On the August 17 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews, Newsweek chief political correspondent Howard Fineman compared supporters of Cindy Sheehan -- whose son was killed in Iraq and who has been leading a protest outside of President Bush's Crawford, Texas, ranch -- to opponents of Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. After guest host Norah O'Donnell shifted the topic of discussion from Sheehan's protest to Roberts's nomination, Fineman said, “A lot of the same people who want to make Cindy Sheehan a hero want to make John Roberts Satan personified.”

From the August 17 edition of MSNBC's Hardball:

O'DONNELL: There's also another hot political topic coming up for the president. He has got to push for and campaign for his choice to succeed Supreme Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, and that is John Roberts. The news today is that his records and what he wrote on affirmative action while he was in the Reagan White House have suddenly vanished from the Reagan Library. Is this going to be a big problem, Howard, for the White House?

FINEMAN: Well, I think the Democrats are focusing on it right now, because they're getting a lot of heat from their grassroots. A lot of the same people who want to make Cindy Sheehan a hero want to make John Roberts Satan personified. They're unhappy that the Democrats on the Hill seem to be waving Roberts through. They want action. They want opposition. And they're focusing on the process because they're not sure they can get Roberts on the substance.