After 2013 comments from ObamaCare architect Jonathan Gruber crediting passage of the law on "the stupidity of the American voter" went viral over a week ago, NBC's Today finally covered the major controversy on Monday. Co-host Savannah Guthrie made it sound like a breaking news headline: "...big story out of Washington this morning." News anchor Natalie Morales followed: "A new controversy now is brewing over comments made by MIT professor Jonathan Gruber, the self-described architect of ObamaCare."

Correspondent Peter Alexander began a full report on the topic by declaring: "This is certainly not the kind of headline the President was looking for as his administration once again kicks off enrollment in the Affordable Care Act, that happened this past weekend. Just in time, these year-old comments are getting new scrutiny and causing another round of ObamaCare political fallout." The headline on screen read: "ObamaCare Political Firestorm; Top Advisor Says Law Lacks Transparency."

Alexander noted that "President Obama dismissed accusations his administration tried to pull a fast one with ObamaCare." A soundbite was featured of the President trying to distance himself from Gruber: "The fact that some adviser who never worked on our staff expressed an opinion that I completely disagree with, in terms of the voters, is no reflection on the actual process that was run."

Alexander didn't bother to fact-check Obama's remark. However, on Friday's CBS This Morning, during that network's first report on the scandal, correspondent Jan Crawford pointed out:

Gruber was a key player in developing the law. The New York Times, in a glowing 2012 profile, said he not only "put together the basic principles of the proposal," but helped Congress "draft the specifics of the legislation." As a consultant, the government paid Gruber, an MIT economics professor, nearly $400,000 for that work.

On Monday, Alexander concluded: "The comments, made more than a year ago, have added to critics' distrust of the law and the administration....Gruber has since backpedaled, apologizing last week on MSNBC....Still, to many Republicans, Gruber's comments only confirm what they've suspected all along."

NBC and ABC first mentioned Gruber on air during their respective Sunday talk shows, This Week and Meet the Press.

ABC has yet to cover the controversy on Good Morning America or World News.

NBC Nightly News has not touched the story.

Here is a full transcript of Alexander's November 17 report on Today: