Gregory ignored Bush's "Democrat" slur, lauded "bipartisan spirit" of speech

Reporting on President Bush's State of the Union address during the January 24 edition of NBC's Nightly News, NBC News chief White House correspondent David Gregory asserted that Bush "tried to capture" a "bipartisan spirit ... right from the start" of his speech. But Gregory failed to mention Bush's use of "Democrat" as an adjective during his speech, which Nightly News anchor Brian Williams had described as "pejorative" during MSNBC's coverage of Bush's address the day before. During his speech, Bush congratulated what he called the "Democrat majority" while welcoming the "new," "changed" Congress, even though the prepared text of the speech reportedly called for Bush to recognize the "Democratic majority."

As Media Matters for America has repeatedly noted, the use of "Democrat" as an adjective is a slur that originated with Republican operatives.

Yet, in reporting that Bush attempted to "capture" a "bipartisan spirit" in his speech, Gregory noted Bush's statement that "[i]t doesn't matter what side of the aisle we sit on. What the American people expect is for people on both sides of the aisle to come together and solve problems," while leaving out what his MSNBC colleagues had noted in their coverage immediately following the address that Bush used the "Democrat" slur to describe the new Democratic majority in Congress. Gregory made his assertion despite Williams' highlighting Bush's use of the slur during MSNBC's January 23 post-speech analysis.

From the January 24 edition of NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams:

GREGORY: The morning after -- and a big push on a new domestic agenda. The president in Delaware meeting with microbiologists developing alternative fuels to power cars, part of a new effort to wean the country off foreign oil that Mr. Bush claims can bring Republicans and Democrats together.

BUSH [video clip]: It doesn't matter what side of the aisle we sit on. What the American people expect is for people on both sides of the aisle to come together and solve problems.

GREGORY: It was that bipartisan spirit the president tried to capture right from the start last night, marking an historic moment in the House chamber.

BUSH [video clip]: And tonight, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of my own as the first president to begin the State of the Union message with these words: Madam Speaker.

GREGORY: But it was the president's subdued tone and modest agenda that stood out most.

—J.M.