NPR FOLLOWS THE LINE - AT 8:47 P.M. ET:  We rarely quote National Public Radio here, and for good reason.  We don't quote Hans Christian Andersen or Walt Disney either.  But NPR outdid itself today in its fantasy-world reporting on Hillary Clinton's speech to the Council on Foreign Relations.  Ah, to go through life and just follow a line, without thinking.  It must be so comfy:

But it was clear in her comments to the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington that the broken elbow and physical therapy she has undergone to recover from the accident have been hard. Clinton tried to make light of the situation, even comparing her recovery to her efforts to repair America's image abroad.

"No doubt we lost some ground in recent years, but the damage is temporary. It's kind of like my elbow — it's getting better every day," she said, to laughter.

Hah, hah. hah.  Still beating the old "image" horse.  Precisely how has our image improved?  What nations are been persuaded?  North Korea?  Iran?  There are reports that even the West Europeans are dismayed by the weakness of this administration.

And this gem goes unchallenged by NPR:

"Shortly before I started at the State Department, a former secretary of state called me with this advice: Don't try to do too much. And it seemed like a wise admonition, if only it were possible," Clinton said. "But the international agenda today is unforgiving: two wars, conflict in the Middle East, ongoing threats of violent extremism and nuclear proliferation, global recession, climate change, hunger and disease, and a widening gap between the rich and the poor."

Gee, those guys back then had it easy, didn't they?  World War II, nuclear terror, Korea, Vietnam, the rise of radical Islam.  Oh Hillary, how we feel your pain, a pain not experienced by anyone in history. 

Any minute I expect her to start singing, "Don't cry for me, Wellesley College."

Oh please. 

And then the "loyalty thing."

Ronald Neumann, a retired Foreign Service officer who now heads the American Academy of Diplomacy, said it is very important that there not appear to be any "daylight" between Obama and Clinton.

"You know, egos are always difficult, but he is the boss and he's the one who got elected, and she seems to be working loyally with him, which is to her credit," Neumann said.

The only thing close to a disagreement surfaced this week — when Clinton complained that it is taking too long to fill key positions because of a vetting process she called "frustrating beyond words."

Is this serious?  Virtually every well-sourced report we get holds that there are significant differences between Clinton and Obama, with Clinton urging a tougher line toward Iran and North Korea.  Where has this reporter been?  She's been to Camp NPR, that's where.  There are things we do not question.

Yuch.

July 15, 2009