The Good, the Bad & the Ugly
Bartiromo, Kudlow Praise Palin’s Pro-Drilling Stance; Cramer Supports Higher Taxes ‘If you make more than $250,000;’ Michael Moore Calls Gustav Landfall 'Proof There is a God in Heaven'

Sept. 3, 2008

The Good
      While many members of the mainstream media were scratching their heads, trying to figure out just who Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was, CNBC actually came out with an almost immediate positive response.

     The August 29 broadcast of CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" featured two of the network's prominent personalities analyzing Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain's choice of a running mate. "Closing Bell" host Maria Bartiromo and "Kudlow & Company" host Larry Kudlow said McCain's decision was wise.

     Bartiromo, who was set to feature Palin in an upcoming CNBC special on energy, called the governor a "terrific choice."

     "I can tell you a lot about Gov. Palin just from my conversation with her and from the day that we spent with her and that is she challenged the establishment in Alaska,” Bartiromo said. “She is very, very popular in Alaska and what she brings to the table predominantly is her knowledge and her know-how of energy. That's the bottom line."

     Kudlow also shared his opinion of Palin, saying she has "impressed" him during two recent interviews on his primetime program.

     "And I was impressed at the time with her attitude - you know, she wasn't sucking up to it - she's saying, ‘Well, wait a minute, I got a good job here. And she's trying to clean out the corruption in Alaska with all this horrible, you know, [Sen.] Ted Stevens [Rep.] Don Young stuff. She's drill, drill, drill. She's a supply-sider and I think, by the way, politically, she is going to cut in to the working class women - the Hillary-disaffected vote that's leaving Barack Obama, so this is just a fascinating, fascinating choice."
 

The Bad
     CNBC "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer had been on a streak of demonstrating positive free-market behavior. He had criticized the government's handling of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. He even gave the media grief for overanalyzing the oil market fluctuations.

     But on the August 27 "Mad Money," Cramer bucked his that trend and called for higher taxes for top income earners. On his "Mad Mail" segment, an e-mailer asked Cramer if Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama's plan to raise taxes on incomes higher than $250,000 and redistribute the money to lower income earners would be good for the economy.

     "If Obama puts more money in the hands of the majority of the consumers in this country (who make less than $250,000), won't that be a big push for the economy, and in turn for stocks?" the viewer, "Laurence in Iowa," asked.

     Cramer took the Warren Buffett/populist stance and said he'd be willing to pay more in taxes.

     "Everyone hold their ears here, okay – because I know this is going to sound really bad and very contrary, but if you make more than $250,000 maybe you should be paying a little more tax. I do, and I'm willing to pay," Cramer said. "A lot of people make a lot less than I do and they should be paying less tax. I don't know – that's what Lincoln said. It's Lincoln's view, it's my view."

     The August 25 issue of Barron's reported Obama's plan would raise taxes on incomes above $250,000 – with the highest rate at 39.6 percent – and redistribute the wealth to the poor and middle-class. But that would be a big mistake, according to Jim McTague's article in the financial newspaper.
 

The Ugly
     If you put controversial left-wing filmmaker Michael Moore and MSNBC "Countdown" anchor Keith Olbermann together there's bound to be some sort of outrageous remark. Their latest get-together was no exception.

     On the August 29 broadcast of "Countdown," Moore told viewers how Hurricane Gustav, a storm with the potential to be catastrophic, reaffirmed his faith in God.

     "I was just thinking, this Gustav is proof that there is a God in heaven," Moore said, laughing. "To have it planned at the same time – that it would actually be on its way to New Orleans for day one of the Republican Convention, up in the Twin Cities – at the top of the Mississippi River."

     Moore did manage to say that he hoped nobody got hurt and he hoped everybody is taking cover. However, he failed to make note of the $43.625 billion in damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, the last hurricane to strike New Orleans, and the billions of dollars the storm cost taxpayers.

     Moore used his MSNBC appearance to keep things focused on Republican bashing and took a dig at President George W. Bush and the presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain.

     "I can't see what you showed," Moore said to Olbermann regarding a video clip that showed Bush and McCain celebrating McCain's birthday. "I don't know if you showed the cake there that they had there, three years ago today – with McCain and Bush. When Marie Antoinette – when she said, ‘Let them eat cake,' I think she was speaking figuratively. They literally were while New Orleans was drowning – eating cake. So, it's, um, I don't know – let's hope things get better.”

The Good, the Bad & the Ugly tracks the best and worst media coverage of business and economics. Readers are invited to submit suggestions or news tips to Staff Writer Jeff Poor at jpoor@mediaresearch.org.