Joy Reid Cackles Assent As Elie Mystal Goes On Unhinged Race Rant

What is MSNBC’s The ReidOut if not a vehicle for some of the most unhinged race rants on cable TV? Thursday’s bitter rant, delivered by host Joy Reid and contributor Elie Mystal, also had a dash of hypocrisy along with its usual unhingement. Watch as Elie Mystal suggests that Clarence Thomas, Tim Scott, Byron Donalds and Candace Owens “exist” because “there’s a lot of money in telling white folks what they want to hear”:  JOY REID: So at this point, Elie, I guess they just take all the 30-year-old right wing college graduates from Liberty University and send them on fancy trips and then (unint).  ELIE MYSTAL: Yeah, right? I mean, look. I think it's important for people to ask what are these people paying for, right? What are they getting for their $4 million they have given to Clarence Thomas over the past 20 years? And what they're getting, just to link your last segment together, what they're getting is what Byron Donalds wants. What they're getting is Jim Crow, right? What they're getting is a guy like Clarence Thomas who like Byron Donalds' entire judicial philosophy is that, well, there- some Negroes are magic, right? No matter what the white man does to us, we can just rise above as long as they don't shoot us or kill us or rape us or drown us, right? And if you tell people that, if you're black, if you're Donalds, if you're Thomas and you tell white people that, they will give you money. And that is what's happened to Clarence Thomas for 20 years. He has told white folks exactly what they want to hear, ruled exactly as they would like him to rule. And done it as their black friend, and so the money is just pouring out, and you see it in these reports where, again, Clarence Thomas -- in the figures that we saw today, you know, Sam Alito made like $200,000 disclosed gifts over the past- you know, disclosed gifts over the past 20 years. Antonin Scalia, the hero of their movement, again around $200,000. Clarence Thomas, $4 million. REID: It's wild. MYSTAL: That's why Tim Scott exists. That's why Byron Donalds exists. That's why Candace Owens exists, because the grift is good. There's a lot of money in telling white folks what they need to hear. Pot, meet envious kettle. What is MSNBC, if not a vehicle for liberal white people to be told what they want to hear (albeit by a diverse collection of talking heads)? And who exactly reads The Nation? Is there some vast, multiethnic readership coalition that we’re unaware of? The hypocrisy of these two seriously unself-aware individuals is amazing to behold. In addition to bashing minority conservatives by trotting out disgusting tropes, the segment served to further the left’s ongoing campaign to intimidate and pressure sitting Justices of the Supreme Court into recusal ahead of two important opinions on obstruction and presidential immunity, which will have an effect on the ongoing lawfare against former President Donald Trump. In so doing, they promote the work of “Fix the Court”, a leftwing dark money pit that wants to lecture the Supreme Court on ethics while engaging in its own ethics lapses. Fixers, fix thyselves. Beyond the bitter race banter, which reasonable people could conclude is a grift wherein big money is made by telling white (liberal) people what they want to hear, this segment constitutes an attack on a free and independent judiciary. Keep that in mind ahead of the next lecture on Democracy™. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned segment as aired on MSNBC’s The ReidOut on Thursday, June 6th, 2024: MSNBC THE REIDOUT 6/6/24 7:38 PM JOY REID: Today was yet another day that the Supreme Court chose not to issue key rulings on abortion access, guns, or presidential immunity. And it's been roughly two weeks since we learned that the Alitos foisted an inverted flag and an Appeal to Heaven flag, both of which were carried by insurrectionists outside the capitol on January 6th, 2021. Recently, we’ve received regular reminders of how Donald Trump and Leonard Leo, a long time pal of Clarence Thomas, have successfully built a conservative federal judiciary with a deep bench and feeder system supported by a big donor network that regularly wines and dines these judges. Leo's stated goal with all of this corrupt, incestious behavior is to defeat unchurched and vile, immoral current day barbarians, secularists whom the devil is moving to use society away from its natural order. Unquote. Huffington Post uncovered the latest example of that rotten playbook in action. Down in Florida back in 2022, during the tail end of the Covid pandemic, an underqualified Trump-nominated judge issued a ruling against mask mandates. This judge used a weird never-used legal theory that you could word-search, like, key phrases and apply the old-timey meanings to provide legitimacy to the ruling. And guess where this judge got this legal theory? At a Koch-funded all expenses paid luxury trip where the primary mission was persuading federal judges to adopt this arcane theory. And guess who the judge clerked for? You guessed it, Clarence Thomas. Today, Fix The Court reported that according to their tally, Justice Thomas has received the most gifts of any, dating back to the Antonin Scalia era during his time on the Court, by a mile- with 193 gifts totaling more than $4 million. I'm joined by Elie Mystal, justice correspondent for The Nation. So at this point, Elie, I guess they just take all the 30-year-old right wing college graduates from Liberty University and send them on fancy trips and then (unint).  ELIE MYSTAL: Yeah, right? I mean, look. I think it's important for people to ask what are these people paying for, right? What are they getting for their $4 million they have given to Clarence Thomas over the past 20 years? And what they're getting, just to link your last segment together, what they're getting is what Byron Donalds wants. What they're getting is Jim Crow, right? What they're getting is a guy like Clarence Thomas who like Byron Donalds' entire judicial philosophy is that, well, there- some Negroes are magic, right? No matter what the white man does to us, we can just rise above as long as they don't shoot us or kill us or rape us or drown us, right? And if you tell people that, if you're black, if you're Donalds, if you're Thomas and you tell white people that, they will give you money. And that is what's happened to Clarence Thomas for 20 years. He has told white folks exactly what they want to hear, ruled exactly as they would like him to rule. And done it as their black friend, and so the money is just pouring out, and you see it in these reports where, again, Clarence Thomas -- in the figures that we saw today, you know, Sam Alito made like $200,000 disclosed gifts over the past- you know, disclosed gifts over the past 20 years. Antonin Scalia, the hero of their movement, again around $200,000. Clarence Thomas, $4 million. REID: It's wild. MYSTAL: That's why Tim Scott exists. That's why Byron Donalds exists. That's why Candace Owens exists, because the grift is good. There's a lot of money in telling white folks what they need to hear. REID: It is- it is amazing because when I looked at the chart, it was like, I thought that Clarence Thomas' was the total because it was so much bigger. Antonin Scalia, like you said, is six figures. He's in the two, the three, the four -- this guy, you're right, it is a thing that the right is willing to pay extra to get women and especially black people to tell them what they want to hear about women and black people. Tell them that black people don't want to be able to have a Fearless Fund. They shouldn't be able to give 20-- I wanted if I had time to ask if he supported the Fearless Fund being not able to give grants out. I'm sure he does because that's what he's supposed to say. MYSTAL: It makes me some- look, I looked at that chart today. I look at people like Donalds and think, man, I made the wrong financial choices in my life. Right? Because there's money out there for these people, but always remember, and I just want folks to remember this. They're getting something for their money. REID: Yes, they are. MYSTAL: This isn't charity, right? They're getting rulings. They're getting opinions. They're getting the kind of return to not 1950s, but to the 1850s that they want for their funds. And if we, the rest of us who are not making -- the other funny thing is that you saw the liberals like Sotomayor had like a bunch of guests but they were all like $5. Like, here's a flower, Sonya. Like that's what she was getting, right? So all of us who don't have the money to buy our own Supreme Court justices, what we need to do is use what power we have, the power we didn't have during the Jim Crow South, and go out and vote for people who are going to hold the Supreme Court justices to heel through ethics legislation and other reforms. Hank Johnson, congressman from Georgia, my man, he’s got an ethics bill right now on the House floor. We need to vote for people who are going to support that bill and ask our political leaders when we go to vote- are you going to support ethics reform? REID: Yes. MYSTAL: No more nice letters, all right? No more, like, oh, we’re not- no more of that stuff. Are you going to support the bills to stop these people from graft? REID: Amen, my brother. Elie Mystal, who understands what Jim Crow was and also what the grift looks like ‘cause the grift is good for Clarence and them. Thank you very much, Elie Mystal.   

FURTHER DESECRATION: ABC Softballs Biden on D-Day

Not even a day as solemn as D-Day, wherein we commemorate not just the liberation of Europe but the rescue of Western civilization from Hitler’s evil grasp, is safe from ABC’s relentlessly sycophantic coverage of President Joe Biden. Tonight’s interview was more of the same. Watch as World News Tonight anchor David Muir leads Biden into the left’s standard defense of the verdict handed down by the jury in the Trump business records trial in New York: DAVID MUIR: You did address Donald Trump and the guilty verdicts on 34 felony counts before the American people. You told Americans to respect the jury and the outcome of this case. You were at a campaign fund-raiser and you told the room, "a convicted felon is now seeking the office of a presidency." You called it disturbing. What do you think the American people should make of this? How important do you think this conviction should be in this race for president? JOE BIDEN: That's for the public to decide. But one thing for certain is- stop undermining the rule of law. Stop undermining the institutions. That's what this whole effort is. All the MAGA Republicans are coming out, saying, "This was a fix. This was a jury that -- this was a judge that set up to get Trump." There's no evidence of any of that. None. He's trying to undermine it. Look, he got a fair trial. The jury spoke- like they speak in all cases. And it should be respected. I don’t know what else Biden is supposed to say here except the “stop undermining” stuff. Anything else would be tantamount to looking gift election interference in the mouth. Reasonable people may conclude that what undermined the institutions and rule of law is the conviction of the president’s main political opposition on a statute-limited misdemeanor Frankensteined into a felony. But it was Muir who walked him right into that talking point set piece. The rest of the interview was just as bad. On immigration, Muir gave Biden wide berth to pontificate on executive action. To hear it from Biden, the Senate border bill served no other purpose than to shield him from having to take executive action on the border https://t.co/0H6R93uDJI pic.twitter.com/4sa3Ll9xp0 — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) June 7, 2024 Then there’s the upcoming presidential debate. Muir uses D-Day as a means with which to promote the debate: Muir uses D-Day as a narrative device with which to hype the upcoming debate. Biden says the quiet part out loud. https://t.co/bzMTndfCh0 pic.twitter.com/SLBpWGfXvQ — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) June 7, 2024 There were also spoon-fed questions on Israel’s war against Gaza, as well as Ukraine. Nothing tough or adversarial. This was an access piece that was immediately followed by a stroll with the Bidens along the American Cemetery at Normandy. This interview, highly questionable by virtue of Biden and staff agreeing to it in the first place, could’ve easily been held back in the United States; The White House, even. To do it on the 80th anniversary of D-Day grossly disrespects those who came ashore on that fateful day, and especially, the memories of those who didn’t make it back. Another desecration of this day.  

ABC, CBS OMIT Biden Family Criminal Referrals By House Committees

The networks appear to have filled their allotted Biden family scandal with continued coverage of the Hunter Biden federal trial on gun charges, leaving them with no room for the criminal referral to the Department of Justice filed by several House committees against both Hunter and Uncle Jimmy, for lying to Congress. Below you’ll find the sole mention of that referral across the dial- these 8 seconds on NBC Nightly News, a tack-on to the trial recap filed by correspondent Ryan Nobles: RYAN NOBLES: And back in Washington, House Republicans say they’ll file a criminal referral to the Department of Justice against Hunter and James Biden for lying to Congress. Yep, that’s all of it. 8 seconds on NBC. But that’s 8 seconds more than the giant donut that CBS and ABC threw on the board. Per the House Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means Committees, this seems like a fairly big deal that warranted significantly more than 8 seconds on the network evening news. Had the accused parties been named Trump, I am certain that the networks would have made time to air the related details. Over on its X feed, the House Oversight Committee put it this way: Our Committee, along with @JudiciaryGOP and @WaysandMeansGOP, today sent criminal referrals to the DOJ recommending Hunter and James Biden be charged with making false statements to Congress about key aspects of the impeachment inquiry of President Joe Biden. These false statements implicate Joe Biden’s knowledge of and role in his family’s influence peddling schemes and appear to be a calculated effort to shield Joe Biden from the impeachment inquiry. During his deposition, Hunter Biden made false statements about holding a position at Rosemont Seneca Bohai (RSB), a corporate entity that received millions of dollars from foreign individuals and entities who met with then-Vice President Biden before and after transmitting money to the RSB account that then transferred funds to Hunter Biden. After deposing Hunter Biden, the Committees obtained documents showing Hunter Biden represented that he was the corporate secretary of RSB. There’s more both within the extended X thread, and within the actual referral letter (which you can view here). The referral alleges, in sum, that Hunter and James Biden gave false testimony to Congress in order to hide the current president’s involvement in a scheme to sell influence. The allegations plus the referral make for a major story that merits significantly more network newscast time than 8 throwaway seconds. Once again, the Regime Media protect Biden rather than report on him.

DESECRATION: Not Even D-Day Is Spared From ABC’s Pro-Biden Sycophancy

The solemnity of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, which in 1944 marked the beginning of the liberation of Europe from the clutches of Nazi tyranny, was generally observed throughout the Regime Media. Except for ABC, which chose the occasion to promote President Joe Biden’s speech in a manner more befitting a campaign comms shop. Watch the full report on Biden’s speech, if it can be called that, as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Wednesday, June 5th, 2024:      DAVID MUIR: Meantime, President Biden is here in France tonight, set to deliver an address tomorrow here at the D-Day commemoration. The White House tonight saying he will defend freedom and democracy around the world, and America's leadership on the global stage. ABC's Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce is traveling with the president, and Mary, the president expected, of course, to honor the American heroes who died here, who fought here, and who made it home. And why what they did is so important and timely, with what the world is facing right now. MARY BRUCE: Exactly, David. President Biden arriving here in France today to honor to veterans but, also to underscore the important of American leadership and protecting democracy. Biden is trying to rally allies to help defend Ukraine against Russia, which has been gaining ground. And he will meet with Ukrainian president Zelenskyy while he is here. Ukraine has been using U.S.-made weapons to strike inside Russia. Vladimir Putin today stressing that Russia, a nuclear-armed country will use all means to respond to the west, saying, quote, “if someone's actions threaten our sovereignty, we consider it possible for ourselves to use all the means at our disposal”. And while President Biden's remarks will not be a campaign speech, he has put preserving democracy at the center of this race, and David, he will make clear the sharp contrast with Donald Trump. MUIR: Mary Bruce, traveling with the president. Mary, thank you. It is on the hallowed ground of Utah Beach, and with the crosses honoring those who gave their last, full measure of devotion in the background, that Muir tossed over to Mary Bruce for some premium Biden apple-polishing.  Everything that Bruce said after “And while President Biden's remarks will not be a campaign speech” was essentially the promotion of a campaign speech- not unlike the disrespect that usually follows the utterance of “with all due respect”. Otherwise, why did Bruce have to inject that Biden “...will make clear sharp contrast with Donald Trump”? ABC’s reportage shows that there is no institution that the left won’t hollow out for its own self-serving purposes. So it is that D-Day is now shamelessly appropriated for the purpose of furthering the electoral prospects of Joe Biden. A vile desecration of the memories of those who fell on that day, and blatant disrespect to those heroes who made it to Normandy potentially one last time. Shame on ABC.

Regime Media Help Push Biden’s Border EO, Fake ‘Shut Down’ Narrative

When looking at how the Regime Media report on any of the given issues of the day, you can be certain that the truest, purest victim of any of the calamities of the day is always going to be the electoral prospects of one Joseph Robinette Biden, Junior. There is no other rationale that could underlie the ridiculous and servile coverage accorded to President Biden’s executive order on the border, three years into the border crisis. And among the network evening newscasts, there is none more servile than ABC Whirled News Tonight. Here’s how they opened their newscast- by making certain that viewers heard the term “shut down” as often as possible:  DAVID MUIR: But we do begin tonight with President Biden taking drastic action on immigration and on the U.S./Mexico border. Strictly limiting the asylum process set to close the border to migrants crossing illegally when asylum numbers hit more than 2,500 along the border in between legal ports of entry. The president saying he had no choice but to take executive action, because he says Republicans in Congress rejected the bipartisan bill they negotiated themselves in the Senate, containing many of the very reforms Republicans had been demanding. They rejected it at the urging of Donald Trump. Of course, immigration and crossings at the border, a key issue in this presidential election. So, the question tonight, how soon could the border be shut down? ABC's Rachel Scott leading us off at The White House tonight. RACHEL SCOTT: President Biden taking sweeping executive action to address the crisis at the border, announcing plans to strictly limit the asylum process in a move that will temporarily close the border to migrants crossing illegally, at midnight tonight. JOE BIDEN: I've come here today to do what the Republicans in Congress refuse to do -- take the necessary steps to secure our border. SCOTT: It comes after Republicans in Congress rejected a tough bipartisan border deal at the urging of Donald Trump, who wants to run on the issue. Under today's new executive action, when migrant apprehensions average 2,500 a day over the course of a week, the asylum process for people crossing illegally would automatically shut down. ABC made sure that the term “shut down” got into the report three times, in addition to other similar terms such as “close the border” and “strictly limit”. Of course, the executive order does no such thing inasmuch as it codifies a daily average of 2,499 illegal crossings before the alleged “shut down” takes effect. And then there is the loophole for women and unaccompanied minors, through which a fleet of trucks can be driven. But the Precious must be protected, so “shut down” it is. CBS Evening News had the decency of abstaining from using this particular bit of hyperbole during their team coverage, headed by Nancy Cordes who focused on the politics side. A common theme throughout was the blaming of Republicans for Biden having to sign an executive order, without also noting that Biden ripped the border open via executive orders. There was also plenty of mention across the dial of the failed Senate border bill that would’ve codified a daily average of 4,999 illegal crossings before requiring border action, plus express asylum and a backdoor pathway to citizenship. But no mention at all of the House-passed H.R. 2. Republicans did pass a bill, just not the one Biden or his media wanted.  While CBS avoided the term “shut down”, there was other, more unfortunate hyperbole. LILIA LUCIANO: What is the consequence of deterrence policies from where you stand? JOANNA WILLIAMS: Different policies have been sort of in effect for over 20 years here at the border, and what they lead to is an increase in deaths. Their other option is to try to go out into the desert and avoid finding Border Patrol, and this is two days before our first heat wave of the summer. That’s right. People will DIE as a result of Biden’s executive order if CBS is to be believed.  NBC Nightly News, at least, offers their viewers a modicum of intellectual honesty along with their Biden apologia. LESTER HOLT: Good evening and welcome. President Biden tonight sidestepping Congress and taking his own action to sharply tighten controls at the southern border. With his signature alone, the president using his executive authority to shut down asylum requests when the average daily number of illegal crossings between ports of entry exceeds 2500. Tonight that average number tops 4,000, putting the new directive into immediate effect. The president looking to turn the tables on Republicans on an issue that has left him politically vulnerable.  At the end of the day, it’s always about the politics.  Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective evening network newscasts on Tuesday, June 4th, 2024: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT 6/4/24 6:32:33 DAVID MUIR: But we do begin tonight with President Biden taking drastic action on immigration and on the U.S./Mexico border. Strictly limiting the asylum process set to close the border to migrants crossing illegally when asylum numbers hit more than 2,500 along the border in between legal ports of entry. The president saying he had no choice but to take executive action, because he says Republicans in Congress rejected the bipartisan bill they negotiated themselves in the Senate, containing many of the very reforms Republicans had been demanding. They rejected it at the urging of Donald Trump. Of course, immigration and crossings at the border, a key issue in this presidential election. So, the question tonight, how soon could the border be shut down? ABC's Rachel Scott leading us off at The White House tonight. RACHEL SCOTT: President Biden taking sweeping executive action to address the crisis at the border, announcing plans to strictly limit the asylum process in a move that will temporarily close the border to migrants crossing illegally, at midnight tonight. JOE BIDEN: I've come here today to do what the Republicans in Congress refuse to do -- take the necessary steps to secure our border. SCOTT: It comes after Republicans in Congress rejected a tough bipartisan border deal at the urging of Donald Trump, who wants to run on the issue. Under today's new executive action, when migrant apprehensions average 2,500 a day over the course of a week, the asylum process for people crossing illegally would automatically shut down. They would no longer be allowed to stay in the United States while their claims are being processed. BIDEN: Doing nothing is not an option. We have to act. We must act consistent with both our law and our values, our values as Americans. SCOTT: The restrictions would only be lifted when apprehensions drop to 1,500 a day or less for two weeks. We haven't seen numbers that low in years. The president says there would be limited exceptions for unaccompanied children and victims of human trafficking. And he insists his position on immigration is far different than Donald Trump. BIDEN: I will never demonize immigrants. I will never refer to immigrants as poisoning the blood of a country. And further, I'll never separate children from their families at the border. SCOTT: Today, Trump says Biden is only doing this because he's desperate. TRUMP: Crooked Joe Biden is pretending to finally do something about the border, but in fact, it's all about show, because he knows we have a debate coming up in three weeks. The truth is that Joe Biden's executive order won't stop the invasion. It's weak and it's pathetic. SCOTT: Progressive Democrats warn Biden's move could backfire. PRAMILA JAYAPAL: They think it's going to bring Republicans over or some independents. I don't think it does. And I think in the end, we ended up hurting the very people that we're fighting for. SCOTT: But the mayor of Laredo, who stood with Biden today at the White House, tells me the president had no choice.  What type of impact is this going to have where you live? VICTOR TREVINO: Well, first of all, we don't have all the resources to deal with the migrants coming to our border, especially medical services, who are medically underserved as it is. And we don't have a lot of infrastructure. And being able to deal with poverty and people that are homeless would be another situation that we don't want to have that happen in our community. SCOTT: David, this new policy will be triggered when the daily average of migrant apprehensions exceeds 2,500 for the week. Tonight, administration officials tell us we have already passed that threshold, which means starting tonight at midnight, the border will temporarily be shut down for migrants trying to enter the United States illegally, and claim asylum. David? MUIR: So this starts in just hours. Rachel Scott at The White House. Rachel, thank you. CBS EVENING NEWS: CBS EVENING NEWS 6/3/24 6:30 PM JAMES BROWN: In just hours at 12:01 A.M. Eastern time, President Biden's aggressive new border restrictions take effect. I'm James Brown in for Norah O'Donnell. The impact of this executive action will be immediate. Soon, U.S. Immigration officials will be authorized to deport large numbers of migrants without processing their asylum claims. The restrictions will stay in effect until illegal crossings dipped below 1500 migrants a day, and they will be triggered again if crossings spike. We have team coverage from the border to The White House, and that's where we start, with CBS's Nancy Cordes. Nancy, this is a dramatic election-year move. What does this mean? NANCY CORDES: J.B., what this means is that starting tomorrow, most migrants who cross the border illegally will not be allowed to seek U.S. asylum or remain in the U.S. They will be sent back to Mexico or their home country, and this will continue until illegal crossings drop to a level we have not seen in years. JOE BIDEN: The Republicans have left me no choice. CORDES: Flanked by border officials and Democratic governors, President Biden announced sweeping restrictions to the decades-old asylum system. BIDEN: This ban will remain in place until the number of people trying to enter illegally is reduced to a level that our system can effectively manage. CORDES: The rate of illegal crossings has fallen from its peak last winter, but remains historically high. And polls show immigration is a top issue for voters, who consistently give Donald Trump higher marks. DONALD TRUMP: On day one, we will seal the border. CORDES: But progressives in Congress argued that today's move by Biden undermined American values, and abandoned people fleeing violence and unstable conditions. While Republicans, who have urged Biden to take executive action, slammed him today for doing just that. TED CRUZ: Why didn't you do this in 2021? Why didn't you do this in 2022? MIKE JOHNSON: If he was concerned about the border he would have done this a long time ago. CORDES: The restrictions are sure to face legal challenges. The ACLU telling CBS News today, "We intend to sue. A ban on asylum is illegal, just as it was when Trump unsuccessfully tried it." Biden insisted his approach is more humane than Trump's. BIDEN: I'll never separate children from their families at the border. I will not ban people from this country because of their religious beliefs. CORDES: My colleague, Lilia Luciano, is at the border near Tucson, Arizona, one of the busiest sectors for migrant crossings this year. LILIA LUCIANO: We’ve just crossed into to Nogales, Mexico, to hear about what this executive order means for folks on this side of the border. JOANNA WILLIAMS: I think it’s devastating. LUCIANO: Joanna Williams runs the Kino Border Initiative, serving migrants in Nogales, Mexico. WILLIAMS Wwll, what's been interesting in the last several months is- it actually hasn't been that busy here and in this sector the numbers have been going down. The timing of this order is, therefore, purely political. LUCIANO: You've been here since October of last year? People like Pedro Solis wait as long as eight months for an appointment to ask for asylum using a U.S. government app, with no luck, many giving up. WILLIAMS: So the problem right now isn't that people don't want to use the CBP One app, they are applying for an appointment every single day. But there aren't enough appointments available. And again, this order doesn't increase that number of appointment availability at all. LUCIANO: What is the consequence of deterrence policies from where you stand? WILLIAMS: Different policies have been sort of in effect for over 20 years here at the border, and what they lead to is an increase in deaths. Their other option is to try to go out into the desert and avoid finding Border Patrol, and this is two days before our first heat wave of the summer. LUCIANO: And today, Arizona lawmakers passed a proposal to ask voters in November whether to make crossing unlawfully from Mexico into the state a state crime. JB. BROWN: Lilia Luciano and Nancy Cordes, thank you so much. NBC NIGHTLY NEWS: NBC NIGHTLY NEWS 6/4/24 6:31 PM LESTER HOLT: Good evening and welcome. President Biden tonight sidestepping Congress and taking his own action to sharply tighten controls at the southern border. With his signature alone, the president using his executive authority to shut down asylum requests when the average daily number of illegal crossings between ports of entry exceeds 2500. Tonight that average number tops 4,000, putting the new directive into immediate effect. The president looking to turn the tables on Republicans on an issue that has left him politically vulnerable. In his remarks announcing the new order, President Biden saying “doing nothing is not an option”, and that he would have preferred to address this issue through bipartisan legislation. But many Republicans in Congress tonight dismissing the president's actions as too little, too late. Our Julia Ainsley is at the border in Texas with more. JULIA AINSLEY: Facing fierce criticism of his handling of the border crisis, President Biden tonight unveiling new executive action. JOE BIDEN: This action will help us gain control of our border. AINSLEY: The executive order will bar many migrants who cross the border illegally from requesting asylum when illegal crossings are over 2500 per day, like they have been for the past three years. The restrictions last until they dip below 1500 per day. BIDEN: They choose to come without permission and against the law, they'll be restricted from receiving asylum and staying in the United States. . AINSLEY: It's 3:30 P.M. in Hidalgo, Texas, and this bus is transporting migrants who just came through the border wall. They'll be able to claim asylum, but those who cross after midnight will not. But there are exceptions to the restrictions, including unaccompanied children. Plus, migrants can still request asylum at ports of entry. Today's move comes after a record nearly 10 million migrants have crossed into the U.S. since President Biden took office. Our recent poll shows just 28% of Americans approve of President Biden's handling of the border. Today, the president blaming Republicans for blocking a bipartisan border security bill. BIDEN: I've come here today to do what the Republicans in Congress refuse to do, take the necessary steps to secure our border. AISLEY: But Republicans say Biden sparked the crisis by reversing Trump border policies, blasting today's movie as an election year stunt. MIKE JOHNSON: He can close the border down entirely. He is not going to do that. He has no interest in doing that. They want it wide open. So this weak measure here, don't be fooled. AINSLEY: While some Democrats also slamming the president's action. NANNETTE BARRAGAN: It's not a time for us to turn to Trump-era policies. It's not time to go and use the tools that Trump used. AINSLEY: Today we met a Venezuelan family who entered at a port of entry this morning. Using the CBP One app created by the Biden administration to book appointments for asylum screenings. They said they slept on the streets in Mexico while waiting. (SPANISH: How long were you waiting?) How long were you waiting? "Seven months and six days" he tells us, saying he came to the U.S. to work to feed his young family. HOLT: And Julia, we're already expecting legal challenges to this executive order. AINSLEY: Yes, Lester. The ACLU is threatening to sue, saying this order prevents migrants from exercising their right to claim asylum. Meanwhile, Border Patrol agents I’ve talked to say they're worried about a logjam- when migrants who can not claim asylum can not be deported fast enough. Lester. HOLT: Julia Ainsley starting us off, thank you.  

Hunter Biden Trial Roundup: The ‘Laptop From Hell’ WAS ALWAYS REAL

With today’s coverage of the happenings of the Hunter Biden gun trial comes a major piece of vindication for anyone reporting or attempting to report on the existence (and, subsequently, the contents) of Hunter Biden’s “Laptop From Hell”. The major network newscasts (mostly) reported on the laptop, albeit tangentially and reluctantly. Here’s how NBC Nightly News opened their report: Laptop, you say? Hunter Biden, you say? pic.twitter.com/fOynd6fnWI — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) June 5, 2024 LESTER HOLT: Opening statements today in the trial of President Biden's son Hunter on federal gun charges. The prosecution telling jurors he lied about his drug use on a government background check to buy a gun, and they introduced evidence from his laptop.  NBC and ABC opened their reports with admissions that the laptop was a source of evidence in the trial, and then correspondents Ryan Nobles and Terry Moran, respectively, made one more mention of the laptop in their report. But that was it. Blink and you miss it.  But, having worked hundreds of trials in previous professional endeavors, I know that each individual piece of evidence requires authentication testimony before being admitted as a trial exhibit. Breitbart’s Wendell Husebo has more detail on that authentication testimony: In court Jensen inspected the laptop, which was in an evidence bag, and explained how the FBI authenticated it. When Jensen grasped the machine, Melissa Cohen-Biden, Hunter’s wife, shook her head and spoke to Hollywood lawyer Kevin Morris, who was next to her, according to court reporters. Hunter’s prosecutor also introduced as evidence an invoice for $85 that Hunter received from The Mac Shop, CNN reported: “This is the laptop that was recovered from the computer store,” she [Jensen] said. When asked how she was able to confirm the laptop’s authenticity, Jensen said the serial number on the back of the laptop matches the serial number provided in Apple Inc.’s subpoena response for records. Jensen appeared to be making a point of looking at the jury while she explained the concept of iCloud data and how the FBI obtains the data via warrants. The jurors appeared engaged — a few were taking notes, but most simply listened. Hunter was wearing glasses and appeared to be taking notes when not whispering with his lawyers. Had the networks reported on the IRS whistleblowers, who testified that the laptop was authenticated by the FBI as far back as 2019 and which was also confirmed by DoJ filings, there would be no issue. But Regime Media is going to Regime Media at every turn, in season and out of season. CBS were the lone holdouts, with no mention of the laptop whatsoever. Perhaps the Tiffany Network still believes the 51 former intel officers. Or in the Tooth Fairy.  Shame on anyone still pushing the lie that Hunter Biden’s “Laptop From Hell” was Russian disinformation, or otherwise a fabrication. Suppression of that story was, in and of itself, a grotesque act of election interference.  The truth can’t be suppressed forever. Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective networks on Tuesday, June 4th, 2024: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT 6/4/24 6:42 PM DAVID MUIR: We turn now to the president's son, the first witness taking the stand in Hunter Biden's federal gun trial. The prosecution entering Hunter Biden's laptop as evidence, and what the defense claimed today. ABC's Terry Moran at the courthouse tonight. TERRY MORAN: With his wife by his side, Hunter Biden today was back in federal court in Delaware for opening statements in his trial on felony gun charges. First Lady Jill Biden and Hunter's sister Ashley sat behind the defendant in a show of support, while prosecutor Derek Hines laid out the government's case, telling the jury, "no one is above the law. It doesn't matter who you are or what your name is." The president's son, Hines said, "bought a gun and lied during a background check" in 2018, knowing "he was a drug user and a drug addict" when he filled out the federal form for gun purchases. And the prosecutor painted a vivid portrait of Hunter Biden the crack addict, including evidence from his laptop and text messages admitting, "I'm a liar and a thief," "A user and an addict." Defense lawyer Abbe Lowell told jurors in his opening statement Hunter Biden "did not knowingly violate these laws," and said that at the time he bought the gun, Hunter was using alcohol, not drugs- that his behavior was "totally inconsistent" with drug use, saying, "there's no such thing as a high-functioning crack addict." Then the first witness, an FBI agent, played Hunter Biden reading his own words from the audiobook of his memoir "Beautiful Things," recounting his days among drug users. HUNTER BIDEN: I was just as much a part of the depravity as they were. I was smoking crack every 15 minutes. MORAN: Finally, jurors saw the angry text exchange between Hunter and Hallie Biden, his brother Beau's widow and Hunter's girlfriend at the time, who found the gun and ditched it in a trash can. "Did you take that from me? You're being totally irresponsible and unhinged," Hunter texted. Hallie responding, "I just want you to be safe. That was not safe." It was a hard day in court for members of the Biden family. At one point Ashley Biden, Hunter’s sister, seemed to grow emotional, dabbed her eyes with a tissue and First Lady Jill Biden, their mother, put her arm around her to comfort her. The prosecution's case continues tomorrow. David. MUIR: Terry Moran in Wilmington. Terry, thank you. CBS EVENING NEWS: CBS EVENING NEWS 6/4/24 6:34 PM JAMES BROWN: Jurors in Hunter Biden's federal gun trial got their first look at key evidence today. A photo of Hunter Biden shirtless, pictures of drugs, and the gun application document at the center of the case. CBS's Scott MacFarlane was inside the courtroom for the dramatic first day of testimony. SCOTT MACFARLANE: An emotional first day in the trial of Hunter Biden, with the First Lady and Hunter Biden's wife seated behind the president's son, prosecutors and an FBI agent witness played long clips of Biden's 2021 audiobook of his memoirs, in which he narrated his descent into addiction to crack cocaine in 2018. HUNTER BIDEN: I used my superpower, finding crack anytime, anywhere, less than a day after landing at LAX in the spring of 2018. MACFARLANE: Former federal prosecutor Tom Dupree. TOM DUPREE: Prosecutors will tell you that there are few things more effective before a jury than being able to show the jury what the defendant said, in this case, hearing the defendant’s own voice describing his struggles with addiction and the fact that he was using illegal controlled substances right around the time he bought this gun. MACFARLANE: Prosecutors for Special Counsel David Weiss opened their case, telling the six man, 6-woman Delaware jury, “no one is above the law. Addiction may not be a choice, but lying and buying a gun is a choice.” Biden has pleaded not guilty to unlawfully possessing a gun while using or addicted to drugs, and making false statements applying for the gun in October 2018 for not acknowledging drug use at the time. Biden's defense attorney today argued the president's son didn't knowingly make false statements because he was seeking sobriety, and like other addicts, experienced a deep state of denial. DUPREE: They are really trying to paint Hunter Biden as someone who is making a good-faith effort to get himself clean, to get his life back in order. MACFARLANE: Biden's ex-wife, Kathleen, and Hallie Biden, his brother's widow with whom he was also romantically linked, will testify as early as tomorrow. Prosecutors have warned the jurors it’ll be embarrassing testimony for Hunter Biden. JB. BROWN: Scott MacFarlane, thank you so much. NBC NIGHTLY NEWS: NBC NIGHTLY NEWS 6/4/24 6:35:14 LESTER HOLT: Opening statements today in the trial of President Biden's son Hunter on federal gun charges. The prosecution telling jurors he lied about his drug use on a government background check to buy a gun, and they introduced evidence from his laptop. Ryan Nobles has late details. RYAN NOBLES: Tonight, the prosecution kicking off their case against the son of the president with one simple message to the jury: no one is above the law. In opening arguments, prosecutor Derek Hines saying Hunter Biden was a user of crack and a drug addict. He chose to lie on a government form about his drug use when he purchased a .38 caliber handgun. “No one is allowed to lie on a federal form like that, even Hunter Biden”, he said. Hines pointing to the defendant's own words in his own voice. HUNTER BIDEN: Mainly, however, we just planted ourselves on the couch and smoked a ton of crack. NOBLES: Hines playing these audio clips from Hunter Biden's memoir for the jury. BIDEN: By now, I possessed a new superpower: the ability to find crack in any town, at any time, no matter how unfamiliar the terrain. NOBLES: First Lady Jill Biden, his wife Melissa and sister Ashley were in court, sitting together while the excerpts played, visibly shaken and embracing each other. Hunter Biden is charged with three counts related to allegedly purchasing and possessing a gun while using narcotics, and faces prison time if convicted. But defense attorney Abbe Lowell telling the jury today "You will see that he is not guilty." He said that Hunter Biden did not knowingly lie on the form, arguing that during that narrow window of time, Biden was not acting like, quote, “someone who was smoking crack every 20 minutes”. Late today, the first prosecution witness, an FBI agent, testifying about Hunter Biden's laptop, telling jurors investigators found text messages detailing his interactions with drug dealers around the time he made the gun purchase. Tomorrow Hunter Biden's ex-wife will be on the stand, and eventually, Hallie Biden the widow of his brother Beau with whom Hunter has a romantic relationship. Lester. HOLT: All right, thank you.

Border EO Roundup: Nets Protect Biden, HIDE Dropped 350K Asylum Cases

The evening network news coverage of PPresident Joe Biden’s upcoming executive order on the border crisis was, for the most part, predictably focused on the politics of the matter. And, across the board, this coverage unanimously omitted one piece of major news. Most representative of this coverage was the CBS Evening News. Watch the full report, as aired on Monday, June 3rd, 2024 (click “expand” to view transcript): CBS EVENING NEWS 6/3/24 6:38 PM NORAH O’DONNELL: President Biden is under intense political pressure to curb illegal immigration. It's a top concern for voters, one that Donald Trump and his allies have seized on. And tomorrow Biden is expected to take action issuing a major executive order allowing him to partially shut down the asylum process at the southern border. CBS News was the first to break the story, and tonight our Nancy Cordes is at The White House. Nancy, good to see you. So I understand this is going to be the most restrictive border policy ever enacted by a Democratic president, why now? NANCY CORDES: Well, Norah, The White House had been hoping that Congress would take this step. It didn’t. This represents a major change to immigration policy, and we’re told that the president is going to sign this executive order tomorrow. CBS News has learned that this new order will allow U.S. immigration officials to deport migrants without processing their asylum claims any time the number of illegal border crossings tops a specific threshold, and sources tell CBS that threshold is likely to be 2500 migrant apprehensions a day. Which means this partial ban could be triggered on day one because the number of apprehensions at the southern border in May was higher than that. It was 3800 a day according to the Border Patrol. Right now, of course, asylum-seekers are allowed to stay in the U.S. until their case is processed, which can take years. And critics say that creates an incentive for those who don't qualify to come to the U.S. anyway. This new executive order is almost certainly going to face legal challenges down the road. The White House appears to be going this route now because Republicans rejected a bipartisan senate deal that would have done something similar. Norah. O’DONNELL: Nancy Cordes with that big news tonight. Thank you so much. You have it all, really. CBS’s report boils down to concerns over Biden’s electoral prospects, and lamentations over the fact that Republicans didn’t codify 4,999 illegal crossings into law- leaving Biden to use executive authority to try to fix the mess he made via executive authority when he ripped the border open on Day One. ABC News followed a similar pattern: RACHEL SCOTT: Tonight, President Biden preparing to take his most aggressive action on immigration yet, with plans to issue an executive order to effectively shut down the border to asylum seekers when migrant crossings surge. Sources tell ABC News when daily encounters reach 2,500 between ports of entry, asylum seekers would be turned away. The move could have an immediate impact. Migrant crossings have averaged 3,500 a day in recent weeks. The president, keenly aware that immigration is a top issue for voters, has been weighing how he can act alone, after Donald Trump urged Republicans to block a bipartisan deal their own party negotiated. Protect the Precious at all times, in and out of season. NBC took a significantly different approach in that Telemundo anchor Julio Vaqueiro steered away from domestic political implications and covered the likely meltdown to come from the Immigration-Industrial Complex: LINDSAY TOCZYLOWSKI: This really what sounds like a draconian and potentially unlawful immigration shutdown of the border. Vaqueiro closed out his coverage by exposing a major loophole in the executive order: The unaccompanied minors exception. VAQUEIRO: Today President Biden spoke with Mexico’s president-elect. As for tomorrow's executive action, it’s expected to include some exceptions,humanitarian exceptions including one for unaccompanied children.  That exception becomes increasingly relevant when taking notice of the related news item suppressed across the dial: the Biden administration’s decision to kill 350,000 asylum cases- effectively, a mass amnesty. As reported by the indispensable Jennie Taer over at The New York Post: While the Biden administration is attempting to look like it’s getting tough on the border, behind the scenes it’s operating a program of “mass amnesty” for migrants, The Post can reveal. Data show that since 2022, more than 350,000 asylum cases filed by migrants have been closed by the US government if the applicants don’t have a criminal record or are otherwise not deemed a threat to the country. This means that while the migrants are not granted or denied asylum — their cases are “terminated without a decision on the merits of their asylum claim” — they are removed from the legal system and no longer required to check in with authorities. The move allows them to legally, indefinitely roam the US without fear of deportation, effectively letting them slip through the cracks. That’s kind of a super important point to cover when reporting on matters pertaining to immigration and the border. But, as always, the Regime Media’s focus is to Protect the Precious and to cast President Biden as the purest, truest victim of any of a wide assortment of (often self-induced) calamities.  SORR OF UNRELATED NOTE BUT NOT REALLY: It was refreshing to watch folks actually SPEAKING ENGLISH on a network newscast (as did Telemundo anchor Julio Vaqueiro for NBC and TelevisaUnivision anchor Enrique Acevedo for CBS during their respective coverages of the election of Claudia Sheinbaum as the next president of Mexico), as opposed to the weird, verby Newspeak so prevalent today.  Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective newscasts on Monday, June 3rd, 2024: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT 6/3/24 6:35 PM DAVID MUIR: Meanwhile, there is a developing headline tonight involving the U.S./Mexico border. This evening, sources now say President Biden is preparing to take tough executive action on immigration, including shutting the border when the number of asylum seekers reaches 2,500. It would trigger an immediate shutdown. It comes tonight as the new president of Mexico, their first woman president, a physicist and engineer, has already signaled she will work with the U.S. on immigration. Rachel Scott at the White House. RACHEL SCOTT: Tonight, President Biden preparing to take his most aggressive action on immigration yet, with plans to issue an executive order to effectively shut down the border to asylum seekers when migrant crossings surge. Sources tell ABC News when daily encounters reach 2,500 between ports of entry, asylum seekers would be turned away. The move could have an immediate impact. Migrant crossings have averaged 3,500 a day in recent weeks. The president, keenly aware that immigration is a top issue for voters, has been weighing how he can act alone, after Donald Trump urged Republicans to block a bipartisan deal their own party negotiated. JOE BIDEN: There's no guarantee that I have that power all by myself without legislation. And some have suggested I should just go ahead and try it. SCOTT: The U.S. has seen a record 6.4 million illegal border crossings during the Biden administration. Officials say the numbers have dipped in recent months, because Mexico is cracking down on their side of the border. And the U.S. will soon have a new partner. Mexico tonight electing its first woman and first Jewish president, Claudia Sheinbaum, the former mayor of Mexico City, a physicist with a doctorate in energy engineering who won the Nobel Peace Prize. Sheinbaum is vowing to continue the policies of outgoing president Lopez Obrador working to control the flow of migrants. And David, and back to that executive order, this could have an immediate impact for those who are seeking asylum. The number of migrant encounters at the border already far exceeds that threshold. The White House and the Biden administration fully aware this will likely be challenged in court. David. MUIR: Rachel Scott with a developing headline from The White House tonight. Rachel, thank you.   NBC NIGHTLY NEWS 6/3/24 7:06 PM LESTER HOLT: Facing high numbers of migrant crossings at the border, NBC News has learned President Biden is expected to take executive action tomorrow, right on the heels of Mexico's historic presidential election. Telemundo's Julio Vaqueiro is in Mexico City. JULIO VAQUEIRO: Facing mounting pressure over his handling of the border, NBC News has learned that the Biden administration is expected to announce a sweeping executive action that would allow the president to temporarily shut down the border if the number of illegal crossings reaches 2,500 a day, according to three people familiar to the discussions. There are currently more than 4,000 illegal border crossings every day according to Homeland Security, suggesting a shutdown could go into effect immediately. This policy is a reversal from the president's stance in January. JOE BIDEN: I've done all I can do. VAQUEIRO: With the presidential election approaching, Mr. Trump routinely slams president Biden over his handling of the border. DONALD TRUMP: They're pouring through every state, every state is now a border state. VAQUEIRO: Now President Biden is trying to institute restrictions similar to those Mr. Trump tried to enact in 2018, which courts struck down. LINDSAY TOCZYLOWSKI: This really what sounds like a draconian and potentially unlawful immigration shutdown of the border. VAQUEIRO: This announcement, on the heels of history in Mexico. CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM: ¡Viva Mexico! [ Cheers ] VAQUEIRO: Claudia Sheinbaum won yesterday's presidential election, becoming the first woman and the first Jewish president in the country's 200-year history. The climate scientist and former mayor of Mexico City will now be tasked with working with the U.S. to contain the flow of migrants at the border. ANA MARIA SALAZAR SLACK: I'm sure we're not going to have any major announcements of changes or proposals until it’s defined- find out who's the next President of the United States. VAQUEIRO: Today President Biden spoke with Mexico’s president-elect. As for tomorrow's executive action, it’s expected to include some exceptions,humanitarian exceptions including one for unaccompanied children. Lester. HOLT: Julio Vaqueiro. Thank you.

BLESS THE ‘CHILD’: Hunter Biden Gun Trial Gets Pillow-Soft Treatment

The networks must have collective whiplash. The brutality and edge of their coverage of former President Donald Trump’s Manhattan business records trial is eclipsed by the collective tenderness with which they’re handling Hunter Biden’s federal trial on gun charges in Wilmington, Delaware. We’ll get to that in a bit, but one fascinating tidbit emerged: as clean an admission of the authenticity of the Hunter Biden laptop as you’ll hear on Regime Media, over on NBC: RYAN NOBLES: Hunter's original plea bargain, which would have resulted in no prison time, was blasted by Republicans as a sweetheart deal, and it fell apart under a judge's scrutiny. Special prosecutor David Weiss then charging him for both tax and gun crimes, to which Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty. Weiss saying he'll rely on Hunter's laptop, writing the defendant's laptop is real, it will be introduced as a trial exhibit, and it contains significant evidence of the defendant's guilt.  It’s been almost four years since the laptop story broke, was suppressed, called Russian disinformation and all but buried. But the truth eventually comes out. At least it did on NBC. CBS and ABC continue to look the other way on the laptop, and this is a test of what kind of coverage we get from this trial. If Special Counsel David Weiss is intending to enter the laptop as evidence, he’ll need to elicit testimony authenticating the laptop, which per the (also media-suppressed) IRS whistleblowers happened in November of 2019. We’ll see who reports that and who doesn’t. The rest of the coverage was essentially a love letter to a father’s undying love for his troubled son. Or “child”, as the networks ridiculously characterized 54-year-old Hunter Biden- a deference never accorded to the Bush twins when they were busted for underaged drinking. Credit to Lester Holt, who refused to go along with this collective foolishness: Nothing but respect for @LesterHoltNBC's dignified refusal to refer to a 54-year-old man as a CHILD. Watch and learn, kids. pic.twitter.com/xvLPNb9YhH — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) June 4, 2024 The most obsequious report, of course, was filed by the most pro-Biden network which is ABC. Here’s how Terry Moran’s report opened: TERRY MORAN: Hunter Biden walked hand-in-hand with his wife, Melissa, into the federal courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware, this morning to stand trial on charges of violating federal gun laws. Minutes later, First Lady Jill Biden made her way into court on her 73rd birthday. The case marks the first time in American history that the child of a sitting president has gone on trial. Hunter Biden faces three felony gun charges in what prosecutors are calling "a simple case." They allege that he lied about his drug abuse on this federal form back in October 2018, when he bought a Colt Cobra .38 Special handgun. For years, the president's son has been open about his fight with drug addiction. He could’ve ended it right there and no one would have missed anything. There were no mentions of the laptop, or of his sister-in-law Hallie Biden’s testimony, which would’ve elicited mention of Hunter’s gross and abusive relationship with Hallie. Just a father’s love and Hunter’s recovery from addiction. We’ll see whether things pick up once opening statements kick off. But tonight was, with few exceptions, a saccharine mess. Click “expand” to view the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective evening newscasts on Monday, June 3rd, 2024: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT: DAVID MUIR: But we start tonight with the trial of Hunter Biden on felony gun charges. The first child of a sitting president ever to go to trial. 12 jurors and four alternates were seated today. Hunter Biden arriving at federal court in Wilmington, Delaware along with his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden. First Lady Dr. Jill Biden there to show her support. His father, the president, tonight sending his boundless love to his son. Hunter Biden is accused of lying about his drug use on a federal form when he bought a handgun in 2018. For years, Hunter Biden has been open about his drug addiction and his fight to beat it. Tonight, prosecutors now plan to use Hunter Biden's own words against him. ABC's Terry Moran leading us off at the courthouse tonight. TERRY MORAN: Hunter Biden walked hand-in-hand with his wife, Melissa, into the federal courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware, this morning to stand trial on charges of violating federal gun laws. Minutes later, First Lady Jill Biden made her way into court on her 73rd birthday. The case marks the first time in American history that the child of a sitting president has gone on trial. Hunter Biden faces three felony gun charges in what prosecutors are calling "a simple case." They allege that he lied about his drug abuse on this federal form back in October 2018, when he bought a Colt Cobra .38 Special handgun. For years, the president's son has been open about his fight with drug addiction. HUNTER BIDEN: …that I have made mistakes in my life and wasted opportunities and privileges I was afforded. For that, I am responsible. MORAN: Now prosecutors plan to use his words against him in court, including excerpts from his 2021 memoir "Beautiful Things," where he came clean about his addiction, and his text messages. This one allegedly sent just two days after buying that firearm, "I was sleeping on a car smoking crack on 4th Street and Rodney." Hunter Biden's lawyers have argued in court documents that that form is confusing, and so their client did not knowingly lie. Last year, a plea deal in this case fell apart under tough questioning by the same judge who will now preside at trial. The jury selected today, six men, six women including a man whose father died by gun violence and whose brother was sentenced to prison for drug crimes. A woman who grew up in a hunting family with guns, and whose best friend died from a drug overdose. And a man who has owned six guns in his life and told the judge, "I believe the Second Amendment is very important. Earlier today, President Biden released a statement standing by his only surviving son, saying in part -- "I have boundless love for my son." In court, Hunter Biden has been an active participant, conferring frequently with his lawyers during jury selection. And he's been an attentive son, checking in on the First Lady. At one point during a break, embracing her with visible emotion. Opening statements in this case begin tomorrow morning. David. MUIR: Terry Moran leading us off here tonight. Terry, thank you.   NORAH O’DONNELL: Hunter Biden just left the courthouse where six men and six women have been seated in an American first. The first criminal trial for a child of a NORAH O’DONNELL: Hunter Biden just left the courthouse where six men and six women have been seated in an American first: the first criminal trial for a child of a sitting president. Good evening, I am Norah O'Donnell and thank you for being with us. Those jurors were six selected after attorneys on both sides questioned them about their views on gun rights, addiction, and politics. The president’s only surviving son is charged with three felony counts related to his alleged illegal purchase and possession of a firearm in 2018. Tomorrow the prosecution and the defense will present opening statements, which could include sordid details about Hunter Biden's love life and addiction battles. The First Lady was in the courtroom with the president not far, remaining in his home in Delaware. CBS's Scott MacFarlane was inside the courtroom for today's proceedings. SCOTT MACFARLANE: A show of support on the first day of trial for President Biden's son Hunter. First Lady Jill Biden, on her 73rd birthday, sat directly behind him. And in a rare statement on the case the president said, “Jill and I love our son. And we’re so proud of the man he is today.” Hunter Biden is charged with making false statements when he bought a Colt .38 handgun six years ago, by not acknowledging on the application he was using or addicted to drugs. HUNTER BIDEN: I’ve made mistakes in my life and wasted opportunities, and privileges I was afforded. For that, I am responsible. MACFARLANE: Prosecutors expected to call as a witness Beau Biden’s widow Hallie Biden. She and Hunter were romantically linked at the time of the gun purchase. BIDEN: I had returned that fall of 2018, after my most recent relapse in California, with the hope of getting clean through a new therapy in reconciling with Hallie. Neither happened. MACFARLANE: Prosecutors will also argue that Hallie Biden found the gun in Hunter’s truck in 2018 and tossed it in a dumpster. According to court documents, Hunter texted her: "Are you insane? Tell me now. This is no game" Hallie Biden wrote back, “Check yourself into local rehab, Hunter. This has all got to stop.” Also expected to testify, his ex-wife Kathleen who is currently in a legal battle with him over unpaid alimony. TOM DUPREE: Regardless of how this comes out, even if he is acquitted, this is not going to be a pleasant experience to say the least. MACFARLANE: Prosecutors will also show jurors text messages illustrating Hunter’s drug problem, including one he wrote around the time he was waiting for a drug dealer in Wilmington. “I was sleeping in a car smoking crack on Fourth street at Rodney.” An agreement that would have spared Biden from trial and prison collapsed here last year when the judge determined the sides didn’t fully agree on the terms. DUPREE: It blew up at the last minute- it was Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown when everyone thought it was about to be sealed, done and delivered and it wasn't and we were back to square one. MACFARLANE: Opening arguments begin tomorrow morning, and the trial likely lasts one to two weeks. Hunter Biden has also pleaded not guilty in a different case, a tax case in California brought by the same prosecutor. Norah, that goes to trial in September, just as the presidential race hits high gear.  O’DONNELL: Scott MacFarlane. Thank you.   LESTER HOLT: Days after the first criminal conviction of a former president, another first is unfolding tonight in Delaware where Hunter Biden has become the first offspring of a sitting president to face criminal charges. The trial began today for the president's son, who stands accused of three federal counts related to gun possession. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty. Today was jury selection, with lawyers questioning dozens of prospective jurors before seating a panel late today. And in the courtroom for most of the day, First Lady Jill Biden. In a statement, the president avoiding direct comment on the case but affirming the first couple's support for their son, saying "we are so proud of the man he is today." Ryan nobles is covering the trial. RYAN NOBLES: Tonight, for the first time in American history, the child of a sitting president is facing a criminal trial, and now the 12-member jury is set. Six men and six women, including six jurors who own guns themselves or have family members that purchased them recently. Hunter Biden, accused of lying on a federal form in 2018 to purchase a gun, checking a box saying he was not an active drug user, despite acknowledging in his book he was addicted to crack-cocaine at the time. First Lady Jill Biden, making a surprise appearance, sitting just a few feet behind her son in court. And the president offering his support saying, "As the president, I don't and won't comment on pending federal cases, but as a dad I have boundless love for my son." President Biden spending Memorial Day Weekend with Hunter, and recently inviting him to state dinners and defending him publicly. JOE BIDEN: First of all, my son's done nothing wrong. I trust him. I have faith in him. NOBLES: But his son's legal battles likely to take a political toll on the president in the midst of a re-election campaign. Hunter's original plea bargain, which would have resulted in no prison time, was blasted by Republicans as a sweetheart deal, and it fell apart under a judge's scrutiny. Special prosecutor David Weiss then charging him for both tax and gun crimes, to which Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty. Weiss saying he'll rely on Hunter's laptop, writing the defendant's laptop is real, it will be introduced as a trial exhibit, and it contains significant evidence of the defendant's guilt. Prosecutors also expected to call Hallie Biden, who Hunter was dating when the handgun was discovered. She's the widow of his brother Beau. HOLT: And Ryan, we understand this trial is not expected to last long. NOBLES: That's right, Lester. We expect this trial to last about a week or maybe a little bit longer with opening statements set to begin tomorrow morning. We don't know yet if Hunter Biden will testify in this case but, if convicted, he is facing jail time. Lester. HOLT: All right. Ryan Nobles, thank you.  

