[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 13, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E522]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


           NATIONAL MEDIA FAIL TO HOLD PRESIDENT ACCOUNTABLE

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                            HON. LAMAR SMITH

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 13, 2010

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Madam Speaker, recently, a woman named Doris 
asked President Obama why his health care legislation includes more 
taxes when, as she put it, ``we are overtaxed as it is.''
  Here's what The Wall Street Journal had to say about the President's 
17-minute, 2,500-word answer, and the media's failure to hold him 
accountable:

       [The President's] filibuster had only served to avoid 
     addressing her concern. He never explained why his health 
     care bill ended up raising taxes on those making under 
     $200,000 a year--a violation of his explicit 2008 campaign 
     pledge.
       President Obama is clearly avoiding any forum where he can 
     be pinned down with tough questions.
       So far, Washington journalists have been quite passive in 
     letting the White House choose the terms of its interaction 
     with the public.
       Would a conservative president get such an obliging ride 
     from the normally aggressive Washington press corps? Probably 
     not.

  The national media should hold the President accountable, not give 
him a free pass.

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