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The brewing battle between the journalists and the political commentators at Fox News took a new turn today as Hill reporter Carl Cameron refuted the right wing, including FNC’s own Glenn Beck’s attack, on the so called Slaughter Solution as an unprecedented move to pass healthcare reform. Cameron said, “Deeming has been used literally for centuries, and it is legislative language that says look we are going to consider this already done.”

The brewing battle between the journalists at Fox News and Glenn Beck took a new turn today as Hill reporter Carl Cameron refuted the right wing, including FNC’s own Glenn Beck’s attack, on the so called Slaughter Solution as an unprecedented move to pass healthcare reform. Cameron said, “Deeming has been used literally for centuries.”

The Slaughter Solution is a proposal by Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) to use deeming to advance the healthcare reform bill through the House. In essence, it would help the bill clear a legislative hurdle by passing a rule approving debate on the second Senate bill. After the rule is passed, the first bill will be considered agreed upon. On Monday, Slaughter pointed out that this procedure has been used in the House since 1933, and she was backed up today on Fox News.

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Here is the video courtesy of Media Matters:

While the right wing has been trying to portray the Slaughter Solution as unprecedented in American history, on FNC’s America’s Newsroom today, Carl Cameron said, “Deeming has been used literally for centuries, and it is legislative language that says look, we are going to consider this done so that we can move on to the next thing. As a political matter and as a historical matter, one can see how Democrats who vote for the reconciliation package will still have to answer to their voters who understand that healthcare is included in it.”

Here is Beck claiming that deeming is a new idea:

The Republican position is rife with hypocrisy on this issue as when they were the majority in the House they set new records for the use of deeming. According to a 2006 column in Roll Call by Don Wolfensberger, ”

When Republicans took power in 1995, they soon lost their aversion to self-executing rules (deeming) and proceeded to set new records under Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.). There were 38 and 52 self-executing rules in the 104th and 105th Congresses (1995-1998), making up 25 percent and 35 percent of all rules, respectively. Under Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) there were 40, 42 and 30 self-executing rules in the 106th, 107th and 108th Congresses (22 percent, 37 percent and 22 percent, respectively). Thus far in the 109th Congress, self-executing rules make up about 16 percent of all rules.”

Howard Kurtz had a piece in yesterday’s Washington Post about how Glenn Beck is dividing Fox News, and the journalists at the network are growing concerned that Beck is redefining them. I think what we saw out Cameron was a moment of journalism that was not in tow with the right wing media/Glenn Beck line. It will be interesting to see what direction Fox News goes in, but my guess is that they will follow the money. Entertainment and propaganda will take center stage, as rare moments of journalism will be few and far between.