Are You Ready For Yet Another Partisan Stephanopoulos Editorial?

Once again, disgraced former Clinton operative George Stephanopoulos opens the ABC News This Week broadcast with a highly partisan editorial, equal parts screechy and sanctimonious. Watch the editorial in its entirety, as aired on ABC This Week on Sunday, June 2nd, 2024:  GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Good morning and welcome to This Week. In 1774 John Adams said, “representative government and trial by jury are the heart and lungs of liberty.” 250 years later, the heart and lungs of liberty are facing what may be the ultimate stress test. 12 anonymous jurors rendered their verdict on Thursday, finding Donald Trump guilty on all counts. It's the third time in the last two years that jurors have rendered verdicts against Trump. Jurors have yet to consider charges against Trump for even more serious crimes: blocking the peaceful transfer of power, concealing classified documents, encouraging the filing of false electors. But for now, the New York jurors have already presented their fellow citizens with a choice: do we want to be represented- to be led for the first time in history by a convicted felon? That answer will come in November.  Of course, this is not the first time that Stephanopoulos devolves into such histrionics- having recently delivered a monologue wherein he went on about what’s at stake in the election: STEPHANOPOULOS: Until now, no American president had ever faced a criminal trial. No American president had ever faced a federal indictment for retaining and concealing classified documents. No American president had ever faced a federal indictment or a state indictment for trying to overturn an election, or been named an unindicted co-conspirator in two other states for the same crime. No American president ever faced hundreds of millions of dollars in judgments for business fraud, defamation and sexual abuse. Until now, no American presidential race had been more defined on what's happening in courtrooms than what is happening on the campaign trail. Until now.  Today’s performance is replete with a citation of a Founding Father, and furthers the Regime Media’s broader mission now that there is a guilty verdict against Trump: to fortify both the trial and the verdict in the court of public opinion by hailing them as a triumph of the American judicial system, and to denounce attacks on these as attacks on our institutions, nay, on DEMOCRACY itself. Never mind that the aforementioned conviction is the end result of the weaponization of government against the chief political rival of the sitting President of the United States, and never mind the fact that the charges themselves were puffed up and frankensteined out of state and federal elements into felonies.  The Regime Media now have their narrative, bolstered by historians. And Stephanopoulos, having earlier sermonized about “the stakes”, now uses the criminal justice system as a backdrop for his sermon on “the choice”. If it weren't for Regime Media, we’d have none at all.  

Regime Histerian Douglas Brinkley: Trump Conviction Means America Is Reborn

The Regime Media’s selling of the sanctity of the verdict to convict former President Donald Trump in the New York business records trial requires the intervention of, what else…regime historians.  Watch as CBS Sunday Morning trots out none other than Douglas Brinkley for that all-important historical spin on the Trump verdict, which is laid quite thick here: JANE PAULEY: Commentary this morning from historian Douglas Brinkley who has thoughts on the Trump verdict. DOUGLAS BRINKLEY: Two years shy of this country's 250th birthday, 12 New York jurors have convicted former President Donald Trump on 34 counts for falsifying business records in an attempt to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election. When the guilty verdicts were read this past week, America in a tangible way rechristened itself as a republic. It was a sobering reminder that every American is precisely equal before the law. I have always admired Thomas Jefferson for wanting no title before his name except mister. Like the other Founders, he didn't want or expect special treatment under the law. DONALD TRUMP: This is long from over… BRINKLEY: Former President Trump's conviction proves that in the eyes of the law even an ex-president is just another Mister. It's also worth noting that this kind of jury trial never could have happened in the authoritarian countries that Mr. Trump so admires. Xi of China, Russia's Putin, Hungary's Orban, Erdogan of Turkey. None would ever be tried by a jury of their peers. Unlike those countries, the United States vigorously upholds the rule of law. Our Founders ardently believed liberty and justice for all would bring monarchs, despots and populist demagogues to heel. The good news is our judicial system ran a cogent and fair trial in New York. The Manhattan Criminal Court has changed American presidential history forever. Out of 46 presidents, only Mr. Trump carries the ignoble albatross of "convicted felon." It's a sad phrase, but it also gives reason to rejoice that Jefferson's republic is new all over again. You may ask yourselves why there is such a rush to get historians out there to weigh in on the verdict. Primarily, they are there to bolster calls to defend the sanctity of the judicial process, now that its crass perversion therein has yielded its intended result.  It was Michael Beschloss who appeared on NBC Nightly News, and said: MICHAEL BESCHLOSS: Well, for more than two centuries, we've had a lot of very controversial legal verdicts. Before the Civil War, at the time of the Cold War, you and I could list them for the next three hours. But the point is that here we are, still standing. We're still a republic. The DNA of America is to respect the rule of law, even if we disagree with it. There can be peaceful protests. A defendant- a guilty party can appeal, but in the end we always respect the rule of law that’s the essence of our country. Lest anyone was unsure of what that meant, Beschloss then went on MSNBC and vomited all over himself with conspiratorial nonsense of murder, anarchy, dictatorship, and the like.  Enter Douglas Brinkley, who in the past has panned Henry Kissinger for being “anti-democratic”, blamed Trump’s “authoritarian bent” on President Gerald Ford, touted climate extremist Gavin Newsom as “a hero”, hailed Nancy Pelosi as “the most important” Speaker “in American history”, and compared President Joe Biden to such historical presidents as Abraham Lincoln and FDR. Based on that resumé of nuttery, you knew that Brinkley was coming off the top rope for this verdict. And that he did, reframing this perverted trial and subsequent verdict as an American rebirth. By insisting that this verdict is a vindication of our institutions, as opposed to their further corruption, Brinkley takes the side of totalitarian weaponization of government over liberty.  Brinkley’s words herald this verdict as a rebirth of America. Reasonable observers are left to ask themselves…reborn as what?   

ABC’s Stephanopoulos Tries To Grill Trump’s Lawyer, Gets SHUT DOWN

ABC This Week host George Stephanopoulos, ever the Clinton operative, attempted to engage Trump defense attorney Will Scharf with an array of Democrat talking points. At no point during this interview did it go well for him. Watch Scharf shoot Stephanopoulos down on the issue of judicial recusal, as he goes for  cheap Thomas/Alito whataboutism on judicial recusal: WILL SCHARF: This is a prosecution that should have never been brought. This was a case tried in front of a judge who clearly should have recused. I think we have a lot of fair complaints with the way that this trial was conducted, and I think ultimately President Trump will be vindicated on appeal. GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: The ethics panel for the state of New York said the judge was not required to recuse. SCHARF: Well, I think when you look at binding Supreme Court precedent, including most notably the seminal case on judicial recusal, Caperton v. Massey, even the appearance of impropriety can require a judge to recuse for reasons of due process. Here, I think we have far more than an appearance of impropriety. The fact that Judge Merchán contributed to Joe Biden during the 2020 election, many of the other issues that we've raised in our recusal papers throughout this case. I think Judge Merchán should have clearly recused and I think that's going to be an issue that the appellate courts are gonna have to deal with. STEPHANOPOULOS: If appearance of impropriety is the standard for recusal, then why shouldn't Justice Thomas and Justice Alito have to recuse from the cases before the Supreme Court? SCHARF: I think the appearance of impropriety there is not nearly as severe. I think you're not talking about financial conflicts of interest. You're certainly not talking about a judge who's violated judicial code of conduct in terms of political contributions. I think that's frankly stunning. Speaking as a former attorney, former law clerk, I've never heard of a judge contributing to political candidates before. I've certainly never heard of a judge sitting in judgment over the opponent of the political candidate he contributed to.  Stephanopoulos’ attempt at a cheap tu quoque on the recusal point proves that the trial has always been about politics rather than about the law. The same can be said for media coverage, especially on the most aggressively pro-Biden broadcast network news division, and especially on the Sunday show hosted by the Clinton White House’s most notorious attack dog. “Hurr Durr What About Thomas and Alito” is nonresponsive and even dismissive to the merits of Scharf’s arguments on Merchán’s non-recusal as one of several factual bases for an appeal of the guilty verdict against former President Donald Trump.  The entire interview transpired in this manner. On the issue of the weaponization of the justice system against opponents of the party in power, Stephanopoulos tried to whatabout Scharf with the old 2016 “lock her up” chants against Hillary Clinton, and got promptly schooled: ABC’s @GStephanopoulos: “You talked abt the weaponization of the legal system. Of course, it was former President Trump, who throughout the 2016 campaign led chants of ‘Lock her up’ about Hillary Clinton.” Schooled by Trump lawyer @WillScharf: He “didn’t weaponize DOJ.” #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/2MpoqzWqru — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) June 2, 2024 After getting schooled on weaponization of government, Stephanopoulos trotted the jurisdictional talking point- that there was zero coordination between the Biden DoJ and New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office. Scharf obliterated by pointing out the glaring link between Biden’s DoJ and the prosecution of Donald Trump: former DoJ #3 Matthew Colangelo. Rude and condescending. @GStephanopoulos to Trump lawyer @WillScharf: “Sir, I’m not going to let you continue to say that, there’s just zero evidence of that...This has nothing to do with Biden. Do you want to answer the question about the sentencing process or not?” #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/6qNikWFVyc — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) June 2, 2024 What we can learn from this interview, aside from Stephanopoulos’ usual condescension, is that the Regime Media will firmly fall in line in defending this verdict, damage to our institutions be damned.  

FLASHBACK: Jorge Ramos Said Trump Indictment Was a ‘Beautiful Act’

It is instructive to remember the words of Jorge Ramos, Univision’s senior anchor and Special Editorial Adviser to the CEO, about the original indictment of former President Donald Trump’s in New York’s business records case, given that there is now a conviction on the books. As a matter of record, it is also important to remember that Ramos’ derangement led him to conduct a performative confrontation with Trump over immigration, which he later admitted was “produced, and not organic (click “expand” for transcript):     PETER MANSBRIDGE, CBC: Why did you make the decision that you had to go to Iowa to confront Donald Trump? JORGE RAMOS, UNIVISION: As you know, television… television doesn't happen. Television is produced. It is created. And, so we brought three cameras, we brought microphones, and our purpose was to talk to Donald Trump. And confront Donald Trump. That was the purpose. As a journalist. MANSBRIDGE: A confrontation. RAMOS: I wanted to ask him a question- many questions, but (...) yes, it was going to be a confrontation. ...  MANSBRIDGE: You keep calling it questions, your “questions”, where in fact you didn’t ask a question. They’re statements, not questions. … MANSBRIDGE: You can not deport 11 million people … RAMOS: You can not deport 11 million… you can not deport 11 million people. … MANSBRIDGE: You can not deport 11 million… you can not deport 11 million people … RAMOS: You can not build a 1900-mile wall. … MANSBRIDGE: You can not deny citizenship to children in this country. … RAMOS: You can not deny citizenship to children in this country. … RAMOS: I confronted him on the fact that he wants to deport 11 million people, and build a wall, and deny citizenship. … RAMOS: We thought that in Dubuque, Iowa, there would be just a few journalists following the candidate. And we were right. So we showed up like two hours before, we brought three cameras, and then we made a plan. I was going to be wearing a microphone so my voice would be at the exact same level as his when we start editing … DONALD TRUMP: No, you haven’t you haven’t been called. RAMOS: I have… I have the right to ask a question. And this is...no. And this is the question. You can not deport 11 million… you can not deport 11 million people. You can not build a 1900-mile wall. You can not deny citizenship to children in this country. … RAMOS: Then we had the three cameras well-positioned, the lighting was right, and then I made a plan. (...) We planned everything. … RAMOS: TV, television doesn't happen. You create it. You produce it. It doesn't happen just like that. And that’s exactly what we did. (...) We NEEDED TO CONFRONT HIM. … CHRIS CUOMO, CNN: You wanted to get into a fight with him and you got your fight. … RAMOS: We will be judged, as journalists, by how we responded to Donald Trump. As we noted at the time, Ramos’ op-ed , titled “The beautiful act of indicting former presidents”, opened with an attempt to link Trump with all manner of Latin American strongmen and corrupt politicians: I come from a country – Mexico – where presidents and former presidents have been untouchable. We have had presidents who were murderers, corrupt, election fraudsters and cheaters, thieves and magicians who suddenly made their relatives very wealthy. And all left office as free men, without facing justice. All of them. That's why I believe the indictment of former US President Donald Trump is so instructive. …. In Mexico, for example, they have a lot to answer for. All the presidents until 2000 were virtually appointed and elected with fraud. The ruler who ordered the murder of dozens and perhaps hundreds of students at the Tlatelolco plaza in 1968 was never put on trial. Nor the one who allowed the halconazo massacre in 1971. One built himself a tacky mansion in what Mexicans came to call Dog Hill, and another acquired a luxurious white home from a contractor in his government. It's never been clear how some former presidents live well above the sum of their modest government salaries and pensions. It's hard to understand why some secret budgets have never been made public. Latin America is also loaded with corrupt and super-wealthy former presidents. Some efforts, not so convincing, have been made to bring the worst abusers to justice in Argentina, Brazil, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Colombia and other places. But only in Peru has this practice become a kind of national sport: President is elected, president is jailed. Or almost so. Eight Peruvian presidents have been arrested or faced criminal charges since the end of the Alberto Fujimori presidency in 2000. This is the flimsy predicate upon which Ramos builds up to his argument- that Trump should be indicted, tried, and perhaps even die in prison in order to “maintain a healthy democracy”: Putting presidents, former presidents and coup plotters on trial is an honorable and necessary practice to maintain a healthy democracy. It is sad that tyrants like Fidel Castro and Augusto Pinochet did not die in prison. Both were responsible for murders, tortures and multiple violations of human rights. Justice never got to Cuba or Chile. But it's never too late to start. There are some former Latin American presidents who should not be free. I understand that many presidents, when they win power, prefer to look forward and avoid long and wasteful fights with powerful figures from the past. But there are times, like in case of Trump and so many others on the continent, when we cannot bury our heads, or morals, in the sand. The lovely act of putting former presidents on trial is much more about the defense of democracy than a desire for vengeance. It is to bring back down to earth those who abused their immense power. And it is a marvelous lesson for those yet to rule: Do wrong, and we'll clip your wings. The implied sentiment is crystal clear here. Ramos thinks Trump should die in prison but doesn’t outright say so. Instead, Ramos hides those sentiments within word salads disguised as history lessons.  But that last line gave the game away. Ramos cares less about actual democracy than about clipping Trump’s “wings”. If it means doing so via a fatally flawed indictment and trial process, then so be it. Ramos is fine with emulating some of these aforementioned Latin American tyrants if it means Trump is out of the picture. And therein is the fatal, hypocritical flaw in his arguments. At the time, we observed Ramos’ omission of Nicaraguan leftist strongman Daniel Ortega within his rogues’ gallery. Interestingly enough, Ortega eliminated most of his opposition, including his chief political opponent, via trumped-up charges of financial crimes. Does that sound familiar to anyone?  There is no doubt that Ramos will publish a follow-up column on the verdict. Disturbingly, he continues to wield significant influence over Univision’s editorial content- to the detriment of Univision’s audience.

NBC Rolls Out Presidential Histerian For ‘Context’ On Trump Verdict

Tonight’s NBC Nightly News saw an appearance from resident presidential historian, or histerian to put it more accurately, Michael Beschloss for “context” on the guilty verdict against former President Donald Trump in the New York business records trial. Watch the full interview as aired on NBC Nightly News on Thursday, May 30th, 2024 (click "expand" to view full transcript): LESTER HOLT: We're back now. And as we noted, this is the first time a former president has been convicted of a crime. NBC News presidential historian Michael Beschloss joins us now. Michael, how do you begin to put this moment into context? MICHAEL BESCHLOSS: Well, this is almost surreal, Lester. We'll all remember where we were when we got this news today, and that's because as you've been saying, first time anyone who has been president has been convicted of criminal conduct, and also someone who six weeks from this day just about, Donald Trump is likely to be nominated by the Republicans as their presidential candidate. It's going to be divisive. A lot of people will be angry. But 50 years ago this summer, the Supreme Court told president Richard Nixon he had to give up his secret tapes. They showed that he was probably guilty of a number of criminal offenses. Gerald Ford pardoned him, but Gerald Ford, the new president, respected the rule of law. He didn't say the system was rigged. What Gerald Ford said in his inaugural address was this is the system that shows that this is a government of laws and not of human beings. The people rule. HOLT: This obviously, Michael, is not in isolation. This is occurring during a historically difficult time in terms of division in this country. Is there a historical analogy about how the country might move forward from this moment? BESCHLOSS: Well, for more than two centuries, we've had a lot of very controversial legal verdicts. Before the Civil War, at the time of the Cold War, you and I could list them for the next three hours. But the point is that here we are, still standing. We're still a republic. The DNA of America is to respect the rule of law, even if we disagree with it. There can be peaceful protests. A defendant- a guilty party can appeal, but in the end we always respect the rule of law that’s the essence of our country. HOLT: All right. We appreciate your perspective as always, Michael. Thank you.  Thus, NBC Nightly News provides us with an answer to a question no one asked, to wit: what historical perspective can we expect from an anti-Trump hysteric who has howlingly referred to Trump as a “monster” and a dictator, while incessantly comparing President Joe Biden to Abraham Lincoln? Not much, really. Beschloss delivered a less hysterical take than what his MSNBC viewers are used to, with many platitudes on the rule of law and acceptance of the rule of law. Essentially, he called on Trump to take the L in the name of “democracy”. Even so, he couldn’t resist the cheap shot- comparing the business documents trial with the events leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon.  Exit question: In Beschloss’s view, does America turn into a dictatorship if the guilty verdict is overturned on appeal due to reversible error or on constitutional grounds?

LOCK HIM UP: MSNBC Panel Argues For Trump Imprisonment

It is not enough, at Trump-deranged MSNBC, that former President Donald Trump has been found guilty in the New York business records trial. MSNBC is now arguing for imprisonment for Trump. “Lock Him Up”, if you will. Watch as the panel discusses sentencing in the wake of District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s press conference (click "expand"): JOY REID: And I have another question that goes to both of you because I just quickly googled, in 2018, when the Southern District of New York, when the Southern District indicted Michael Cohen, for the same conduct plus some tax violations, it was the same case, which is why this case made sense as an easily convictable case, because there had been a nonprosecution agreement for David Pecker's organization, AMI, on the same facts, and Michael Cohen was convicted on the same facts for the same conduct. He got three years in prison. He was also a nonviolent first offender. He had committed no previous crimes. He wasn’t like a bank robber before that, he had not been a felon before. He was a first offender, and Donald Trump's Justice Department, and I have to say that again, Donald Trump's Justice Department prosecuted Michael Cohen and gave him a three-year sentence plus a $50,000 fine. For the same conduct. Now, does the -- I know it's a state case, I know it's separate, but it is the same conduct. ANDREW WEISSMANN: So- two points. REID: Is it taken into account that a person who was a co-conspirator got three years? WEISSMANN: So I'm going to add even another fact to make your point. One of the reasons he got three years and not a higher sentence is that Michael Cohen cooperated with the Mueller investigation. REID: Yes. He pleaded guilty. WEISSMANN: He pled- he pled guilty, he didn't go to trial. That's a benefit in terms of  sentencing. You get a lower sentence just for doing that. But he also cooperated. I know that he- the Southern District says he didn't cooperate with that case, but the Mueller case, he got a cooperation agreement and he was given that letter. So the one quibble would be that some of what -- some of what sort of was the result of that sentence was other conduct. So that that was something that the judge could consider. But there is no question that one of the arguments is, you should come to court and make it, is one of the arguments that the D.A. will make is comparability. The underling is gone to jail. This is something we have seen in the January 6th cases. It's why I always thought Judge Chutkan, if she has- eventually has the opportunity, would send Donald Trump if he were convicted there to jail, because it's so anathema to the criminal justice system that an underling would go to jail but the boss would not. ARI MELBER: So that was the big question that D.A. Bragg faced, and that’s how he answered it. As the panel discusses Bragg’s press conference, wherein he did not directly answer the question of whether he would seek an incarcerative sentence for Trump, pleads for there to be a jail sentence. Former top Mueller prosecutor Andrew Weissmann, fresh off of declaring his prosecutorial man-love for Judge Juan Merchán, is now demanding that Trump be incarcerated. At this point, the masks are off. Regime Media, having enabled this cooked-up trial, now wants to see it through to the end. And there is only one acceptable outcome- the imprisonment of Donald Trump. Election interference, indeed.  

MSNBC's Joy Reid Calls Scott, Donalds Sellouts, Cheers Partisan NYC Prosecution of Donald Trump

MSNBC’s post-guilty verdict coverage of the Trump business records trial in New York is proceeding exactly as one might expect it would: with an exuberance that often peeks out from under a veneer of seriousness and gravity. At least for most of their hosts. Joy Reid, on the other hand, chose tonight to go full Joy Reid. Over the course of a single rant, Reid suggests that two Black Members of Congress sold out for being critical of the verdict, and admitted- nay, CELEBRATED New York’s partisan prosecution of Former President Trump (click “expand” to view transcript):  JEN PSAKI: I mean, the other factor here is what allows him to create the ecosystem and it is the enablers in the ecosystem, right? ALEX WAGNER: Yeah. PSAKI: And we'll see and be monitoring and be sharing with people what people are saying. But just- we pulled earlier today, even before this, what some people have been saying in the last couple of days. I mean, Tim Scott, who obviously wants to be the vice president, he posted a full-minute video saying that Alvin Bragg is the only one who is guilty. He called the trial a sham and witch hunt. The only verdict that matters is the one at the ballot box. Okay. But, you know- Rubio compared the trial to Cuban show trials. Um, Noem- Kristi Noem called it a rigged trial. Ted Cruz says this is a kangaroo court. Byron Donalds- this is election interference. These enablers are what enable Trump to create his ecosystem, and they're incentivized to do that because either they want to be the vice president, they want to be in his good order, and because he is the leader of the Republican Party. This is the Republican Party. JOY REID: I just have- I'm sorry, you said- you triggered me thoroughly. PSAKI: Oh, I didn't mean to trigger. I'm just reading quotes. REID: Because Byron Donalds, who is from East Flatbush, Brooklyn, as myself, and Tim Scott, who is from the great state of South Carolina, and Marco Rubio, who is Latino, they know damn well who normally ends up at the bottom of this criminal justice system -- PSAKI: Who are the actual victims of a two-tiered system of justice, which he has co-opted that term. REID: They know exactly that what they're saying is not just factually incorrect, that in the state where Byron Donalds is a congressman, his governor, Ron DeSantis, has dogwalked black voters for voting. And had made a show of it to make sure they're on television. To humiliate them out of voting, to frighten them out of voting. His state is the one that passed overwhelmingly a constitutional amendment to restore the voting rights of people because they had that post-enslavement Jim Crow law automatically taking the rights of felons to vote from them, which is a Jim Crow relic. That state had it, repealed it, and Governor DeSantis and his Republicans interfered with it to make it harder for people who had served their time to vote. They understand fully because they have lived in the bodies of black men. Those two black men, and they’re willing to sell themselves cheap. Cheap. Not even Clarence Thomas will do that, at least he requires it to be expensive. For them, it can be absolutely dirt cheap. Free. That's the cheapest it could be, to sell your soul. And the lives and memory of all of the black men and women and brown men and women who have suffered in a criminal justice system where they can't delay it, where the Supreme Court won't help them, where they won't have Samuel Alito flying upside down flags for them, where they won't have any of the benefits that Donald Trump has used to kill every case but this one, including humiliating Fani Willis in Georgia, to try to shame her out of prosecuting him. The good thing, the one good thing that happened here is that this case was brought in a state that no Republican controls. Because if it did, the same thing that happened in Georgia would have happened here. Thank God for the state of New York, Donald Trump's home state. Because there was no way for him to interfere with the process of justice. And in this rare instance, as somebody who is quite critical many times of the criminal justice system, the system actually worked the way it is supposed to work. And I agree with you. The one thing that would ruin this very rare moment when we can all say the criminal justice system can actually see past your power and see past your race and your wealth, the only thing that would ruin it is if anyone finds out who these jurors are. Because God help them if that happens. Because then Donald Trump would do what he does. PSAKI: Because- their safety. REID: Absolutely. Their safety. ARI MELBER: Right. You’re talking about whether you have that violence and vigilantism.  Peak Joy Reid. Really. I’ve often said that the left feels entitled to minorities and their opinions. And it is often the self-appointed gatekeepers who lash out the hardest at those who stray from the party line. So here Reid lashes out at Scott and Donalds for daring to speak out against this prosecution, and smearing them as sellouts along with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Reid’s disgusting race essentialism plays on MSNBC screens in season and out of season. Then you have Reid shouting out the part of the trial that everyone had previously kept quiet- celebrating the fact that no Republicans hold meaningful power in New York. Essentially, an admission that the prosecution of Donald Trump on cobbled-together business records charges was a partisan affair. And, therefore, election interference. Today will go down in history, all right, just not for the reasons imagined at MSNBC.  

