Rick Santorum’s profanity-laced outburst at Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times has elicited a fair amount of comment in the political world, as one might imagine – including among Fox News analysts. If you’d like to hear two very different interpretations of Senator Santorum’s reaction, you can watch Brit Hume here and Sarah Palin here.
Hume wasn’t harsh in his critique of Santorum, saying he was probably “fatigued” and showed “some exasperation,” but added that Zeleny is a “reasonable guy” who asked a legitimate question and would have taken Santorum at his word when it came to a clarification. Palin, on the other hand, said this:
Santorum’s response to that liberal-leftist, in-the-tank for Obama press character really revealed some of Rick Santorum’s character. And it was good and it was strong and it was about time because he’s saying enough is enough of the liberal media twisting a conservative’s words, putting words in his mouth, taking things out of context and even just making things up. So when I heard Rick Santorum’s response, I was like ‘Well, welcome to my world Rick’ and ‘Good on ya.’ Don’t retreat. You are saying “enough is enough. I was that glad he called out this reporter. He and the other candidates all of them need to do more of this. Because believe me the American people are tired of what that leftist media continue to do to conservatives.
So there you have it – Jeff Zeleny is, according to Hume, a “reasonable guy” while to Palin he is a “liberal-leftist, in-the-tank-for-Obama press character.” Hume says Santorum was fatigued and exasperated; Palin thinks Santorum and the other GOP candidates should do more of this kind of media push back (presumably including the profanity). One of the commentators is detached; the other is embittered.
Between Hume and Palin, who do you think is the more sober, mature, thoughtful and reasonable?
I’ll report, you decide.
I know another hit job on Palin from this website when I see one. The anti-Palin commentators at this place are embittered ones pretending to be "thoughtful" when it's rather evident they have a hate-Palin obsession of the first order.
She has hit herself harder than her enemies, here lately. I used to be one of her Greatest fans. n nThis is one example – Santorum said precisely what this reporter said he said in the question. Bashing the reporter for the Truth that Santorum stuck his own foot in his own mouth with help from nobody – that is not the way to fight an unfair MSM. With Greater unfairness and less grace. nDefending that just because of what the MSM has done to Sarah and her family in the past – in defense of this activity of Santorum's… NO! n nIf she did it in defense of George Zimmerman… Whole other ball of wax.
I'm afraid that you are ignorant of the facts. Santorum had NOT said what Zeleny, in his "question", asserted. Zeleny "asked" "You said Romney was the worst Republican in the country. Is that true?" Santorum had actually said, in his speech, "Fifty-dollar abortions subsidized by RomneyCare… Why would we put someone up who is uniquely — pick any other Republican in the country. He is the worst Republican in the country to put up against Barack Obama."
Further, In talking to Bill O'Reilly about this later Brit Hume defended Zeleny's falsehood by suggesting that Zeleny had "short-armed" the question by leaving out the "to put up against Barack Obama" part. But some other explanation is necessary: Zeleny told Charlie Rose, on the latter's show, that Santorum had said Romney was the worst Republican in the country and, doubling up on his falsehood, that the sentence was "unconnected" to health care. So, even if he had a brain fart when Santorum was speaking, he stands convicted of the simple incompetence of not reviewing the tape before going on national TV to opine on what happened.
And, finally (I hope – I would have posted this as one comment, if I could) when Zeleny blogged on the event he added the ""to put up against Barack Obama" part without giving any indication that he had ever suggested Santorum hadn't used the phrase, which is blatant dishonesty, even if he had merely been wrong before. As it happens, Santorum hadn't actually cursed Zeleny out (S: "Don't lie… If I see it, it's bulls**t.) but if he had Zeleny would have fully deserved it, post hoc. And it doesn't offend me.
Wehner probably isn't a fan of Palin BUT Palin needs to see that Santorum did indeed come across as unhinged. Palin didn't do herself any favors. Be a fan of Palin all you want, but a true friend would tell her the truth, not be irrational at valid criticism.
