Call it Luke Russert's version of "bitter clingers" on steroids . . . In Russert's world, there are apparently two kinds of Republican congressmen. The "smart" ones—to be found on the Ways & Means Committee—and the others, whom he calls the "God, guns and guts people," presumably in reference to this book.
Russert made his statement on today's Morning Joe, responding to Joe Scarborough's question as to whether Republicans would overplay their hand over the current scandals. According to Russert, Republicans chose well in holding today's hearing of IRS officials before the Ways & Means Committee because that's where the GOP puts its stars: "it's not the God, guns and guts people on the Ways & Means Committee: it's the smart people." View the video after the jump.
I'll be back with the transcript. In the meantime, watch Russert let his MSM cultural prejudices show.
Note: this isn't the first time Russert has opined about smarts and politics. As NewsBusters reported, during the 2008 presidential campaign, speaking of the students at the University of Virginia, Russert proclaimed: "you have to remember, the smartest kids in the state go there, so it's leaning a little bit towards Obama."
JOE SCARBOROUGH: The GOP is energized. I just got to ask: how far do they take these inquiries, how hard do they push? There's a Ways and Means hearing today that's going to give us insight to that, isn't there?
LUKE RUSSERT: Yeah, a huge hearing, Joe. The Ways and Means committee, they're going to get the former IRS head Mr. Miller before them to answer questions as well as the inspector general, Mr. George who wrote this report that was so damming to the IRS. Now, the question you bring up is, how far is the GOP going to push it? It's the cliche thing no in DC to say look, they got to keep it serious, they can't make this into a witch hunt because they lose the political high ground. The best committee to have out of the gate in order to have these types of questions, Joe, is the House Ways and Means committee. You remember from your time up here, that's where the party puts its stars. It's not the God, guns and guts people on the Ways and Means committee, it's the smart people, it's the people that understand the true mechanisms of government.
