Today's Reminder: Matt Lauer Is a Leftist Political Hack & Liar (Video)
Posted by Jim Hoft on Thursday, March 11, 2010, 5:00 AM
On Monday, leftist Today Show host Matt Lauer interviewed Karl Rove and pushed the leftist line that George Bush lied America into the Iraq War; that Bush made up the weapons of mass destruction charges against Saddam Hussein.
NewsBusters has the transcript and video:
ROVE:Let’s stop right there. He said one sentence. I devote an entire chapter to showing that Bush did not lie about Iraq. In fact, I quote Democrats. There were 110 Democrats who voted for the Iraq war resolution. 67 of those Democrats, including John Kerry, John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, on the floor of the Congress said Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. So, he may be able to dismiss it in one snarky line, but I have, I have, I have the facts in here.
LAUER: What you write in the book is that the President, President Bush, would not have invaded Iraq if he had known there were no weapons of mass destruction. And what you write is-
ROVE: Yeah.
LAUER: “Would the Iraq war have occurred without WMD? I doubt it. Congress was very unlikely to have supported the use-of-force resolution without the threat of WMD.” But since the war Karl, you know so many people have come forward saying there was intelligence, there was intelligence pointing that Saddam did have weapons of mass destruction, but there was also intelligence pointing in the other direction and there were voices of dissent, and those voices were ignored so the President could make his case.
ROVE:Look the intelligence was worldwide agreed that he had WMD. That he had ignored 14 resolutions following his surrender after Kuwait to account for his WMD. He had spent 12 years stiffing the international community. We now know because of two international reports by two international weapons inspectors, Kay and Doefler, that he was diverted tens of millions of dollars a year to Oil for, from the Oil for Food program to keep together the necessary dual-use-
LAUER: But agreement was not worldwide. Here’s from, from Bob Woodward’s book State of Denial. He writes in October of 2002, the top intelligence officer, Major General James “Spider” Marks, in charge of looking for WMD in Iraq looked at a list of 946 WMD sites and found quote, “He couldn’t find with confidence there were any weapons of mass destruction or stockpiles at a single site.”
ROVE: Well, that’s one, but there were many intelligence…
LAUER: But you said it was worldwide. There was disagreement!
ROVE:There was, there was a consensus. It doesn’t imply that everybody agreed, but it implies that the vas-, the preponderance of evidence and the majority of agreement was that there were WMD. And look, this is a bipartisan agreement. It was Al Gore and Bill Clinton, as well as Republicans who said he had WMD. And look…
Matt Lauer was, of course, just regurgitating the leftist lie that George Bush made up the weapons of mass destruction story in order to go to war with Iraq. Unfortunately, Lauer forgot that we live in the age of YouTube and the internet and his lies can be fact-checked in a number of seconds.
Lauer “forgot” that every democrat was saying the same thing as Bush in 2002-2003 and spoke in even harsher terms against Saddam and his WMD.
But this won’t sway Lauer. He’ll repeat the same lie the next time a conservative comes on the show to be interviewed on Iraq.
More… Chip Bennett added:
Obviously, Matt Lauer doesn’t understand the difference between “worldwide” and “universal”.
Coincidentally, I wonder how one might compare and contrast Lauer’s opinion of the pre-Iraq-war WMD consensus with today’s Anthropogenic Global Warming “consensus”? For the former, one single dissenter destroys the credibility of the consensus; while for the latter, the matter of consensus is settled no matter how numerous the dissenters.
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Just_Saying commented:
Lauer has no credibility. Maybe he needs a prep for a colonoscopy — he’s full of it.
.
Mark Rauterkus commented:
How many Libertarians supported the war?
The Ds and Rs were both doing so while most of the rest (non Ds and non Rs) were not.
It is time for real alternatives.
Chip Bennett commented:
Obviously, Matt Lauer doesn’t understand the difference between “worldwide” and “universal”.