The problem is that this "valid criticism" is the latest in a long line of anti-Palin hit pieces from this site, which have not diminished since the departure of Jennifer Rubin to become the female David Brooks for the Washington Post (i.e. the most worthless advocate for "conservatism" you could ask for). Palin speaks to a general truth of how the days of brushing off media hostility in the spirit of Reagan are over now, because the media has doubled down and no longer shows the slightest pretense of hiding its bias. It requires conservative politicians to show some moxie and be willing to push back and stop treating the media with an aura of respect they no longer deserve or are entitled to receive from conservative politicians. I don't even have to approve 100% of how Santorum pushed back, but that push-back is needed is something that is long overdue.
Pete, you've made it abundantly clear that you don't much care for Mrs Palin. Give it a rest. n
Brit is in the tank for Willard to the same degree as Jeff is for BHO. 'NOUGH SAID.
Palin is right!!! I'm tired of it too.
Sarah Palin is wrong. It is very unusual for me to defend a New York Times reporter—but Jeff Zeleny did not deserve Rick Santorum's childishly immature attack in this particular instance.
Here's Zeleny asking Obama a question about this time in 2009: n nQ: Thank you, Mr. President. During these first 100 days, what has surprised you the most about this office? Enchanted you the most from serving in this office? Humbled you the most? And troubled you the most? n nHard to blame Santorum for being p-d off or Palin for supporting him. Santorum will not get my primary vote, but I think he and Palin come out better here.
I've seen enough of Brit Hume over the years to trust his judgment. n nSarah inserting herself into the story – "Well, welcome to my world …" – doesn't reflect well on her, IMO (and that's all it is). n nWhile I agree with Palin that Republicans & conservatives (especially conservatives) have to be willing to take on the false premises of the vast majority of the questions, etc. they get from the media, it needs to be done "joyfully." Losing your cool makes your conduct, not the false premise, the story – or, at least, it opens up the possibility of that occurring. n nWhen your opponent (and most of the media is our "opponent") is behaving foolishly, you get out of the way & let them go.
Hume.
Only Sarah Palin would find such a juvenile comment from Rick Santorum a sign of strength and character. They are both twits.
Regardless of what you think of Zeleny, his question or even his objectivity – and Santorum's response notwithstanding – I have never heard a more apt description of anyone than that which refers to Palin as "embittered".__Sarah Palin was once a fresh, inspiring and positive character who won the admiration of many, myself included. However, since the electorate has made it clear that she will never be queen, she's morphed into a tense, negative and really not at all likeable personality.__Her shenanigans during the primary contest have been very destructive. She's encouraging the extension of the protest in the delirious hope of perhaps getting another bite at the cherry but all she does is to poison the well.__Conservatives (of which I am one) would be much better served by her fading away into the Alaskan sunset.
Sorry @charles….you are so wrong it makes me wonder if you aren't one of those trolls that tries for moderation to slime a person on the right. There is nothing wrong with Sarah other than she doesn't use the "polite" rhetoric the "conservatives" normally use…she speaks more to the average person in America, not the ideologically truncated, or the elite in any fashion. Oh, and @charles…she doesn't hold her pinky up when she drinks her coffee…very telling!!
Sarah lost me last Fall.
I’ve already written on this before I ever heard of Sarah’s response – it doesn’t help Santorum to rail at Liberal MSM, towards making him look smart and tough and strong and “able” – when he chooses one of the very few times they are CORRECT AND RIGHT. Santorum said precisely what the guy asked him – and he has said it often enough that we know full well he really really really means it.
Trying to deny it is grossly stupid on Santorum’s part – even to being another of his many LIBERAL-STYLE MOVES, in fact.
And he is dumber than even that (to show himself so viciously GRACELESS by saying that – I am glad he showed us what he thinks though – I keep praying for politicians to inadvertently display their true selves to us voters) – in that he doesn’t realize that however NOT CONSERVATIVE that Mitt may be, Santorum’s voting record shows HIMSELF to be on the same page with OBAMA on FAR too many Liberal issues, and that voting for Santorum would be one of a few votes one could make that would NOT be an improvement over Obama – in the most basic and practical terms.
