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The late-breaking news that Sen Timothy Johnson was hospitalized with a presumed stroke threw the networks' news lineups into disarray. ABC and NBC each pre-empted its scheduled lead story for a live stand-up report. The headline was not the Democrat's health--but the political implications if he were to be rendered unable to serve. Since South Dakota is governed by a Republican, any replacement would change the balance of power in the Senate from a 51-49 Democratic majority to a 50-50 Republican one (GOP wins tiebreakers).

NBC spent most time on Johnson--even without knowing whether he had indeed suffered a stroke or whether it would disqualify him from service.

Chip Reid recounted that he "suddenly began to stutter" while conducting a radio interview. Nancy Snyderman (at the tail of the videostream) emphasized how urgent it is to treat a suspected stroke: "Think of it like a brain attack." Tim Russert listed the issues that would change with that one vote switch: the Iraq War, Supreme Court nominations, environmental legislation, tax policy. "Profound impact," he speculated.

Andrew Tyndall 12/14/06 6:10:35 pm

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