Even the most left leaning members of the press are starting to awaken

[jimpeel]

Chip Reid of CBS and Helen Thomas -- HELEN THOMAS -- raked Robert Gibbs over the coals about the scripted town hall meetings that Obama has been trying to pass off as unbiased and spontaneous.

Below is a video link of the exchange between Gibbs, Reid, and Thomas. Thomas went so far as to call it control of the press and called him on the so-called openness and transparency that is so sorely lacking, though promised.

She also stated that this type of activity is unprecedented in any White House administration that she knows of, and believe me she has known a bunch.

VIDEO LINK

Even the Washington Post has jumped on this issue. In a recent story -- now archived -- they noted:

SOURCE

"questions for Obama came from a live audience selected by the White House and the college, and from Internet questions chosen by the administration's new-media team. Of the seven questions the president answered, four were selected by his staff from videos submitted to the White House Web site or from those responding to a request for 'tweets.'"

Obama also called on three "random" people from the audience. The Post points out that "all turned out to be members of groups with close ties to his administration."

An AP story from July 2, 2009 noted that one of the main people who spoke at the townhall about the ills of the current health care system is a Democratic National Committee volunteer.

Some of Obama's questioners Wednesday were from friendly sources, including a member of the Service Employees International Union and a member of Health Care for America Now, which organized a Capitol Hill rally last week calling for an overhaul. White House aides selected other questions submitted by people on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

Republicans said the event was a political sham designed to help Obama, not to inform the public.

"Americans are already skeptical about the cost and adverse impact of the president's health care plans," Republican National Committee spokesman Trevor Francis said. "Stacking the audience and preselecting questions may make for a good TV, but it's the wrong way to engage in a meaningful discussion about reforming health care."