MSNBC Readying To 'Fredo' David Shuster

Oh boy, nothing like a little internal dissension to liven up the World Wide Web.

We sat of this for a few days, waiting to hear the other shoe drop, but, for now, it appears shoes firmly on foot, perhaps, though, unlaced.



It seems that MSNBC's David Shuster has put himself in hot water again (not an unfamiliar placement for him), with an unapproved audition at rival network CNN.

MSNBC Suspends David Shuster ‘Indefinitely’

MSNBC said Tuesday that it had suspended for an indefinite period one of its highest-profile anchors, David Shuster. The decision came days after the revelation that Mr. Shuster had participated in a test of a new show for CNN, a competing cable news channel.

[snip]

According to The Observer, the CNN test episode featured Mr. Shuster and Michel Martin of National Public Radio. It is unclear how long ago the test took place, or whether it was well-received within CNN; a spokeswoman for that channel declined comment on Monday.

WOW!

How would Shuster fit in with "The Best Political Team on Television", he's not a rabid PartyofNoican, NeoNitWit Fluffer, or foaming Right Wing Freak Show Flying Monkey.

Wonkette wondered about that, as well;

And now MSNBC is all, “You are dead to us,” and he is “suspended indefinitely” and well, if his wish was to be on ninth-place loser cable-news channel CNN, his wish may have come true! And he’ll just have to take whatever CNN offers (forty bucks a week and whatever hairs fall off Wolf Blitzer’s beard).

Heads Up there, David ...

You broke their hearts, so, if any of the MSNBC suits offer to take you fishing, you should pass on it.


Bonus Riffs

Good Thing Frank Rich Doesn't Work For MSNBC!

The Shakedown, Roasting and Burning-At-The-Stake of David Shuster

Beam Me Up Scottie!

It still is, thinking back to last evening, something awesome, incredibly unreal, and thoroughly satisfying.

I wonder how many Republicans today, cued up their DVD's, to look back at the Republican Convention, and watch all those speakers mock Barack Obama for being a "community organizer".

Yeah, you showed'em, alright!

Obama kicked ass, that then knocked their teeth out for mumbling about it.

If it were a road race, Obama came damn-near close to lapping the Dead Campaign Express.

Also, it was rather interesting watching it all unfold.

MSNBC seemed slow, on the take, to call states for Obama.

And, if MSNBC was slow, CNN was absolutely petrified, seemingly fearing to put that "Best Political Team on Television" in a position were they would actually have to say something of importance, and not just prattle their own talking points.

And the sets ...

OMG!

Who sold them on going with the look of a bad Las Vegas floor show?

It was like a Cirque du Soleil idea, only missing the Cirque du Soleil imagination and talent.

MSNBC's virtual set appeared like the ripped it right out of the Michael Douglas-Demi Moore movie 'Disclosure'.

I half expected, the program to be torn apart, ending in acrimonious charges of "political harassment" by the end of the evening.

All that play between Rachel Maddow and Pat Buchanan during the course of the campaign coverage, the fighting and arguing, leading to a "steamy encounter", with Buchanan the injured party, claiming Maddow was working her "liberal ways" on him.

The first showing of this came early in their coverage, when they threw it over to Ann Curry (moonlighting from her usual "other members of the cast" Today Show post) for some Exit Poll mishmash.

Curry walked into the 'Disclosure' set, and, Walla!, a virtual reality snowcone-type thingy popped up with the hyped data.

I'm surprised that didn't go all in on this virtual stuff.

Think of the possibilities they could have had, bringing back Little Timmy Russert, to ghost-whisper election nuggets to his former colleagues.

And what happens to The Commander Guy's buddy "Stretch"?

David Gregory's show, 'Race To The Whitehouse', if we believe the title, closed its' curtain last evening, the race being over.

Do they retitle and repackage?

Yes they do, coming on air this evening, same set and graphics, but now called "1600" (see, that happens to be the address of house the previous version of the show was racing to ... Yes, you can use the word"stretch" here, as well)

And CNN ...

Holy Electronic Hijinks, Batman!

If MSNBC was running with the Son of Kirk movie theme, CNN went full bore a retro vibe of Star Trek, beaming reporters and others in for interviews via holograms.

I would have like to been on the set for that, if only to see Wolf Blitzer turn from his usual screaming at large flat screens, to screaming at empty greenscreen space, which I am sure still has the leader of "The Best Political Team on Television" totally freaked out today, ducking at shadows and pigeons.

Over at the Faux News Network, the only thing missing was a mournful Astor Piazzolla dirge, to accompany the long faces (and in Brit Humes' case, a face so long, only Elastic Man could possible match it).

And, for a moment, I half-expected a wonderful, possible, FCC moment.

Just as Hume and Turd Blossom finished looking at the ever-growing Blue map, and Rove riffing, Joe Pesci-style, as he watch the goons beat his brother to death in 'Casino', on the shortening ways McKKKain could still "pull it off", Hume tells him that Ohio just got called for Obama.

For a split-second, time was suspended, awaiting a foot stomp and plaintive cry of "Fuck!"

Fred Barnes?

He was so spooked and shaken, it took him about five-minutes to spit out one sentence.

But, then again the only sentence that matter was that Barack Obama was elected to become the 44th President of the United States.


Bonus Bonus

Astor Piazzolla (1921 - 1992) "Milonga Del Ángel"

Cheney Fluffer Hayes Blows Into CNN

CNN is slowly becoming Fox, but with out the blaring, cacophonous, over-the-top, kirons.