PEAK MSNBC: Andrew Weissman Squees Over Judge Merchán, Declares 'Man Crush'

Readers of this byline may find my general characterization of the Regime Media’s coverage of the Trump business records trial in New York City, “onanistic”, to be too harsh. After watching MSNBC’s coverage of the trial today, I may need to reconsider- but in the other direction. Watch as Andrew Weissman, former Mueller prosecutor and MSNBC legal analyst, openly and unabashedly declares his undying prosecutorial man-love for Judge Juan Merchán, as aired during ongoing Trump trial coverage on Wednesday, May 29th, 2024: ANDREA MITCHELL: And describe the rapport between the judge and the jurors in this case, in many cases. ANDREW WEISSMANN: Yeah, I mean- almost all jurors, unless you’ve got a really erratic judge, develop a real bond with the judge. There, you know- the judge, he or she is looking out for the jurors. They’re paying careful attention to their time, it’s making things move along. Um- and with, as you noted with respect to judge Merchán, I mean, I am like now -- you know, I have, like, a man crush on him. He is such a great judge that it's hard to see that the jurors wouldn't have the same impression. And he’s just- you just keep on thinking, if you looked in a dictionary for, like, judicial temperament, that's what you would get. And just remember, he has had to put up with a defendant who committed ten acts of contempt, who’s threatened not just him but his family. And in spite of all of that, you would not know for a second that that is in any way weighing on him, because it has just been such an impeccably fair trial. MITCHELL: Which is, you know, just a fascinating context here, especially given all the ruckus in social media and in- outside the courtroom. One half-expected Weissmann to fawn forever here, going on and on about Merchán’s judgely intonations and the stately flow of his robe in an attempt to emulate a David Brooksian Niebuhr-and-pants-creases type of smart fangirling. But Weissmann’s fangirling comes off as crass; as the admiration for a process of weaponization of government against the sitting president’s chief political opponent by one who specializes in the application of such weaponization. It is vulgar and unseemly, even by MSNBC’s standards.  Watching Weissman fangirl to Merchán evokes imagery of some Saudi cleric doing TV analysis of the state head-chopper, expressing awe at the manner in which the head-chopper wields his sword and oohing over his head-chopping technique. It is all grotesque, and just one in a long parade of grotesqueries that we watch (and cover) so you don’t have to. You may be tempted to feel some sort of sympathy for us for watching this nonsense but remember that, as Hyman Roth said to Don Michael Corleone: this is the business we’ve chosen.

NBC Tries To Cheap-Shot Florida And Gov. DeSantis, Fails Miserably

NBC Nightly News, apparently having nothing else with which to fill nearly 3 minutes, decided to fart out a report that serves little purpose except to bash an old rival, Gov. Ron DeSantis, and cast the State of Florida in a negative light. Here’s how Lester Holt introduced the report filed by, quite appropriately, Shannon Pettypiece:  LESTER HOLT: As millions of Americans picked up and moved during the pandemic, few states saw a bigger boom than Florida. But for some transplants, the Sunshine State has lost its luster. Shannon Pettypiece explains. DENNIS COLE: I mean, I agree, this is beautiful. You know, you can't ask for a nicer setting. SHANNON PETTYPIECE: Months into the pandemic, Dennis Cole sold his Connecticut home and like hundreds of thousands of Americans, headed to Florida. Many, drawn by the state's lower taxes and sunny skies. COLE: It’s not the panacea I had in my head. PETTYPIECE: But now, he's preparing to put his Florida house on the market and move back north. COLE: We have political issues in Florida that are just ugly. We have costs skyrocketing. The report went downhill from there. In an effort to build a case that somehow things are terrible in Florida, Pettypiece flings a bunch of statistics that end up undermining her argument. For example: PETTYPIECE: Florida has been among the fastest growing states in the nation since the start of the pandemic. In 2022 alone, more than 700,000 people moved there. But at the same time, nearly 500,000 left, the largest number since the Great Recession.  That number sounds awful at first blush, but Florida was the top state for net in-migration in 2022, and the mirror opposite of California- where you had just as many more people fleeing rampant crime and excrement-caked streets than moved into the once-Golden State. Pettypiece then moves to cite home prices, homeowners and auto insurance. No kidding. 200,000 net in-migration will do that to home prices, and subsequently, homeowners insurance. By the way, auto insurance prices went up nationwide, not just in Florida.  Which leads us to the real thrust of the report- the idea that people are somehow fleeing the state due to politics. And that this is somehow a bad thing. People who move down here know what they are getting into beforehand. Even so, if you are that indignant over kids not being subjected to grooming in public schools, and that  upset over Disney getting owned, then you should probably sell your home, take your profits and go back to wherever you came from. This report really served no purpose except to try to score some points in garbage time. Pardon the pun, but this really was a petty piece. And on National Alligator Day, no less. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on NBC Nightly News on Wednesday, May 29th, 2024: LESTER HOLT: As millions of Americans picked up and moved during the pandemic, few states saw a bigger boom than Florida. But for some transplants, the Sunshine State has lost its luster. Shannon Pettypiece explains. DENNIS COLE: I mean, I agree, this is beautiful. You know, you can't ask for a nicer setting. SHANNON PETTYPIECE: Months into the pandemic, Dennis Cole sold his Connecticut home and like hundreds of thousands of Americans, headed to Florida. Many, drawn by the state's lower taxes and sunny skies. COLE: It’s not the panacea I had in my head. PETTYPIECE: But now, he's preparing to put his Florida house on the market and move back north. COLE: We have political issues in Florida that are just ugly. We have costs skyrocketing. PETTYPIECE: Florida has been among the fastest growing states in the nation since the start of the pandemic. In 2022 alone, more than 700,000 people moved there. But at the same time, nearly 500,000 left, the largest number since the Great Recession. We spoke with dozens of former Florida residents who have recently left the state. Among the reasons they gave, a soaring cost of living. Florida has had one of the nation's highest rates of inflation. Last year, car insurance was up 24% and homeowner's insurance jumped 42%. Home prices have risen 60% since 2020. JOHN DESAUTELS: They love the blue skies and the dolphins and the water but this comes at a price. PETTYPIECE: John Desautels has spent two decades selling Florida real estate. Are you getting a lot of calls from people who moved down here during Covid who are now looking to leave? DESAUTELS: Yeah, we are. PETTYPIECE: And what's the number one reason they're giving? DESAUTELS: Politics, politics. PETTYPIECE: Florida has recently enacted some of the most conservative legislation in the country. Including the near total ban on abortions, and restrictions on how race and sexuality are taught in schools. DESAUTELS: My in-migration people want to move here due to politics. My out-migration people want to move out of here due to politics. PETTYPIECE: A spokesperson for Florida Governor Ron Desantis said that under his leadership, “Florida led the country in domestic in-migration in 2022 and saw the highest population growth rate in generations.” RON DESANTIS: Look, this has always been a transient state. People come and go. That's normal. I think our policies have attracted folks. PETTYPIECE: For Cole, who considered himself a moderate conservative when he moved to Florida, the state's political shift to the right has contributed to his decision to leave. COLE: Whether it was fighting with Disney, whether the whole LGBQ thing, it's just that there are so many things that make it uncomfortable for a lot of people to be here. PETTYPIECE: Leaving him and others looking for a brighter future outside The Sunshine State. Shannon Pettypiece, NBC News, St. Pete Beach, Florida.  

The Collapse of ‘Port Biden’ Draws Reluctant Network Coverage, If Any

Across the dial, the Regime Media’s network evening newscasts showed mixed interest in covering an embarrassing blow to the Biden administration’s efforts in Gaza: the partial collapse of the temporary pier built at President Biden’s behest, in order to expedite the delivery of relief supplies to the civilian population- known derisively as “Port Biden”. The most through reporting comes via NBC’s Raf Sanchez, who filed this dispatch within his Rafah recap: RAF SANCHEZ: Meanwhile, NBC News has learned the U.S. military has been forced to halt aid deliveries into Gaza by sea, after three officials said bad weather damaged its temporary pier. This video showing part of the causeway floating away from the beach. It’s the latest setback for the American aid effort, after military boats washed up on the coasts of Israel and Gaza over the weekend, while a U.S. service member remains in critical condition after an accident on the pier last week.   Over at NBC News Now, Sanchez had enough time to elaborate further, and offered a brutal recap: ELLISON BARBER: Raf Sanchez joins us now from Tel Aviv. Raf, do we have any sense, at this point, in terms of how long it will take the U.S. and everybody else involved to fix that pier, or could this be out of action for weeks on end? SANCHEZ: So, Ellison, The Pentagon is saying tonight it’s going to take at least a week to fix that pier and that is a major blow to the humanitarian effort in Gaza, the effort to fend off famine, especially at a time when the Rafah Crossing, that main lifeline for food and aid from Egypt, remains closed. And you could argue this is also a blow to President Biden. He announced this pier in his State of the Union address. Humanitarian groups said at the time it was not very practical. It took two months to set up. It was operational for just two weeks and now it has suffered this pretty catastrophic damage. Ellison. BARBER: Raf Sanchez, thank you. The partial collapse of Port Biden, broken by rough surf, could have been its own story on NBC Nightly News, as we see from Sanchez’ additional reporting on NBC News Now. But we won’t quibble. This is more coverage than the story drew anywhere else. Over at the CBS Evening News, the collapse drew an afterthought from correspondent Imtiaz Tyab, and barely made it into the Rafah recap package:  IMTIAZ TYAB: The mass displacement of civilians has triggered a humanitarian crisis the U.N. says it's struggling to contain as U.S. Officials say the $320 million humanitarian pier will be out of commission for at least a week after part of the causeway broke away in rough seas. CBS’s half-sentence on the collapse, although paltry in comparison to NBC’s coverage, is a half-sentence more was shown on ABC World News Tonight, which continues to make its case as the most aggressively pro-Biden network of the broadcast network newscasts. Therefore, the story did not get any air. One imagines the outraged wall-to-wall coverage had this pier collapse happened during the Bush 43 or Trump administrations. If it weren’t for Regime Media, we’d have none at all.  

IT’S (D)IFFERENT: Nets Continue To Skip Menendez Corruption Trial

As the trial of former President Donald Trump winds down, most of the networks appear to be willfully neglecting that other high-profile trial in New York: the second trial of New Jersey Senator Bob Menéndez (D-NJ) on corruption charges. Only Univision seems to take an interest in the Menéndez trial. Here’s their brief summary of the proceedings from within the full report:     CLAUDIA UCEDA: The third week of the trial of Senator Bob Menéndez has begun. Today the prosecution called two witnesses: the assistant of the two businessmen charged with bribing Menéndez, and an FBI agent who read the senator's text messages. It was Nadine Menéndez who made the first pass and asked the Democrat out on a lunch date, which came to fruition in a month. Then, she connected several people with the legislator in order to use his power and help Egypt, which could link the senator to a corruption scheme but could also aid his defense.  This excerpt could have very easily been done on ABC, CBS, or NBC as a 15-second filler brief, as is the custom on these networks. The networks, chiefly ABC, will often devote those to car crash stories. NBC often sticks 15 seconds of tangential stories on to the back of longer items, and a 15-second Menendez brief could’ve easily been tacked to the back of the Trump recap. But there is no interest in featuring anything that might take the spotlight off of the election-interfering Trump trial.  Reasonable individuals may conclude that there is a (D)ifference in how these important stories are covered by the Regime Media. On the one hand, with constant A-block coverage and wall-to-wall on cable. On the other: with a pillow, until they stop moving. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned trial as aired on Noticiero Univision on Tuesday, May 28th, 2024: ILIA CALDERON: And here in New York today,  the corruption trial against Senator Bob Menéndez, who is accused of using his influence to benefit certain businessmen, also resumed.  FELIX DE BEDOUT: He is accused, precisely, of accepting bribes in exchange for political favors. And today, Claudia Uceda tells us how two witnesses were key in the case.  CLAUDIA UCEDA: The third week of the trial of Senator Bob Menéndez has begun. Today the prosecution called two witnesses: the assistant of the two businessmen charged with bribing Menéndez, and an FBI agent who read the senator's text messages. It was Nadine Menéndez who made the first pass and asked the Democrat out on a lunch date, which came to fruition in a month. Then, she connected several people with the legislator in order to use his power and help Egypt, which could link the senator to a corruption scheme but could also aid his defense.  RAUL PEÑALVER: The defense says that Menéndez did not know anything about all this, that the wife had been the promoter... UCEDA: There was a four-hour delay because a member of the jury was injured last night. (The juror) returned with several stitches. Menéndez's future is in the hands of a highly educated jury. Six men and six women, doctors, bankers, artists, attentive to the case related to gold bars and cash. HAIM VASQUEZ: Perhaps it will be difficult for Menéndez to be able to demonstrate that based on his education, on the political position he had, on the social mores of how to act, it would be very difficult not to have knowledge. This, along with the defense that his wife was the one who took the actions, might not sit well with the six women... UCEDA: There are so many text messages, calls, and documents that it is possible that the testimony of this FBI special agent will take two days. In New York, Claudia Uceda, Univision.  

Trump’s Bronx Rally, Ana Navarro, And The Wrath of Spurned Media Gatekeepers

Much of the media analysis of former President Donald Trump’s visit to the South Bronx centers around whether it was electorally savvy or good campaign strategy. Little has been said about the outbreak of bigotry vomited over the airwaves subsequent to the rally. Most representative of this is The View host Ana Navarro’s bilious exchange with CNN’s Jim Acosta, which at the time was covered by our very own Alex Christy (click “expand” to view transcript): JIM ACOSTA: I mean, you and I've talked about this many times about his rhetoric, the rhetoric he uses to talk about migrants and so on and I just have to ask you, Ana, I mean, when you look at the poll numbers and you see, if you break out the demographics, Trump is doing better among Latinos. He is doing better among African American voters and it's certainly is a threat to the president's reelection campaign. Is there a disc— I mean what do you make of this disconnect.” ANA NAVARRO: Well, a few things. One is I think America has a little bit of amnesia when it comes to Donald Trump and frankly being in a courtroom for the last 20 days, I think, has helped him because he's not been out in rallies saying the stupid stuff he says and the incendiary, outrageous things he says on a daily basis. We've been focusing on Michael Cohen, we’ve been focusing on Stormy Daniels. We haven't been focusing on the things that Donald Trump says. Another thing is, I think at this point in 2024, this is kinda baked in, people already know the guy’s a misogynist, they already know he's a racist, they already know he says divisive things and they seem not to take him literally or seriously. They think it’s, kind of, part of a clown act, entertainment and then the third thing, Jim, and this is the truth and you and I know this as Latinos, there are some Latino immigrants who forget they came here as immigrants and who want to shut the door behind them and, who think being anti-immigrant somehow is going to make them pass as more American, pass as whatever. And that's a very stupid attitude to have because what folks don’t realize is that when the guy drives thousands of miles to go hunt down Latinos in a Walmart in Texas. He doesn't care when you came here he doesn't care— ACOSTA: Right. NAVARRO: -- what your accent is, what he's looking for is “Does it look like me, does it sound like me?” That's what he's looking for. ACOSTA: Yeah. NAVARRO: So, you know, when people are anti-something, they're not asking for your papers, they're just anti-that group. I find that the most telling part of this exchange is Acosta setting Navarro up by saying that they discussed “the disconnect” on other occasions. To be clear, “the disconnect” Acosta refers to is ongoing, and it is between Hispanics and the Democratic Party. Once Acosta sets the segment up, Navarro goes into a word salad about alleged Trump amnesia, the ongoing trial, and eventually works her way to her toxic race reductionism which, quite frankly, sounds like a knockoff of the bile that fellow co-host Asunción Cummings Hostin regularly spits on The View.  We recently heard similar nonsense from race grievance merchant John Leguizamo, also while on The View. I will note for the record that Navarro performs this service while under the approving gaze of the white former Biden campaign and White House communications flack who revolving-doored her way over to CNN (Kate Bedingfield), which leads to further questions about who is really trying hard to “pass” here.  We’ve heard all of this before- the repulsive idea that central to Hispanic (or Latino) identity is this attachment to the left and to the entire leftwing policy pupu platter, starting with immigration. And that one is somehow a race-traitor for embracing different ideas or choosing to vote for a different party. Univision anchor Jorge Ramos said as much the morning after Election Night, 2016: JORGE RAMOS: The only way to explain it is (that) immigrants or the children of immigrants that forgot their origins… When you hear media types whining about Trump’s rally in the Bronx, or poo-pooing it, or deriding those who attended, what you are really hearing are the lamentations of scorned gatekeepers- those chosen not to represent the Hispanic community within media and elsewhere, but to represent the left to the Hispanic community. As you see more of this pattern becoming evident, and more polling showing Trump gaining significant support within the Hispanic community, expect more of those angry denunciations from self-appointed gatekeepers who find they don’t have the clout they thought they had.  Ana Navarro’s toxic word vomit was only the beginning.   

CBS’s ‘Face The Nation’ Honors The Fallen

CBS’s Sunday affairs show Face the Nation opened its Memorial Day weekend broadcast the right way- by taking a moment to put things in perspective, and honoring our Nation’s fallen, before entering into its normal routine.  Watch the show’s open as aired on Sunday, May 26th, 2024: MARGARET BRENNAN: Good morning. And welcome to Face the Nation on this Memorial Day weekend- where we honor those Americans who died in service and reflect on what they fought for. Those principles are nearly 250 years old, and are becoming increasingly challenged by political forces these days. Politics was set aside Thursday morning, at least long enough for a group of House members, all veterans, who are part of the For Country Caucus, to join the annual cleanup of the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial ahead of the holiday weekend. We asked Florida Republican Mike Waltz and New York Democrat Pat Ryan about the now-annual tradition for the caucus. MIKE WALTZ: Once I got elected, you know, and I saw the acrimony and the infighting, and I said, you know, let's- let’s get a group of veterans together, people who really have skin in the game. I think it's important for the American people to see, to see us honoring our forefathers, to see us where Democrat, Republican, black, white, brown, none of that matters. It just matters that we're all Americans, we're all veterans and we're honoring those that came before us. PAT RYAN: This is the most powerful thing I've done in Congress, truly. It's very emotional. And it's -- it's positive. I mean, there's so many divisive forces and so to get together with fellow veterans, all services, all generations, and just actually do something with your hands that improves the world, that honors our veterans, that prepares this memorial for hundreds of thousands of Americans that are going to come here this weekend. It’s an honor. If there is any quibble to be had here, it is with moderator Margaret Brennan’s assertion that “political forces” are challenging the Nation’s founding principles. What forces are these? What specific parts of the Founding are they challenging? If there is any challenge to such ideas as the inalienability of our fundamental rights as delineated in the Declaration of Independence, or to those fundamental freedoms protected in the Bill of Rights, it comes from the left.  Brennan’s nonspecific threat assessments aside, this segment distinguishes itself. For starters, Face the Nation was the only non-cable Sunday show to go live. NBC’s Meet the Press aired an election special, and ABC temporarily spared us Jon Karl’s caterwauling over the Appeal to Heaven flag by preempting This Week in favor of Formula 1 racing.  Brennan sat down with two veteran Members of the House of Representatives, Mike Waltz (R-FL) and Pat Ryan (D-NY) to discuss their bipartisan initiative to clean up the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial. They also discussed several pro-veteran initiatives making their way through Congress. But most importantly: the show honored the Fallen.  

Except For ABC, Regime Media Avoid Covering Stock Market Nosedive

The pro-Biden media, which gleefully trumpet so much as the slightest glimmer of positive economic news and cast it in a light most favorable to the reelection prospects of President Joe Biden, lost their collective tongues when it came time to report a grim day on Wall Street. The only national network newscast to discuss the Dow’s ugly close was ABC World News Tonight, and even then, could devote no more than a measly 14 seconds to the story. Here is the briefest of briefs, as aired on Thursday, May 23rd, 2024: DAVID MUIR: Back here in the U.S., to the economy, a tough day for the stock market amid concerns over interest rates. The Dow suffering its worst loss of the year, dropping 605 points, closing at 39,065 just days after surpassing the 40,000 mark for the first time. Not much there in 14 seconds, except Muir’s dashed hopes for a Fed rate cut. There were supposed to be three this year, but that scenario is no longer likely. And why is it exactly, that the Dow dropped so sharply? Several factors not listed in the report. Nvidia had a good day, but Boeing did not. And there was more. Much more, per CNN: The selloff came after the Purchasing Managers Index for May, expected to fall slightly, came in 3.5 percentage points higher, the highest level since last June. That’s an indication that the economy is not being held back by inflation, even though price hikes have started to ease once more. Then, what’s holding the economy back? Part of it is reduced consumer confidence as reflected in the reduced number of new home starts: April new home sales missed estimates on Thursday, coming in at an annualized rate of 634,000 versus 678,000 expected. Fewer homes being built indicates that there’s less economic confidence on the part of builders and that they’re having more difficulty borrowing the money to build them. But what really spooked the market was the release of the minutes of the Fed’s last policy meeting: The minutes showed that “various” officials said they would be willing to raise interest rates if necessary and that there were doubts as to whether financial conditions are restrictive enough to keep inflation from resurging. … Those central bank worries have pushed investors to slash their expectations for interest rate cuts from the Fed. They’re now anticipating just one cut this year, in December, according to the CME FedWatch tool. That’s down from six at the beginning of the year. Not only is inflation not abating, but some in the Fed are willing to consider rate INCREASES. That’s the “concern over interest rates” that Muir alludes to.  ABC’s scant 14 seconds are the entirety of the record on the stock market, as CBS and NBC avoided the subject altogether- a periodic reminder that if it weren’t for Regime Media, we’d have no media at all.  

DeSantis-Deranged Joyless Reid Wants To Speak To Florida’s Manager

MSNBC’s Joy Reid briefly deviated from the network’s usual offerings, onanistic wall-to-tall Trump trial coverage, in order to return to her traditional bailiwick. That is, the viewing of everything through the lens of race, and an unhealthy obsession with Florida. What caused Reid to go off on a singular rant which invoked the martyrs of the Civil Rights movement, and excoriated Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida? Bridges. Namely, the Florida Department of Transportation’s issuance of guidelines intended to promote uniformity with regard to the decorative illumination of bridges, and the governor’s declaration of “Freedom Summer”, a term also used by the Civil Rights movement (click "expand" to view transcript): JOY REID: Well, now, Ron has decided to steal the term “Freedom Summer" to apply it to something vulgar, because he is vulgar. According to The Washington Post, as part of what DeSantis is calling “Freedom Summer”, his transportation department has told cities across the state that if they want to light up their bridges at night, they can only use the colors red, white, and blue. The order, which was shared by the Florida transportation secretary on social media, means that bridges across the state that normally illuminate in colorful arrays of light to mark holidays or awareness events won't be able to use any other colors from May 27 through September 2nd. The goal of Ron's order is clearly to shut down any celebration of pride month, which begins June 1st. It's his attempt to strip the bright colors off of Florida and turn the state into Alabama, which its Panhandle was originally supposed to be. Mostly it's a message to Florida's large and vibrant LGBTQ population that your governor hates you. Just as much as he loathes the black and migrant populations in your state. Well, Ron, those of us who actually read books rather than banning them know what Freedom Summer was, and you can't have that term for your sorry, bigoted performative MAGA road show. It belongs to history. Reid takes issue with DeSantis’ use of the term “Freedom Summer” here, but in the recent words of Bill Maher, “words migrate”, and people can call things whatever they want. As Reid did, for example, when she freely availed herself of the LGBTQ lobby’s nomenclature for Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act: “Don’t Say Gay”.  Reid’s clumsy critique of Florida’s “Freedom Summer” desecrates the memories of those who were martyred, and whose names she freely dropped throughout this segment, by equating the civil rights struggle with the right to impose Pride Month upon Florida drivers.  The month of June fast approaches, and with it, Corporate America’s annual self-humiliation ritual wherein they festoon their corporate communications and logos in rainbows in order to preserve their precious Corporate Equality Index scores. Much to Reid’s chagrin, “Freedom Summer” encompasses the freedom to not have LGBTQ propaganda shoved into every nook and cranny of your life, including your commute, by too-eager-to-please bureaucrats. Unable to contact Florida’s manager or otherwise do anything about the unqueer bridges, Reid is left to do little else other than bleat about it for five minutes. Those non-rainbowed bridges now also belong to history. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned unhinged rant as aired on MSNBC’s The ReidOut on Thursday, May 23rd, 2024: JOY REID: On June 15, 1964, a group of black and white civil rights activists, led by Bob Moses and about 300 mostly northern volunteers, poured into Mississippi, the hardest state to register black voters, and the lynchingest state in the Union. They called it “Freedom Summer". The push built on the 1961 Freedom Rides that took mostly college students on integrated buses through the South, from Washington, D.C., through Alabama and Mississippi, to their ultimate destination in New Orleans. During those early rides, young activists like John Lewis and Joan Trumpauer Mulholland met violent resistance from the Klan and from white segregationist governors and sheriffs, beatings and fire bombings that encompassed the full weight of the South's massive resistance against the Brown v. Board supreme court decision and other rulings mandating the end of segregation in public accommodations in the U.S. Freedom Summer, in 1964, a year after the assassination of Medgar Evers, marked a turning point on the way to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which finally made real the promises of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Reconstruction Amendments to the Constitution. So the term “Freedom Summer" has a meaning. Or at least it should to any American with a passing knowledge of history. Enter Ron Desantis. America's most boldly racist governor, whose presidential campaign ended in rank humiliation as he wound up groveling to Trump and agreeing to fund-raise for him after torching his state, sinking Florida with a pointless war with Disney, a six-week abortion ban he signed in the middle of the night, and a performative war against covid vaccinations and masking to protect children and the elderly. All while Florida led the nation in banning books, banning drag shows, banning Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and turning itself into a white nationalist hide-out for every crook, criminal, and Trump in America. Well, I guess those are kind of the same thing. But you get the point. Not to mention the place where national security documents get stuffed into bathroom showers and elderly narcissists' bedrooms. Well, now, Ron has decided to steal the term “Freedom Summer" to apply it to something vulgar, because he is vulgar. According to The Washington Post, as part of what DeSantis is calling “Freedom Summer”, his transportation department has told cities across the state that if they want to light up their bridges at night, they can only use the colors red, white, and blue. The order, which was shared by the Florida transportation secretary on social media, means that bridges across the state that normally illuminate in colorful arrays of light to mark holidays or awareness events won't be able to use any other colors from May 27 through September 2nd. The goal of Ron's order is clearly to shut down any celebration of pride month, which begins June 1st. It's his attempt to strip the bright colors off of Florida and turn the state into Alabama, which its Panhandle was originally supposed to be. Mostly it's a message to Florida's large and vibrant LGBTQ population that your governor hates you. Just as much as he loathes the black and migrant populations in your state. Well, Ron, those of us who actually read books rather than banning them know what Freedom Summer was, and you can't have that term for your sorry, bigoted performative MAGA road show. It belongs to history. To John Lewis and Joan Trumpauer Mulholland and Bob Moses and Diane Nash, and Goodman and Schwerner and Cheney- who were lynched during that long hot summer. And all of the heroes, black and white, Jewish and gentile, free men and free women who fought for the right of black people to vote. To be served as a lunch counter. And for every American to live in dignity. Dignity. You should look it up, Ron. Maybe if you had some, you could be president one day. You cannot shut down the dignity of our LGBTQ brothers and sisters by limiting the colors of the rainbow on a bridge because those who came before us crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge to oppose people like you. So I’d like to declare this coming summer to be Freedom Summer, too. Let's all of us commit to work and to vote for freedom, the freedom of women, even in Florida and throughout the South, to control their own bodies. The freedom of gay, lesbian, and trans people to live their lives in a way that makes them happy and healthy. The freedom to read, including books that make you think, make you uncomfortable, make you grow. The freedom to vote. The freedom to march and to protest. To live free of gun violence, the freedom to go to school armed with your dignity and your diversity and all that you bring to the table. The freedom of immigrants to work free from fear of deportation. I'm telling y'all, every time that Florida Man bangs on about something with his awful self, I don't just get mad, I get motivated. So let's get motivated and make this a real Freedom Summer., worthy of the heroes who created it, and ignore the racist governor who tried to steal it for whatever his evil agenda is. And that goes for his buddy Rick Scott, too. We’ll be right back.

