It’s NICOLE SANDLER, back again to guest host today’s BradCast.
With everything around us consumed with coronavirus, I thought we could use a short break from it. So, after an update on the latest from the Covid-19 front, we’ll completely change the subject to speak with MSNBC‘s LAWRENCE O’DONNELL.
A couple of weeks ago, as I was increasingly frustrated with MSNBC’s adversarial attitude toward Bernie Sanders’ campaign, I remembered that Lawrence O’Donnell had proclaimed himself a socialist and commented about it on Twitter. He engaged with me. After a while I invited him to continue the discussion on the air, and he accepted.
I’m happy to be able to share it with you. I came away with a slightly better understanding of how things work over there and a much greater appreciation for Mr. O’Donnell. And it’s nice to focus on something other than a killer pandemic for a few minutes….
Download MP3 or listen online below…
The BradCast with Brad Friedman 3/13/2020Exclusive: Lawrence O’Donnell is Still a Socialist: ‘BradCast’ 3/13/2020 | Guest-host Nicole Sandler's one-on-one with MSNBC's prime-time host; Also: Trump finally declares coronavirus a 'national emergency' but takes no responsibility... · · · · · Exclusive: Lawrence O’Donnell is Still a Socialist: ‘BradCast’ 3/13/2020 | Guest-host Nicole Sandler's one-on-one with MSNBC's prime-time host; Also: Trump finally declares coronavirus a 'national emergency' but takes no responsibility...0:00 0:00
Another good story that Lawrence and Brad would like (Full appeals court to rehear case over McGahn subpoena).
For those who do not know, this will be an en banc rehearing.
Superb interview, Nicole! And thank you for sharing it on The BradCast!
Everyone should tune in for this frank and honest conversation with Lawrence! Was quite engaging in many ways!
While I join Brad’s assessment on this being a worthwhile interview, there are areas in which I either disagree with what Lawrence had to say or which were not addressed.
1. Socialism: Like Bernie Sanders, Lawrence O’Donnell is not a textbook socialist. He’s never advocated public ownership of the means of production. As he revealed on C-SPAN, O’Donnell is an FDR-like New Dealer who applauds the tempering of capitalism via positive government programs, like Medicare.
2. Constricted discourse. It is one thing for O’Donnell either to praise a mixed-economy or to, at this late date, encourage Bernie to stay in the race; quite another to provide positive coverage of the Sanders campaign before Bernie got knocked off his front-runner perch on Super Tuesday. Prior to Super Tuesday, the Sanders campaign presented a clear and present danger to the corporate mainstream media bottom line. If the late Ed Schultz is to be believed, any high paid pundit who crossed that line risked a loss of their job. Schultz alleged he was fired by MSNBC for supporting Bernie in 2016.
Schultz allegation is consistent with O’Donnell’s pre-Super Tuesday performance, during which he repeatedly interviewed both Klobuchar and Warren; often on a nightly basis. The number of Bernie Sanders appearances on The Last Word during that time: ZERO!
3. Systemic Issue. MSBC is owned by the giant media conglomerate, Comcast, one of the six (6) media corporations that control 90% of what Americans see, hear and read. There can be little doubt that an anti-Bernie bias prevailed within the mainstream media, which magnified criticisms of Bernie Sanders, while it steadfastly ignored outright falsehoods being uttered by Biden, including his patently false assertion last night that he never called for cuts to Social Security and Medicare.