Fox News highlighted RNC accusations following Obama's WWII comments, ignored McCain's numerous foreign policy errors

During the May 28 edition of Fox News' America's Newsroom, co-host Megyn Kelly teased a segment on Sen. Barack Obama's May 26 comments in which he referred to a relative's role in World War II, saying, "Barack Obama hitting a bit of a snag on the campaign trail, misspeaking in a story about his, quote, uncle's role in fighting World War II. The campaign says this was no big deal, but the GOP has a different take, and you'll hear it in three minutes." While she was speaking, the on-screen text read: "Obama WWII slip: Evidence he's unfit for top job?" echoing a Republican National Committee statement that claimed that "Obama's frequent exaggerations and outright distortions raise questions about his judgment and his readiness to lead as commander in chief." Co-host Bill Hemmer later interviewed RNC deputy chairman Frank Donatelli, who asserted that "we're seeing a troubling pattern of historical sloppiness from Senator Obama," which "could have grave implications for our foreign policy." At no point did Hemmer bring up any of Sen. John McCain's series of errors and falsehoods during the campaign related to foreign policy or challenge Donatelli to address them.

At a May 26 campaign event, Obama said: "I had a uncle who was one of the -- who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps." His campaign later issued a statement, clarifying that Obama's "great uncle was a part of liberating one of the concentration camps at Buchenwald. Yesterday he mistakenly referred to Auschwitz instead of Buchenwald."

Discussing Obama's remarks during the America's Newsroom segment, Donatelli asserted: "[W]e're seeing a troubling pattern of historical sloppiness from Senator Obama. I think that's born of frankly a lack of experience, in some cases a lack of judgment, which, in other circumstances, could have grave implications for our foreign policy." After Hemmer cited the Obama campaign's clarification, Donatelli said, "For this issue, we would certainly accept that. However, the pattern still is troubling. Senator Obama's lack of historical knowledge is troubling, I think for somebody that wants to be commander in chief." But Hemmer did not respond to Donatelli's assertion by noting or asking him about any of McCain's errors and falsehoods about foreign policy during the campaign. For example:

• During a March 18 press conference in Amman, Jordan, McCain made the admittedly false claim, twice, that Iran is training Al Qaeda. After Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), who accompanied McCain on the trip, whispered something in his ear, McCain corrected himself, saying: "I'm sorry, the Iranians are training extremists, not al-Qaeda." McCain had made a similar misstatement on Hugh Hewitt's radio show the day before.

• At an April 8 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, McCain asked Gen. David Petraeus, "Do you still view Al Qaeda in Iraq as a major threat?" Petraeus replied: "It is still a major threat, though it is certainly not as major a threat as it was, say, 15 months ago." McCain then asked, "Certainly not an obscure sect of -- of the Shiites all -- overall --" prompting Petraeus to reply "No," as McCain went on to finish his question: "or Sunnis or anybody else?" In fact, Al Qaeda in Iraq is a Sunni Muslim, not Shiite, group.

• At a May 5 campaign event, McCain asserted: "We need a League of Nations. We need a group of people -- of nations who can work together and impose meaningful sanctions and modify Iranian behavior." In fact, the League of Nations was an international organization that was established following World War I and dissolved in 1946; McCain has proposed creating a League of Democracies to "harness the vast influence of the more than one hundred democratic nations around the world to advance our values and defend our shared interests."

• During the October 21, 2007, Republican presidential primary debate, McCain said of then- Russian President Vladimir Putin, "This is a dangerous person. And he has to understand that there's a cost to some of his actions. And the first thing I would do is make sure that we have a missile defense system in place in Czechoslovakia and Poland, and I don't care what his objections are to it." But Czechoslovakia was dissolved and replaced by the independent nations of Slovakia and the Czech Republic in 1993.

From the May 28 edition of Fox News' America's Newsroom:

KELLY: Well, Barack Obama hitting a bit of a snag on the campaign trail, misspeaking in a story about his, quote, uncle's role in fighting World War II. The campaign says this was no big deal, but the GOP has a different take, and you'll hear it in three minutes.

[...]

HEMMER: All right, back on the trail right now, the Barack Obama campaign trying to fend off accusations from John McCain's camp that the candidate, Obama, needs a history lesson. In remarks to veterans on Memorial Day, he was in New Mexico when Obama spoke for the need for better psychiatric care for veterans, and then relaying a family story to make his point. Listen closely.

OBAMA [video clip]: I had a uncle who was one of the -- who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps. And the story in our family was, is that when he came home, he just went up into the attic, and he didn't leave the house for six months.

HEMMER: Problem is, the Soviets liberated Auschwitz in the country of Poland. Obama's campaign later clarified that he was referring to a great uncle and talking about a labor camp near Buchenwald, Germany. Just a slip of the tongue or is it something more troubling? Frank Donatelli, deputy chairman of the Republican National Committee, the RNC. Frank, good morning to you.

DONATELLI: Hi Bill, how are you?

HEMMER: I'm fine. Thank you for coming back here, by the way. How do you size this up, Frank?

DONATELLI: Well, look, anybody can make a slip of the tongue. Anyone can make a mistake. I grant you that. I think the problem here is that we're seeing a troubling pattern of historical sloppiness from Senator Obama. I think that's born of frankly a lack of experience, in some cases a lack of judgment, which, in other circumstances, could have grave implications for our foreign policy. And I will cite --

HEMMER: Frank, let me stop you there. You say a pattern?

DONATELLI: Yes. I mean --

HEMMER: Give me other examples.

DONATELLI: Well, the other examples --

HEMMER: What are you referring to?

DONATELLI: The other example I would give you is the extended debate we've had for the last week over Iran, in under what circumstances should America engage and negotiate with hostile powers. Now, based on his history, Senator Obama cites a couple of examples. He cites the [Ronald] Reagan meeting with [Mikhail] Gorbachev, when, in point of fact, the preparation for the Reagan-Gorbachev meeting took over four years. Reagan did not meet with other Soviet leaders for the first four years of his presidency precisely because there was no common ground there.

The second example that he cites is the Kennedy-Khrushchev summit of 1961. But, Bill, most historians believe that that was a disaster, that Kennedy was not prepared -- maybe the situation that would obtain if Senator Obama had such a meeting -- that Khrushchev bullied Kennedy and overestimated his strength, and many historians believe that led to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1963.

HEMMER: Frank, let me squeeze this in quickly here in the interest of time. Senator Obama -- this is the response from Obama's campaign: "The family is proud of the service of his grandfather and uncles in World War II, especially the fact that his great uncle was a part of liberating one of the concentration camps in Buchenwald. Yesterday (meaning Monday), he mistakenly referred to Auschwitz instead of Buchenwald in telling of his personal experience of a soldier in his family who served heroically."

Does that -- and I need a quick answer on that -- the fact that the Obama campaign came back so quickly, does that put this to rest now or is this something that lingers from your strategic perspective?

DONATELLI: For this issue, we would certainly accept that. However, the pattern still is troubling. Senator Obama's lack of historical knowledge is troubling, I think for somebody that wants to be commander in chief.

HEMMER: Frank Donatelli, thank you for your time.