Russert Watch: Meet the Republicans
By Arianna Huffington
Today on Meet the Press it was Meet the Republicans, as Russert's well-rounded lineup included Republican Senator John Warner, Republican Congressman Peter King and Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger... We may have learned exactly nothing about the war on today's show, but one thing came through: we are making great progress in shifting blame for the approaching civil war to the Iraqi government. "You've got to get your act together," was Warner's admonition to them... Oh, and I almost forgot. Congressman King also got a chance to show off his own foreign-policy credentials: "The Iraqi people may realize it's time now to not go to a civil war but instead form a government." Hear that, Iraqis? You need to stop making civil war...
But that was only half the show. The best was yet to come: a thirty-minute campaign commercial for Arnold Schwarzenegger. Thirty minutes of airtime that had absolutely no journalistic purpose whatsoever -- just Tim kicking back with his good buddy Arnold. Indeed, the segment gave me an idea: Why doesn't Tim just do a spin-off show and maybe call it, "Meet My Friends, Cronies, and Business Associates." Then he could have on all his friends, like Arnold, and people his son is in business with, like James Carville. Last time Arnold was on Meet the Press, he was quite effusive, reminding Tim how long he's known him, telling him he loves him, and praising his physique: "I mean, look at your deltoids and your six-pack. It's amazing, so congratulations on that."
This is apparently some kind of theme between the two of them. This is from today's show:
SCHWARZENEGGER: By the way, you look nice and trim. Your abs look good. Keep up the good work.
In the words of a character from a certain Oscar-nominated film, Tim and Arnold don't know how to quit each other. If there's one thing that can distract from the travesty of journalism Meet the Press was today, it's being forced to think about Tim's abs. I wish I knew how to quit that image.
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