Obama's "favorable" press endures...

Seriously, just what in the world is wrong with NBC's Andrea Mitchell? Even for her, a blatantly biased reporter in favor of McCain, this one's over the top.

During a discussion yesterday on MSNBC, Mitchell had this to say about Obama's trip to Israel, Europe and Iraq:

But what if he [Obama] is so celebrated in Europe, Mika, that there is criticism back home? That it doesn't play well in parts of the country that are, you know, a little bit more jingoistic, and a little bit more isolationist, which includes, perhaps, parts of the Midwest and Appalachia, and other parts of key battleground states, where seeing him celebrated in Europe might seem to be an implicit criticism of America.

You've to be kidding me. Quite frankly, and I'm reasonably certainly Obama would agree with this, but who in the hell cares about "the parts of the country that are, you know, a little bit more jingoistic"? I seriously doubt that Obama is trying to court their votes anyway.

To even suggest that a favorable reception of Obama in Europe would be viewed as a a "criticism of America" is beyond the pale. In fact, I was so fired up upon listening to this, I sent an e-mail to Phil Griffin, senior vice president of MSNBC News, and Steve Capus, the president of NBC News:

Dear Mr. Griffin & Mr. Capus:
Yesterday's interview with Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC was nothing short of an outrage. During an interview concerning Barack Obama's trip to the Middle East, this is what she said, in part:

"But what if he is so celebrated in Europe, Mika, that there is criticism back home? That it doesn't play well in parts of the country that are, you know, a little bit more jingoistic, and a little bit more isolationist, which includes, perhaps, parts of the Midwest and Appalachia, and other parts of key battleground states, where seeing him celebrated in Europe might seem to be an implicit criticism of America."

Was she reporting, or was she offering commentary? I don't know about either one of you, but I certainly cannot decide. But, in either capacity, saying that if Obama "is celebrated in Europe, it might seem like an implicit criticism of America" is beyond contempt. She should apologize on air immediately for such a despicable comment, period. Either her comments become more restrained, or my viewership of both NBC and MSNBC will end, save for Keith Olbermann's Countdown.

Is she interviewing for a position on Fox News?

I'd like to know precisely what you plan on doing about her comments on your networks, because these sorts of comments cheapen the coverage of our presidential candidates. This is only one in many examples of her implicit cheerleading for John McCain and her overt contempt for Barack Obama. Thanks for your time.

Yours in democracy,
RJ
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

I encourage all of you to write both Steve Capus, president of NBC News, at: steve.capus@nbc.com, and Phil Griffin, senior vice president of MSNBC News, at: phil.griffin@nbc.com.

h/t Media Matters for the video and transcript