At least, as far as their "Best Political Team on Television", which Wolf Blitzer is under contract to breathlessly shout out, every two-minutes, goes.

And that's both on, and off, air.

You can be sitting in a restaurant with Wolf, and, bang, every two-minutes, he's going to stand up and belt out "The Best Political Team in Television!"

Yesterday, news, with a bullet, came out, that CNN is adding official Dick Cheney Fluffer, Stephen Hayes, to their "Best Political Team on Television.

Yes, that Stephen Hayes, the one John Amato, of Crooks and Liars, pegged as "Cheney's Karen Hughes" (you remember her, our first and only National Tupperware Lady), one of the bigger Flying Monkeys, perched over at the Weekly Standard, the heavy duty water carrier for the Bush Grindhouse".

And, about that "Best Political Team on Television" ...

Steve Benen nails it pretty good;

But let's also consider this announcement in the broader context, and note the other most recent additions to the self-described "best political team on television."

The latest CNN team members include David Brody (conservative employee of radical TV preacher Pat Robertson), Alex Castellanos (conservative Republican), Tara Wall (of the conservative Washington Times), and Frances Fragos Townsend (Republican best known for misleading the media on a regular basis while working for a conservative Republican president). They joined J.C. Watts (conservative Republican) and William Bennett (conservative Republican) as part of CNN's political coverage.

There's a real kaleidoscope of American Politics, heh?

That's a good strategy there, CNN.

Keep adding the Flying Monkeys, peel off those Faux News viewers.

Perhaps, with the addition of Fluffer Hayes, you'll have to recalibrate Wolf, to bellow his "Best Political Team of Television" every one-minute, now ...


Bonus "Okay Hayes, Drop Down and Start Your Fluffing" Riffs

Spencer Ackerman: Failing Upward Redux: Steve Hayes Joins CNN

Atrios: Your Liberal Media

Matthew Yglesias: CNN Wants Its Viewers to Be Misinformed

Spencer Ackerman: Idiot Wind Blowing Every Time You Open Your Mouth

No Doubt, Lou Dobbs Will Go Absolut-ely Apocalyptic

Obama Romps ... And, Gloria Borger, with The Best Political Team on Television, Sticks Her Neck Out

Obama Romps ... And, Gloria Borger, with The Best Political Team on Television, Sticks Her Neck Out

I have no intention of waiting until tomorrow, when a transcript may, or may not appear.

In our channel-hopping this evening, catching up on the talking heads of CNN and MSNBC, on yet another Barack Obama Evening, the Senator from Illinois running his winning streak to 8, sweeping Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Obama just didn't sweep the evening, he thumped, trashed, drubbed and routed Hillary this evening, particularly in Virginia.

From Chris Cillizza, of The Washington Post;

"Virginia was the state in which Clinton had hoped to perform beyond modest expectations. With nearly 90 percent of all precincts reporting in Virgina, Obama led Clinton, 63 percent to 36 percent."

So, and it was somewhere between 8:00-8:30PM that I switched from MSNBC to CNN - The Best Political Team on Television.

How do we know this?

Wolf Blitzer, himself, told us so.

And it's on their websites - Best Political Podcast and more from The Best Political Team.

So, there was the ubiquitous Blizter, prowling around the set that had more big screen monitors than the Consumer Electronics Show, orchestrating the news, standing, with his back to the camera, as John King worked his Colorforms screen of the State of Virginia, virtually marking individual voters in each and every county.

Time to throw it over to "the panel" which consisted of Jeffrey Toobin and Gloria Borger.

Yes, that Gloria Borger, the one Glenn Greenwald noted;

"Gloria Borger of U.S. News and World Report is perfectly representative of the establishment media pundit. She possesses in great abundance the most common attribute which defines them -- namely, there is never an original thought that comes out of her mouth."

And that Gloria Borger, as Crooks and Liars caught on a good one;

"Gloria thinks that because “nobody wants to see the President accused of lying” over a leak that was really just a “technicality” anyway that we ought to just wait until Bush writes his memoir to find out the truth (I’m so not kidding. I wish I were) about whatever happened because really “nobody cares anymore.”

So, how did Gloria Borger distinguish herself this evening, on the field of The Best Political Team on television?

With the toss from Wolf, after noting Barack Obama's huge victory in Virginia, and the continued winning streak from the weekend, Gloria, like the good talking head pundit she is, courageously went out on a limb;

"I think we have the beginning of real momentum", she said of Obama

Beginning of real momentum?

Good thing Borger wasn't a sport reporter in 1941, she might have waited to laud Joe DiMaggio, on his way to the still-standing record of a 56-Game hitting streak, until hit 44 or 45, perhaps offering that "I think he might be hitting the ball pretty good".

Or that she wasn't a race track announcer in 1973, calling the Belmont Stakes, or she may have noted that Secretariat was "running pretty good" on his way to the Triple Crown, and an astounding, unbelievable 31-length victory

Boy, if this is "The Best Political Team on Television", I better lock my television on CNN, lest I go through the rest of the campaign benighted, adrift and totally out-of-touch on what's going on.

I can now go out tomorrow, with the valuable insight of Gloria Borger, and boast to people that Obama is at "the beginning of real momentum".

I don't know if I can sleep tonight, I feel so excited with all this knowledge, from Gloria Borger, and "The Best Political Team on television".