Looking in our tool box today I viewed MSNBC'S Race to the White House and immediately lamented the return of David Gregory having so enjoyed the brilliant and intellectual program of yesterday hosted by Rachel Maddow.

David Gregory is one of the Republicans favorite tools. They can rely on him to ask the "tough" questions like "Is John McCain more maverick or war hero? ("Now I'll have that slab of ribs with some jello salad please").

Of course today was mostly about the scandalous Edwards affair and why it is bad for Obama. Air America owner Mark Greene committed the cardinal sin of bringing up McCain's past adultery, but Gregory quickly cut him off and that was about all that was heard from Greene for the rest of the show.

But later went one on one with Nicolle Wallace, McCain campaign spokeperson.

And what a grilling that was!!!

Most cable shows that feature "guest panels" are almost unwatchable, in my opinion. Guests are chosen for their combativeness, and the thought is that screaming and arguing are the only ways to make the shows interesting. With her guest hosting on MSNBC, Rachel Maddow is proving that the host sets the tone, and, in doing so, is showing that she is more qualified than David Gregory to be hosting that show.

According to new poll numbers just released, 48% of 1004 people interviewed  said they were hearing too much about Obama.  This finding has provoked a new round of anti-Obama commentary with some of the more popular questions being:  "Are People Just Tired of Obama?"  "Is he getting too boring?"  "Is the shine rubbing off Obama?" "Barack Obama overexposed"?  "Obama fatigue?"

When people tell you who they are, believe them.  

I was driving around listening to MSNBC's Race for the White House on Air America today and was puzzled to hear hostmeister David Gregory saying he was going to do the show’s "Gong One on One" segment with Rudy Guiliani.  

Hmmmm. I wondered to myself. That’s odd. The segment in question typically features a progressive voice (i.e. the inimitable smackdown queen, Rachel Maddow) paired with the GooPer du jour. For the life of me, I couldn’t figure how Gregory was going to conduct a credible interview since (IMHO) his ardent support of McCain is obvious to anyone with ears and eyeballs.

Well, well, well. Silly me. Here I was thinking I had achieved numbness at watching the crap that passes for coverage with the corporate traditional media, but this was a new low.

Whatever you think of her, even the staunchest critic will have to admit: Andrea Mitchell is playing the game real well right now.  

Better than Brett Favre will ever do with the Packers in their current drama. Probably better than Ken Jennings did on Jeopardy a few years ago.

She’s playing it so well that someone (whether begrudgingly or angrily) needed to bestow accolades to her for doing so. Sentiments of scorn and disgust for the wife of Alan Greenspan need not apply in this objective and rather penetrating look at a polarizing character playing an angle just as complex as the ones on a sphere.  That sphere in this instance being the new host of Meet the Press.

So, by now you've heard that MSNBC is holding hostage the last segment (five minutes?) of the July 30 edition of  RACE TO THE WHITE HOUSE. I say...

"FREE THE MSNBC 5!!!"

Viewers -- be they Tucker & Gregory Fan Club members or simply those dutiful few who watch for the good of democracy (because SOMEONE has to) -- we butter MSNBC's bread. We make the ratings that sell the ads that pay the network bosses. We're adults (mostly). We can handle the ugly but fascinating scene of Pat Buchanan getting a little truth shoved up his nose, even if it leaves him drooling. It's no more gory than anything on CSI. We might even LEARN something (like we do sometimes watching CSI).

Tell MSNBC: "FREE THE MSNBC 5!!!"
letters@msnbc.com or call 212-790-2299.
Or we could just wait 'til someone posts it on YouTube.

Below the fold: A company exec explains the kidnapping...

A bit of Media News from the New York Observer by way of Huffington Post. Apparently David Gregory's show on MSNBC, "Celebrity White House Squares", er, wait, "Race to the White House" (which, according to the Observer's story, the New Republic  called, 'Intergalactic Nancy Grace') isn't doing so hot on MSNBC.

I don't often write diaries as I usually don't have much to say beyond snarky comments and simple observations. This is another observation but one that stung me enough to write about it on my own blog but I figured I'd share it here and give an opportunity for others to share their thoughts or discuss similar situations where they've seen this happen.

Is David Gregory an idiot????? Ask Markos what he thinks after he was subjected to stupid and ridiculous questions by Gregory on his show this afternoon. Markos held his own, but if it had been me, I would have been yelling at David Gregory!

RANT below!

This is a repost of an attempted diary from last night* (see end of the diary). In that Diary I attempted to urge Daily Kos readers to call Race for the White House (212-790-2299) to ask David Gregory to explain why he thinks Obama needs to "lighten up" and MSNBC (212-664-7799)to lodge a protest over David Gregory's handling of this issue. What provoked the Rat? It might be the shallowness and artificiality of David Gregory's Race for the White House in general. Or it might be his sheer hypocrisy.  

For those of you who missed it, David Gregory suggested that Barack Obama needed to lighten up and laugh about The New Yorker Cartoon . On the same day, Maureen Dowd made a similar argument in the New York Times trying to resurrect (one can only presume) her stale jokes about Al Gore.  I still think it may be worth the while to call MSNBC just to make the point though the opportunity appears to be lost. Below the fold I explain what I tried to say last night

It was reported by the Tennesse Gazette that David Gregory's Grand father was the Grand Wizard of the Apalachian Chapter of the KKK. David was asked by the reporter of the story for his comments and he did not want to make any comments. The reporter also uncovered a letter during David's college years between him and his father discussing how to cover up this blemish on their family's history. Supposedly, in the early years David's family donated large sums of money to the KKK, however after the civil rights movement began, the family began to distance themselves from the KKK and started to cover up any traces of their past dealings. The article also shows a picture of David in his youth holding up a noose while laughing and making a muscle pose.

Once again, the great wheel groans and the edge of darkness moves across the continent. As the somber American night settles, I place my hands on the monitor and sense your anxious voices crackling down the mojo line. Oh yes, I hear you out there in the dark American night...and I still have my suspicions about you.

This whole day has been about one John McCain campaign disaster after another, from his Social Security comments to his complete idiocy on the Viagara/birth control moment to Senator "Dr. Phil"

This is diary is about the evils of the mainstream media, and what we can do about it. And about how the neoconservative bias is not just on Fox News, but also on the "liberal" MSNBC network as well as CNN.

Sadly with Tim Russert gone, NBC has some big shoes to fill on "Meet the Press".  Obviously it won't be the same show without Tim but already there is speculation over who will be the new host for "Meet the Press".

It will be a long time before most of us adjust to the loss of Tim Russert. Like a utility, he was always there. For me his death was one of the hardest blows ever to land. I am still coming to grips with it on an emotional level.

Traditional media will understandably be reluctant to speak of his successor until he has been given a proper memorial.  But you can be sure NBC is thinking about this question. While there will never be another like him, someone could rise to the occasion and do justice to his legacy. A quick overview of the network talent pool leaves one feeling a little depressed, but I did spot one... and it is not Chris Matthews or, god forbid, David Gregory.

The 'who could have known' defense