Twenty years of Bob Schieffer is more than enough, thank you

Bob Schieffer

How well I remember CBS’s Bob Schieffer on camera in the 2008 primary cagily posing as a psychotherapist in order to align himself with his sexist, pseudo-liberal colleagues to support Barack Obama and shaft the Clintons. On that occasion, Schieffer wondered aloud if Bill Clinton was trying to sabotage his wife’s campaign.

The spin at Politico in their “On Media” section attempts to portray Schieffer on his 20^th anniversary as moderator of Face the Nation as a spry old gentleman still having fun getting the best of the guests on his show, for example, his recent interview with Bill Clinton.

But if  you read Keach Hagey’s post carefully, it’s easy to see that despite Schieffer’s braggadocio following the interview, it was Clinton’s deft response to the final question that clearly demonstrated who was in command. Or as Maureen Dowd at the NY Times put it the other day, Bill showed Barry how the game should be played.

In other words, Mr. Schieffer, although you no doubt inadvertently gave him the opening, Bill Clinton was the star of your show, not you:

“Let me just ask you about one thing that our next guest on the broadcast, former Vice President Cheney, said,” Schieffer had asked. “He said your wife, Hillary Clinton, is the most competent person in the administration and suggested that maybe she would be a stronger candidate than Barack Obama. I wanted to give you a chance, if you care to, to endorse the vice president's statement.”

Clinton, being Clinton, handled it deftly.

“I very much agree that she's done a good job,” he replied. “But I also have a high regard for Vice President Cheney's political skills and I think one of those great skills is sowing discord among the opposition.”

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