MSNBC's Buchanan adopts "hubris" theme from Milbank's falsehood-laden column, says of Obama: "[W]ho ... the heck does this guy think he is"

Summary: Pat Buchanan criticized the McCain campaign attack ad that refers to Sen. Barack Obama's "celebrity," but said "there is a truth behind all this." Touting Dana Milbank's falsehood-laden Washington Post column as "credible," Buchanan said, "[W]ho is he and who ... the heck does this guy think he is, is becoming a real issue for Barack Obama."

In a segment in which MSNBC aired an attack ad from Sen. John McCain's campaign that refers to Sen. Barack Obama's "celebrity," MSNBC political analyst Pat Buchanan criticized the ad but said "there is a truth behind all this." Touting Dana Milbank's falsehood-laden July 30 Washington Post column as "credible," Buchanan said, "[W]ho is he and who ... the heck does this guy think he is, is becoming a real issue for Barack Obama." Buchanan then accused Obama of "act[ing] like, you know, he thinks he is the Lord's gift to mankind."

As Media Matters for America noted, in the "Washington Sketch" column that Buchanan called "credible," Milbank misrepresented quotes, neglected to do basic reporting, and advanced the baseless suggestion that actions that Obama has reportedly taken are unprecedented for a presidential candidate -- all in support of Milbank's thesis that Obama's "biggest challenger" may be "his own hubris."

From the July 30 edition of MSNBC's Race for the White House:

GREGORY: This is the new ad that's out today, and then I'll have Pat respond. Let's roll.

NARRATOR [video clip]: He's the biggest celebrity in the world, but is he ready to lead? With gas prices soaring, Barack Obama says no to offshore drilling and says he'll raise taxes on electricity. Higher taxes, more foreign oil. That's the real Obama. I'm John McCain, and I approve this message.

GREGORY: Pat, your take?

BUCHANAN: Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, where was Lindsay Lohan, for heaven's sakes?

GREGORY: I knew that's what you'd be thinking about first.

BUCHANAN: Look, this is not an effective ad. And I've got to agree with -- I've got to agree with Rachel [Maddow, MSNBC host] to this extent: McCain has two or three problems here. One, McCain is someone who comes deeply to dislike his opponents, and he gets very mean. He did that certainly to Mitt Romney. Secondly, to use your candidate for cutting is not a smart thing to do. Third, this ad is not a KO punch at all.

However, there is a truth behind all this. And that is that Barack Obama, who is he and who does the heck does this guy think he is, is becoming a real issue for Barack Obama. This election is a referendum on him and, frankly, far more credible in the attacks on Obama are the national press attacks, including Milbank today, where this guy acts like, you know, he thinks he is the Lord's gift to mankind. I think those are effective and, frankly, this Ludacris thing that's coming up this afternoon, later, I think that's very effective, because that's right out of Barack Obama's own folks. And it's sort of in the Reverend [Jeremiah] Wright category. And that's where his vulnerability lies.

—A.J.W.