Coincedentally, I wonder how one might compare and contrast Lauer’s opinion of the pre-Iraq-war WMD consensus with today’s Anthropogenic Global Warming “consensus”? For the former, one single dissenter destroys the credibility of the consensus; while for the latter, the matter of consensus is settled no matter how numerous the dissenters.
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Chip Bennett commented:
@Mark Rauterkus:
What a convenient, selfish stance for the libertarians. Of course, that 40 million Iraqis can now exercise freedom means nothing to “libertarians” – much less, that our own country is more safe now that Saddam Hussein is gone, and Iraq is no longer a haven for terrorists.
But, go on ahead and keep tiptoeing through the Libertarian La-La Land.
Militant Conservative commented:
Mark Rauterkus
March 11th, 2010 | 6:25 am | #3
Ok, how many independants were there? 2.
I guess your FOR rape rooms and mass murder?
This 20/20 hindsite is crap. What if is for children and Democrats running for the tall grass. We went and Iraq is better off for it. How many terrorist attacks have we had since the NOTUS has taken office? The enemy is real and your choices are but three.
1) give up
2)fight here
3)fight there
Cargosquid commented:
Of course, if Bush had gone with the intel disagreeing with the WMD consensus and Saddam had used a nuke, Matt would have been one of the first ones screaming about Bush ignoring the info that EVERYONE knew…….
Andreas K. commented:
Wordlwide agreement? Irrelevant.
The WMDs were confirmed, among others, by the British, the French AND the Germans.
@Chip Bennett
He doesn’t speak for all libertarians. Only for himself. I wouldn’t even call him “libertarian”, sounds more like some sort of anarchist.
I supported the war and I still do. I always say that the biggest mistake, when it comes to Iraq, was leaving Saddam in power after Desert Storm. You had him. You could have removed him then. But Bush snr chose not to, thus Bush jnr had to do the job.
I hope that Iraqi democracy, brought by US troops and their allies, will survive. But… they still have that one idoleogy around, and in the name of this ideology Christians are murdered in Iraq even as we speak.
squeaky commented:
“Saddam had used a nuke, Matt would have been one of the first ones screaming about Bush ignoring…” so true.
neomom commented:
Has anyone noticed that Matt got meaner when his mayne of luxurious hair fell out? He’s Katy with a weiner. Although I have never actually seen it, maybe he is an ugly woman. He is a typical MSM leftist, clueless and moronic.
squeaky commented:
“Lauer is a School of Media Arts and Studies (formally the School of Telecommunications) graduate of Ohio University. He attended Ohio University, but left six credits short of graduating in 1979. In 1997, he received his degree from Ohio University. The university awarded him his remaining credits by counting his journalism experience as “independent study” wiki……not exactly a rocket scientist.
it doesn’t take a whole lot of courage to march in lock step with the obama cabal.
d_fitz commented:
Lauer is a coddled, whiny, pampered moppethead who has no clue how the real world works. I seriously doubt that this man has ever had an original thought.
Jason commented:
The Democrats called for the removal of Saddam Hussein throughout the 90′s from the first Gulf War and into Clinton’s presidency. Al Gore berated Bush I for not ousting Saddam and made a speech on C-Span in which he outlined how dangerous Saddam was. Democrats are quoted as believing that Saddam had WMD’s well before 9/11 and well before Bush was president. In fact they supported this view, and the Iraq war, up until the EXACT SAME MOMENT at which they realized they could gain some political capital by opposing the Iraq War and claiming there was never a possibility of WMD’s. In this sense, the Democrats put partisan politics and vote pandering above national security and thus they will forever be known as the most treasonous party in history.
The fact of the Democrat’s betrayal of America has been outlined in detail in the Ben Johnson/David Horowitz book “Party Of Defeat” and despite a large cash reward being offered to anyone who can prove the book wrong, as of yet nobody has been able to claim the prize (although many lefties have tried).
Bob Grant commented:
Attention Deficit Disorder Television ADDTV
Television for the Ritalin Generation
Swifty commented:
And will the “Green Zone”, starring Matt Damon, keep Matt Lauer’s argument going?
