Media Matters - Mitt Romney

Media Matters - Mitt Romney http://mediamatters.org/tools/syndication/tag_rss/mitt_romney This link is for use by RSS-enabled software to retrieve Media Matters items matching the term: Mitt Romney en-US Copyright 2008, Media Matters for America Blitzer failed to challenge Romney's suggestion that he had not attacked McCain's lack of accomplishment "in the world of business" http://mediamatters.org/items/200805090009 CNN's Wolf Blitzer did not challenge Mitt Romney's false suggestion that during the Republican presidential primary campaign he had not attacked Sen. John McCain's lack of accomplishment "in the world of business." In fact, during the primary campaign, CNN had aired a clip of Romney saying, "I think, at a time like this, it makes sense to have a president who's actually had a job in the real economy." http://mediamatters.org/items/200805090009 Fri, 9 May 2008 18:21:45 EST CNN allowed Romney to "plug[]" McCain's "credentials on fiscal issues" without noting Romney's own previous attacks http://mediamatters.org/items/200804160006 Reports on CNN's American Morning and its Political Ticker blog quoted former Gov. Mitt Romney praising Sen. John McCain's "credentials on fiscal issues," but neither report noted that "questioning McCain's economic credentials was the centerpiece" of Romney's campaign during the Republican presidential primary in Florida. http://mediamatters.org/items/200804160006 Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:30:25 EST NBC's Gregory spread McCain's false claim that Romney "disparage[d] the service and courage" of WWII vet Bob Dole http://mediamatters.org/items/200802060007 NBC News' David Gregory let Sen. John McCain claim that Mitt Romney "disparage[d] the service and courage of an American hero" when he stated that Bob Dole is "probably the last person I would have wanted to have write a letter for me," a reference to a letter Dole wrote to Rush Limbaugh defending McCain. That night, Gregory also uncritically aired McCain's attack on Romney on NBC's Nightly News. But Romney made no comments disparaging Dole's military "service and courage" in his response to Dole's letter, as the full context of Romney's remarks make clear. http://mediamatters.org/items/200802060007 Wed, 6 Feb 2008 19:52:25 EST O'Reilly asserted secular progressives think "Mitt Romney is a dangerous Mormon," but polls show conservatives more reluctant to vote for a Mormon http://mediamatters.org/items/200801100001 Discussing Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson's 2008 predictions, Bill O'Reilly stated on his Fox News show that the "secular-progressive far left says, look, all these people are crazy; all believers are nuts. They're dangerous people. ... Mitt Romney is a dangerous Mormon." However, polling data indicate that white evangelical Protestants are the most likely to be bothered by Romney's religion, and that conservatives are less willing than liberals to vote for a Mormon. http://mediamatters.org/items/200801100001 Wed, 9 Jan 2008 19:39:14 EST Des Moines Register reported on Romney's "defen[se]" of wiretaps on "suspected terrorists" without mentioning central issue http://mediamatters.org/items/200712210002 A Des Moines Register article reported that Mitt Romney "defended the Bush administration's use of wiretaps to spy on suspected terrorists," quoting Romney asserting that President Bush "has done what was necessary here with the Patriot Act, as well as by listening in when al-Qaida was calling." But the article simply ignored the central issue in the debate: whether the government should have to obtain warrants to eavesdrop on communications involving people in the United States. http://mediamatters.org/items/200712210002 Thu, 20 Dec 2007 20:16:21 EST Russert did not challenge Romney's misleading statements about stem cell research http://mediamatters.org/items/200712160001 On Meet the Press, Mitt Romney claimed Hillary Clinton "put politics ahead of people" because "she was one of 28 [senators] to vote against alternative methods" of stem cell research. In fact, while Clinton voted against legislation that would have provided funding for alternative research measures, but restricted embryonic stem cell research, she voted for a bill that contained provisions providing for research relating to "alternative method technologies" and also expanded funding for embryonic stem cell research. Romney also touted a recent "breakthrough" on "alternative methods of creating stem cells without having to create new embryos" while failing to note that the senior American scientist involved in the "breakthrough" has emphasized the need to continue embryonic stem cell research. Meet the Press host Tim Russert did not challenge Romney on his claims. http://mediamatters.org/items/200712160001 Sun, 16 Dec 2007 17:18:06 EST NBC's Gregory, Lauer didn't challenge Romney's claims on religious test http://mediamatters.org/items/200712130004 On NBC's Today, David Gregory stated that, in his speech, Mitt Romney "urged voters to reject a religious test for his candidacy," then aired clips of Romney saying, "I will serve no one religion," and "[a] person should not be elected because of his faith, nor should he be rejected because of his faith." Similarly, Matt Lauer did not challenge Romney's claim that he "do[es]n't believe that the people in this country are going to choose a person based upon their faith or what church they go to." Neither Gregory nor Lauer noted that Romney has asserted, on several occasions, that Americans "want a person of faith to lead them." http://mediamatters.org/items/200712130004 Wed, 12 Dec 2007 20:39:34 EST Couric did not challenge Romney's claim that "[n]o religious test should ever be required for qualification for office" http://mediamatters.org/items/200712120003 On the CBS Evening News, Katie Couric asked Mitt Romney "why he didn't spend more time explaining the tenets of his Mormon faith in his speech last week." Romney replied: "I can't imagine doing that in a speech as you're running for president. ... [T]hat would really open the door to the kind of religious test where people would listen and say, 'OK, do I believe that?' " He later stated