Noyes tracked down the comment from All Things Considered just before 8pm EDT on July 19, minutes after the decision to pick Roberts was revealed: A Kate Snow story on Wednesday's GMA, the MRC's Brian Boyd observed, included this taped assessment from Totenberg: "Talking with people who know him and have had arguments with him, debates with him, and who love him; they tell you this is a very, very conservative man." Well, if liberals say so it must be true.
Assessing Economy, CBS Prefers Dire Anecdotes to Factual Stats Assessing the state of the economy, CBS News on Wednesday night preferred dire anecdotes and uninformed speculation by people on the street over upbeat economic statistics. Prompted by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's evaluation that "our baseline outlook for the U.S. economy is one of sustained economic growth," on the CBS Evening News reporter Trish Regan went to the streets of Manhattan "where reality trumps forecasts." CBS featured a woman who declared: "The economy's not doing good if they're laying off so many people, so it's not good at all." Regan asserted: "In June, nearly 111,000 jobs were lost, making it the worst stretch of job losses in nearly a year and a half." Regan ignored job growth and declining unemployment. A July 8 AP dispatch led: "Hiring around the country picked up in June with employers adding 146,000 jobs -- helping to push the unemployment rate down to 5 percent, the lowest in nearly four years." Anchor John Roberts introduced the July 20 story: "Now, on to the U.S. economy. Is it in good shape or not? What you think can depend a lot on who you are, which experts you're listening to, and especially whether you know someone who's out of work. Here's Trish Regan with more on that."
Regan: "Alan Greenspan came to Congress today with a rosy forecast."
"June Hiring Up, Unemployment Rate Falls," read the headline over a July 8 AP dispatch about reality, not CBS's dour fantasy. See: news.yahoo.com
-- Brent Baker
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