ABC’s World News Tonight closed out the show Monday evening with a spotlight on President Barack Obama snorkeling off the coast of Hawaii for the National Geographic Channel. Anchor David Muir could barely contain his joy as he led into his report. “Finally tonight here, President Obama taking a dive in a place he helped protect,” he stated, while sounding elated.
“They’re images unlike anything we have seen before,” hyped Muir, “A sitting president snorkeling in open waters.” The location the president was swimming in was Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. The president expanded the size of the protected monument area through an executive order back in August of 2016.
According to LiveScience, the president expanded the area “after Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), along with conservationists and marine scientists, urged the president to protect the region's waters and marine life.” “The monument is now 582,578 square miles … an area more than twice the size of Texas,” they added.
Muir was completely enamored with Obama’s remembrance of his mother, “It's a place he grew up with, a place he told the magazine that, along with his mother, helped shape his love of nature.” “She’s the kind of person who would wake me up to see a full moon if it was particularly spectacular. Yeah, so I give her a lot of credit,” Obama told NatGeo.
“11 days before the next president, the current one and a question he’s often asked,” Muir coyly fawned:
People always ask, “Why do I stay calm in the midst of crazy stuff going on?” Well, I always tell people, I think part of it’s being born in Hawaii and knowing what it's like to jump into the ocean and understanding what it means when you see a sea turtle in the face of a wave.
The president’s interview was a part of a National Geographic Channel documentary titled “Sea of Hope.” The program also highlights the discovery of a new fish species, which had been named after the president. Tosanoides Obama is its scientific name, but it’s also known as the “hope fish.”
While ABC and Muir were swooning for Obama snorkeling in the calm waters off the coast of Hawaii, they were turning a blind-eye to the turbulent waters of the Strait of Hormuz where the USS Mahan was harassed by Iranian boats and was forced to fire warning shots.
Transcript below:
<<< Please support MRC's NewsBusters team with a tax-deductible contribution today. >>>
ABC
World News Tonight
January 9, 2017
6:57:45 PM EasternDAVID MUIR: Finally tonight here, President Obama taking a dive in a place he helped protect.
[Cuts to video]
MUIR: They’re images unlike anything we have seen before. A sitting president snorkeling in open waters. Captured by National Geographic for their February issue. President Obama swimming in the pacific in an area around the Hawaiian Islands that he protected under executive order. It's a place he grew up with, a place he told the magazine that, along with his mother, helped shape his love of nature.
BARACK OBAMA: She’s the kind of person who would wake me up to see a full moon if it was particularly spectacular. Yeah, so I give her a lot of credit.
MUIR: 11 days before the next president, the current one and a question he’s often asked.
OBAMA: People always ask, “Why do I stay calm in the midst of crazy stuff going on?” Well, I always tell people, I think part of it’s being born in Hawaii and knowing what it's like to jump into the ocean and understanding what it means when you see a sea turtle in the face of a wave.
[Cuts back to live]
MUIR: Stunning images. The documentary, Sea of Hope airs this weekend on the National Geographic Channel. I'm David Muir. I hope to see you right back here tomorrow. Until then, have a great evening.