Texmom commented:
I think Matt Lauer and much of the left don’t really believe any of this stuff. They will simply continue to “use” it, as Lenin instructed, because repeating the lie often enough turns it into the truth for the general public.
iconoclast commented:
There remains a very special place in h*ll for someone who betrays their country and our military for personal gain. What the Democrat party did during the (second) Iraq War was to betray the USA for personal/political gain.
Every one of them who turned on the USA after supporting the War should be forced to vote during the next Iraqi election….
kato commented:
Matt Lauer is a piece of eye candy for dopey broads.
czekmark commented:
‘Leftist political hack’ and ‘liar’? Aren’t you being a bit redundant? For lefties, the terms are synonymous.
Patriot Act commented:
Regarding the video of Democrat hacks supporting the Iraq war, where are those jacka$$e$ now, when Iran is undeniably developing nuclear weapons and will almost certainly use them? They’re quite brazen about their plans. This is far scarier and more certain than the Iraq scenario, yet the Democrats, now in power, say and do nothing!
The blood will be on the Democrats’ hands when millions die.
Chip Bennett commented:
@Andreas K:
Oh, I know, my friend! That’s why I used the scare quotes.
But there are many so-called “libertarians” who hold his views. They are usually Paulians.
There were many valid, good, and moral reasons for liberating Iraq. I have no use for anyone who would align himself with the Code Pink Wackos on this issue.
I also have no use for anyone calling for a “third party”. The only thing the rise of a third party will accomplish is longer and more complete control of the country by the socialists and other liberals in the Democrat party.
bg commented:
++
just a sample for you Hack Liar, uh, Matt Lauer..
“If you don’t believe…Saddam Hussein is a threat
with nuclear weapons, then you shouldn’t vote for
me.” ~ John Forbes Kerry, Los Angeles Times, 1/
31/03
“The consensus was the same, from the Clinton administration to the Bush administration, It was the same intelligence belief that our allies and friends around the world shared.” ~ Senator Hillary Clinton, April
20, 2004 on Larry King Live
(long & boring)
Gore criticizes Bush for ignoring Iraq’s ties to terrorism: 1992
(short & to the point)
Gore To Bush: You Ignored Saddam’s Terrorist Ties! 2004
more here & here & here, as well as elsewhere..
==
bg commented:
++
Mark Rauterkus @ 6:25 am #3
then can you explain the following sample’s of
pro-war Libertarians that i found on the net??
Libertarians and the War
Why Did So Many Libertarians Support the War?
(links @ link)
thanks..
btw, and frankly speaking, i don’t really give a bats guano re: pro or anti war Libertarians, as going into Iraq was the right thing to do regardless, what i’d like to know is why Ron Paul is allowed top insert an R after his name??
==
Andreas K. commented:
@Chip Bennett
A truly libertarian party would not oppose the war anyway. I mean, a libertarian party would have to stand for principles of liberalism, which are what? Liberty. Freedom. Democracy. With all that coming a free market. With that coming a disdain for all dictators from Castro over Saddam to Gad-afferl (“afferl” is a slang term in the Austrian dialect for a little monkey.)
But hey, we can’t have that! We must have the government regulate everything. And the government must pay for everything!
There were many valid, good, and moral reasons for liberating Iraq. I have no use for anyone who would align himself with the Code Pink Wackos on this issue.
I absolutely agree with you. I can’t stand those Code Pinkos. I’m glad Iraq is free now and I really hope it’ll last.
And now, incoming rant, because of recent events and encounters.
I just had my encounter with the current demonstrations in Vienna. Leftist kids are demonstrating against the Bologna Reform by the EU. Mind you, I hate the EU and their idea of making everything the same (not in a good way.) But these kids think they have a right on everything. My money, free university (it is free here, currently only 16 Euros per semester and that’s the fee you must pay for the students’ union, which you can’t escape from, yep very freedom loving.) So today they’re holding the entire “Ring”, which is a large road going in circle around the city center (it’s the same place as the old city walls were, then the walls were demolished in the 19th century or so, and replaced with this wide parade street.)
And they’re doing this at the evening rush hour when all people want to get home. I saw the tailback. People are ANGRY. I almost got runover by some protestors on their bikes (which made me yell after them “Watch it damn commies!”) Lots of police in the streets. I think every cop in Vienna is mobilized to deal with this. I don’t even want to know how much this police presence will cost the taxpayer.
Their message?
We have a right for everything. And of course “redistribute wealth!” Free market is bad.
Some of their points as to why they hate the Bologna reform. Copy and pasting from their flyer.
#1 Because it makes us sick! Employability has destroyed my life.
Awwwwww
#2 Because BA/MA is a project to enforce the building of elites! Cutbacks mean oppression!
Yep, elites are bad. Having to prove your worth is bad. Having to achieve anything is bad! Whaaa whaaa whaaa!
#3 Bologna means competition as the highest principle of regulation.
Bologna means “ranking – religion” and the dictatorship of the free market!
Oh yes, the evil free market. There we go.
#7 Because the administrative effort of the employees of the university explodes.
Bureaucracy is the worst thing ever.
Funny how without the “evil” system most of them would have to work while going to university. Cause our “evil” system is very generous with students’ support. It was back when I was at the university for veterinary medicine (in 1994, my first university run) and it’s now even more generous.
#9 Because employability is the new battle cry of capitalism.
Because Bologna means instrumentalization of education and knowledge.
Yes, capitalism bad. I get it. And actually being able to use what you learn is also bad. Yep. Totally bad.
They have a “DJ” or whatever on a truck who’s making very loud “music” and every now and then he screams “F**k the system!” and “Motherf*cker!” A very eloquent fellow. Just like all leftists.
Those are the kids who constantly ask me “Do you want fries with that?”
I actually wanted to take photos, but then it was too cold and I’m too hungry right now and a few thousand leftist nutjobs aren’t really worth it.
They will of course claim again that their protest was a huge success, even though the lesson I was in right before (History of Japan) was very well filled. So I’d guess at best not even 20% of all students in Vienna. Hardly impressive. That would make it not even 10k, that is, of course, not counting the many foreigners who came here just to protest.
Jabba The Tutt commented:
I think the strongest argument that there was agreement that Saddam had WMD is that Saddam’s own Generals thought he had it. They were wondering during the American invasion, why Saddam didn’t release the WMD to them to fight the Americans.
Saddam kept it in a very tight circle that he didn’t have WMD. Everyone (or almost) in the world and in Iraq thought he was lying, when he said he didn’t have WMD. And what ever happened to the story that the Russians took the WMD out to Syria in the weeks before the war?
And this points out, how difficult it is to get accurate intelligence as against a closed totalitarian regime. Gee, that reminds me of Iran, North Korea today and the USSR, China, Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in the past. US Intelligence has never been right about the nuclear programs of any totalitarian country.
Major Kong commented:
squeak
March 11th, 2010 | 7:45 am | #11
“Lauer is a School of Media Arts and Studies (formally the School of Telecommunications) graduate of Ohio University
……………………………………………………………
Thanks for answering the question I was going to ask: What uniquely qualifies Lauer’s opinion to be anymore informed than that of anyone else?
Media Arts and Studies, oh my!! He must be waaaay smarter than everyone else.
Who watches these people? Who gives one damn what they say?
jonyjoe101 commented:
First of all it’s time to move on.
Second of all, now we know for a fact that there are no more WMD.
Case close.
Betty commented:
Who would doubt that Matt Lauer is a leftist tool? He leaves no question as to what his political leanings are. I used to watch that show – when we didn’t have cable for a while when my husband lost his job. Then there was some dust up about some Republican poiticians that got into some sort of trouble. I forgot what the whole thing was about. But I remember Matt Lauer sitting there interviewing someone, and he couldn’t sit still in his chair. He had an extremely jubilant look on his face and wriggled around in his chair so much I thought he was going to have an *rgasm right there on the show. I turned it off. It was sickening to watch.
