The day after the federal government hijacked one-fifth of the U.S. economy in order to give health insurance to unemployed 26-year-olds was a giddy day for CNN’s Rick Sanchez. The 3 p.m. EDT host for the low-rated cable news network couldn’t contain excitement for the healthcare hijack that had just taken place in Washington.
Sanchez gave us 25 minutes of non-stop gloating from supporters of the healthcare take-over. Sanchez gave us Obama, Biden, Pelosi, more Obama, Biden’s over-the-top and profane characterization that this is a really big deal, more Obama, Ted Kennedy’s widow telling us this is a really big deal, more Obama and a really long pen-signing ceremony to celebrate the occasion. We also got some yucking-it-up moments from Democratic members of Congress telling the President they had cast some tough votes on a really big issue.
Then Sanchez gave us Analysis 101 with David Gergen and another reporter, conversing with him on how the Republicans keep talking about over-turning the legislation but the reality is they won’t be able to do it. Sanchez assured us that he knew it was all talk – and that it couldn’t be done. When Gergen tried to bring up the fact that public opinion was on the Republicans’ side as evident by the most recent poll showing a large number of Americans were not pleased with the takeover, Sanchez jumped in to say that in his humble opinion:
We shouldn’t even be talking about that poll because it was taken before the vote.
Huh? Why would that matter? Americans don’t want this healthcare hijack and all the pushing by Sanchez that this is a really big deal won’t change their minds. We know it’s a really big deal and that’s why we’re mad!
And then, 25 minutes into Sanchez’s show he tells us that in an effort to be fair, we will soon be hearing from the Republicans “to get their take” on the healthcare hijack. But after the obligatory commercial break, Sanchez tells us that we won’t be able to hear from the Republicans right now because CNN has a technical problem.
Seriously?
There is only one computer satellite available for the Republicans’ response in all of CNN? It’s hard to believe but Sanchez assured us it was true. After several minutes and several other non-stories, Sanchez tells us that we will get GOP reaction, “If we get the computer fixed.” And then Sanchez starts laughing in an obvious “I don’t care” kind of way.
“It’s not like it’s our fault, it’s a technical difficulty”, he tries to explain with a smirk on his face.
Whatever excuse Rick Sanchez comes up with, the simple fact is that his show had no Republican response 35 minutes into it on the day after the “really big deal” healthcare vote. For more than 35 minutes, Sanchez orchestrated a liberal diatribe in support of the bill.
When CNN finally “fixed” the technical problems, Sanchez’s highly anticipated GOP response turned out to be a twitter review of tweets from six members of Congress over the last 24 hours. The six tweets highlighted by Sanchez, trumpeted as CNN’s Republican response, weren’t from Republicans afterall. The first three tweets highlighted were from Democratic senators Mark Udall and Arlen Specter and White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs. The last three tweets were from various minor Republicans, including Meghan McCain. Hardly a GOP response. And hardly a show worth watching.
Unlike this great moment from the Sanchez archives:
[youtube oqZvhTWxj30 nolink]
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