Networks SUPPRESS Kerry-Iran Bombshell Report

Earlier today, a stunning report was published alleging that the Obama administration “actively interfered” in order to hinder the FBI from arresting individuals suspected of aiding and abetting Iran’s efforts to develop a nuclear bomb. We didn't hear a peep about this interference on any of the network evening newscasts. Given their proclivities, a reasonable person may wonder whether they'll report on these developments at all. Per Fox News: The Obama-Biden State Department "actively interfered" to prevent the FBI from executing arrest warrants on individuals illegally in the United States who were allegedly supporting Iranian financial efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction, whistleblowers told Sens. Chuck Grassley and Ron Johnson.  Fox News Digital obtained letters Grassley, R-Iowa, and Johnson, R-Wis., sent to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Attorney General Merrick Garland on the matter.  The Obama-Biden administration began its Joint Plan of Action, which served as the negotiating process for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, that was signed by then-President Obama in 2015. At the time, Obama said broader sanctions would remain in place, which the administration would "continue to enforce... vigorously." But Grassley and Johnson received unclassified and legally protected whistleblower disclosures which they say show that "while the Obama-Biden administration publicly committed to ‘preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons by raising the cost of Iran’s defiance of the international community,’ then-Secretary of State John Kerry actively interfered with the Federal Bureau of Investigation executing arrest warrants on individuals in the U.S. illegally supporting Iranian efforts, including financial efforts, to develop weapons of mass destruction and its ballistic missile program."  Some of those efforts directly led to Iran's massive drone and missile attack against Israel this past April 13th, which placed American service members in direct harm's way.  There was once upon a time when the media, the Regime Media, paid attention to whistleblower reports- and pushed them, even. That time was when the president had an “R” after his name and a “T” to start his name. That particular whistleblower report was, in fact, the basis of an impeachment. In sum: the Obama State Department, headed at the time by Teheran John Kerry, obstructed the FBI from arresting illegal aliens that aided and abetted Iran’s nuclear program. Furthermore, this obstruction occurred in service of Obama’s precious Iran Deal. Whistleblower also indicates that the Obama Department of Justice under Attorney General Loretta Lynch did little if anything to deter this obstruction and execute the prescribed arrests. Imagine media coverage of a whistleblower coming forward with a similar set of circumstances happening under the Trump administration. We’d never hear the end of it.  We will keep tabs on media coverage of this case (or lack thereof), especially given the ongoing turmoil in Iran, as it develops.  

ABC, CBS Join The New York Times’ Recusal Pressure Op Against Justice Alito

Tonight’s ABC and CBS evening newscasts aired reports in furtherance of the ongoing campaign to pressure a sitting Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, Samuel Alito, into recusing himself from upcoming opinions that have a direct effect on the ongoing federal prosecutions against former President Donald Trump.  Watch ABC’s report in its entirety, as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Wednesday, May 22nd, 2024 (click “expand” to view transcript”): DAVID MUIR: There is a developing headline tonight involving Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. Just days after images emerged showing an upside down American flag flying outside his home for several days after January 6th, tonight, the new report on a second flag, this time at his beach house. Here's our chief justice correspondent Pierre Thomas now. PIERRE THOMAS: Just days after the nation saw an image of an upside down flag outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in the days after January 6th, a symbol of the Stop the Steal movement, a new photo tonight raising yet more questions. The New York Times publishing images of a pine tree flag outside Alito's New Jersey beach home last summer, with the words "Appeal to Heaven." Like the upside down flag, the pine tree flag was carried by some pro-Trump supporters on January 6th as the Capitol was attacked. Tonight, it's unclear who allegedly placed the flag, and what kind of statement was being made. The flag, which dates back to the Revolutionary War, has also been associated with Christian nationalism. Supreme Court justices are supposed to avoid the appearance of political bias. And Democrats argue Alito has a conflict of interest, and should recuse himself from two January 6th cases now before the high court, including one which will resolve whether President Trump has immunity from prosecution. David, we reached out to the Court and Justice Alito for comment on these new photos. So far, no response. MUIR: Pierre Thomas, at the court tonight. Pierre, thank you. Both ABC and CBS’s items touched common points. Both reports follow the lead of Jodi Kantor’s reporting in The New York Times. Both reports note that Alito flew another “problematic” flag at one of his properties, that the flag is adjacent to January 6th, and that Democrats want Alito to recuse ahead of Supreme Court opinions on obstruction and presidential immunity, which will affect many J6 cases in addition to the Trump federal prosecutions. But this goes beyond just reporting.  The release of these items, timed a month before the current Supreme Court session ends and with it the publication of landmark and/or controversial opinions, has a twofold purpose. The first, to pressure Justice Samuel Alito into recusing himself from the aforementioned matters. This is no different from the smear campaign against Justice Clarence Thomas (and also Alito), or from the carefully orchestrated character assassination op against then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh in the midst of his confirmation hearings Barring that, the publication and TV dissemination of these articles is intended to gin the leftist mobs into a frenzy such as we saw ahead of the Dobbs opinion, wherein they conducted illegal protests at the homes of conservative justices. It is important to remember that that violence was egged on by then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer: In which Chuck Schumer threatens TWO sitting Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. pic.twitter.com/pA3mryeVK2 — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) March 4, 2020 That call to violence led directly to a nutjob flying cross-country in order to do God knows what to Justice Kavanaugh and his family. Fortunately, that individual desisted from his violent designs upon Justice Kavanaugh.  This strategically-timed reporting on flags must be regarded as an attack against the independent judiciary, and therefore, against Democracy itself. The Regime Media, once again, engaging in election interference. Below is the transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on the CBS Evening News on Wednesday, May 22nd, 2024: NORAH O’DONNELL: There’s breaking news tonight. New questions surrounding Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, after a New York Times report of a Revolutionary War-era flag linked to the January 6th insurrection photographed outside Alito's beach house in New Jersey last summer. It was an Appeal to Heaven flag, which became a symbol of support for Donald Trump's "Stop the Steal" campaign to overturn the 2020 election. The Times previously reported another "Stop the Steal" symbol, an upside down American flag, was flown outside Alito's home in Virginia in January of 2021. Alito says his wife put up that flag as part of a dispute with a neighbor. The revelation has dozens of democratic lawmakers calling on the justice to recuse himself from January 6th-related cases.

ABC’s Mary Bruce Carries Biden's Water On Trump Contraception Exchange

The Regime Media went on the offensive tonight over former President Donald Trump’s Pennsylvania interview responses on contraception, choosing to spin the responses as an intent to impose restrictions on contraception. Most notably, ABC, who strive to remain the most aggressively pro-Biden of the major networks. Watch as Chief White House Correspondent (and Biden apple polisher) Mary Bruce insists on manufacturing a desire to restrict contraception where the clear record indicates there is none: MARY BRUCE: Donald Trump today suggesting he's open to restricting birth control if re-elected, saying it's something he's looking at. JOHN DELANO: Do you support any restrictions on a person's right to contraception? DONALD TRUMP: Well, we're looking at that and I’m going to have a policy on that very shortly. And I think it's something that you'll find interesting and it's another issue that's very interesting, but you will find it, I think, very smart. I think it's a smart decision. But we'll be releasing it very soon. BRUCE: Trump this morning suggesting in an interview with a local Pittsburgh station that he'd support states making their own rules. DELANO: You may want to support some restrictions? Like the morning after pill or something? TRUMP: We are- we are also- you know, things really do have a lot to do with the states. And some states are going to have different policy than others. BRUCE: Hours later, Trump trying to take it back. Doing cleanup on social media, writing, "I have never, and will never advocate imposing restrictions on birth control, or other contraceptives." But he did not say that in the full interview, which was reviewed by ABC News. The Biden campaign tonight warning, if Trump wins a second term, it's clear he wants to go even further by restricting access to birth control and emergency contraceptives. It is interesting to watch Bruce parse through Trump statements, insisting on an “AHA!” long after Trump has issued a clarification. By now, the White House press corps should know that “looking at it” is Trumpian code for a hedging response. There is no literal intent to restrict contraception. In fact, this view is inconsistent with leaving abortion to the states. But the Regime Media insist on pushing the Biden line that Trump wants a ban. So “looking at it” becomes, by necessity, restrictions. Which is quite hypocritical when you consider the media’s unwillingness to cover President Joe Biden’s many…malapropisms and gaffes. Biden will mumble through a speech, say he was vice president during the pandemic, have the White House transcriptionists strike through “pandemic” and insert “recession, and the press will say nothing. Trump on the other hand, rigidly holds to what Team Biden says he said, long after clarifications are issued. Bruce even closed out her report by hammering the point about contraception and implying an intent to ban. BRUCE: Now, back to abortion, a pivotal issue in this race. The Trump campaign tonight tells us the former president was referring to mifepristone, the abortion pill, but that's not what he was asked about in that interview. In fact, abortion medication didn't come up at all. Trump clearly asked about contraception. The title Regime Media is well-earned. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Tuesday, May 21st, 2024: DAVID MUIR: Now to the race for the White House tonight. Donald Trump's new comments about birth control. What he said when asked by a Pittsburgh TV station, would he support restricting contraception. The Biden campaign outraged tonight. And their response. Here's our Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce. MARY BRUCE: Donald Trump today suggesting he's open to restricting birth control if re-elected, saying it's something he's looking at. JOHN DELANO: Do you support any restrictions on a person's right to contraception? DONALD TRUMP: Well, we're looking at that and I’m going to have a policy on that very shortly. And I think it's something that you'll find interesting and it's another issue that's very interesting, but you will find it, I think, very smart. I think it's a smart decision. But we'll be releasing it very soon. BRUCE: Trump this morning suggesting in an interview with a local Pittsburgh station that he'd support states making their own rules. DELANO: You may want to support some restrictions? Like the morning after pill or something? TRUMP: We are- we are also- you know, things really do have a lot to do with the states. And some states are going to have different policy than others. BRUCE: Hours later, Trump trying to take it back. Doing cleanup on social media, writing, "I have never, and will never advocate imposing restrictions on birth control, or other contraceptives." But he did not say that in the full interview, which was reviewed by ABC News. The Biden campaign tonight warning, if Trump wins a second term, it's clear he wants to go even further by restricting access to birth control and emergency contraceptives. Trump, tonight, also under fire after this video was shared on his social media account. NARRATOR: What happens after Donald Trump wins? BRUCE: The phrase "Unified Reich" seen on screen, echoing Adolf Hitler's Third Reich and Nazi regime. The phrase appearing three times in hypothetical newspaper front pages celebrating a Trump victory, along with other antisemitic tropes. The Trump campaign adamant, "This was not a campaign video." That it was "reposted by a staffer who clearly did not see the word, while the president was in court." But that video that included three instances of the word "Reich" remained on Trump's page for more than 18 hours. The president sounding the alarm. JOE BIDEN: A unified Reich? That's Hitler's language, that’s not America's. BRUCE: His campaign noting it's not the first time Trump has used language that mirrors Hitler’s. KAMALA HARRIS: This kind of rhetoric is unsurprising, coming from the former president, and it is appalling. And we got to tell him who we are. BRUCE: Now, back to abortion, a pivotal issue in this race. The Trump campaign tonight tells us the former president was referring to mifepristone, the abortion pill, but that's not what he was asked about in that interview. In fact, abortion medication didn't come up at all. Trump clearly asked about contraception. David? MUIR: All right, Mary. The race for president is on and we’ll be covering it for the many months ahead. Thanks, Mary.  

Maddow’s Pro-Fani Electioneering, Disguised As A ‘Sermon’ on Democracy

MSNBC host Rachel Maddow indulged her desire to electioneer for Democrats, disguising it as an impassioned defense of Democracy™ and rule of law. The beneficiary of this electioneering was none other than Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. This sample, from the end of Maddow’s indulgent pre-interview screed pretty much sums up the entire venture: RACHEL MADDOW: And in the, you know, noble, alternate version of this history that we’d like to imagine we would be part of, the whole country would be up in arms about Georgia and about new York and about all of these cases, telling these people to back off the judges, back off the witnesses and the jurors. Back off the prosecutors. Back off Fani Willis. Protect these cases. Protect the rule of law. We imagine that's who we are as a country, but we are not showing it. We are not standing up to defend these people. At least not yet. The underlying idea behind this monologue is that it is un-American to question the weaponization of government against the president’s chief political opponent. This is a far cry from the anti-war left of the early 2000’s, which asserted time and again that dissent was the greatest democratic virtue. That virtue has devolved to unquestioning obedience. The interview itself offered little more than a platform for Willis to air her grievances. Maddow offered superficial questions such as:  What has life been like over the past year? What is it like to be a national lightning rod? Have you (Willis) changed? Is former Governor Roy Barnes representing you against the oversight commission? One question missing from this softball session: whether Willis regretted hiring her lover, and the ethical entanglements that emerged subsequent to this decision. Maddow preempted that by musing that people fall in love in the workplace. And when you think about it, what is an ethics scandal when DEMOCRACY ITSELF IS ON THE LINE?!11!!11!? The motive for this interview, far from any defense of Fani Willis or the legal system or Democracy™ and rule of law, becomes clear on X, several minutes before Willis comes on the air: "Every time I walk into a courtroom I am underestimated... but that can be a powerful thing. They never see it coming." I was just on @maddow to release our full three-minute 2024 re-election campaign ad. Please take a look, then pitch in to help us show it to more voters so we… pic.twitter.com/qMaFAwYDaX — Fani T. Willis (@FaniforDA) May 21, 2024 The interview served little purpose other than to provide Willis a platform from which to electioneer ahead of the Georgia primary election, wherein she faces a challenger- an in-kind political contribution disguised as an interview. This is Regime Journalism at its worst.  

CBS’s O’Donnell Abets Pope Francis’s Leftist Takes On Migration, Climate

At long last, CBS aired its special featuring anchor Norah O’Donnell’s interview of Pope Francis which, as predicted, ran through the entire leftwing media policy pupu platter. A substantial portion of this interview was devoted, predictably, to the propagation of leftwing talking points on migration and climate change. Watch as O’Donnell leads Francis into advocating for an open border (click "expand" for transcript): NORAH O’DONNELL: In St. Peter's Square sits this monument to migrants. On top of a boat, a young boy fleeing the Irish famine. A Jewish man escaping Nazi Germany. A woman departing the Syrian Civil War. Unveiled by the Pope in 2019, calling on the faithful to "welcome, protect, promote and integrate."  This is a big story in the United States, because there have been so many migrants this year. I've been to the border and many times it is mothers with children who are fleeing violence. And they walk thousands of miles with their families for a better life. And yet, there is a discussion about closing the border, limiting migration. POPE FRANCIS (VIA INTERPRETER): The solution is migration, to open the doors to migration. For an immigration policy to be good, it must have four things. For the migrant to be received, assisted, promoted, and integrated. This is what is most important, to integrate them into the new life. O’DONNELL: I grew up in the state of Texas, which is right on the border with Mexico. The state of Texas is attempting to shut down a Catholic charity on the border with Mexico that offers undocumented migrants humanitarian assistance. What do you think of that? POPE FRANCIS: That is madness. Sheer madness. Over there in Texas, there is a great bishop, Bishop Seitz. He’s right there at the border. That man does the impossible to help the migrants, right? O’DONNELL: We met Bishop Mark Seitz at Annunciation House, a Catholic charity in El Paso Texas, where they are challenging the state's attempt to shut them down for allegedly shielding undocumented migrants from law enforcement. BISHOP MARK SEITZ: This type of accusation puts fear into the hearts of anyone who generously gives of their time because of the Christian concern for people who are truly the poorest of the poor among us, people who have no place to go, nothing to eat, no clothes. The media generally tend to treat faith like a combo menu, picking and choosing the parts they elect to propagate while denigrating those who believe those aspects thereof that the media don’t like. As Exhibit A, I give you the still-ongoing Harrison Butker kerfuffle.  The media had no choice but to cover Butker’s comments because they quickly went viral, as opposed to simply ignoring Francis when he says similar things on family, life, and marriage. Inasmuch as Francis’ stance on migration (open borders) is aligned with the Regime, Francis gets maximum exposure. This is why the interview, which encompassed such matters as… Gaza/Ukraine College campus protests Migration Climate Change Ordination of women Surrogacy/IVF Transgender/LGBTQ issues Blessing LGBTQ individuals versus same-sex couples Sex abuse scandal Francis’ health, intent to retire …featured ZERO questions on abortion. O’Donnell broached the issue of Life by coming at it from the surrogacy and IVF angle, wherein Francis’ harshest denunciation was reserved for the for-profit surrogacy industry. Abortion never made it on the air. On this issue, Pope Francis is not convenient to the Regime. Which leads us back to migration. Here again, O’Donnell frames the issue in a light most likely to tug on Francis’ heartstrings. Hence, the evocation of mothers and children arriving at the border as opposed to hordes of military-aged men from hostile countries.  There is also the verbal sleight of hand related to the Catholic charity currently being sued by the Texas AG. O’Donnell complains to Francis about the Texas AG trying to shut down the charity “that offers humanitarian assistance”. When introducing the bishop in charge of Annunciation House, she then clarifies that it’s “for allegedly shielding undocumented migrants from law enforcement”. But Annunciation House is accused of failing to comply with Texas law regarding access to facilities and production of documents, in addition to the charges of (at minimum) abetting human trafficking.  The interview trudges on before doing a hard segue from migration to climate change, that other issue where the media gleefully echo Francis (click "expand"): CBS's Norah O'Donnell segues into Pope Francis' obligatory climate homily by linking climate to migration. We pollute, therefore we must open the border pic.twitter.com/pKjAoJYa90 — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 21, 2024 O’DONNELL: One factor driving an increase in migration is global warming. How worried are you about climate change? FRANCIS: Unfortunately, we have gotten to a point of no return. It's sad, but that's what it is. Global warming is a serious problem. Climate change at this moment is a road to death. A road to death, eh? And it is an artificial climate change, no? Something provoked, not the normal climate change, right? O’DONNELL: You have placed blame on wealthy countries. POPE FRANCIS: In great measure, yes, because they are the ones that have more of an economy and an energy based on fossil fuels that are creating this situation, right? They are the countries that can make the most difference, given their industry and all, aren't they? But it is very difficult to create an awareness of this. They hold a conference, everybody's in agreement, they all sign, and then bye-bye. But we have to be very clear. Global warming is alarming. O’DONNELL: So alarmed, he put the imagery of the climate crisis on full display and is the first Pope to issue official Vatican documents warning in his words that the world in which we live may be, quote, "nearing the breaking point."  What do you say to the deniers of climate change? POPE FRANCIS: There are foolish people, and even if you show them the statistics, still the fool will not believe. Why? Generally, it is either because they don't understand the situation or out of a vested interest. But climate change is real. The warming of the Earth has already increased by two degrees. That is a lot. O’DONNELL: You've talked about what St. Francis called "Sister Mother Earth." That protecting our planet is the most pressing issue today? POPE FRANCIS: Yes, because it is the future, it is life. We say, at the most, "Stepsister Earth," not "Sister." Protecting the planet. How many young people today will not get to see so many things? It is a lack of conscience to use a plastic bottle and then throw it to the sea. This makes the sea unhealthy. We have to be conscientious about repurifying nature. Here, again, is an issue where Francis’ stances align with those of the Regime, unlike abortion and same-sex marriage (individual non-couple benedictions notwithstanding). More curious minds would have presented Francis with the idea of climate advocacy as a Malthusian enterprise, and asked him to square that with his pro-life positions and teachings.  But the Regime can’t have that. Nor can its Media. Which is how we end up with this interview.  

CBS’s Red Lobster Story Buries Inflation Despite Being About Inflation

The story of Red Lobster’s bankruptcy, as reported by CBS, is ultimately about inflation. But that lede gets buried a minute into the report, in the hopes that the viewer won’t notice at all. Watch the blink-and-you’ll miss it reference to inflation, which came a full minute into the report: NIKKI BATISTE: In its bankruptcy filing, Red Lobster blamed failed or ill-advised strategic initiatives and increased competition within the restaurant industry. Red lobster's downfall comes at a time when eating out is more expensive than ever, with restaurant prices climbing higher and faster than grocery costs. In an effort to bring back inflation-weary consumers, McDonald's is planning to offer a $5 meal this summer, and Target has dropped prices on 5,000 items. JILL SCHLESINGER: If you are in the business of luring people into kind of, “have a little bit of splurge”, these are not the times where people feel like they can splurge. In a sense, the Red Lobster bankruptcy serves almost as a vehicle with which to introduce the McBidenomics Unhappy Meal and announce Target’s price cuts. All are stories related to inflation, as is Red Lobster's bankruptcy.  Think about it, a restaurant chain was brought down in large part by an all-you-can-eat shrimp special. Because people saw value in that rather than going to other restaurants where the menu prices were more in line with inflation or ordering from Red Lobster’s regular menu. I know this to be true because the report featured people stuffing their faces with $20 endless shrimp and bragging about it on social media.   There are times when there is more to the story than just the story. Such is the case of CBS’s report on Red Lobster's bankruptcy filing, which is really about the ongoing devastating effects of inflation on the American public.    Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on the CBS Evening News on Monday, May 21st, 2024: NORAH O’DONNELL: America's largest seafood restaurant chain, Red Lobster, is in a serious financial pinch- and filing for bankruptcy protection. CBS’s Nikki Battiste reports on why the once-popular chain has struggled to reel in customers. NARRATOR: Live Maine lobster, just the way you like it. NIKKI BATISTE: After a 56-year cultural climb  JINGLE: ♪♪ Red Lobster for the seafood lover in you… ♪♪ BATISTE: Seafood giant Red Lobster is having trouble staying afloat.  CUSTOMER: Hopefully, they’ll just reorganize and be back on their feet soon. BATISTE: The casual dining hot spot has struggled since the pandemic. It’s lost 30% of its customers and has had at least four CEOs in the last five years. NARRATOR: Ultimate endless shrimp is here. BATISTE: Also, an attempt to lure more customers in with $20 endless shrimp backfired, costing the company $11 million. Diners would share their tallies on social media. INFLUENCER 1: 61, wow. If you are a shrimp lover… INFLUENCER 2: It's a pretty good deal. INFLUENCER 3: Me, I set a new record at my local Red Lobster. BATISTE: In its bankruptcy filing, Red Lobster blamed failed or ill-advised strategic initiatives and increased competition within the restaurant industry. Red lobster's downfall comes at a time when eating out is more expensive than ever, with restaurant prices climbing higher and faster than grocery costs. In an effort to bring back inflation-weary consumers, McDonald's is planning to offer a $5 meal this summer, and Target has dropped prices on 5,000 items. JILL SCHLESINGER: If you are in the business of luring people into kind of, “have a little bit of splurge”, these are not the times where people feel like they can splurge. BATISTE: There are about 550 restaurants across the U.S., so far at least 93 have closed. Red Lobster says it hopes to keep open as many locations as possible through the bankruptcy process. Norah. O’DONNELL: All right. Nikki Batiste, outside a Red Lobster. Thank you.  

