MSNBC Frets About 'Far Right' and 'Super Conservatives Alienating GOP Centrists'
MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan anchored a segment on Tuesday’s Morning Meeting that
worried about the "
far right" and wondered whether "
super
conservatives" are alienating "GOP centrists." The host hyperbolically spun,
"But are the super conservatives of our country careening the GOP toward the
edge of irrelevance, leaving centrists Republicans fighting for control of their
own party?" Later, his colleague Contessa Brewer inadvertently referred to
Florida conservative Marco Rubio as the "
great white hope." (Mr. Rubio is
Hispanic.) [Audio available
here.]
Ignoring the fact that the Republican Party actually won impressive victories
in last week’s gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia, Brewer then cited
liberal columnist Paul Krugman as an expert on the faltering Republican Party.
Not identifying Krugman as a leftist, she touted his comparison of the
California GOP as an obstructionist "rump" and quoted, "If this happens to the
country as a whole, the country could become effectively ungovernable."
As Brewer discussed the Club for Growth and their endorsement of failed
Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman in a New York congressional race, MSNBC
graphics underlined the liberal alarm. One read, "Are Super Conservatives
Alienating GOP Centrists?" Another declared, "Far Right Fights Health Bill."
(MSNBC doesn’t often worry about the "far left.")
Brewer, who on
October
21 confused Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson,
made another verbal miscue on
Tuesday. Discussing Florida's Rubio and his Senate primary challenge to the liberal
governor of that state, she described Rubio as "the great white hope."
The following exchange then occurred:
DYLAN RATIGAN [Off screen]: Is that the great white hope or the great right
hope?
BREWER: Right. Did I say white?
RATIGAN: I- I- I- Maybe I misheard.
BREWER: The great right hope. Right. As in conservative.
RATIGAN: He is white. Okay.
After her blooper over Sharpton/Jackson, Brewer blamed the "script." Perhaps
the teleprompter could be the problem this time?
A transcript of the November 10 segment, which aired at 10:30am EST, follows:
DYLAN RATIGAN: Well, if anything, the Grand Old Party has proven its
ability to make a point. You've seen the not-so-pleasant signs, but also the
impressive turnout. But are the super conservatives of our country careening the
GOP toward the edge of irrelevance, leaving centrists Republicans fighting for
control of their own party? Contessa has the details. Hi, Contessa.
MSNBC GRAPHIC: Are Super Conservatives Alienating GOP Centrists?
CONTESSA BREWER: Hi, there, Dylan. An op-ed by Paul Krugman
of the New York Times addressed this issue. In the article he uses California as
an analogy. He says, "In California, the GOP has essentially shrunk down to a
rump party with no interest in actually governing. But that rump remains big
enough to prevent anyone else from dealing with the state’s fiscal crisis. If
this happens to the country as a whole, the country could become effectively
ungovernable." [Pictures appear onscreen.] As for the signs you mentioned, like
this one for the National Socialist Health Care. We can see piles of dead
Holocaust victims here. Krugman called them grotesque and ominous. You
remember this when images were used like it when the GOP stormed the Capitol,
protesting the Democrat’s health care bill. Representative Michelle Bachmann
inside of that blitz. But none of the party’s leaders seem to share her
sentiment about the signs. Well, despite the outrage, the Democrat-led house
bill still passed. It’s not the first time we've seen a Republican outburst play
out this way. Remember the Club for Growth and endorsement of Doug
Hoffman?
MSNBC GRAPHIC: Far Right Fights Health Bill
CLUB FOR GROWTH AD: What does Washington need more? Another big spending
liberal lawyer? Or a fiscally conservative business person? Doug Hoffman, the
common sense choice.
BREWER: [Sarcastically]: Yeah. Didn't really work out there. Sorry, Doug.
The club has already, though, moved on this time anointing Former Florida
State House representative- or Speaker, rather Marco Rubio. The great white
hope. The club is endorsing Rubio as the alternative to-
DYLAN RATIGAN [Off screen]: Is that the great white hope or the great
right hope?
BREWER: Right. Did I say white?
RATIGAN: I- I- I- Maybe I misheard.
BREWER: The great right hope. Right. As in conservative.
RATIGAN: He is white. Okay.
BREWER: Anyway, the club is endorsing him as the alternative to Florida
Governor Charlie Crist. Two battle for a vacant Senate seat in 2010.
MARCO RUBIO: I want to serve in the United States Senate because I believe
that our country is at the proverbial crossroads and that crossroads and our
future will depend on which path we choose.
BREWER: Will Rubio’s path fall in line with some of the more outspoken
members of his party? Or can a more calculated approach still prove effective?
Maybe the Republicans need to figure this out.
—Scott Whitlock is a news analyst for the Media Research
Center.