By Tom Comi
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When exactly did former, current and aspiring politicians come to the determination that they were not going to be interviewed on an interview program?
Last night’s airing of Piers Morgan Tonight provided yet another example of a delusional person in the political arena thinking they have the right to control what they will and won’t be asked.
Christine O’Donnell was on the CNN show to promote her book Troublemaker, which covers her religious, political and philosophical beliefs. This means that everything should be open for discussion. Period. And considering O’Donnell lost her bid to win a Delaware senate seat last year due to her extreme beliefs on everything ranging from witchcraft to masturbation, she had to know she was going to be asked to defend her views.
Apparently not, because she ended up walking out of the interview when asked about her opposition to gay marriage.
“You’re borderline being a little bit rude,” she replied. “I obviously want to talk about the issues that I choose to talk about in the book.”
Morgan: “Do you talk about gay marriage in the book?”
O’Donnell: “What relevance is that right now? Is there a piece of legislation?”
Morgan: “It’s obviously as you know — because of [conservative presidential candidate] Michele Bachmann’s views and others — a highly contentious political issue. I’m just curious what your view is; you keep saying it’s in the book, so I’m bemused as to why you wouldn’t just say it in an interview if it’s in the book.”
O’Donnell: “Because I don’t think it’s relevant. It’s not a topic that I choose to embrace. It’s not what I’m championing right now … Right now what I’m trying to do is to promote a book that I hope to be a very inspirational story to people who are part of the Tea Party movement. …”
….
Morgan: “Why are you being so weird about this?”
O’Donnell: “I’m not being weird about this, Piers. I’m not running for office. I’m not promoting a legislative agenda. I’m promoting the policies that I lay out in the book that are mostly fiscal, that are mostly constitutional. That’s what I agreed to come on your show, that’s what I want to talk about. I’m not being weird; you’re being a little rude.”
And then came the line that really spoke volumes to me. Apparently thinking that she was appearing on the conservative-friendly Fox News Channel, O’Donnell had the nerve to ask the following: “Don’t you think as a host, if I say this is what I want to talk about, that’s what we should address?”
“Uh, no, not really,” Morgan correctly responded. At that point, O’Donnell’s so-called advisers told her it was time to pick up her broom and go home.
“It would appear that the interview has just been ended, because I had the audacity to ask questions based on stuff that’s in this book,” Morgan told his audience. “Anyway, it’s a good book. It’s called Troublemaker — now we know why it’s called Troublemaker — Christine O’Donnell, available in all good book shops.”
Morgan has always rubbed me the wrong way on his talk show and as a judge on America’s Got Talent due to his condescending and elitist attitude. But this time he did nothing more than his job. And if a wannabe-politician like O’Donnell can’t abide by those simple ground rules, then maybe she’s barking up the wrong professional tree.
If only more people were willing to ask, “Why are you being so weird about this?” If only.