Regime Media Unable To Say Morehouse Grads TURNED THEIR BACKS At Biden

The Regime Media, which at one time falsely foisted “Don’t Say Gay” upon the American public in protest of Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act, now suddenly find themselves in a similar pickle thanks to President Joe Biden’s commencement address at Morehouse College. Watch NBC correspondent Aaron Gilchrist’s interesting choice of words whilst covering the address, as aired on NBC Nightly News on Sunday, May 19th, 2024: HALLIE JACKSON: And, Aaron, President Biden was where you are at Morehouse College in Atlanta today to deliver a commencement speech. Given what we’ve seen at other graduations, any protests? AARON GILCHRIST: Well, this was a speech that was mostly well received here at Morehouse, Hallie. In his salute to the class of 2024, President Biden talked about faith, and leadership, and democracy among other things. He also faced the Israel/Hamas war issue head-on, calling for an immediate cease-fire and the return of the hostages taken by Hamas. He also said he supports peaceful protests and told the graduates, “I hear you”. Now, a handful of graduates turned around in their seats during the president's remarks. Others wore symbols of support for the Palestinian people. The class valedictorian did not directly address President Biden, but he did call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza as well. Hallie. JACKSON: Aaron Gilchrist. Thank you.  “Turned around in their seats”, says Gilchrist. If only there were some way to more succinctly describe the physical act of turning at a precise 180 degrees from one’s interlocutor as a form of protest. Might ABC’s Selina Wang have found the right words with which to describe this turning around in protest?  SELINA WANG: Students silently protesting the president's handling of the war in Gaza. Turning their chairs away from Biden, staying seated during standing ovations, and a faculty member standing with her fist raised. Morehouse's valedictorian delivering a message of his own. Alas. Wang’s reporting was worse, as it is more ambiguous what with the “turning the chairs away from Biden”. Were they turned 45 degrees away? Were they facing East? As is the case with Gilchrist, Wang is unable to articulate that a number of Morehouse graduates TURNED THEIR BACKS on President Biden as he delivered his commencement address.  The Regime Media is not so much at a loss for words as it is willing to lose words, so long as doing so can Protect the Precious. Contrast that with the media’s willingness to echo made-up activist talking points when it suits them, such as during the fake “Don’t Say Gay” controversy.  In fairness, it should be noted that in this case, “Regime Media” excludes CBS, as the CBS Weekend News was preempted for the PGA Championship. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Sunday, May 19th, 2024: LINSEY DAVIS: Tonight, President Biden is appealing to a crucial part of his base in a commencement address at historic Morehouse College. The president, trying to win over young black voters, particularly men- a crucial voting bloc. ABC’s Selina Wang is in Georgia tonight. SELINA WANG: Tonight, President Biden reaching out to black college students. JOE BIDEN: Many of you graduates don't know me, but check my record… WANG: As he tries to reverse eroding support from black voters, a key bloc he needs for his reelection. The president delivering the commencement speech at Morehouse, the historically black college for men. JOE BIDEN: We know black men are going to help us lead us to the future. WANG: The president speaking directly to students for the first time since protests have flared on campuses across the country.  BIDEN: What’s happening in Gaza and Israel is heartbreaking.   WANG: Students silently protesting the president's handling of the war in Gaza. Turning their chairs away from Biden, staying seated during standing ovations, and a faculty member standing with her fist raised. Morehouse's valedictorian delivering a message of his own. DEANGELO FLETCHER: It is my stance as a Morehouse Man, nay, as a human being, to call for an immediate and permanent cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. BIDEN: That's why I have called for an immediate cease-fire. I'm working to make sure we finally get a two-state solution. WANG: Morehouse students divided on the president's performance. CARLEON OUTLAW: It was pretty silent amongst the students. It was a bit eerie. STUDENT: I appreciate the fact he came to speak at our commencement. WANG: Our latest ABC News/Ipsos poll shows 85% of black voters over the age of 50 support Biden, but that number drops to 64% for voters under the age of 50. Meanwhile, Trump picking up a key endorsement this weekend from the National Rifle Association. Vowing to roll back gun regulations Biden put in place. STUDENT: I think my vote will swing for Biden in a sense, but I still- I really don't know. STUDENT: We'll see what November holds. WANG: And Linsey, President Biden tonight campaigning in another battleground state, Michigan, then speaking to the NAACP. The president is wrapping up a week of outreach to black voters. He's trying to boost enthusiasm with this key voting bloc that he needs to win the White House again. Linsey.  DAVIS: Selina, thank you.  

FLASHBACK: When Univision Platformed A LITERAL Insurrectionist

Much of the media’s runup to the 2024 presidential election has consisted of moralistic hand wringing about Democracy Itself being on the line, an echo of President Joe Biden’s own talking points. However, some of us remember a not-too-distant time ago, when some of today’s loudest outlets platformed an ACTUAL insurrectionist. This is the moment, broadcast on Univision seven years ago today, when Jorge Ramos, senior anchor and host of political affairs show Al Punto, asked Oscar Lopez Rivera whether he is comparable to Nelson Mandela. Watch as former congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) responds by comparing Lopez Rivera to George Washington: JORGE RAMOS: Congressman Gutierrez, come compare Oscar Lopez to a Puerto Rican Nelson Mandela. Others, because he belonged to a group that placed bombs, would call him something different. How do you believe that history will remember the man (seated) next to you? LUIS GUTIERREZ: Like Ramon Emeterio Betances. Like Eugenio Maria de Hostos. Like Jose Marti. Like all the great forefathers and heroes of the struggle for the homeland and for their nation. That is where he will be placed. Look- if this were the American Revolutionary War, the 13 colonies, Oscar Lopez-Rivera, in the London newspapers, they would have said the same things (about him) that they said about George Washington. Look, the struggle for independence is a struggle that all peoples have a right to unto themselves, and have a duty, as Oscar has said, to carry out. Three days before the end of his presidency, President Barack Obama commuted the prison sentence of Oscar Lopez Rivera, a convicted FALN terrorist who was serving a lengthy sentence for seditious conspiracy against the United States. Lopez Rivera was cast by the media as a kindly grandpa who was oversentenced simply for believing in the independence of Puerto Rico. As we noted at the time: López Rivera was NOT imprisoned for believing in independence for Puerto Rico, but for the violent means through which he and others sought to further that otherwise respectable cause. Having failed to persuade their fellow Puerto Ricans to support their particular brand of a Marxist-Leninist independence, López Rivera and others sought to advance independence through bombings and other violent acts, such as the ambush of a group of U.S. Navy personnel just outside the base at Sabana Seca, P.R., which resulted in the deaths of four sailors. (Speaking of bombings, it is worth noting that one of the sites bombed by López Rivera's FALN was the Fraunces Tavern in New York City, an historic site that once housed Alexander Hamilton's office. In what is a cruel twist of fate, playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda has promised López Rivera a command performance in Chicago (presumably once he's done sobbing). Perhaps Miranda might further honor López Rivera by staging a prop bomb at any scene set at the Fraunces Tavern. But I digress.) Not only did Jorge Ramos platform a violent terrorist who sought to overthrow the United States from a territory, but he allowed a supporter to gush over him on the air. Univision saw fit to broadcast this terrorist apologia. Fast forward to today, and the network’s editorial line on “democracy” looks increasingly hypocritical.  

NBC’s Welker LIES, Says Media Did Not Censor Hunter Biden Laptop Story

During a contentious interview on NBC’s Meet the Depressed with Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), host Kristen Welker went full Regime Media by falsely stating that the media covered Hunter Biden’s laptop during the 2020 election. Shamelessly, and in the face of volumes of evidence to the contrary. Watch this exchange, which has to be seen to be believed, as it aired on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday. May 19th, 2024: MARCO RUBIO: What undermines elections is when Meet the- when NBC News and every major news outlet in America in 2020 censored the Biden laptop story which turned out to be true, not Russian misinformation. Unprecedented. Only you couldn't even talk about it on social media, they would deplatform you. People look at all this. They look at what happened in Arizona. 200,000 ballots that had…  KRISTEN WELKER: Senator… RUBIO: …that the signatures didn’t match. People lose confidence… WELKER: Senator…hold on… RUBIO: …and it opens the door to this. It does. WELKER: Senator, I have- I have to jump in here. Senator, you voted to certify the election and, of course, nothing was…  RUBIO: Because at that stage in the process you have no options. WELKER: Senator…Senator. You voted to certify the election. Nothing has been censored on this program. Hillary Clinton did concede… RUBIO: Did you guys cover that laptop for- Joe Biden in 2020? The Biden- WELKER: Absolutely we covered the laptop… RUBIO: It was banned, you couldn’t even talk about it in…social media…   WELKER: …and Hillary Clinton did concede. But bottom line- Chris Krebs, the top election official, said it was…Chris… RUBIO: You couldn't talk about it on social media, you’d be deplatformed. You couldn’t even talk about it it because you were called- they said it was Russian disinformation-  WELKER: Senator- Senator Rubio… RUBIO: And voters, in many cases, didn’t ever hear about it.  WELKER: We did… RUBIO: Because it was blacked out by the media. In fact, the Hunter Biden laptop story was blacked out by the media. And Rubio was correct in saying that the media’s suppression of the story was critical in voters not even knowing about the Laptop from Hell. An MRC study conducted at the time confirms as much- textbook election interference by the media in conjunction with Big Tech.  Multiple MRC studies confirmed the media’s ill appetite for the Hunter Biden laptop scandal (see here,and here for a brief sample). We are also reminded that Wekler herself did her level best to steer conversation away from Hunter’s laptop while acting as a presidential debate moderator. She was in on the suppression. Here's a video of @kwelkernbc *personally* trying to stop Trump from bringing up the Hunter Biden laptop at a 2020 debatehttps://t.co/h7SnJcNa6v pic.twitter.com/RZa6g0ifoE — Brian Anderson (@AZBrianAnderson) May 19, 2024 The interview also featured contentious exchanges on abortion, as well as on immigration. Rubio thoroughly schooled Welker on each of the points, exposing her as having nothing once the talking points are exhausted: Most notable from this exchange on immigration on NBC's Meet the Depressed: Welker has nothing for Rubio on immigration once he blows past her attempted tu quoques and appeals to authority. Note she does NOT contest Rubio on pathway to citizenship pic.twitter.com/6wv5FOicOh — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 19, 2024 The most important here to be observed is Rubio not letting Welker frame a response, and hammering the point on what the failed Senate bill did in terms of expanded asylum as a backdoor to a potential pathway to citizenship. Welker, notably, did not respond to that point. Whether on abortion, immigration, or election security: the Regime Media may try, but they can’t cover for Biden forever. Welker tried today, and failed.  

CBS Equates Illegal Immigration With Historic Civil Rights Struggle

CBS Evening News commemorated the 70th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, the historic Supreme Court opinion that reversed Plessy v. Ferguson and ended official segregation, by equating the historic struggles of black Americans to illegal immigration. I couldn’t believe it myself either the first time I watched, but see for yourselves: WATCH: CBS Evening News commemorates the 70th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education by equating illegal immigration with the historic struggle for civil rights pic.twitter.com/4iMgeiFmVP — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 17, 2024 JANET SHAMLIAN: The historic district is transforming once again. This time opening its doors to refugees and migrants. PILAR MEJIA: Just because somebody doesn't speak English doesn't mean they are less valuable to a community. SHAMLIAN: Students from more than 40 countries have enrolled. MEJIA: We have clothing, we have… SHAMLIAN: Director of Cultural Innovation Pilar Mejia welcomes each one.  Without this program, where do you think some of these families would be right now? MEJIA: It would be tragic. They might end up in either not being able to come, um- stay in situations in their countries that are dire. SHAMLIAN: Is there any connection you can draw there between what’s happening now with these kids and the situation at the time? ANDERSON: The connection is they are all looking for a better and brighter future. They’re all hoping for something better for their lives. We’re dealing with families who want more for their children. SHAMLIAN: It’s that better, brighter future that was fought over 70 years ago in the schools of Topeka. Janet Shamlian, CBS News, Topeka, Kansas. The report began innocuously enough, and initially appeared to have been a straight commemoration of Brown v. Board. There was the profile of the district’s first-ever black school superintendent, and a spotlight on some of the reforms she’s instituted in service of the community.  But it is at that point that the report goes off the rails: The hardships resulting from the choice to come into this country outside our lawful immigration system is not even within the same galaxy of comparability as enduring the horrors of slavery and/or the post-Reconstruction regimes endured by descendants of the formerly enslaved. The old Jim Crow regime is, in fact, nothing at all like illegal immigration, no matter how much the left or CBS correspondent Janet Shamlian would like to make it so.  To suggest as much in a news report is a grievous insult, both to history and to human decency. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on the CBS Evening News on Thursday, May 17th, 2024: MAURICE DUBOIS: President Biden met today with two of the original plaintiffs in the Brown v. Board of Education case, decided 70 years ago tomorrow. It outlawed segregation in schools, an important step in the fight for racial equality. Tonight, Janet Shamlian introduces us to the woman now running the Topeka schools, guided by the legacy of that Supreme Court decision. TIFFANY ANDERSON: I heard you had a birthday. JANET SHAMLIAN: Home delivered birthday gifts and cake aren’t generally part of a school curriculum. ANDERSON: Good morning! SHAMLIAN: But Topeka schools superintendent Tiffany Anderson rarely sticks to a lesson plan when there is a child in need. ANDERSON: If we don't do it, who will? SHAMLIAN: The district at the center of the 1954 Brown v Board of Education ruling outlawing racial segregation in schools… STUDENT: In the past, they had turned to "Separate but equal"... SHAMLIAN: …is now helmed by its first black female superintendent.  70 years later, do you live with the burden of their hope and dreams? ANDERSON: I think 70 years later, I live with the privilege to help their hopes and dreams come to life. I’m standing on their shoulders. SHAMLIAN: High school graduation rates have skyrocketed from near 70% to 91% during her eight year tenure. She's established morale-boosting programs, like graduation ceremonies for students in the nearby state correctional facility. ANDERSON: So have faith that you will make it through and be out of this space. SHAMLIAN: In a district where almost half of students qualify for subsidized lunch, she put washers and dryers in schools, as well as food and clothing pantries. ANDERSON: It's not really hard to get people on board when they know that you care and they know they can be part of something pretty incredible and transformational. SHAMLIAN: Why isn't it happening somewhere else? ANDERSON: Sometimes fear. Fear can make you choose not to accept other people. Fear can shut down systems in a way like nothing else can. SHAMLIAN: The historic district is transforming once again. This time opening its doors to refugees and migrants. PILAR MEJIA: Just because somebody doesn't speak English doesn't mean they are less valuable to a community. SHAMLIAN: Students from more than 40 countries have enrolled. MEJIA: We have clothing, we have… SHAMLIAN: Director of Cultural Innovation Pilar Mejia welcomes each one.  Without this program, where do you think some of these families would be right now? MEJIA: It would be tragic. They might end up in either not being able to come, um- stay in situations in their countries that are dire. SHAMLIAN: Is there any connection you can draw there between what’s happening now with these kids and the situation at the time? ANDERSON: The connection is they are all looking for a better and brighter future. They’re all hoping for something better for their lives. We’re dealing with families who want more for their children. SHAMLIAN: It’s that better, brighter future that was fought over 70 years ago in the schools of Topeka. Janet Shamlian, CBS News, Topeka, Kansas.  

NBC Nightly News MELTS DOWN Over Harrison Butker’s Commencement Speech

In fairness, the entire media are swirling in a meltdown vortex over the commencement address delivered by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker at Benedictine College in Kansas. But NBC Nightly News’ report on the “controversy” was easily the most ridiculous. Watch the report in its entirety, as aired on NBC Nightly News on Thursday, May 16th, 2024 (click “expand”): NBC's dopey report on Harrison Butker's commencement speech pathetically attempts to bait Taylor Swift into reacting to this manufactured "controversy". pic.twitter.com/U31pRgLRZQ — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 17, 2024 LESTER HOLT: We'll turn now to the growing controversy over a graduation speech at Catholic college given by a kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs. Some critics saying it was sexist and homophobic, and calling on the team to cut him loose. Here is Liz Kreutz. LIZ KREUTZ: Tonight, the NFL on defense after growing backlash over that controversial graduation speech given by one of their star players, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker. HARRISON BUTKER: I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. KREUTZ: In this speech at Benedictine College, the 28-year-old Super Bowl champ criticizing LGBTQ+ rights, abortion, IVF and surrogacy, while encouraging the young women graduates to focus on being a homemaker. BUTKER: Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world. KREUTZ: Despite a standing ovation from the crowd, many slamming the speech as homophobic and sexist. STUDENT: Getting married and having kids is not my ideal situation right now. It definitely made graduation feel a little less special, knowing I had to sit through that and get told I'm nothing but a homemaker. KREUTZ: The NFL, which is coming off a year of record female viewership amid hype over Taylor Swift's relationship with Butker's teammate, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, now distancing themselves from Butker. The league saying in a statement, Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity. His views are not those of the NFL. And more than 140,000 people have now signed a petition calling on the NFL to remove Butker from the Chiefs. So far neither Benedictine College, the Chiefs, or Butker himself have commented. Lester. HOLT: Liz Kreutz. Thank you. Generally speaking, the media’s reaction to Butker’s speech is the verbal and audiovisual equivalent of the “Soyjak Pointing” meme. Case in point, Ali Vitali’s reaction to the address, which sought to gin the Swifties up into a cancellative fury- as did Liz Kreutz’ report. Sure, NFL was stoked about all the new fans Taylor Swift brought to the game. Not sure how they’re gonna feel tho when Swifties start pushing back on some of the men that make up the league. Tip of the iceberg: https://t.co/jQzZFm8nCz — Ali Vitali (@alivitali) May 16, 2024 Coverage of Butker’s address boils down to, literally, Acela Media types getting mad at a Catholic that went to a Catholic school and said Catholic things. And you know that this is so because what galls them the most is the fact that Butker’s speech was well received within Benedectine College, a point also made on ABC World News tonight: STEPHANIE RAMOS: There is a change.org petition demanding the Chiefs release Butker. So far, no comment from the team. And despite the headlines surrounding this speech, Butker did receive a standing ovation, David. The media’s coverage of the speech is, at best, misdirective. I know this to be true because there is no mention of Butker’s criticism of President Joe Biden at the outset of his address: Our own nation is led by a man who publicly and proudly proclaims his Catholic faith, but at the same time is delusional enough to make the Sign of the Cross during a pro- abortion rally. He has been so vocal in his support for the murder of innocent babies that I'm sure to many people it appears that you can be both Catholic and pro-choice. The media, ever protective of Biden, dared not address this criticism specifically- instead hiding it within the abortion catch-all. Nor is there mention of Butker’s calls to embrace such things as masculinity and tradition.  One does not have to be an adherent of the Roman Catholic Church to see and understand what so enraged the media about Butker’s address, which is well worth reading in its entirety. The call to embrace faith, tradition (including traditional gender roles), and family over today’s toxic societal mores was enough to drive the left into a frenzy.  Furthermore, Butker proves that if there is indeed such a thing as a culture war, it is the left who are the aggressors seeking to impose their values upon others. An exposed media lashes out. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Thursday, May 16th, 2024: DAVID MUIR: We turn to the controversial graduation speech. Tonight, the Super Bowl champion Chiefs’ kicker Harrison Butker under fire tonight, after what he said about women and their roles, and what he said about the LGBTQ community. And what he suggested to women graduates about their roles moving forward. Here's Stephanie Ramos. STEPHANIE RAMOS: Tonight, the NFL responding to that commencement speech from Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, and his controversial comments about women, abortion, and the LGBTQ community. HARRISON BUTKER: I have gained quite the reputation for speaking my mind. RAMOS: The Super Bowl winner delivering the commencement address Saturday at Benedictine College, a conservative Catholic liberal arts school in Kansas. Butker addressing the female graduates, saying that while they may go on to have successful careers, he guesses the majority are most excited to be wives. Mothers. BUTKER: I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. How many of you are sitting here now, about to cross this stage, and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career? Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world. RAMOS: Conservative sports commentator Clay Travis coming to his defense. CLAY TRAVIS:  I saw people saying, "You got to cut him, how dare he say --" I didn't even see him say anything remotely controversial. RAMOS: Butker then referring to Pride month as a deadly sin. BUTKER:  …not the deadly sin sort of pride that has an entire month dedicated to it, but the true, God-centered pride that is cooperating with the Holy Ghost to glorify Him. RAMOS: The advocacy group GLAAD outraged. SARAH KATE ELLIS: I couldn’t believe it was such an outdated, antiquated view on LGBTQ people and women- and using religion, in a way… RAMOS: The NFL stating, "Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity. His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger." There is a change.org petition demanding the Chiefs release Butker. So far, no comment from the team. And despite the headlines surrounding this speech, Butker did receive a standing ovation, David. MUIR: Stephanie Ramos on this tonight. Stephanie, thank you.  

HAMAS MEDIA: CBS Evening News Observes ‘Nakba Day’

As pertains to the ongoing war in Gaza, CBS News continues to solidify its reputation as the most pro-Hamas among the networks. A brief report on the Biden administration’s request for new military assistance for Israel quickly turned into an opportunity to echo pro-Palestinian points and observe “al-Nakba”, which loosely translates to “Catastrophe Day”.  Watch the aforementioned report in its entirety, as aired on the CBS Evening News on Wednesday, May 15th, 2024: NORAH O’DONNELL: Turning now to the war in Gaza. The Biden administration is pushing Congress for a new billion-dollar weapons package for Israel, as so much humanitarian aid could be arriving within days for millions of Palestinians. A floating pier built by the U.S. military is now being moved into position off the Gaza coast. Food and supplies can't come soon enough for Palestinians, who today marked al-Nakba. That’s the Arabic term for the displacement of more than 700,000 Palestinians during the creation of Israel 76 years ago. There is a lot of actual information that was omitted from the report so that Norah O’Donnell could have the time to read the pro-Hamas talking points off of the teleprompter. For example, it is unclear when the billion-dollar military assistance package will actually arrive to Israel. But O’Donnell made sure to juxtapose that assistance with humanitarian aid due to arrive for displaced Palestinians. Compare O’Donnell’s observance of al-Nakba with that of Michigan congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-The Squad). Their language is practically identical: As we mark the 76th anniversary of the Nakba, we honor all the lives lost since the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians began, and the Palestinians who were forced from their homes and violently displaced from their land. — Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (@RepRashida) May 15, 2024 That is certainly one reading of history. The other is that when the British partitioned Mandatory Palestine, they created both a Jewish state and an Arab state, with the Jews accepting statehood and the Arabs refusing to live alongside the Jews. And that the real catastrophe (or nakba) happened when five Arab countries failed to expel Israel after they declared their independence a day before the start of what is now known as the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. Whatever displacement happened, happened as the result of an eliminationist war waged against the Jewish state. Hamas’ barbaric October 7th attack has, unfortunately, triggered further needless displacement and death. This, unfortunately, is more nuance than can be crammed into a 30-second brief intended to elicit empathy for Palestine rather than to report facts.  

