Broadcasting's brazen Trump-bashers
The Meet the Press panel of June 4 consisted of conservative Hugh Hewitt confronted by the three anti-Trump zealots: the #NeverTrump conservative Michael Gerson and leftists Heather McGee and Stephanie Cutter.
Three against one – plus, of course, leftist Chuck Todd. NBC's idea of "balance." The tape of the program – supported by the transcript – makes it evident that Hewitt had a difficult time speaking. Cutter in particular did her utmost to stifle Hewitt – but that's what the left does: strive to suppress those holding different views. The transcript indicates that Cutter had no patience with Hewitt's references to the Constitution, preferring to spout ad hominem comment to silence the conservative.
Over at ABC's This Week, June 4, chief moderator George Stephanopoulos invited Susan Rice, President Obama's national security adviser, to criticize and attack President Trump. The rule apparently is: no Democrat is to be challenged on This Week. Accordingly, when Rice asserted that "there's really no evidence to suggest that ... banning Muslims or banning Muslims from a particular set of six countries" would make the U.S. safer, Stephanopoulos did not respond, "But didn't President Obama act to restrict travel to the United States from those 'six countries,' and wasn't the Obama restrictions the predicate for the countries mentioned in the Trump travel bans?"
Rice also told Stephanopoulos, with reference to the report that Trump aide Jared Kushner sought a backdoor channel to the Russians, that she never heard of an attempt of a U.S. officials to "hide their conversation from the United States government." She called this "extraordinary, if not mind-boggling[.]" Of course, Stephanopoulos did not respond: "But don't we have the case of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton using her personal email server to hide communications from...well, the U.S. government?"
And at Face the Nation, June 4, moderator John Dickerson listened to Sen. Mark Warner say: "And, you know, frankly, no matter what you thought about Jim Comey, the fact that the president disparaged him with comments in front of the Russians is just unacceptable." Warner did not provide the words of the alleged disparagement. And Dickerson, of course, did not respond: "But, Senator, didn't Sen. Reid send Comey a vituperative letter, October 30, 2016, suggesting that he was unfair to Secretary Clinton to the point of perhaps violating the Hatch Act, and didn't Reid conclude the letter by accusing Comey of lacking principles?"
For "balance," Dickerson included Sen. Susan Collins on the program. And she performed as any pseudo-Republican would, telling Dickerson that the James Comey appearance, June 8, before the Senate Intelligence Committee "will give us a chance to give his perspective on the issue of Russian involvement and also on the issue of collaboration or collusion." Leave it to Susan Collins to add "collaboration" to the anti-Trump innuendo from the forces intent on overturning the 2016 presidential election.
Fox News Sunday, June 4, did provide a fleeting moment of lucidity. During a panel discussion, Juan Williams raised the anti-Trump "obstruction of justice" banner. Brit Hume gently pointed out that the only crime identified so far was the unmasking and leaking of Mike Flynn. Williams then asserted that Flynn met with the Russian ambassador "[t]o try to undercut the Obama sanctions. That doesn't bother you? Come on."
Hume answered "That's not a – that's not a crime."
Williams: "Oh, OK."