Hillary Clinton Gives CNN First National Interview Post-Press Roping

Hillary Clinton has picked CNN senior political correspondent Brianna Keilar for her first nationally televised interview since officially announcing her candidacy. Word of the CNN “get” interrupted, if only temporarily, the chatter on news networks, and in social media, about Clinton’s optically disastrous roping off of media during a weekend parade appearance.

Clinton’s first national interview will air Tuesday on The Situation Room at 5 PM ET and repeat on Anderson Cooper 360 at 8 PM.

This past Sunday on CNN, State Of The Union host Jake Tapper noted social media had gone bonkers over the sight of Clinton and her Media “Veal Pen” marching in a New Hampshire parade on July 4. “I see a lot of Republicans loving it, because they hate us more than they hate her,” Tapper noted. Among his panelists, conservative talking head S.E. Cupp called it “humiliating for reporters who have to abide by Hillary Clinton’s rules of journalism,” adding, “I don’t blame her, I blame reporters who put up with this. The second they decide we’re not doing this anymore, we’re not going to cover your glossy events the way you want it, then she’ll be forced to change this behavior.” Cupp called it Clinton’s “Tank Moment,” in re Michael Dukakis’ 1988 presidential campaign optical disaster.

This morning, Clinton’s communications director Jennifer Palmieri played straight man on MSNBC’s Morning Joe to joke about the image of reporters lassoed in by a rope and being herded along in front of Clinton during the parade. “It’s a good time to talk about our theory on press access and the campaign,” Palmieri suggested. “Can’t you…put them in the back of an open pickup truck – we used to do that sometimes – and then they roll?” former Bush communications chief Nicolle Wallace suggested helpfully.

“Yeah, we don’t have, you know, we don’t have all of the vehicles that you might have in the campaign at a later date,” Palmieri said. With a straight face.