Why didn’t the mainstream media scrutinize the Obama administration’s handling of the attacks on the U.S. embassy in Egypt and a U.S. consulate in Libya? According to MSNBC host Joe Scarborough, it’s all Mitt Romney’s fault:
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Talk about the conservative critique–and I think it’s a fair critique, the conservative critique: that all you guys in the media were talking about Mitt Romney, you should have talked about the warnings with the embassy, etc., etc. And yes perhaps we should have. But you know who didn’t allow us to do that?
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Mitt Romney.
SCARBOROUGH: Mitt Romney. If Mitt Romney had kept his mouth shut, if he had not acted like a rank amateur, if he had not embarrassed himself–and by the way internally the campaign understands they screwed up, he’s moved on, they know that. So no conservative can say “oh, the mainstream media, blah, blah.” They know how badly they screwed up, and they were having the fight internally before he even went out and did it. But Romney got in the way of the media looking at the president, going, wha-, wha-, what happened here? How did this happen? Now, those questions are going to be asked in the coming weeks. But they weren’t asked in the first 24 hours because Romney was holding this horrific, irresponsible, press conference.
Last night, after National Review Online’s Jonah Goldberg tweeted a rebuke from Mark Steyn, Scarborough doubled down:
@JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline How Mark Steyn is spinning wildly for a breathtakingly stupid political move by Mitt Romney. Very funny stuff.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
@JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline Really, Jonah? You don't think Romney clumsily inserted himself into this story? Not even a close call.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
@scbison91 @JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline Seriously? I criticize Obama daily. This line of attack is as ignorant and tiring.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
@JonahNRO Romney screwed up. It's that easy. I also said the President's policy should be scrutinized. But here, stupidity reigns.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
@JonahNRO I'm not sure how you reacted, but when Durbin and Kennedy compared US troops to Nazis over Abu Ghriab, I attacked them. And you?
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
@JonahNRO Back to USC. Good luck with that Romney thing. If only I were a true conservative like him!
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
The former Republican congressman managed to work in a swipe at blogger Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit:
And now Glenn Reynolds is comparing LA police officers to Nazis? Seriously, take a deep breath, guys.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) September 16, 2012
That’s a reference to this must-read post in which Reynolds expresses outrage at law enforcement authorities’ treatment of Nakoula Basseley Nakoula. (Nakoula reportedly may face jail time for making an anti-Muslim movie.)
If this is the start of Scarborough’s 2016 presidential run, he is off to a shaky start:
@JonahNRO @JoeNBC Jonah, Joe is very touchy. He's surrounded by press who didn't do their job on Libya,egypt.- won't blast his regulars
— kaycee (@kmecf) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC First they came for the makers of crappy anti-Islamic movies, but Joe didn't say anything, because he didn't make crappy movies.
— Brian Hall (@WBrianHall) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC @JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline NO Joe, YOU'RE the joke!!
— Barbie GC (@BarbieHitsBack) September 16, 2012
Yes. You are. “@JoeNBC: @JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline What a joke.”
— Nicholas Horton (@nhhorton) September 16, 2012
https://twitter.com/graemehein/status/247240920397926400
@JoeNBC You got your soapbox so u don't give a damn when somebody else is silenced. Oh wait. I forgot. MITTs stopping you! #pjm #redeye #rvo
— G Ruggles Jr (@zaphod77) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC Good God. You have become far too influenced by the crazy-assed environment at that whackjob network. @jonahnro @marksteynonline
— #WarOnLeftists (@corrcomm) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC @JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline Romney made you do it really is that your final answer?
— Teabillieprincess (@mewashburn1958) September 16, 2012
It's fascist @ the very least MT @JoeNBC: & now @instapundit is comparing LA police officers to Nazis? Seriously, take a deep breath, guys.
— Aaron Worthing (@AaronWorthing) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC @JonahNRO @MarkSteynOnline You truly have absolutely no critical thinking ability, do you, Joe?
— Tuhljin (@Tuhljin) September 16, 2012
@JonahNRO @JoeNBC Anyone who believes the MSM would be covering Obama’s/Hillary’s failures if it wasn’t for Romney’ comments is delusional.
— Arizona Landshark (@radpragaz) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC, Yeah – if you're a member of the media, and you claim somebody distracted ur entire industry, guess what? U guys are phoning it in
— Bill Howerton (@BillinCSprings) September 16, 2012
https://twitter.com/bayareagirl2002/status/247186353798905857
@JoeNBC @jonahnro Ah yes the President's policy should be 'scrutinized', but not by the press, & for his challenger to do so is off-limits.
— soncharm (@soncharm) September 16, 2012
If @joenbc runs for Prez, the media will be his base.
— Eddie Cruz (@TheRightRican) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC @JonahNRO, @MarkSteynOnline @instapundit For Christ's sake Joe, you're acting like Andrew Sullivan here. It's embarrassing.
— Judge Elihu Smails (@JudgeElihu) September 16, 2012
@JoeNBC maybe you're thinking about running for the wrong parties nomination in #2016
— Ethan Roberts (@RobertsEthan) September 16, 2012
“JOE SCARBOROUGH IS BASHING ME ON TWITTER, but that’s just because he’s afraid I’ll kill his campaign plans. #Reynolds2016″
#Reynolds2016? Now, that’s a presidential campaign we can support!
