Liars this week: Matthewsw/Fineman, Williamsw/McCain, Bash

[papau]

There appears no point in including Fox folks in a list of the weeks media whore liars. When FOX News chief White House correspondent Carl Cameron stated "in 2018, Social Security becomes insolvent, paying more in taxes than incoming payroll taxes." did anyone believe him? :-) With Fox stupid is always perhaps more a possible reason (rather than liar) than on other networks - perhaps Cameron does not know that "insolvent" doesn't mean "paying out more than you take in," it means "unable to meet financial obligations," or that the Social Security system is projected to continue to pay out full benefits through at least 2042, even with no changes whatsoever. And Weekly Standard executive editor Fred Barnes on FOX News, may well have also been more stupid than liar when he said the word "privatization" didn't apply because "The government will decide what your options are in investing it"; and seconds later, he contradicted himself, saying "the key" to the plan is individual ownership. Someone should explain to Fred the difference between having a few ownership rights, and actual ownership.

But on the shows we have higher expectations for we had MSNBC Hardball with Chris Matthews, Newsweek's Howard Fineman, and NBC White House correspondent David Gregory all trying to imply that it was the Democrats that changed the account terminology from private accounts to "personal accounts", with Fineman even noting that Democrats "refuse to call it 'personal accounts'! with Chris saying nothing to correct him - not the reaction Chris has with a Dem! Perhaps Chris is stupid and does not know that the phrase "personal accounts" is a recent invention by Republican pollsters who found that the word "privatization" -- which had been used by all sides for decades -- polled badly.

CNN's Dana Bash suggesting that private accounts would realize ten times the rate of return that the Trust Fund sees is perhaps more stupidity than lie - but someone should tell Bash that the chief Social Security actuary has estimated the rate of return on equities at only 6.5 percent" (far less than the ten percent Bash indicated) -many other economists have argued that even this estimate is overly optimistic and that Bush's proposal will increase retirees' exposure to risk without producing a better rate of return than the current system. God Forbid the real rate of return on the Trust fund current assets would be mentioned.

NBC's Williams has no problem correcting Dems, but he stood idly by while Senator John McCain (R-AZ) falsely claimed that in 15 years there will be "no money at all left in the Social Security trust fund." NBC has noted that the Trust Fund isn't projected to run out until 2042, at the earliest -- but Williams allowed the senator to mislead viewers.

As usual CBS did best on the truth scale - but I am sorry to note that on CBS' The Early Show, Bill Plante caved to the new GOP terminology - I believe this is called "taking sides in a debate" - using twice used the phrase "personal accounts," while an on-screen graphic with the text "PERSONAL ACCOUNTS ... VOLUNTARY ... CONSERVATIVE INVESTMENTS" appeared.


Media Matters reports that Inauguration Day coverage had 83 Republican and conservative guests on CNN, FOX, and MSNBC, while only 20 progressive guests appeared on those programs. And during coverage of Bush's State of the Union address this week, between 7 p.m. and 12 a.m., MSNBC featured eleven conservative guests and only two progressives. MSNBC had four elected Republicans as guests: Senators Lott (R-MS), McCain (R-AZ), Santorum (R-PA), and Hatch (R-UT), and no elected Democrats. Bush's communications director and former speechwriter were also guests; the only progressive guests were Ron Reagan Jr. and Hilary Rosen.

[Name removed]

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[Shopaholic]

2. Of course Tweety was lying--

as long as he's breathing and his lips are moving-he's lying!