CNN Reporter Rips Into A State Representative Thinking He's a Congressman
As Moore, Oklahoma continues to reel from the devastating aftermath of a record-breaking tornado this Monday, reporters have flooded the area to provide coverage of the damage and highlight the need for emergency federal assistance.
Among them is CNN's Chris Cuomo, who earlier today confronted Representative Mark McBride, citing concerns that partisan brinksmanship may prevent Congress from providing the area with much needed aid. Cuomo told the representative:
"It's just that when we think about you guys in Washington and what you're fighting over and where money goes and what it’s for. And then you're standing down here and seeing the need as so great, I hope that it moves up the list, congressman, because certainly it would make a difference in so many people’s lives in your own community."
Cuomo's point is fair. Republican representatives in the House, in the past, were happy to withhold aide for traditionally Democratic states affected by Hurricane Sandy, and even the state's senators, Jim Inhofe and Tom Coburn, have a long history of demanding that aid be offset by cuts elsewhere, such as after the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing.
In the last election, federal emergency management became a contentious issue in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The issue dogged the Romney campaign in its final days, as it had previously pushed for federal emergency management to be devolved to the individual states. The storm, which affected 24 states and was believed to cost an estimated $50 billion, is currently the second most costly on record.
So, if Cuomo has a salient point — what's the problem?
Mark McBride is the state representative to that district in the Oklahoma assembly. Mr. McBride has no affect on what happens in Washington, unlike his counterpart, actual Congressman Tom Cole.
At this point, only two things are sure: Cuomo got it wrong, and John Stewart just found some easy, new material in documenting CNN's decline.
You can watch the clip below:
