December 17, 2017

I just wanted to have a moment to remember what it was like to have a president who didn't make me want to punch someone. It was a really nice thing, to not worry about the coming Apocalypse, wasn't it? Good times.

But despite President Obama's best efforts, cynicism has so deeply affected our national discourse and zeitgeist, that I don't even think the pundits today realize how bad they have it. I was listening to an interview of our newest senator from Alabama, Doug Jones, and how Mitch McConnell has decided that he will have the tax scam vote before he'll seat Jones. This from the same guy who pitched a fit that Scott Brown should be seated before the ACA was "rammed down their throats" after months of hearings, thousands of amendments, an honest attempt at bipartisanship and town halls taking public feedback. The same guy who said that the voters deserved to make their voice known before allowing SCOTUS nomination hearings.

And yet there are NO repercussions for this in the mainstream media (hell, Fox News celebrates it). They're so cynical that Mitch McConnell is a craven, hypocritical POS that they don't even bat an eye. But for a Democrat to suggest that maybe it's time to have the same standards? Watch them clutch their pearls at how mean the Dems are and how "both sides" need to reach out.

Cynicism at its worst.

ABC's "This Week" - Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. Glenn Hubbard, former chair of the Bush Council of Economic Advisers; Paul Krugman of The New York Times. Panel: Mary Bruce and Matthew Dowd; Republican strategist Sara Fagen; Julie Pace; and Patrick Gaspard, Obama White House political affairs director.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - White House Director of Legislative Affairs Marc Short; Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio; Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. Panel: George Will; GOP strategist Al Cardenas; Helene Cooper of The New York Times; and Stephanie Cutter, former deputy campaign manager for President Obama

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin; Sens. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt; Richard Rubin of The Wall Street Journal. Panel: Jamelle Bouie of Slate, Ben Domenech of The Federalist, Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic and Amy Walter of The Cook Political Report.

CNN's "State of the Union" - Mnuchin; Sen.-elect Doug Jones, D-Ala. Panel: Ana Navarro and Jen Psaki, Karine Jean-Pierre of MoveOn.org and Michael Caputo.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - Susan Glasser of Politico; Luke Harding, author of “Collusion: Secret Meetings, Dirty Money and How Russia Helped Donald Trump Win”; David Miliband, president of International Rescue Committee and former foreign secretary for the United Kingdom; Zanny Minton Beddoes of The Economist, David Frum of The Atlantic; economist Abby Joseph Cohen, former president of Goldman Sachs Global Markets Institute; and Ruchir Sharma, author of “The Rise & Fall of Nations: Forces of Change in the Post-Crisis World”.

CNN's "Reliable Sources" - Margaret Talev of Bloomberg and president of the White House Correspondents Association; Brian Karem of Sentinel Newspapers; Amy Chozick of The New York Times; Hadas Gold of CNN; David Folkenflik of NPR; Rich Greenfield of BTIG Research; Kurt Bardella, former Breitbart spokesman; Eduardo Beckett, attorney for detained Mexican reporter Emilio Gutierrez; and Courtney Radsch of the Committee to Protect Journalists.

"Fox News Sunday" - Mnuchin, Jones. Panel: Juan Williams; Rich Lowry of National Review; former Rep. Donna Edwards, D-Md.; and Brian Kilmeade.

So, what's catching your eye this morning?

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