I truly liked Santorum until this primary. He has shown me who he most probably is…I don't like what he has shown me. He has come off as whiny, ugly man..WOW I never, ever expected that. I could no more support him than Obama but, I will hold my nose and vote for Mitt!. Obama is such a disaster that I am truly afraid for my country!
There you go, again. I'll help you out here. Look at "Santorum v. Zeleny: Two men doing their jobs"(sic) on Erik Wemple's WaPo blog. Watch the second video, of the relevant part of Santorum's speech.. I think you'll want to retract your statement that "Santorum said precisely what the guy asked him." And watch the first video, if you need to review the "question".
Who cares what Bret Hume, thinks ? I don't, he seems nice but kind of a watered down conservative establishment guy. He is for Romney. Sarah is right the Media is dead for the most part and do no,t and will not report truth. They let Obama get off with anything. They are weak and have no desire to report the truth when it is a negative for their guy .If Obama came out and said he was a Marxist, and intended on becoming America's first dictator, ABC, CBS<NBC CNN would all applaud it, or make an excuse for it and blame it on the republicans. They are that deceived, and cannot be trusted. As far as I'm concerned the virtue of truth has been discarded by the MSM.
I'm sorry, I've gotta go with Palin and Santorum here. Thanks to pillageidiot for reminding every one just how much of a is a leftist, in the tank for Obama MSM dissembler Zeleny is. n nAnd he most certainly knows that Santorum has never said that Mitt Romney is the "worst Republican in America", what a stupid question. As Santorum attempts to point out to Zeleny, the reporter knows perfectly well what Santorum's been saying over and over again. n nAnd I've heard the actual exchange, Zeleny tries to pull some guerilla tactic of just asking the question over and over in increasingly belligerent tones, he never gives Santorum a chance to actually answer him. so I don't see why Hume thinks Zeleny would have taken a "reasonable" answer, he wouldn't shut up long enough let Santorum answer the question at all. n nFurthermore the sooner Republicans, Conservatives and others realize the MSM is nothing more than another adversary the better off they'll be. n nCourtesy, "civility", "Diversity", fairness, these are all one way streets with the Left. n nI'm undecided as to whether we on the Right should continue to strive to take the high road or whether we should get down in the gutter with them, but let's stop pretending about where they stand and how they act.
Palin is a brain-addled ninny. She;s Herman Cain with a fright wig, now.
Let's assume her IQ is 100. That means she has 25 IQ points on you. I know it's hard nbut be strong.
You are being more than kind to Israeli100…I would say he is in the 70 range or lower…know what that makes him?
Hume is pitching for The Establishment. Anybody challenging the status quo gets ol Brit's best measured, reasonable, "can't you see this is just common sense" tone of voice. Does Brit Hume want to be remembered as a lame right-hand version of Uncle Walter Cronkite?
This is a very embarrassing essay both for Hume and especially Wehner. The NYT is part of the Democratic Party's propaganda wing. It is essentially unreadable. The more grief they get the better for everyone. The Republicans should be be doing more of what Santorum did, much more. It will only help them politically. And best of all it will infuriate the left into meltdown. Haters, racists, bigots, Neanderthals…eventually their little brains will run out of smears. And then they will have nothing left.
Attack, attack, attack! Good for Santorum!!! Conservative politicians and every other conservative in the country should be in the face of the U.S. enemedia every single day. Newt has done a good job pointing out that there are no real journalists in the conga line enemedia just propagandists and shills for the democrats.
