Hey Jay! Your bias is showing!
Lately, Jay Leno had seemed to sort of be awakening from the typical leftist Obama stupor, poking fun at him to the extent that some suspect these less-than-adulatory references underlay his being fired from the Tonight Show.
But last Friday put any suspicions of an awakening Leno to rest. This was the occasion of Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s first appearance on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and while Jay made Obamacare jokes in his opening monologue, his interactions with Senator Cruz were downright hostile.
But as it happens, the audience was more enthusiastic about the Senator than Mr. Leno was.
Noel Sheppard of Newsbusters writes in “Tonight Show Audience Cheers When Ted Cruz Says ‘ObamaCare’s the Biggest Jobs Killer in This Country’”
Barack Obama’s signature legislative achievement has become a laughing stock.
On NBC’s Tonight Show Friday, the audience broke out into cheers and applause when Senator Ted Cruz (R-Tx.) told host Jay Leno, “ObamaCare: it’s the biggest jobs killer in this country”
CBS noted that Jay posed some “surprisingly solemn questions” which the Senator “fended off.” Jake Miller’s review, while ignoring the audience response, the overt hostility and irritatingly confrontational questions, does at least provide Senator Cruz’ reasoned, measured and thoughtful answers. read it here
But hold onto your hats. While the title ( Jay Leno Calls Out Ted Cruz On Shutdown: ‘You Looked Like A Big Fan From Where I Was Standing’) indicates their usual unfriendly stance, Huffington Post’s review allowed this gem to slip through their censors editors:
“I said throughout, ‘We shouldn’t shut down the government,'” Cruz said seconds later. “And the reason we had a government shutdown is President Obama and the Democrats said ‘we will not negotiate and we will not compromise.'”
The review also noted President Obama’s plummeting approval ratings. Did I mention that this was Huffington?
On the Kelly File, Megyn Kelly noted the “enthusiastic L.A. audience’s reaction” to Ted Cruz – watch here
Fianlly, from Paula Bolyard at PJMedia, we have a stellar side-by-side comparison of Jay Leno’s treatment of President Obama during his August appearance to Senator Cruz’ Friday appearance.
Leno, allegedly in his last season as host of the Tonight Show, has not been known as a particularly partisan entertainer, so it was surprising to see him go “Candy Crowley” on Ted Cruz. You may recall that CNN’s Crowley, who moderated a debate between President Obama and Mitt Romney, became part of the debate when she began reciting (false) White House talking points on Benghazi. Some on Twitter compared Leno to a prosecuting attorney as he interrupted Cruz and accused him of everything from shutting down the government to wanting violent psychopaths to have guns.
Cruz, for his part, used the appearance to his advantage, clearly understanding both the venue and the audience. Although Cruz is certainly more than capable of holding his own in a debate with Leno, he chose mostly to keep his powder dry, defying the media-generated image of him as a hostile aggressor. He was relaxed and laid back, despite the tough questioning. It seemed to go over well with the audience, which erupted into cheers after several of Cruz’s points.
It’s interesting to go back and watch Leno’s interview with President Obama from this past August and compare the questions and tone with Leno’s interview with Cruz last night. The most obviously noticeable difference is how often Leno interrupts Cruz compared to Obama. Leno lets the president finish nearly every answer. Even when Obama lapses into “um…uh….uh…,” Leno patiently waits for Obama to continue.
read more and watch the comparisons here
Bottom line? The disaster that is Obamacare is impossible to ignore, and despite Leno’s attempts to swamp Senator Cruz with antagonistic questions and interruptions, the man who represents the nation’s opposition to this juggernaut stood firm against him and was able to pierce even Huffington’s adulation of the President.
You can watch the whole show here.