NEW YORK -- On Monday afternoon, in the Sheraton Hotel's New York West ballroom, it felt, at times, like there were two press conferences happening at once. One featured the spectacle of a teary-eyed and emotionally wrenched Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) apologizing for his online indiscretions. The other showcased a combative Andrew Breitbart doing his best to hijack the moment.
The conservative media provocateur spoke before, after and during Rep. Weiner's admission of sending sexually charged emails to six different women.
It was supposed to be Weiner's press conference -- so why was Breitbart on the stage? He had decided to attend, he told the scores of assembled press corps members, partly because his hotel was "coincidentally" located three blocks away.
But, Breitbart also noted, "I'm here to watch myself be vindicated." He attempted to turn Weiner's press conference into a battle in his ongoing war against the so-called mainstream media, criticizing outlets that included Salon and The Daily Kos.
No one from Weiner's office pre-screened the press at the sometimes-chaotic news conference, which was held with about an hour's advance notice. At one point, before Weiner had taken the stage, someone from the crowd -- it was difficult to tell if they were a member of the media or just an onlooker -- asked Breitbart to break from a press huddle he was holding on the side of the ballroom and walk up to the podium at the front of the room set aside for Weiner.
"If he's paying for this I find this to be a tad rude," Breitbart said, and then went ahead, at 3:58 p.m.
Weiner had scheduled his conference to start at 4 p.m. When people tuned in, though, they saw not the Congressman, but Breitbart, who took questions for approximately 13 minutes before leaving the podium. Fox News reported that Weiner's aides ran down the hall to inform him that Breitbart was there.
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