Weekend Watchdog Wrap-Up

After an above average performance last week, the Sunday shows fell backwards, going 0-for-3 for the Watchdog.

Not only did Fox News Sunday fail to ask Sen. Trent Lott about the reason behind his vote against the energy bill (even after Lott brought it up on his own), but none of the other Sunday shows even mentioned the energy bill -- despite the fact that global warming and energy independence is a major public concern.

On NBC's Meet The Press, Pat Buchanan was able to rail about "a massive invasion of this country by a third world" without being asked about his past racist comments favoring "legal immigration" by "Englishmen" over "Zulus."

Finally, on ABC's This Week, Sen. Jeff Sessions was given the opportunity to reiterate his talking point -- that he expects a reduction in troop levels and doesn't want to be an "occupying power" in Iraq.

But he wasn't forced to square his desire to embed US troops in the Iraqi military with his stated belief that we shouldn't have an occupation. Sessions was asked if he supported a timetable for withdrawal, and he said he does not.

Like other Senate conservatives, he appears to want to put superficial distance between himself and the unpopular President Bush, without actually pushing for a real change in Iraq, an actual end to the occupation.

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