Ed Henry's Ability to Make Fun of Imus is as Solid as His Reporting Skills

Fox News’s newly-minted White House Correspondent Ed Henry has been listening to Imus since he was a kid, and has witnessed the evolution of this program over time.
 
“When I was growing up on Long Island, those were the years I think when you were drinking and doing drugs, and you were doing bits on Jesse Jackson, and you were complaining about your health,” Henry recalled. “So, I’m glad a lot has changed.”
 
Having quickly displayed his willingness to “go there” with Imus, Henry then explained his decision to come over to Fox from CNN, which Imus called “the dark side.”
 
“I root for the Yankees, and I like to play for a first place team,” he said, noting that while the Yankees are technically a game behind the Red Sox right now, “There’s no doubt about where Fox is.”
 
Since arriving at Fox, Henry has been participating in the network’s near-constant coverage of the debt ceiling debate, and he sensed a feeling of relief around the White House since Sunday, when President Obama announced that a deal had been reached.
 
“I don’t think there was any champagne being popped,” he clarified. “When the President came into the briefing room Sunday night, it looked like he was just exhaling.”
 
Though it appears Republicans got much of what they desired in the deal, which allows Obama to raise the debt ceiling by at least $2.1 trillion through 2012 and mandates $2.4 trillion in spending cuts, Henry indicated there are no real winners.
 
“I think both sides took a beating to their images,” he said. “The Republicans were only elected in November, and things are already careening a little bit. The President is going to be facing reelection next year—he’s trying to appeal to Independent voters, and when Washington is this dysfunctional, it’s obviously not good for either side.”
 
The Senate will vote on the bill this afternoon, and Henry predicted Obama will speak shortly thereafter, if for no other reason than to ensure calm in the financial markets. “But he’s also going to have to sell this,” Henry said. “The Republicans are saying they got a lot more in this deal, and a lot of Liberals are upset thinking it’s all spending cuts.”
 
That this issue will be put away until after the 2012 election is good for everybody, Henry insisted, and not just for President Obama. “Regardless of which party you’re coming from—did you really want to see this play our again in five or six months?” he said, adding that Republican presidential candidates should be among the most relieved, because they can avoid commenting on it altogether.
 
After just a few weeks with Fox, Henry has already been accused of giving White House Press Secretary Jay Carney a bad time, even though Henry told Imus he’s asking the same tough questions he did when he was at CNN.
 
“My first week at Fox, I ask some tough questions of Jay Carney, people are screaming and yelling, ‘He’s got an agenda!’” Henry said. Besides, his only real problem with Carney has nothing to do with politics: “He’s a Red Sox fan.”
 
-Julie Kanfer