Rising Hysteria

by digby

CNN cable news has become “the publicist for an enemy propaganda film” by broadcasting a tape showing an insurgent sniper apparently killing an American soldier, said the chairman of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee here Friday.

Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., called for the Pentagon to oust immediately any CNN reporter embedded with U.S. troops in Iraq.

“I think Americans like to think we’re all in this together,” Hunter said. “The average American Marine or soldier has concluded after seeing that film that CNN is not on their side.”

CNN said its decision to show the brief tape was motivated by a desire to show the public the growing threat insurgent snipers pose to U.S. troops.

“Whether or not you agree with us in this case, our goal, as always, is to present the unvarnished truth as best we can,” wrote CNN producer David Doss in a blog on the network’s Web site.

Tony Snow, President Bush’s press secretary, said the insurgents were hoping to “break the will of the American people” by slipping the tape to CNN.

[…]

Snow, at his regular news briefing in Washington, said the video was misleading because it made it appear that Americans were “sitting ducks” and the insurgents were winning. In fact, the insurgents “are dying in much greater numbers and suffering much greater damage,” he said.

Tony needs a rest. And Duncan Hunter needs a lobotomy.

Blaming the media for their screw-ups is the right’s longtime favorite sport, but this is bordering on hysterical:

Rep. Brian Bilbray, R-Calif., who joined Hunter and Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., in sending a letter to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, called the film “nothing short of a terrorist snuff film.”

The Republicans continue to think that if they don’t show the coffins coming back (or even acknowledge that soldiers are dying) that people can be conned into believing that we are winning their war. In our continuing revival of Vietnam: The Musical, Tony’s even bringing back the Westmorland body counts.

For some reason it’s not working. perhaps it might just be because now that the fog of 9/11 has lifted, people look at George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and Don Rumsfeld and see them for the losers they always were. Once the fans are over you they won’t buy tickets to your show again.

.