Unfortunately, Mr. Wehner has joined forces with leftists who, not wanting to debate the issues, use every excuse to characterize real conservatives as crazy unhinged lunatics. Here's the problem Mr. Wehner. After you finish destroying the conservatives like Rick Santorum and Sarah Palin, the left will destroy you. Yeah. That's how it works. It's called divide and conquer. You know about this but fool yourself into thinking that sounding moderate and cool will protect you. It won't. They will do the same thing to you. Now on the merits/ Santorum used one epithet, relatively mild ONCE. That does not make his "rant" profanity laced in my opinion. To be profanity laced I think it needs to have at least two or three profanities. Second. Zelezney was distorting what Santorum said. Santorum clearly corrected him. The leftwing media left out the part where he said as part of the same sentence that Romney was the worst Republican to run against Barak Obama because of Romney care. Yeah. I think he is not alone in thinking that or saying that. Arguing that Santorum really did say it is kind of like quoting the 10 commandments leaving out the "nots". So God really did say thou shalt . . . commit adultery. Hey the elipse lets you know I left something out. Here the NYT reporter just left out 2/3 of a paragraph and half a sentence. n nThe don't fight back mentality has got us where we are. Someone has to call these people on what they do. The result of fighting back has been that many people no longer trust the liberal media and look elsewhere for their news. n nYou and Brit Hume, unfortunately, are part of that group that thinks you catch more flies with honey when you should be asking who is it that wants to catch flies.
Are we all on the same planet? Can anyone provide an example of a conservative, or a conservative idea, proposal, or position that has gotten "even-handed" treatment in a New York Times story in say, oh, the last 3 years? n nWe do not have to get in the gutter with them, but, for conservatives to consistently win the public relations battle, conservatives MUST stand up, push back, and call them on their premise practically every time they pose a question. n nThis is because the FRAMING of the question is specifically designed to put whatever answer the conservatives give in the worst possible light. I have to believe the old Grey Lady either schools their writers or specifically selects those best able to frame a question to a conservative in the fashion of "When did you stop beating your wife?" n nSince no answer given will be a satisfactory defense of the conservative position, the ONLY way to win the public relations battle is to challenge the premise of the question.
I admit that the most successful way to do this is in a lighthearted manner that skewers and ridicules the questioner, but a little fire now and then is vastly preferable to accepting the premise of the questions as far as winning the public relations battle. n nIt's good to see more conservative politicians pushing back, and if you guys don't realize half the battle is winning in the public relations arena, we are never going to return to constitutionally limited government. n nI say three cheers for Sarah and Santorum.
AMEN!
Correct!
You, Brit Hume has exposed yourself along with alot of other "conservatives" (Fred Barnes, Charles Krauthamme etc) to be GOP establishment guys or Beltway Boys in this election. Palin represents us people who are more blue collar..more Tea Party. There's a difference in being a Republican and being a conservative. You are a Republican Brit.
This primary process has exposed (to me at least) to wings…..Republicans (GOP estab i'e Romney etc) and conservatives.
HUH?
Brit liked it when Gingrich slapped down the boy from CNN. He loves it when Christie smacks down silly questions from reporters. He positively gushes when other LSM types are handed their cojones… nSo, I suppose there's no accounting for repoter-on-reporter man-crushes, and doubly so when the object of the man crush is thrashed by a politician you detest. nYep Brit, you've shown your true colours–yellow and sickly green–when it come to taking sides between members of your own profession, whom you detest and politicians whom you hate.
Let's see "detached" vs "embittered" ? How many positive interpretations of "embittered" come to mind? Mr. Wehner lives the lies. Just as a fish doesn't know it is wet Mr. Wehner doesn't know he is living the lies.
Sarah Palin is my vote and I do enjoy Hume, but, as usual, the moderates use the "polite" excuse to allow the disengenuousness of the media. I ask again, for the 100th time in this and every other medium in which I post or comment: when 95-98% of the media by their own admission are twisted so far Left with the Uberprogressive ideology the only "side" they adhere to and believe, that it is impossible for them to do the correct,moral, ethical, honest and true thing in their portrayal of the right in whatever form, HOW CAN WE BELIEVE A THING THEY SAY, WRITE OR DO?
"Rick Santorum’s profanity-laced outburst at Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times…" – Peter Wehner n nSantorum said "bullshit" in response to Zeleny's bullying. n nIs this a "profanity-laced outburst"? n nI observe. You decide.
This article reminds me of the Monty Python Parrot skit (see youtube). nThe person who is dealing with reality and sees things accurately (“This parrot is dead.”) becomes more and more agitated and is hysterical by the end of the skit. The other person, who refuses to deal with reality at all (“No it isn't”) is calm, collected, and polite through. Very informative skit. Wehner should go review it.