2024 Presidential Debate Host ABC News Falsely Casts Biden As Issuing Debate Challenge

The Regime Media kicked off their respective evening newscasts by hyping the upcoming presidential debates, which were just agreed to by President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. But ABC News, aggressively Biden-servile and an announced debate host, chose to disinform the public by insisting on casting Biden as the one who challenged Trump to a debate, when the record reflects the exact opposite. Watch as ABC World News Tonight anchor David Muir, who will co-moderate the September 10th debate with Lindsey Davis, falsely depicts Biden as the aggressor before throwing over to Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce, who promptly does the same: DAVID MUIR: Early today, president Biden issuing the challenge. Trump, who refused to debate his primary opponents, saying yes. And within hours, two debates were set, one in June, the other in September, right here on ABC. Our Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce leading us off at the White House tonight. MARY BRUCE: Tonight, in a true campaign surprise, President Biden and Donald Trump agreeing to two one-on-one debates, the first just a few weeks from now, at the end of June, the earliest general election showdown in American history. Trump has been pushing for debates for months. DONALD TRUMP: I'm trying to get him to debate. BRUCE: This morning, Biden with this surprise challenge. JOE BIDEN: Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020. Since then, he hasn't shown up for a debate. Now he's acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, make my day, pal. I'll even do it twice. BRUCE: Biden then taunting Trump, referencing the one day a week that he's not tied up in court. BIDEN: So let's pick the dates, Donald. I hear you're free on Wednesdays. Note the sleight-of-word here: Right after Biden is said to have issued the challenge, Trump is depicted as “pushing for debates for months”. Biden is then again presented as the challenger. Why insist on pushing such a blatant and easily refutable falsehood? Because it is the only way to cast Biden in a favorable light, as opposed to reporting that the incumbent President of the United States responded to his challenger after months of baiting.  CBS’s Nancy Cordes took a less obvious but similar approach on the CBS Evening News: NANCY CORDES: President Biden threw down the gauntlet at 8:00 A.M. Eastern, in a video posted online. On the other hand, Cordes is more transparent about Biden doing the debate as a way to inject life into his flagging campaign: CORDES: So why are these two debating in June, more than four months before the election? Well, the campaigns say it’s because so many people now vote early, but the Trump team is also looking for a way to turn the page after his criminal trial ends, while Biden, who is trailing in many polls, could use a strong head-to-head performance to remind voters why they went for him over Trump in 2020.  NBC Nightly News was easily the most transparent of the three major networks: PETER ALEXANDER: Tonight the stage is set for the first TV confrontation between President Biden and former President Trump in more than three years. The agreement punctuating a dizzying day of deal-making. The president posting this video responding to weeks of pressure from Mr. Trump for a debate. … Both sides bypassing the Commission on Presidential Debates' proposal for three fall showdowns. President Biden's decision comes after former President Trump repeatedly challenged him to debate. DONALD TRUMP: You can see, we have an empty podium right here to my right. You know what that is? That's for Joe Biden. I'm trying to get him to debate. The clear and unequivocal truth is that Trump forced the issue on debates, and Biden accepted his challenge. Reporting the truth would not have changed much in the way of ABC’s report (and, to a lesser extent, CBS). But ABC insisted on casting Biden in the most favorable light, even at the expense of the truth. If this is how ABC reports the debate announcement, how will they actually moderate the debate?   Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective evening newscasts on Wednesday, May 15th, 2024: ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT DAVID MUIR: We do begin tonight with this presidential debate showdown now coming. President Biden and former President Trump both agreeing to two debates. The first in just a matter of weeks on CNN, before the conventions, the earliest debate ever for a general election. It will be the first debate stage faceoff, Biden versus Trump, since 2020, when they met twice. Early today, president Biden issuing the challenge. Trump, who refused to debate his primary opponents, saying yes. And within hours, two debates were set, one in June, the other in September, right here on ABC. Our Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce leading us off at the White House tonight. MARY BRUCE: Tonight, in a true campaign surprise, President Biden and Donald Trump agreeing to two one-on-one debates, the first just a few weeks from now, at the end of June, the earliest general election showdown in American history. Trump has been pushing for debates for months. DONALD TRUMP: I'm trying to get him to debate. BRUCE: This morning, Biden with this surprise challenge. JOE BIDEN: Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020. Since then, he hasn't shown up for a debate. Now he's acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, make my day, pal. I'll even do it twice. BRUCE: Biden then taunting Trump, referencing the one day a week that he's not tied up in court. BIDEN: So let's pick the dates, Donald. I hear you're free on Wednesdays. BRUCE: Trump firing back, "Just tell me when. I'll be there. Let's get ready to rumble." TRUMP: I really think he has to debate. He might as well get it over with. Probably should do it early so that he can -- you know, because -- he's not going to get any better. BRUCE: A short time later, the debates were set, the first on June 27th hosted by CNN, before either candidate is declared the official nominee at their party's convention. And the second on September 10th hosted by ABC News, just weeks before voters head to the polls. There will be no live audience, just the moderators and the candidates themselves a television studio, face-to-face.  And tonight, inside the campaigns, they are well aware the stakes are extremely high here. Both men confident that they can outperform the other. Donald Trump, of course, has been pushing for this for months. President Biden eager to show the stark differences between the two of them and jump-start this race. They both are now looking forward to this, of course, the first debate now coming, we know, June 27th on CNN. The second debate, at a key moment in the fall just weeks before the election, and ABC News will be having that debate on September 10th. And ABC News tonight is announcing the moderators of that debate, David Muir and Linsey Davis. David? MUIR: We will all be very busy in the months ahead. Mary Bruce, among the team here covering this. Mary, thanks so much again. September 10th here on ABC. CBS EVENING NEWS NORAH O’DONNELL: The stage is set. The dates are picked, and President Biden and Donald Trump are already throwing jabs ahead of two presidential debates that are now on the calendar. Until today, it was unclear if there would be any general election debates, but that all changed this morning when the two men, who can't agree on anything, agreed in a matter of hours that they would face off on June 27th and September 10th. The first date, now just 43 days away, will be the earliest televised presidential debate in American history. CBS's Nancy Cordes starts us off tonight from the White House on how it all came together. NANCY CORDES: President Biden threw down the gauntlet at 8:00 A.M. Eastern, in a video posted online. JOE BIDEN: Well, make my day, pal. I'll even do it twice. CORDES: He even tossed it a dig at Trump's trial schedule, which currently keeps him in court four days a week. BIDEN: So let’s pick the dates, Donald. I hear you’re free on Wednesdays. CORDES: Nevertheless, within half an hour, Trump said he was in.  DONALD TRUMP: I‘ve accepted the two, 100%. CORDES: He added an insult of his own. TRUMP: Probably should do it early so that he can, you know, he's not going to get any better. CORDES: Just after 11:00 A.M., Trump's campaign upped the ante, calling for four debates over the next four months. By noon, both campaigns had accepted invitations for one debate in late June, and another in mid-September, though the Biden team appeared to turn down a third debate invitation that came from Fox News. MICHAEL TYLER: The president has said he is willing to debate twice. CORDES: Michael Tyler is communications director for the Biden campaign.  CORDES: …think that President Trump wouldn't show up? TYLER: Well, he certainly does have a history of complaining about debates, skipping out on debates. CORDES: The two men squared off twice in 2020. BIDEN: You are the worst president that America has ever had. TRUMP: I’ve done more than you’ve done in 47 years, Joe. CORDES: Those debates were so hostile, many wondered if there would be a sequel this year. BIDEN: Will you shut up, man? TRUMP: Listen, who is on your list, Joe? BIDEN: This is so… CHRIS WALLACE: Gentlemen  BIDEN: This is so unpresidential. CORDES: We asked voters in Philadelphia if they plan to watch this time. VOTER: I might watch part of it. But I think it’ll just annoy me so much. VOTER: I doubt it. I might, but I doubt it because I know what each one is going to say. CORDES: So why are these two debating in June, more than four months before the election? Well, the campaigns say it’s because so many people now vote early, but the Trump team is also looking for a way to turn the page after his criminal trial ends, while Biden, who is trailing in many polls, could use a strong head-to-head performance to remind voters why they went for him over Trump in 2020. Norah. O’DONNELL: Will be interesting. Nancy Cordes, thank you so much. NBC NIGHTLY NEWS LESTER HOLT: Good evening and welcome. Not one but two presidential debates are on the books tonight after an exchange of verbal taunts more akin to a prizefight promotion. President Biden and former President Trump have agreed to televised one-on-one debates, the first happening June 27th and notably without a live audience. The second one, September 10th. The arrangement first proposed by President Biden was quickly accepted by Mr. Trump, who refused to take part in this year's Republican primary debates. The first of the showdowns timed by the Biden campaign to take place before early voting begins. In the time being, the debate among pundits will likely be over which candidate has the most to gain or maybe lose. White Hhouse correspondent Peter Alexander now with how it all came together. JOE BIDEN: Before I get started, I want to… PETER ALEXANDER: Tonight the stage is set for the first TV confrontation between President Biden and former President Trump in more than three years. The agreement punctuating a dizzying day of deal-making. The president posting this video responding to weeks of pressure from Mr. Trump for a debate. JOE BIDEN: Donald Trump lost two debates to me in 2020. Since then he hasn't shown up for debates. Now he's acting like he wants to debate me again. Well, make my day, pal. ALEXANDER: The president taunting his rival over his Manhattan hush money trial that’s kept him in court four days a week. BIDEN: So let's pick the dates, Donald. I hear you're free on Wednesdays. ALEXANDER: There are traditionally three debates. The president offering two. Mr. Trump, who refused all of the primary debates, quickly saying yes and pushing for more writing, “I am ready and willing to debate crooked Joe at the two proposed times. I would strongly recommend more than two debates and, for excitement purposes, a very large venue. Just tell me when, I'll be there”. Within hours, a pair of debate dates were set- one in late June, another in September. Both sides bypassing the Commission on Presidential Debates' proposal for three fall showdowns. President Biden's decision comes after former President Trump repeatedly challenged him to debate. DONALD TRUMP: You can see, we have an empty podium right here to my right. You know what that is? That's for Joe Biden. I'm trying to get him to debate. ALEXANDER: The June 27th face-off with no audience will come at a critical moment in the race, with recent polls showing Mr. Trump in a strong position in some key battleground states, and shortly after the former president's criminal trial is expected to wrap up. Today Senator Mitt Romney, a fierce Trump critic, arguing the president should have pardoned Mr. Trump. MITT ROMNEY: I would have immediately pardoned him. I'd have pardoned President Trump. Why? Oh, because it makes me, President Biden, the big guy and the person I pardon the little guy. ALEXANDER: The debate is certain to be a bitter battle with the president and his predecessor trading insults. TRUMP: The worst presidents-- take ‘em, give me the ten worst names. They haven't done the damage to our country that this total moron has done. ALEXANDER: And from Mr. Biden just today: BIDEN: The guy has sort of lost his mooring. He seems like the guy who just doesn't know what the hell he's doing anymore. ALEXANDER: In an already unprecedented campaign, the first crucial clash now the earliest in modern history. HOLT: ANd Peter, to be clear, this means this happens before the conventions? ALEXANDER: That's right- likely even before Mr. Trump has picked his vice presidential nominee here. The former president is now saying that he accepted an offer for a third debate in October. The Biden campaign, though, they are brushing that off, Lester, telling me no more games, no more chaos and their words: President Biden will do TWO debates.  HOLT: All right. Peter, thanks very much.  

We Regret To Inform You All That CNN Is Still Performing Dramatic Readings Of Trump Trial Transcripts

Generally speaking, CNN’s coverage of the so-called Trump “hush money” trial has taken such an onanistic turn that reasonable people may question whether Jeffrey Toobin is now in charge of the once-revered Cable News Network. The most ridiculous iteration of this coverage? Dramatic readings of the trial transcripts. Watch as yet another night of dramatic readings kicks off tonight’s episode of CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip, as aired on CNN on Tuesday, May 14th, 2024: ELLIOT WILLIAMS (AS TODD BLANCHE): You referred to President Trump as a “Dictator Douche Bag”, didn't you?  MARCUS CHILDRESS (AS MICHAEL COHEN): Sounds like something I said. WILLIAMS: And on that same TikTok, so again on April 23rd, you referred to President Trump when he left the courtroom, you said that he goes right into that little cage, which is where he belongs in an effing cage like an animal. Do you recall saying that?  CHILDRESS: I recall saying that. LAURA COATES: Mmm. That’s a dramatic reading, Abby. ABBY PHILLIP: Yeah. I mean, that's kinda how it went down, intonation and all, Marcus. Thank you for that. Also with us…  COATES: No New York accent, though!  PHILLIP: No New York accent, but… COATES: Where are the New York accents? What are you doin’?! WILLIAMS: You guys know I can’t do that. COATES: All right. ALL: (laughter) I can’t imagine the trajectory that leads these guys to law school, build careers, serve respectively in the Obama administration and on the House January 6th Committee, only to be brought on CNN and be made to read “Dictator Douche Bag” as well as Michael Cohen’s hangdog responses, and then be berated by Laura Coates for insufficiently performing these dopey readings in a comedic Noo Yawk accent. Nor can I imagine the galaxy-brain calculations that result in performing this schtick now for a second night in a row, thinking this is good television. Or journalism. But here we are. Were it not for the fact that this trial is the fruit of an ongoing effort to weaponize state and federal government against the leading opposition presidential candidate, it would almost seem wholly appropriate to cover this joke of a trial and underlying charges in a comedic manner.  There are many words that come to mind with which to describe the nonsense running on CNN air (or MSNBC’s, for that matter), but journalism is not one such word. CNN’s creepy, cheerleady coverage of this trial is the furthest thing from journalism, and embodies the worst excesses of Regime Media.  

Network PM Newscasts AVOID NYC Mayor Adams’ Racist ‘Swimmers’ Remarks

The evening network newscasts leave us, once again, to imagine what coverage might have been had a Republican elected official attested to migrants making great lifeguards due to their being “excellent swimmers”, as did New York Mayor Eric Adams. The wild stereotyping and casual racism are all there for the taking but the networks took a pass, leaving reasonable individuals to conclude that there’s a (D)ifference in how such stories are covered. Beyond the conservative media ecosystem, only NBC News Now has dared to cover the story. Here’s how Tom Llamas opened his report on his eponymous show:   TOM LLAMAS: Back here in New York City, Mayor Eric Adams sparking controversy over remarks he made about migrants, appearing to suggest they could fill the city's lifeguard shortage because they are, quote, “excellent swimmers”. Take a listen. ERIC ADAMS: If we had a migrant and asylum seeker plan that states those jobs that we are in high demand, we could expedite. How do we have a large body of people in our city and country that are excellent swimmers and at the same time, we need lifeguards? And the only obstacle is that won’t give them the right to work to become a lifeguard? That just doesn't make sense. LLAMAS: That quote really doesn't make sense. Adams’ administration has faced criticism over its handling of the estimated 180,000 migrants who have arrived in the city since 2022, many of them ending up in the city’s already overwhelmed shelter system. Llamas would go on to interview a local migrant advocate who blasted Adams for his dual discourse when it comes to migrants, and for his view that the migrant crisis will destroy New York City. Llamas continued to blast Adams for his remarks, and questioned whether his factual basis for calling migrants “excellent swimmers” is the notion that they swam across the Rio Grande, or perhaps the Florida Strait- lamenting the lack of outrage over Adams’ remarks in a “progressive” city. WATCH as Tom @LlamasNBC RIPS Mayor Adams over wildly racist "excellent swimmers" remark, decries lack of outrage in "progressive" NYC. No nightly network newscast covered this story- not ABCWNT, CBSEN, or NBCNN. There's clearly a (D)ifference in coverage versus if a GOP said it. pic.twitter.com/4HXjUpYDsn — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 15, 2024 TOM LLAMAS: But I also want to talk about just sort of painting with a very broad brush that the migrants in New York are all great swimmers. Where would he get that from, unless it had something to do with crossing the Rio Grande, or because some of them may come from places like Cuba or Haiti, or another island? Regardless, it's incredibly racist and I am shocked and really upset that there hasn't been more sort of outrage in this city. A city that claims to be progressive, a city that claims to protect people from all nationalities and no one really cares about this. It’s true, and the record will reflect that included within the “no one” that cares about Adams’ remarks: his own colleagues across the dial and including at his own network. None of the evening network newscasts reported on this story.  And how could they, when reporting on the casual racism of the Mayor of New York would have surely forced them to cut their gushing stories on Caitlin Clark and the highly anticipated start of the WNBA season? Shockingly, neither did “Latino advocate” networks Univision or Telemundo. This is a stark departure from their normal custom, which is to dedicate three minutes of A-block to the occasional TikTok of a random Karen screaming “speak English” to illegals at some indeterminate local retail establishment. It goes without saying that had a prominent Republican said anything close to what Adams said, there would be a multi-day cycle and some enterprising White House correspondent would’ve already gotten President Joe Biden to mumble “something, something, Cesar Chávez.”  But Tom Llamas learned the hard way, and on a personal issue, what we’ve already known: that there is a (D)ifference as to how these stories are covered. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as streamed on NBC News Now’s Top Story With Tom Llamas, on Tuesday, May 14th, 2024:   TOM LLAMAS: Back here in New York City, Mayor Eric Adams sparking controversy over remarks he made about migrants, appearing to suggest they could fill the city's lifeguard shortage because they are, quote, “excellent swimmers”. Take a listen. ERIC ADAMS: If we had a migrant and asylum seeker plan that states those jobs that we are in high demand, we could expedite. How do we have a large body of people in our city and country that are excellent swimmers and at the same time, we need lifeguards? And the only obstacle is that won’t give them the right to work to become a lifeguard? That just doesn't make sense. LLAMAS: That quote really doesn't make sense. Adams’ administration has faced criticism over its handling of the estimated 180,000 migrants who have arrived in the city since 2022, many of them ending up in the city’s already overwhelmed shelter system. For more on Adams’ remarks, the state of the migrant crisis in New York City, I'm joined now by Power Malu, he is the executive director of Artists, Athletes, and Activists, it’s a grassroots organization that connects migrants here in the city with key services including shelter, food, medical care and legal support. Power, I want to thank you for joining me. I want to start with the mayor's comments there. I know how I interpreted that- those comments, how did you interpret them? POWER MALU: Once again, we have an administration that’s deflecting attention off of their incompetency and mismanagement, and pointing the finger at the migrants. At any given press conference, you’ll have this administration blame the migrants for the financial woes of the city and in the same breath, they’ll praise and say the migrants should be allowed to work because they can help us. LLAMAS: Yeah, I get that, but I also want to talk about just sort of painting with a very broad brush that the migrants in New York are all great swimmers. Where would he get that from, unless it had something to do with crossing the Rio Grande, or because some of them may come from places like Cuba or Haiti, or another island? Regardless, it's incredibly racist and I am shocked and really upset that there hasn't been more sort of outrage in this city. A city that claims to be progressive, a city that claims to protect people from all nationalities and no one really cares about this. MALU: Yeah, we have an administration that is constantly doing things like this and it gets brushed under the rug. Also, this mayor says that people attack him because he is black or African-American. So what we are having here is just excuse after excuse as to why you’re not dealing with the migrant crisis. And I want to say is that there are plenty of grassroots organizations that have been supporting since Day One, and this administration has constantly said that there is no resources, but they are abundant. There’s abundance of resources. LLAMAS: Do you think a mayor who could make a comment like that has an understanding of who these people are and where they come from? ‘Cause they really come from all over the world. MALU: Absolutely. This is stereotypes. This is, you know, a mayor that is not in touch with what's going on. We’ve been on the ground since Day One. There are people that cross from Africa, from Afghanistan, from Latin America, they are from all over the world. So to just say that people that are here are great swimmers, it's a poor comment.  LLAMAS: Do you think it was literally connected to them crossing the Rio Grande? Do you think that’s where the logic came- I don't even know where the logic comes from. MALU: So you’re talking about a mayor who said that these migrants are the issue that’s going to crush New York City. That's what he said at another townhall meeting. So you can't listen to the things that he says because this administration are spin masters. They always try to find a way to deflect attention. Where do you get migrants are great swimmers and they are going to save the situation with the pools and the beaches? You should've been thinking about this a year ago when that problem existed. Yes, of course they are skilled when they come here and they are looking for work and they deserve work but it doesn't happen by osmosis. Our organization has been helping them file for work authorization and asylum and they can't even get their mail because they're constantly being moved from shelter to shelter. Let's deal with the root of the problem. LLAMAS: All right, Power Malu. I also want to say that we’ve- we reached out for comment to the City of New York and to Mayor Adams, I think we’re still waiting on that comment. But anyways, Power, we appreciate you.  

MSNBC’s Jen Psaki, Having Not Yet Apologized For Smearing Families of the Kabul 13, Now Smears Alabama

One feature of wall-to-wall coverage on leftwing cable is that it is unscripted. And on unscripted, not-as-tightly-produced television where you have to fill multiple hours of “analysis” of a single event, such as on this occasion, the trial of former President Donald Trump in New York City, people’s real opinions sometimes just fall out. Such an occasion happens here, during MSNBC’s Maddow block. Watch as former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki- fresh off of smearing Gold Star parents, now smears the entire State of Alabama as “crazy” (click “expand”): JEN PSAKI: The most intere-- and you touched on this and went over it, and this is the thing that stuck out to me so much about today is this sort of sideshow, but it's not a sideshow of these senators. It's so strange seeing J.D. Vance and Tommy Tuberville in New York. It was like a Where's Waldo moment? Like there they are. Oh, there they are in back of him at this press conference. But it tells you so much because as you said, not only did they stand there, they went out afterwards and then they put out things on social media because they're looking for approval from Trump. And that adds to what we've seen over the last couple of weeks which is, one: people who want to be the vice presidential running mate or in the Cabinet saying- confirming they don't think Trump lost the election in 2020. Two, we've started to see a number of people recently in the last couple of weeks on a number of shows suggest they might not respect the outcome of the election in 2024. That's replaying the game again. And this is the third piece. I mean, we're going to see Vivek tomorrow. How crazy will that be? I don't know yet. We will see. But that is a piece of this that tells you so much about his own political power, even if we're not clear about where the polls between the two candidates are going to be at the end of this trial yet. RACHEL MADDOW: And can I just -- I mean if you, like, imagineer a world in which Republican politics is not rotating around the axis of Donald Trump, what are the politics? What's the political impact of these sitting senators and very ambitious Republican politicians making sure that they are seen inside of what they are decrying as a very depressing New York City courtroom? I mean, they're putting themselves in state criminal court as a way of trying to get themselves before the American people so that this is where we imagine them. I mean this is just -- it may be one thing to try to get Trump's favor. PSAKI: Mm-hmm. MADDOW: But this exists in its own right in terms of how they are displaying themselves, what they- how they want us to think of their milieu in politics, and how they want us to think of them when it comes to criminal defendants in the criminal process. PSAKI: Well, they think it's a winner for them politically to some degree, to hug and to align themselves with Trump. And perhaps in their states, it is. Uh, you know, J.D. Vance, he's not up for re-election this year. Tommy Tuberville, he does a lot of crazy things, but he’s- he’s Alabama- Trump is quite popular there. Right? This sort of thing used to be amazing to watch- the left’s sneering condescension and contempt for the unwashed Deplorables, especially across the South, as embodied by Psaki during her rant against the electeds that accompanied Trump during Michael Cohen’s testimony. Saying that Tuberville “is Alabama”, and therefore crazy, is quite the look. But this is not unexpected. As of this writing, Jen Psaki has not yet apologized to the families of the Kabul 13, our brave service members killed during ISIS-K’s terrorist attack against the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.  In fact, Psaki hasn’t offered anything in the way of self-reflection beyond what she told Fox News when she said that "the story on Afghanistan is really about the importance of delivering feedback even when it is difficult, told through my own experience of telling President Biden that his own story of loss was not well received by the families who were grieving their sons and daughters”. There’s no apology there, and one wonders whether one might come at all. After all, the inmates have proven themselves capable of running the asylum at MSNBC, given the aftermath of the Ronna McDaniel fiasco.  What indication is there that Psaki will face any accountability for smearing Gold Star families? Time will tell, but it sure does seem, at least preliminarily, that MSNBC has made its peace with welcoming a professional smear merchant as a conquering star.  

Regime Media Continue To HIDE Education Secretary Cardona's Massive FAFSA Fail

The Education Department’s ongoing meltdown due to its failed implementation of its new website for its Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) should, on the merits, be an ongoing major national story. But the Regime Media have chosen only to cover the story in a very sparing manner, shielding those responsible for the FAFSA meltdown from any scrutiny or accountability. Watch the oddly detached introduction to the report filed by Meg Oliver for the CBS Evening News: NORAH O’DONNELL: Nearly two weeks after what is traditionally College Decision Day, many students are still unable to commit to a school. That's because of computer glitches plaguing the Education Department's newly overhauled financial aid system. CBS’s Meg Oliver has an important update. MEG OLIVER: With high school graduation just weeks away, anxiety was mounting for senior Jojo Henderson. The 18-year-old from Pittsburg, Texas couldn't commit to college without knowing his financial aid. JOJO HENDERSON: I’m frustrated, because it’s just like- you do everything that you're supposed to do and then you have to wait on the government to catch up. The FAFSA meltdown is presented as just a singular misfortune that happened spontaneously. Like a tornado, perhaps, or a volcanic eruption- and most certainly not as the result of massive bureaucratic incompetence. This ongoing disaster falls squarely in the lap of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, who is far more focused on making sure men compete in women’s sports, change in women’s locker rooms and pee in women’s restrooms than in ensuring that college-bound students are able to access federal financial aid. Had this happened during the Trump administration and under Betsy DeVos’ watch at the Department of Education, the media’s collective hair would be on fire. This story would be national, running near-daily on A-block and with wall-to-wall coverage of any related congressional hearings, with someone hounding DeVos the entire time. Instead, Cardona has benefited from the privilege of serving in an administration with such lightning rods as Alejandro Mayorkas and Pete Buttigieg, therefore mostly escaping scrutiny.  The Regime Media have certainly earned their title. Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned interview as aired on the CBS Evening News on Monday, May 13th, 2024: NORAH O’DONNELL: Nearly two weeks after what is traditionally college decision day, many students are still unable to commit to a school. That's because of computer glitches plaguing the Education Department's newly overhauled financial aid system. CBS’s Meg Oliver has an important update. MEG OLIVER: With high school graduation just weeks away, anxiety was mounting for senior Jojo Henderson. The 18-year-old from Pittsburg, Texas couldn't commit to college without knowing his financial aid. JOJO HENDERSON: I’m frustrated, because it’s just like- you do everything that you're supposed to do and then you have to wait on the government to catch up. OLIVER: Henderson filled out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as FAFSA, almost five months ago. He finally received his financial information last week, after some college decision deadlines. Typically, the Department of Education releases the forms on October 1st, then sends the students’ data to colleges within one to three days of submission to calculate aid. This year, the application forms came out three months late. It's estimated more than a quarter of colleges have still not sent aid packages. OLIVER: Did you think of giving up? Maybe not going to college? JAELYN JAMES: Yeah, many times actually. OLIVER: Really? JAMES: Um, I was just, like- so tired of waiting. OLIVER: New Jersey high school senior Jaelyn James finally received her aid package close to the decision deadline. SARA URQUIDEZ: My biggest advice is to not give up. OLIVER: Sara Urquidez oversees counseling for thousands of public school students in the Dallas area. URQUIDEZ: Ask for extensions, ask if deposits for housing are refundable, ask for anything they possibly can to help make a decision but don't opt out at this point in the process. OLIVER: A FAFSA fiasco that's still not finished. Meg Oliver, CBS News, Wayne, New Jersey.  

