MSNBC can’t believe MSNBC would let someone do an interview

Well, the fun continues as Barbara McQuade looks at the media tour Kohrs is on on MSNBC and speculates that it’s a bad idea.

• “As a former prosecutor, I’m embarrassed that the grand jury is talking about this publicly. A gibbering grand jury threatens to upend the entire enterprise. At some point, grand jury misconduct may constitute grounds for a complaint for violation of a defendant’s due process rights.”

Seems like a bad idea to have this woman screaming all over the media. Perhaps it could be expressed – before she gave her first interview with NBC News!

Loose lips sink ships – and they can certainly do the same for investigations. Emily Kohrs’ media tour is reckless. https://t.co/rywg29SRFk

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) February 23, 2023

Blue-anon – MSNBC

• Say, Mike, do you think someone else could have been responsible?

Another person who looks at Kohrs’ press junk and wonders whether it’s appropriate is MSNBC regular Michael Beschloss. He saw the foreman making the remarks and realized how bad it looked to the broadcasters, so he hatched a fever-dream-level plot to explain it.

Was the foreman’s sudden media visit to Georgia inspired by (a) innocent exuberance or (b) someone’s deliberate effort to destroy a potential case against the former president?

— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) February 23, 2023

Good job, Mike; I’m sure everyone will buy into the premise that Trump’s people put Emily on the jury and saw fit to pick her foreman. In fact, Trump’s people also had to force Nicolle Wallace to cover Kohrs on Deadline: The White House, force Alex Wagner to write lengthy interview segments, and force Lawrence O’Donnell to spend an obsessive amount of time on her comments as well.

Both types of standards – NEW YORK TIME

Not surprisingly, many Democrats were rather offended when they learned that Kevin McCarthy had turned over a trove of video material collected by the committee on January 6. But perhaps The New York Times will take it even harder.

• “By granting exclusive access to Capitol surveillance footage from January 6 to a cable news host seeking to rewrite the history of the attack, the speaker effectively outsourced a politically toxic reconsideration of the riot to an outside entity. “His latest move to appease the right wing of his party, this time effectively having his favorite cable news commentator, who spread conspiracy theories about the assault, re-investigate the riots.”

It’s quite interesting that the news outlet that published The Pentagon Papers is now squeamish about making congressional details public. Of course, for them to be so concerned about this, they must overlook the fact that McCarthy had long promised to make these tapes public when he took over as speaker.

What’s also funny is that the press – which has been banging the January 6 drum for two years in a row – is now coming out and decrying that anyone would dare to prolong the investigation.

News Analysis: By granting exclusive access to Capitol surveillance footage from January 6 to Tucker Carlson, who spread conspiracy theories about the riot, Speaker Kevin McCarthy effectively ordered an effort to re-investigate the attack, our reporters write. https://t.co/zP6RM2auqF

— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 23, 2023

A bit of prevention – POLICY

As the toxic cleanup in East Palestine continues, after three weeks, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg finally arrived at the scene of the accident. “Politico” would like to point out that it is not without reason that he is criticized so severely.

• “This month’s toxic derailment in a small Ohio village has put Pete Buttigieg under pressure like never before – bearing the brunt of attacks from Biden administration opponents. “Buttigieg’s allies have complained that he is unfairly enduring this disaster.”

Even better, it provided a reason for one of the biggest criticisms it faces – the long time spent before arriving on site and the lack of response to the disaster soon after it occurred. You see, he’s not to blame for not commenting sooner because the press didn’t ask him about it first!

• “Three people in Buttigieg’s orbit say they are exasperated by the furore, saying that in none of the 23 media interviews he gave in the first 10 days after the accident did anyone ask him about the derailment.” Critics then slammed him for not speaking up sooner.”

Of course, the whole story is about Republican criticism, not Buttigieg’s incompetent response. However, I am slightly surprised: I thought they would play the homophobia card by now.

“Buttigieg’s World Frustrated by GOP Train Wreck Attacks” https://t.co/2vXwMFgeSU By @politician

— Phineas Fahrquar (@irishspy) February 23, 2023

Both types of standards – CNN

This ball-hitting action is handled by Stephen Collinson, who sees events unfolding and states that the people of East Palestine are “becoming political extras”. You see, these tragedies always bring out partisan opportunists.

• “Every time a disaster strikes in a divided America, toxic politics is not far behind, and derailments — like hurricanes, industrial accidents and transportation meltdowns — provide a political scorecard.”

According to Collinson, such events are always terrible. Of course, the only ones making this political are Republicans.

And Stephen Collinson.

Reporting on how wrong it is to politicize such a disaster – only to become political – seems a bit disingenuous.

• “Trump sidestepped the question of his role in weakening safety standards after he rescinded an Obama administration rule requiring freight railroads to use electronically controlled air brakes on certain trains carrying dangerous and flammable cargo. [Nikki] Haley’s attack seemed inconsistent with her vow to be tougher than Biden on Russian President Vladimir Putin. After all, the president went to Europe around the anniversary of the Russian invasion to warn Putin that he would never win the war.”