that "[n]o religious test should ever be required for qualification for office in these United States." But Couric did not note that Romney has repeatedly asserted that Americans "want a person of faith to lead them." http://mediamatters.org/items/200712120003 Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:08:29 EST Reporting that Romney "asserts his firm belief in the separation of church and state," Wash. Post did not note attack on "religion of secularism" http://mediamatters.org/items/200712110002 In an article on Mitt Romney, The Washington Post reported that Romney "repeatedly asserts his firm belief in the separation of church and state" and quoted from Romney's "Faith in America" speech: "No candidate should become the spokesman for his faith. For if he becomes president, he will need the prayers of the people of all faiths." But the Post did not mention that, in that same speech, Romney attacked unnamed people who "seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God," or his claims that "[f]reedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom," and "[f]reedom and religion endure together, or perish alone." http://mediamatters.org/items/200712110002 Mon, 10 Dec 2007 19:36:21 EST CNN did not challenge Southern Baptist Convention's Land with website's listing of Mormonism as cult http://mediamatters.org/items/200712100001 Discussing Mitt Romney's "Faith in America" speech, CNN's Colleen McEdwards said to the Southern Baptist Convention's (SBC) Richard Land, "I mean, let's face it, some people go as far as saying Mormonism is a cult." At no point during the interview, however, did Land acknowledge or McEdwards point out that the SBC lists the Mormon church as a "Major Cults/Sect[] in North America" or that an SBC group uses Mormonism as an example in highlighting four of the six characteristics it uses to answer the question, "What is a Cult or Sect?" http://mediamatters.org/items/200712100001 Mon, 10 Dec 2007 12:54:00 EST Matthews and guests lauded Romney's "Faith in America" speech, ignored attack on "secularism" http://mediamatters.org/items/200712090003 Panelists on The Chris Matthews Show praised Mitt Romney's "Faith in America" speech, but none noted that Romney attacked unnamed people who "seek to remove from the public domain any acknowledgment of God," claiming: "It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion in America -- the religion of secularism. They are wrong." Nor did they note Romney's claims that "[f]reedom requires religion just as religion requires freedom," and "[f]reedom and religion endure together, or perish alone." http://mediamatters.org/items/200712090003 Sun, 9 Dec 2007 16:55:10 EST NPR reported on McCain's criticism of Romney over waterboarding issue, but not his support for Mukasey http://mediamatters.org/items/200712040009 NPR's Ari Shapiro reported on Sen. John McCain's criticism of Mitt Romney "for refusing to say outright that the interrogation technique of controlled drowning known as waterboarding is torture," adding that "Attorney General Michael Mukasey almost was not confirmed based on his refusal to classify waterboarding as torture." But Shapiro did not note that, notwithstanding his criticism of Romney, McCain supported Mukasey's nomination for attorney general despite Mukasey's "refusal to classify waterboarding as torture." http://mediamatters.org/items/200712040009 Tue, 4 Dec 2007 16:45:19 EST Matthews cited Zogby Interactive poll without noting criticism of methodology http://mediamatters.org/items/200711280004 On Hardball, citing "a new Zogby poll," Chris Matthews stated: "Tonight, our Big Number is the number five. That's the number of Republican presidential candidates that [Sen.] Hillary Clinton trails in the November matchups." However, Matthews did not note that the poll was an online Zogby Interactive poll in which participants were chosen from a database of volunteers. Matthews omitted this fact despite statements by the American Association for Public Opinion Research and Democratic pollster Mark Blumenthal -- who appeared earlier in the day on MSNBC -- that such polls are unreliable. http://mediamatters.org/items/200711280004 Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:44:01 EST Ignoring his own history, Matthews asserted, "Huckabee has got the biggest free ride from the liberal media" http://mediamatters.org/items/200711260003 MSNBC's Chris Matthews said of Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, "I think Huckabee has got the biggest free ride from the liberal media that I have ever seen in my life. I mean, the guy, if you want to get into conspiracy theories -- I mean why is everybody who is liberal pushing Huckabee? Give me a break." However, during the November 8 edition of Hardball, Matthews introduced an interview with Huckabee by comparing him with the other Republican presidential candidates and asking, "[W]hy are prominent Christian conservatives bypassing former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee to support a New Yorker with liberal positions on social issues, a senator who's had poor relations with evangelicals, and a Mormon who's changed his position on abortion?" Matthews went on to say, "[I]t's an honor to have you on the show. Everybody likes you, Governor Huckabee. We're waiting for those poll numbers to reflect it. Everybody around here seems to like you, and we'll see what that's worth. Anyway, good luck in Iowa." http://mediamatters.org/items/200711260003 Mon, 26 Nov 2007 15:57:30 EST On MSNBC, Politico's Hearn repeats media myth that only some voters are "values voters" http://mediamatters.org/items/200711150007 On MSNBC's Tucker, the Politico's Josephine Hearn stated that if Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee wins the Iowa caucuses, "I think that's very damaging to Mitt Romney, because they're both going after values voters. So they're both trolling in the same areas." Hearn's use of the label "values voters" to characterize the subset of voters being targeted by Huckabee and Romney advanced the myth that this group of voters is the only political constituency that votes its "values." http://mediamatters.org/items/200711150007 Thu, 15 Nov 2007 14:53:38 EST