Think Progress reports that MSNBC rock-star Chris Matthews defended Tom DeLay (who stepped down today as House majority leader) by saying he "really lives basically, like a regular middle-class person. He doesn't live well at all."

Here are facts about DeLay's lifestyle:

As Tom DeLay became a king of campaign fund-raising, he lived like one, too. He visited cliff-top Caribbean resorts, golf courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants, all courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political money empire...

Public documents reviewed by the Associated Press tell the story: At least 48 visits to golf clubs and resorts; 100 flights aboard company planes; 200 stays at hotels, many world-class; and 500 meals at restaurants, some averaging nearly $200 for a dinner for two.

Of course, that's probably not too different from how Matthews lives these days -- so to him, that's probably middle class.

Don't like Matthews? Well then, you can always tune into that other Man of the People, Anderson Cooper -- you know, the son of "middle class" Gloria Vanderbilt.

Or -- if you're looking for really tough reporting -- you can wait for that gadfly Bob Woodward to leave the cozy confines of his mansion and take a limo to the White House to ask penetrating questions of the President ... right?

Seriously: Are these the people we want to speak truth to power?

Guess they have the benefit of being able to practice in the mirror.

Update: We posted this on our Daily Kos diary and received some interesting comments there if you'd like to check them out.

Technorati tags: Journalism, Tom Delay, Public Relations, Anderson Cooper, Bob Woodward