Jeffrey Birnbaum of the Washington Post is not a reporter:

From Friday's (2 Dec) Washington Week in Review: (emp add)

TOPIC: Congressional scandals

Ms. CONNOLLY: You know, Jeff, we've certainly seen any number of politicians go down under similar scandals--financial scandals--Speakers Wright and Gingrich. Can you sense, at this point, if there is one political party or one particular category of politician on Capitol Hill that's going to pay a price for this or is it all of them?

Mr. BIRNBAUM: Well, it's--we need to point out, I think, that there are a number--there are a whole host of lawmakers who are under scrutiny by the Justice Department and others related to another name we haven't mentioned, Jack Abramoff, who is a lobbyist--a former lobbyist now--but who is being looked at for bilking Indian tribes of upwards of $80 million and using a lot of that money improperly. He was a former partner of Michael Scanlon, the fellow who I mentioned before.

But now Abramoff was a very big Republican lobbyist but he also headed a whole lobbying shop in a law firm that included Democratic lobbyists as well and it looks like the public, so far at least, is not branding one party or the other as most responsible for this decline in the proper way of dealing with money and politics on Capitol Hill. There have been a variety of polls that show that.

Birnbaum did not do what a reporter should do, report the facts. Instead of saying that Republicans are the overwhelming number of figures convicted of, or under investigation for, corruption, he tells the viewers what the public perception is.

A total disgrace.


posted by Quiddity at 12/05/2005 10:32:00 AM