CNN’s Dana Bash Hits Trump With A Smear Within A Smear

While forwarding the smear of former President Donald Trump as an antisemite due to his suggestion that Jews voting against him “should be ashamed”, CNN’s Dana Bash falsely suggested that Trump’s dinner with noted antisemite Nick Fuentes was intentional. Watch as Bash levels that smear towards the end of her exchange with U.S. Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) on Israel: J.D. VANCE: We have to remember, Donald Trump is very direct here…  DANA BASH: Well, you said he was right. VANCE: …and he hasn't singled out Jewish-Americans. He singled out a lot of people for voting for Joe Biden and suggesting they've got to wake up and elect him as president in 2024. So I don't think there's any effort to single out Jewish-Americans, and just on that particular question about tropes, I mean, look, we know that Jewish-Americans and non Jewish-Americans care about our ally, Israel. We know that Jewish-Americans and non Jewish-Americans care a lot about these ridiculous protests. I actually have a friend of mine whose brother was graduating from Columbia, who had the graduation ceremony canceled. And that's a non-Jewish person who cares a lot about these anti-semitic protests. So I think the fact that Donald Trump is talking about Jews in that particular context does not mean he doesn't think the same lessons apply to a whole host of American citizens. BASH: Yeah, because he did say that any Jewish person who voted for Joe Biden should be ashamed of themselves. I want to move on.  VANCE: But he’s made similar comments about a lot of different groups of people, Dana. I don't think anybody could look at the presidency and the conduct of Donald Trump and say, this is a person who's somehow anti-semitic. And I think whether you're Jewish or not, you should be looking at the record of Joe Biden BASH: He had dinner with Nick Fuentes, who is an avowed anti-semite.  VANCE: Dana, you should look at the record of Joe Biden and recognize that, whether you’re Jewish or not, his presidency has been a disaster for the American people. The interview started out with a discussion on President Joe Biden’s decision to withhold military assistance from Israel . To Bash’s credit, that particular portion of the interview featured no appeals to the authority of Ronald Reagan. The interview then shifts to the accusations of anti-semitism against Trump. Earlier, we noted the emergence of this weird reclassification of a shopworn appeal to interests as an “anti-semitic trope”.  Irrespective of one’s feelings over Trump’s statements, they do not rise to anything more than an opinion. Black and Hispanic conservatives get excoriated by the left all the time for “voting against their self-interest”, and no one ever accuses those leftists of being anti-Black or anti-Hispanic, nor do such statements ever draw any media scrutiny. Reasonable individuals are left to won(D)er why that is.  Bruce’s fabrication of an anti-semitism where there is none smacks of media firefighting, intended to protect President Biden not just from the fallout of the munitions block, but from his own recent “very fine people” moment, as well as appearing weak on Israel.  The broader adoption of this talking point confirms our thesis. But Bash adds a new wrinkle, bolstering the fake trope with another event falsely packaged as proof evident of Trump’s alleged antisemitism: noted antisemite Nick Fuentes crashing Mar-a-Lago for dinner with Kanye West. Bash confidently uttered “He had dinner with Nick Fuentes, who is an avowed anti-semite” as a definitive tu quoque despite multisource confirmation that Trump was blindsided by Fuentes. Per then-NBC reporter Marc Caputo: Trump has since said he didn’t know Fuentes or his background when they dined together, a claim Fuentes confirmed in an interview, but others at the crowded members-only club figured out his identity. Why let the truth get in the way of a good smear? The interview moves on to the ongoing New York trial and closes with Bash trying to corner Vance on the 2024 election. As this interview demonstrates, if we didn’t have Regime Media we’d have no media at all. Click “expand” to view the transcript of the aforementioned segment as aired on CNN State of the Union on Sunday, May 12th, 2024: DANA BASH: I want to ask about something that Donald Trump said in- on social media. He said, “what Biden is doing with respect to Israel is disgraceful. If any Jewish person voted for Joe Biden, they should be ashamed of themselves. He's totally abandoned Israel”. You tweeted that Donald Trump was right about that. So I just wanted to be clear. Do you think that Jewish people who voted for Joe Biden should be ashamed of themselves? J.D. VANCE: What I think, Dana, is that people should look at the record here and recognize that Donald Trump has actually been really good for the State of Israel. We had peace and prosperity in our country, and we had a very stalwart ally of the Israelis. Now, Joe Biden as president, the Israelis have been attacked, you've got these terrible campus protests with a lot of anti-semitic overtones all over our country, and you also have him trying to micromanage the Israeli response to them being attacked. Do I think it's reasonable to look at this situation and say that if you're a Jewish-American who cares about the State of Israel, who cares about these anti-semitic riots and say, you should be on the side of Republicans in 2024 because they govern effectively on some of the issues that you care about? I think it's a totally reasonable argument to make, and I think that Donald Trump's going to keep on making it.  BASH: You know, historically, the notion of saying to Jews, “you should put Israel first and what happens in Israel first”, and not sort of consider them American citizens first has been used as an anti-semitic trope. Do you- do you recognize that there and perhaps that language isn't exactly on point when you're talking about something that is very, very sick- it’s a tinderbox right now. VANCE: We have to remember, Donald Trump is very direct here…  BASH:: Well, you said he was right. VANCE: …and he hasn't singled out Jewish-Americans. He singled out a lot of people for voting for Joe Biden and suggesting they've got to wake up and elect him as president in 2024. So I don't think there's any effort to single out Jewish-Americans, and just on that particular question about tropes, I mean, look, we know that Jewish-Americans and non Jewish-Americans care about our ally, Israel. We know that Jewish-Americans and non Jewish-Americans care a lot about these ridiculous protests. I actually have a friend of mine whose brother was graduating from Columbia, who had the graduation ceremony canceled. And that's a non-Jewish person who cares a lot about these anti-semitic protests. So I think the fact that Donald Trump is talking about Jews in that particular context does not mean he doesn't think the same lessons apply to a whole host of American citizens. BASH: Yeah, because he did say that any Jewish person who voted for Joe Biden should be ashamed of themselves. I want to move on.  VANCE: But he’s made similar comments about a lot of different groups of people, Dana. I don't think anybody could look at the presidency and the conduct of Donald Trump and say, this is a person who's somehow anti-semitic. And I think whether you're Jewish or not, you should be looking at the record of Joe Biden BASH: He had dinner with Nick Fuentes, who is an avowed anti-semite.  VANCE: Dana, you should look at the record of Joe Biden and recognize that, whether you’re Jewish or not, his presidency has been a disaster for the American people.  

SHAMELESS: Sunday Shows Pull Reagan Appeal To Authority Card On Pro-Israel GOPs

Much has changed in America over the years, but one tradition remains; the use of hymnals on Sundays. Not in churches, though- but by the Regime Media who on the Lord’s Day will often squawk out the same talking point. Today’s media hymn: the clumsy appeal to authority citing Ronald Reagan, as justification for President Joe Biden’s decision to withhold munitions shipments to Israel in protest of the Rafah offensive. Watch as Sen. Tom Cotton absolutely SHUTS DOWN Margaret Brennan’s attempt at an appeal to Reagan’s authority on CBS Face the Nation, as aired on Sunday, May 12th, 2024: MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you more broadly, because people like Senator van Hollen, who is going to be on here, will talk about the principle and the spirit and the meaning of U.S. law. And you know that past presidents have withheld military aid to Israel to force changes in behavior. President Reagan did that. President Bush did that. Why do you have a problem with President Biden doing that? TOM COTTON: Well- first off, when you talk about the principle and the spirit of U.S. law, it seems to me like they're not talking about the letter of U.S. Law, because Tony Blinken's own report concluded they did not violate U.S. law. Ronald Reagan’s decision to pause the delivery of fighter jets in the '80s was totally different from what happens here- what’s happened here. Israel is fighting a war of survival against a terrorist group that committed the worst atrocity against Jews since World War II. In the 1980s, an Israeli ambassador had been targeted for assassination. Ronald Reagan knew that the pause of fighter jets would not interfere with Israel's fighting, because they had plenty of fighters. They did not pause munitions. Joe Biden is not sending munitions in the middle of a shooting war that’s a war of survival, and look at the broader context. Israel knew that Ronald Reagan had its back in the region. He sank half of Iran's navy. Joe Biden has consistently given Iran hundreds of billions of sanctions relief that exactly funded groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. BRENNAN: And you know that they dispute that and they are still sending weapons. The Regime Media are either disgusted by Ronald Reagan and hate everything he stands for, or too young to remember Reagan but know just enough to reflexively hate him because he is still revered by conservatives. Regardless of individual circumstance, the deployment of the appeal to Reagan’s authority is intended to serve the same purpose: to cow Republicans into compliance with whatever issue the Regime Media is advocating for on any given day: in this instance, Biden’s aforementioned hold on munitions transfers to Israel. In Brennan’s case, her hollow attempt at an appeal to Reagan’s authority is so thoroughly shut down by Cotton that she has little choice but to revert to White House talking points.   NBC’s Kristen Welker attempted the same tactic with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on NBC’s Meet the Depressed, with similar results: NBC’s @kwelkernbc also suddenly found wisdom in Ronald Reagan, relaying a Democratic talking point she attributed to “historians.” To @LindseyGrahamSC: “Historians would say ‘why is it okay for Reagan to do it and not President Biden?’” #MTP pic.twitter.com/jM9BR1GFVh — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 12, 2024 So incensed is Graham at the empty appeal to authority that he stomps all over Welker’s use of a variant of “critics say”- “military officials say”. What military officials were these, precisely? And how were these unnamed military officials able to preemptively react to Graham’s answer on the decision to drop nuclear bombs on Japan? One suspects that Graham was knowingly addressing “General Tristan Melker” here.  And on ABC This Week, we get Martha Raddatz using Reagan’s decision on fighter jets as an “aha” against House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX): ABC’s @MarthaRaddatz sees wisdom in Reagan to defend Biden. To @RepMcCaul: “You regularly invoke...Reagan. You heard Sen Coons bring up the fact he paused weapons to Israel as well. You constantly ask yourself,what would Ronald Reagan do? That’s what Ronald Reagan did” #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/EpNTpXC1cg — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 12, 2024 The media despise Ronald Reagan and everything he stood for, including and especially the principles of Peace through Strength as pertains to American foreign policy. But they are unafraid to use Reagan against today’s Republicans in an attempt to score points in support of the Biden administration. Remember Alinsky’s Rule Four: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” Today the Alinskyites in the media failed, and did so miserably. Click "expand" to view transcripts of the aforementioned interview segments as aired on their respective programs on Sunday, May 12th, 2024: NBC MEET THE PRESS: KRISTEN WELKER: But let me ask it this way, because President Biden is not the first president to use armed shipments to try to influence Israeli policy. As you know former president Ronald Reagan on multiple occasions withheld weapons to impact Israel's military actions. Did President Reagan show that using U.S. military aid as leverage can actually be an effective way to rein in and impact Israel's policy? LINDSEY GRAHAM: When you're telling the world you’re gonna restrict weapons delivery to the Jewish state who is fighting a three-front war for their survival, it embowdens Iran, it emboldens Hamas. (Yahya) Sinwar is probably juiced up on the idea there’s daylight between the United States and Israel. The hostage deal is harder. This the worst decision in the history of the U.S.- Israel relationship, to deny weapons at a time the Jewish state can be destroyed, so here's what I would say. There is some hope we can get over this. Non-negotiable, the destruction of Hamas. Nobody in Israel will allow Hamas to be standing militarily or politically when this is over. How we get there is subject to negotiation. My problem is not with the weapons that Israel is using. My problem is with the tactics that Hamas is using, and the idea that America would not send a nickel of aid echoed by a United States Senator when all of the Jews are trying to be killed by radical Islamic groups tells us where we are at as a nation. The Republican Party is with Israel without apology. WELKER: But historians would say, “why is it OK for Reagan to do it and not President Biden, but let me ask you about the big deal” GRAHAM: Well, why is it OK- can I say this? Why is it OK for America to not two- to drop two nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end their existential threat war? Why was it OK for us to do that? I thought it was OK.  WELKER: Senator?  GRAHAM: So Israel, do whatever you have to do to survive as a Jewish state. WHATEVER YOU HAVE TO DO. (CROSSTALK) WELKER: Senator- again, military officials say the technology has changed. But let me ask you about how all of this could impact the-- let me ask-- let me ask you something. GRAHAM: Yeah, these military officials that you’re talking about are full of crap. ABC THIS WEEK: MARTHA RADDATZ: You regularly invoked- or invoke former President Ronald Reagan. You heard Senator Coons bring up the fact that he paused weapons to Israel as well. You constantly ask yourself, “what would Ronald Reagan do?” That’s what Ronald Reagan did. MICHAEL MCCAUL: Well, I think- look. I think in this case to say, look. I'm all for the humanitarian piece here, and that can be done. But I am not for saying -- what the president said is different. He said, I- if they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons, period. He didn't say something else. That's what he said, and I have to go by his words because you know what? They're not giving us any information. The State Department, this administration, have been- not been transparent- they’ve been hiding the 8-ball, and that’s what he said.  

ABC’s Mary Bruce Invents Weird New ‘Anti-Semitic Trope’ With Which To Smear Trump

In what appears to be a desperate attempt to shield President Joe Biden from the fallout of his decision to block munitions shipments to Israel, ABC Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce has crafted a strange new “antisemitic trope” with which to smear former President Donald Trump. Watch as Bruce uncorks this so-called trope during her coverage of Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza: MARY BRUCE: Tonight, many Republicans now accusing Biden of abandoning a critical ally, including Donald Trump, who today repeated an anti-semitic trope questioning Jewish voters who stand by the president. REPORTER: Mr. President, any comment? DONALD TRUMP: If any Jewish person voted for Joe Biden, they should be ashamed of themselves. He's totally abandoned Israel. Irrespective of one’s feelings over Trump’s statements, they do not rise to anything more than an opinion. Black and Hispanic conservatives get excoriated by the left all the time for “voting against their self-interest”, and no one ever accuses those leftists of being anti-Black or anti-Hispanic, nor do such statements ever draw any media scrutiny. Reasonable individuals are left to won(D)er why that is.  Bruce’s fabrication of an anti-semitism where there is none smacks of media firefighting, intended to protect President Biden not just from the fallout of the munitions block, but from his own recent “very fine people” moment, as well as appearing weak on Israel.  Efforts to smear Trump’s callouts as antisemitic are no different than trying to smear as antisemites those who are critical of George Soros’ funding of radical left causes and domestic destabilization. Far from being rooted in any desire to protect Jews from discrimination or worse, they seek to shield leftists from scrutiny in the public square. Mary Bruce shamefully crossed over into White House crisis comms, far beyond her usual Biden sycophancies.  Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned interview as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Wednesday, May 9th, 2024: DAVID MUIR: Tonight, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defiant, saying, “we will stand alone”, after President Biden's threat to withhold U.S. weapons if there's a full-scale invasion of Rafah. And these tense talks over a cease-fire halted amid fury over Rafah, with so many hostages still being held by Hamas. Mary Bruce at The White House tonight. MARY BRUCE: Tonight, as President Biden threatens to further withhold U.S. weapons from Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu defiant. "If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone," he said today. Firing back after Biden, in his most direct warning yet, said the U.S. would not provide Israel with weapons to attack Rafah. JOE BIDEN:  I've made it clear to Bibi and the war cabinet, they're not going to get our support, if in fact they go in these population centers. BRUCE: It comes after the president has warned Netanyahu for weeks not to invade Rafah, where more than a million civilians are seeking refuge. But those warnings have been ignored. Netanyahu already launching what he says are limited operations inside Rafah, choking critical humanitarian aid. Biden already halting the shipment of 3,500 U.S. bombs, fearing American weapons could be used to kill more innocent Palestinians. Tonight, many Republicans now accusing Biden of abandoning a critical ally, including Donald Trump, who today repeated an anti-semitic trope questioning Jewish voters who stand by the president. REPORTER: Mr. President, any comment? DONALD TRUMP: If any Jewish person voted for Joe Biden, they should be ashamed of themselves. He's totally abandoned Israel. BRUCE: The Biden campaign quick to condemn those comments, as the president insists U.S. support for Israel's defense remains ironclad. Now, the president says the U.S. will continue to provide for Israel's defense, even as he threatens to halt sending offensive weapons to them. And tonight, those cease-fire talks are now stalled. The sticking point, we’re told, is Rafah. Israel insisting that any temporary ceasefire deal exclude their operations in what they say is a Hamas stronghold. David. MUIR: All right, Mary. Mary Bruce again tonight, thank you.  

CBS Is The Only Network To Cover Denial of Hunter Biden Dismissal Motion

n a normal world with normal media, breaking developments on the legal woes of the son of the sitting President of the United States would draw significant coverage. But we neither live in normal times nor have a normal media.  Therefore, the decision issued by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals upholding District Judge Noreika’s denial of a motion to dismiss drew minimal coverage, and only on the CBS Evening News. Watch the full report, as aired on Thursday, May 9th, 2024:    NORAH O’DONNELL: The trial against Hunter Biden on federal gun charges is on track to begin next month after a federal appeals court declined to dismiss those charges today. Hunter Biden is accused of falsifying a federal firearms form, and illegal possession of a firearm while using a narcotic. The president's son also faces federal tax charges in California, and is scheduled to stand trial later in June. He has pleaded not guilty in both cases. It goes without saying that if it were Donald Trump, Jr. who got busted on gun charges, the charges being falsely affirming one is not a drug addict on ATF 4473 for purposes of a gun purchase while smoking industrial amounts of crack, then the coverage would be significant and constant- on the gun charges, on Burisma, on everything.  CBS only mustered a scant 26 seconds on the matter but it was still 26 seconds more than ABC and NBC, which didn’t even bother to cover the story. Again, if it were Don, Jr.  Here’s some of the detail missing from CBS’s teeny-tiny report, via Politico: A federal judge in Delaware denied Hunter Biden’s bid to throw out his felony gun charges on Thursday, rejecting arguments from the president’s son that the federal prohibition on owning guns while using illegal drugs is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. Separately, a federal appeals court panel ruled against Biden earlier Thursday in another bid to have the charges against him tossed. The two decisions appear to clear the way for his case to head to trial on June 3, though his defense team can still pursue further appeals. Last year, Biden was charged with illegally buying a gun while using illegal drugs and with lying on a government form about his drug use when he made the purchase –– two separate criminal charges. Special counsel David Weiss alleges that Biden bought a gun in October 2018, a time when he was frequently using crack cocaine. Biden has spoken publicly about his struggles with drug addiction. CBS doesn’t even mention the district court denial of Hunter Biden’s Bruen defense against the gun charges, which puts many Second Amendment advocates in the unusual position of being sympathetic to the younger Biden.  The Regime Media only managed to muster a grand total of 26 seconds on Hunter Biden. If it weren’t for CBS, there’d be none at all.  

CBS Only Network To Report Indictment of Laken Riley’s Killer

The murder of University of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley shook the nation, and hammered home the real dangers to which the nation became exposed when the border was flung open on January 20th, 2021. The media has been reluctant to cover the story because it casts Democrats (generally) and President Joe Biden (specifically) in a very bad light. That reluctance continues to this day. CBS Evening News was the only national network newscast to report on the indictment of the illegal alien that murdered Laken Riley. Here is that brief report in its entirety, as aired on Wednesday, May 8th, 2024: NORAH O’DONNELL: The 26-year-old man accused of murdering Georgia nursing student Laken Riley has been indicted by a grand jury on ten new charges, including kidnapping and being a peeping Tom. The suspect, a migrant from Venezuela, is charged with killing the 22-year old while she was jogging on the University of Georgia campus in February. That brief comes in at 20 seconds. Scant, to be sure, but still 20 seconds more than ABC or NBC could muster up. The details are harrowing. Per Fox News: A Georgia grand jury on Tuesday indicted Jose Ibarra, the suspect charged in Augusta University student Laken Riley's murder, on 10 counts, court documents show. Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, is accused of killing Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, while she was out for a run along dirt trails on the University of Georgia campus in Athens on Feb. 22. The grand jury indicted Ibarra on counts of malice murder, two counts of kidnapping with bodily injury, two counts of aggravated assault with intent to rape, two counts of aggravated battery, obstructing or hindering a person from making a 911 call, tampering with evidence and being a "peeping Tom." Ibarra is accused of causing Riley's death by inflicting blunt-force trauma to her head and "asphyxiating her in a manner unknown to jurors," the indictment states. The report goes on to say that Ibarra, who is known to have ties with the murderous Tren de Aragua transnational gang, is suspected of going to the apartment of another person, a UGA staffer, to spy on her as well. The story just gets worse as details emerge. The national news media, bent on protecting Biden, will do everything they can to avoid covering this story, which hammers home the dangers of imposing open-borders policies upon a nation that wants nothing to do with them.  

Yep, the Much-Hyped CNN-Biden ‘Interview’ Was in Fact a Tongue Bath

CNN’s press release announcing anchor Erin Burnett’s sit-down with President Joe Biden promised an interview. Clearly, that didn’t happen. Instead, we got pure, unadulterated Regime Media sycophancy.  Burnett opens the interview with a thematic softball fresh off of Biden’s visit to Microsoft’s new AI data center, to be built on the site of the former Foxconn project in Wisconsin. Biden was allowed to mumble through his talking point set-pieces, with little to no follow-through. You'll be SHOCKED to discover that the former CNBC anchor offers NO pandemic recovery pushback on Biden's job creation whopper. Biden is just allowed to mumble his talking point set pieces unchecked. pic.twitter.com/F9kCD2L3uj — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 8, 2024 About those “100,000” jobs that Burnett and Biden throw around here- it should be noted that the actual site itself expects to generate 2,300 construction jobs and 2,000 permanent jobs. It’s right there on CNN’s writeup: The new center aims to create 2,300 union construction jobs and 2,000 permanent jobs over time, according to Microsoft. Microsoft said it will use the center to train about 100,000 workers across the state on generative AI by 2030, thanks in part to a partnership with United Way Wisconsin, United Way Racine and other community partners. It also plans to open a lab on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to help companies and manufacturers infuse the technology into their businesses. Watch for more of the “100,000 jobs” sleight-of-hand, small potatoes for a media that, with the recent and notable exception of Katy Tur, already let Biden get away with claiming pandemic recovery as his creation of 15 million jobs. Watch next, as Burnett frets that Biden might not have enough time to turn the economy around, to which Biden responds “I’ve ALREADY turned it around.” CNN’s @ErinBurnett empathizes with President Biden on economy: “With less than six months to go to Election Day, are you worried that you’re running out of time to turn that around?” pic.twitter.com/598wDxQVxW — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 8, 2024 The biggest and most easily verifiable whopper of the night? Biden claiming that inflation was at 9% when he took office. It was, in fact, at 1.4%, a fact that HAD to have been top of mind for the former CNBC anchor with a background in economics. But alas, no pushback or correction. Simply inexcusable. Another unchecked whopper: Biden claims the inflation rate was 9% when he took office. Inflation was in fact 1.4% in January 2021. pic.twitter.com/hLWJfwjUQa — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 8, 2024 Moving off of the economy, Burnett offered Biden a bridge from which to pander to “the youth vote”, assuming they interrupted their “free Palestine” chants at college campuses and “Little Gaza” encampments in order to watch the interview: Channeling hate agenda of terrorist-supporting anti-Semites. @ErinBurnett to Biden: “Mr. President, signs at college campuses, some say ‘Genocide Joe.’ Many of us who have gone to those campuses, sometimes we hear that chant. Do you hear the message of those young Americans?” pic.twitter.com/7WnPGehQRU — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 8, 2024 Biden also announced the holdup of weapons shipments to our ally Israel over concerns they may be used in Rafah: Beyond 2,000 lb. bombs, Biden has held up artillery shipments to Israel over Rafah concerns. pic.twitter.com/i7nZyZIhuM — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 8, 2024 Now for the January 6th nostalgia portion of the interview: Another softball from @ErinBurnett to Biden to cue up his talking points: “How seriously do you take” Trump’s “threat” to not accept election results? Biden: “The guy is not a democrat with a small d.” pic.twitter.com/JgDYrLff5v — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 8, 2024 And, finally, some Obama revivalism. What advice might the god-king offer Biden these days? “Keep doing what I’m doing”, says Biden. In her last question, @ErinBurnett relays Democratic concerns, noting Barack Obama “has said that this is an ‘all hands on deck moment,’” so “what’s his advice to you when you talk to him?” Biden: “Keep doing what I’m doing.” pic.twitter.com/5528QUrFst — Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) May 8, 2024 Most notably from the panel discussion, Scott Jennings and David Axelrod get into it over the parallels between Biden’s hold of military assistance to Israel, arguably over political considerations (see the aforementioned “youth vote” and the 18% “Uncommitted” vote in the Michigan Democrat primary), and former President Donald Trump’s call to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy- which triggered an impeachment.  .@ScottJenningsKY rightly notes parallels between Biden weapons hold and first impeachment of Trump. And, yes, the Michigan primary and 18% uncommitted vote happened AFTER Gaza City and Khan Younis offensives. pic.twitter.com/Jxhj1pWTWX — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 8, 2024 We were promised an interview. Instead, we got a tongue bath from a Regime Media bent on protecting The Precious at all costs.

I TOLD YOU SO: CBS’s Latest Trump Smear Unraveled In Less Than A Week

One of the risks inherent to Regime Media, as opposed to performing legitimate fact-based journalism, is that their Trump Derangement Syndrome drives them to say things that are easily debunkable or quickly proven wrong. Take, for example, CBS’s Chief White House Correspondent Nancy Cordes. During her report last week fretting the effect the pro-Hamas campus protests might have upon President Joe Biden’s reelection prospects, she threw in a 15-second non-sequitur accusing former President Donald Trump of making an “unfounded claim about campus demonstrators”- a fancier and more succinct “without evidence”. We flagged it the time, and memorialized it via X in anticipation of the inevitable: Laying down this marker for when it is discovered that at least ONE (1) foreign-born student and/or outside agitator was paid by some radical oligarch-funded organization. pic.twitter.com/kR0GYRjIU0 — Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) May 3, 2024 As we said when covering her broader report: Cordes’ shootdown of Trump’s statement so early into the protest fallout is arrogant to the point of recklessness. All it takes is ONE paid foreign student/agitator in order to make Cordes look like a total fool. Well, you’ll never guess what inevitably happened next. It turns out that there, in fact, are foreign-born outside agitators funded by outside organizations most charitably classified as “woke philanthropy”. As Joe Simonson reported in the Washington Free Beacon: A New York City nonprofit that received more than $12 million from Goldman Sachs' charitable arm encouraged anti-Israel activists to re-create the violent protests of  "the summer of 2020," just hours before rioters stormed and occupied a building on Columbia University’s campus. More than 100 masked and keffiyeh-clad activists convened in the People’s Forum’s Manhattan office Monday evening to plan their next moves as anti-Israel protests reach a fever pitch across the country. The meeting, which was scheduled to start at 6:45 p.m., was delayed to give protesters from Columbia time to make it downtown. Once the Columbia protesters arrived, People’s Forum executive director Manolo De Los Santos urged the group to "give Joe Biden a hot summer" and "make it untenable for the politics of usual to take place in this country." Los Santos praised Columbia students for "decid[ing] that resistance is more important than negotiations," and urged those assembled at the People’s Forum to "support our students so that the encampments can go for as long as they can." Sounds very outside agitation-y. Who funds The People’s Forum, you ask? Well: The People’s Forum’s operations are made possible in large part by a $12 million donation from Goldman Sachs’s charitable arm. The source of that money is likely Neville Roy Singham, a communist who has "long admired Maoism." Singham, an American businessman who lives in China, reportedly helps finance the Chinese Communist Party’s "propaganda worldwide," according to the New York Times. His wife, Jodie Evans, is the leader of the activist group Code Pink. Under her leadership, the group has celebrated China as "a defender of the oppressed and a model for economic growth without slavery or war." So we have woke-funded outside agitation. Where, might one ask, was this gentleman born? Per The New York Post: Manolo De Los Santos, the 35-year-old leader of the Midtown-based nonprofit The People’s Forum (TPF), came to The Bronx from his native Dominican Republic at age 5 and has made a career of spurring protests on the streets of New York City. He first traveled to Cuba in 2006 and was there as recently as March to demand an end to the US blockade against the socialist state which has been in place since 1962. Well, there you have it. A foreign-born outside agitator funded by nonprofits. As an added bonus, he got himself arrested at a campus encampment last night:  🚨BREAKING! Multiple leaders of the ALL OUT FOR RAFAH march in NYC were arrested by the NYPD while they led over a thousand pro-Palestine demonstrators in the streets of Manhattan. We will not stand for the intimidation of the NYPD. The more they try to silence us the louder we… pic.twitter.com/DlAqq5ZXH7 — The People's Forum (@PeoplesForumNYC) May 7, 2024 Will Nancy Cordes retract her smear of Trump or issue an apology? Probably not, as that would distract from her ongoing battle with ABC’s Mary Bruce for most Biden-sycophantic White House correspondent. The cost of being Regime Media is that, more often than not, you are going to be made to look ridiculous.