I wish I could see his face when the midterm election results start rolling in…
bg commented:
++
Saddam “outsourced” Iraq wmd programs..
Iraqi WMD Debate and Intelligence: the Links to Libya
[1. Documents Moved to Syria: In essence, documentation of that small portion of the WMD program which was administered directly in Iraq was moved, along with other sensitive material and resources, to the Hshishi Compound at al-Qamishli (Kamishli) in Syria, just near the Iraqi border,
in August-September 2002. This was noted by GIS at that time.1
2. R&D Conducted in Libya: The great bulk of the work on WMD and on associated missile delivery systems, however, was conducted since 1991
in a partnership with Libya, and also with Egypt, at facilities in Libya, in order to keep the programs away from US and United Nations (UN) probes. That, too, was noted by GIS.2]
now you know why Lybia so willingly surrendered it’s
wmd programs & Israel bombed Syria’s nuclear facility..
==
timajin commented:
One wonders why this dude doesn’t go after AGW with the same veracity with which he pressed Rove. He is complicit in the fraud being perpetrated on this country for the simple FACT that he doesn’t even go down that path. Regardless of opinion there’s a story THERE RIGHT NOW, not one that was beat on for years by the Dumbocrats and the pathetic media.
BTW we should call them media and not news or journalists. They have forfeited that distinction.
Warren Bonesteel commented:
What is surprising is the number of Republicans and conservatives who bought the lie that there were no WMD’s. …and who still believe that there were no WMDs. (You hate the left-wing MSM, lying politicians and the corrupt UN…and you know they lie about everything…except when you choose to believe them???)
Other issues wrt Iraq and the war can be argued, but that really isn’t one of them. …kinda like when Republicans and conservatives bought the lie that Islam was a religion of peace that had been hijacked…or when their argument about AGW didn’t question the lack of science or proof, but was about the legislation and the cost of stopping global warming.)
Then there’;s the idea that current laws wrt ‘campaign finance reform’ are actually legalized forms of historical and traditional definitions of corruption….but its always the Democrats who are corrupt, or its always the Republicans who are corrupt.
Or when Republicans and conservatives think that Social Security and nation building with military bases all over the world is constitutional, but entitlements like food stamps and welfare aren’t …and vice-a-verse wrt to Democrats. *Hint: None of it authorized under the Constitution. (If you think it is, you believe in and endorse a living constitution.)
In this day and age, rational irrationality/ rational ignorance have an impact upon all of us, not just upon those who indulge in such lazy, hazy thinking.
bg commented:
++
Warren Bonesteel @ 7:01 pm #32
well congratulations, you managed to say a
whole lot of nothing in sooooo many words..
==
bg commented:
++
flashback:
YOU LIE!!
==
AuntieMadder commented:
Chip Bennett
March 11th, 2010 | 6:47 am | #4
As I was reading the interview portion of this post, I was thinking the same thing that you posted here in comments and was added to the post.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I caught a few minutes of this interview, including this portion, while channel surfing the other day. It was obvious that Lauer was going for a “gotcha” moment in journalism. He didn’t get it. Instead, Rove gave him more of a “Do you get it now?” moment. ha!
AuntieMadder commented:
kato
March 11th, 2010 | 10:08 am | #19
Matt Lauer is a piece of eye candy for dopey broads with appalling taste and poor vision.
There. I fixed it for you.
Scott commented:
—Would the Iraq war have occurred without WMD? I doubt it. Congress was very unlikely to have supported the use-of-force resolution without the threat of WMD—
That’s right, the Dems wouldn’t have voted to oust Saddam even if it meant saving 750,000++ Iraqi lives.
http://gatewaypundit.firstthings.com/2009/10/1000000-iraqis-died-as-a-result-of-clintons-policies-85000-died-during-bushs-war-horrifying-video/
Chip Bennett commented:
Jim, thanks for the mention!
By the way, check that “Papa Mike’s Blog” trackback. Looks like that site is completely plagiarizing a lot of your work.