Fox & Friends Repeatedly Airs Montage Of GOP Lawmakers Who “Want The Photo Released”

Doocy: "[Do] You Trust The Government" That Bin Laden Is Dead? The May 5 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends featured several segments about the Obama administration's decision not to release photos of bin Laden's body. Most of these segments featured a video montage of various GOP lawmakers calling for the photos to be released. During the show's first segment, co-host Gretchen Carlson said: “I'm relatively indifferent on this topic. To me, he's dead. I don't really need to see the photos.” Doocy responded, “So you trust the government?” and Carlson said, “Of course I trust the government. I think, as Americans, we need to trust the government.” Carlson also noted that former Defense Secretary “Donald Rumsfeld himself yesterday was indifferent about it as well,” presumably a reference to Rumsfeld's appearance on the previous day's Fox & Friends. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/5/11]

Doocy: There Are “A Lot Of Lawmakers On Capitol Hill Who Really Want The Photo Released And Think The President Is Making The Wrong Decision.” Later during the May 5 Fox & Friends, Doocy stated that there are “a lot of lawmakers on Capitol Hill who really want the photo released and think the president is making the wrong decision.” Fox & Friends then again aired a video montage of lawmakers calling for the release of the photographs. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/5/11]

But Fox & Friends Interviewed Several GOP Figures Who Expressed Reservations About Releasing Photo

Rumsfeld: “I Don't Know” If Photos Should Be Released -- “I Would Really Want To See The Photos And Ask Myself, What Would Be The Effect Of Providing [Them]?” On the May 4 Fox & Friends, the co-hosts interviewed former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld about the death of bin Laden. Rumsfeld expressed reservations about releasing photos of bin Laden's body and pointed out that the Iraqi government was responsible for releasing photos of Saddam Hussein:

CARLSON: Should they release the photos? That's the other controversy that's going on right now.

RUMSFELD: I don't know. I've thought about it a good deal. I would really want to see the photos and ask myself, what would be the effect of providing those photos? And until you look at them and see what they actually show, I think there's no question but that people over time, rational people over time, will agree that the various scans that were used on the body of OBL are credible evidence that he's dead and gone.

CARLSON: But you released the photos -- you released the photos of Saddam Hussein and his sons.

RUMSFELD: Actually, the Iraqi government did that. Once we captured Saddam Hussein, he was then turned over to the Iraqi people, and the Iraqi people tried him and executed him and managed the release of those photos. I think you're correct with respect to Saddam Hussein's sons that the U.S. Department of Defense undoubtedly did release those photos. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/4/11]

Rep. Mike Rogers: “Osama Bin Laden Is Not A Trophy Of The United States.” In a May 4 interview on Fox & Friends, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) stated: “I have one test. If there is a soldier in a province in Afghanistan who's doing patrol and stops in a village, and a village elder is going to cooperate and say, 'You know, they just put an IED up the road,' if the release of that picture makes that conversation more difficult, I'm against it.” Rogers went on to say, “Osama bin Laden is not a trophy of the United States.” Rogers reportedly made similar comments to NBC News. From MSNBC.com:

“I don't want to make the job of our troops serving in places like Iraq and Afghanistan any harder than it already is,” Rogers said, NBC's Kelly O'Donnell reports. “The risks of release outweigh the benefits. Conspiracy theorists around the world will just claim the photos are doctored anyway, and there is a real risk that releasing the photos will only serve to inflame public opinion in the Middle East. Imagine how the American people would react if al Qaeda killed one of our troops or military leaders and put photos of the body on the Internet.

”Osama bin Laden is not a trophy; he is dead, and let's now focus on continuing the fight until al Qaeda has been eliminated." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/4/11; MSNBC.com, 5/4/11]

Chambliss: “We Need To Consult With Our Military Personnel” Before Releasing Photos. During the May 4 edition of Fox & Friends, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) stated: “This city is known for its leaks, and somehow that photograph will ultimately get out. We need to consult with our military personnel and our intel community to see what damage might accrue if the photographs are released.” [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/4/11]

Other GOP Lawmakers Have Also Expressed Reservations

McCain: Releasing Photos Is “Not Necessary” Because “There's Ample Proof That This Was Osama Bin Laden.” A May 4 Politico article noted that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) does not consider it “necessary” to release the photographs given that “there's ample proof that this was Osama bin Laden.” From Politico:

Senators exiting the meeting with Panetta, who is in line to become President Barack Obama's next secretary of defense, were tight-lipped about what the CIA chief shared inside the room. McCain said he has not seen the photograph of bin Laden taken after he was shot in the face Sunday. Other senators approached in the Capitol basement said they also had not seen the photo.

The administration said Wednesday they will not release a photo. McCain told reporters he did not think the photograph needed to be released. “My initial opinion is that it's not necessary to do so. I think there's ample proof that this was Osama bin Laden,” said McCain, a Vietnam War veteran. [Politico, 5/4/11]

Boehner “Supports The President's Decision” Not To Release The Photographs. A May 4 CNN article on the White House's decision not to release the photographs added an update which included a statement from Michael Steel, House Speaker John Boehner's (R-OH) spokesman, who noted that Boehner “supports the president's decision.” [CNN, 5/4/11]

Risch: “I'm Not So Sure You Want To Poke The Bee Hive By Releasing These Photos At This Time.” In a May 4 post on ABC News' The Note blog, ABC News' Rick Klein reported that Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), who is a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, does not support releasing the photographs. From The Note:

But Risch, R-Idaho, said that while he's sure the photos will come to public light “eventually,” he sees no compelling reason to release them now, when there are so few credible voices who are doubting whether bin Laden is dead.

“I'm not so sure you want to poke the bee hive by releasing these photos at this time,” Risch told us.

He added that he doesn't think a photograph will change the minds of those who are inclined to believe in conspiracy theories regarding bin Laden's death.

“A photograph isn't going to make any difference,” he said. “DNA has now been confirmed to be 100 percent positive that it was bin Laden. That's what's going to convince people. Having said that, photos, DNA, whatever you have -- you know, there's people who still believe that we didn't walk on the moon. And there's going to be people who believe that he wasn't killed.” [ABC News, 5/4/11]