Unaware Reporters Are Listening, Schumer Reveals Budget Talking Points

Unaware Reporters Are Listening, Schumer Reveals Budget Talking Points

Chris Good
The Atlantic
Mar 29 2011

When multiple senators hold a conference call to make a political point, it's usually not hard to pick out the talking points. They repeat the same words and phrases. It's typically obvious.

But at a telephone press conference today, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and some of his colleagues didn't realize reporters were already on the line. Jennifer Steinhauer reports at The Caucus:

After thanking his colleagues -- Barbara Boxer of California, Ben Cardin of Maryland, Tom Carper of Delaware and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut -- for doing the budget bidding for the Senate Democrats, who are facing off against the House Republicans over how spending for the rest of the fiscal year, Mr. Schumer told them to portray John Boehner of Ohio, the Speaker of the House, as painted into a box by the Tea Party, and to decry the spending cuts that he wants as extreme. "I always use the word extreme," Mr. Schumer said, "That is what the caucus instructed me to use this week."

A minute or two into the talking-points tutorial, though, someone apparently figured out that reporters were listening, and silence fell.

Then the conference call began in earnest, with the Democrats right on message.

Read the full story at the New York Times blog The Caucus.

On a Senate Call, a Glimpse of Marching Orders

Jennifer Steinhauer
The Caucus, New York Times
March 29, 2011

Um, senators, ever heard of the mute button?

Moments before a conference call with reporters was scheduled to get underway on Tuesday morning, Charles E. Schumer of New York, the No. 3 Democrat in the Senate, apparently unaware that many of the reporters were already on the line, began to instruct his fellow senators on how to talk to reporters about the contentious budget process.

After thanking his colleagues — Barbara Boxer of California, Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland, Thomas R. Carper of Delaware and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut — for doing the budget bidding for the Senate Democrats, who are facing off against the House Republicans over how to cut spending for the rest of the fiscal year, Mr. Schumer told them to portray John A. Boehner of Ohio, the speaker of the House, as painted into a box by the Tea Party, and to decry the spending cuts that he wants as extreme. “I always use the word extreme,” Mr. Schumer said. “That is what the caucus instructed me to use this week.”

A minute or two into the talking-points tutorial, though, someone apparently figured out that reporters were listening, and silence fell.

Then the conference call began in earnest, with the Democrats right on message.

“We are urging Mr. Boehner to abandon the extreme right wing,” said Ms. Boxer, urging the House to compromise on the scale of spending cuts and to drop proposed amendments that would deny federal financing for Planned Parenthood and for government agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency.

Mr. Carper continued with the theme, referring to some House Republicans’ “right-wing extremist friends.” Mr. Cardin decried Mr. Boehner’s giving into “extremes of his party.” Mr. Blumenthal closed by speaking of the “relatively small extreme group of ideologues” who are “an anchor” dragging down the budget negotiation process.

How news is made . . .

Update:Later in the day, Mr. Schumer’s spokesman, Brian Fallon, issued this statement: “There’s nothing wrong with reporters overhearing him calling the House Republicans’ extreme because that’s what it is. He had just given a speech on the Senate floor saying the same thing. The sooner Speaker Boehner abandons the Tea Party’s extreme demands, the sooner there can be a bipartisan deal on the budget.

Republicans Thankful for Sen. Schumer's Faux Pax

Kimberly Schwandt
Fox News
March 29, 2011

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., said he was thankful after Sen. Charles Schumer accidentally spoke before a recorded conference call started.

"Chuck Schumer did us a favor. He exposed their tactic. He's telling his members to deem any spending cut as unreasonable. I don't see how we can do anything if they're not set serious." Cantor said.

Schumer had scheduled a conference call with reporters, but apparently didn't realize journalists were already on and started giving off pointers on how to talk to reporters about the budget process.

Like many other news outlets, Fox News was rolling on the conference call ahead of time and caught the Schumer misstep.

He expressed appreciation for lawmakers getting on the call and then lashed into Republicans and told fellow Democrats that they should frame the GOP view as "extreme" and associated with the Tea Party.

"[I] always use the word extreme, that's what the caucus instructed me to do the other week, extreme cuts and all these riders, and [House Speaker] Boehner's in a box. But if he supports the Tea Party there's going to inevitably [be] a shutdown," Schumer could be heard saying.

At this point the line goes silent and reporters can be heard asking what happened and others remarking that they were listening to something that was not meant for them.

The call did finally go on as planned and the word "extreme" was eventually used. Democratic Sens. Boxer, Cardin, Carper and Blumenthal weighed in on the issue, stressing the urgency of the matter and that both sides will have to compromise.

Lawmakers are embroiled in a tough showdown over the budget, and facing another Continuing Resolution that will keep the government funded for a short amount of time or face a shutdown.

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, also referenced the call in a news conference saying that while Schumer is framing the conversation, they've actually been doing leg work on the issue.

When this phony realized he was caught, it caused a few moments of silence? That's a first for Schumer. But this has gone on for years and spilled into the media's language as well. Phrases, like 'extreme' and 'mean-spirited' have always been applied to Republicans. Never Democrats.

TexasBlue wrote:When this phony realized he was caught, it caused a few moments of silence? That's a first for Schumer. But this has gone on for years and spilled into the media's language as well. Phrases, like 'extreme' and 'mean-spirited' have always been applied to Republicans. Never Democrats.

*Sigh* Naturally. It's been my contention for years that the mainstream media no longer deserves the label of "4th Estate" and has been a 5th Column for the Democrats.