Howard Fineman Grand Inquisitor - Dean suspected heretic

The media's increasingly negative coverage of former Vermont governor Howard Dean's presidential campaign reached a nadir of sorts last week, when Newsweek's cover package featured an interview that essentially cast reporter Howard Fineman as grand inquisitor and Dean as suspected heretic.

After five straight questions about Iraq and the war on terrorism, Fineman asks Dean, out of nowhere, "Do you see Jesus Christ as the son of God and believe in him as the route to salvation and eternal life?"

Dean, belying his reputation for having a hot temper, gives a low-key reply: "I certainly see him as the son of God. I think whether I'm saved or not is not gonna be up to me."