All three morning shows on Friday highlighted Barack Obama’s trip to Britain. However, only CBS saw it as “very controversial” and explained why one prominent British leader is calling the President a “bully.” ABC ignored the fact that Obama is in the country to lobby Britons to stay in the European Union. NBC noted that the Commander in Chief wrote an op-ed lecturing another country on an important decision, but the network didn’t find it divisive.
On CBS This Morning, however, Norah O’Donnell insisted that Obama “arrived with a message that some British politicians say he should have left at home.” Reporter Margaret Brennan added, “The official reason for the visit by the President and First Lady is lunch with the queen to celebrate her 90th birthday. But the timing is very controversial.”
The British people will vote to stay in or leave the E.U. on June 23. In an op-ed for the British Telegraph, the President instructed, "As your friend, let me say that the E.U. Makes Britain even greater." CBS’s Brennan explained the outrage this caused:
MARGARET BRENNAN: But skeptics like London mayor Boris Johnson are accusing Mr. Obama of being a bully, writing, "The U.S. guards its democracy with more hysterical jealousy than any other country on Earth. It's a breathtaking example of the principle do as I say, but not as I do."
One wouldn’t know Obama was making a controversial trip on ABC. GMA co-host Amy Robach breezily noted, “The Obamas are enjoying a royal filled Friday in London dining with Queen Elizabeth one day after her 90th birthday and joining Prince William, Kate and Harry this evening.”
Speaking of the Queen greeting the Obamas as they arrived, Terry Moran gushed: “That was such a warm moment, the Queen herself in an extraordinary gesture of friendship coming out with Prince Phillip to greet the Obamas. President Obama, the 12th U.S. President she has seen during her reign.”
The European Union never came up. On NBC’s Today, the hosts focused heavily on the celebrity angle of the trip. Co-host Savannah Guthrie allowed a sentence to note: “In an op-ed published in a British newspaper, the President is urging Britons to stick together and not leave the European Union. A vote on that contentious issue is in two months.”
That was it. No focus on the outrage.
A transcript of the CBS This Morning segment is below:
4/22/16
7am teaseGAYLE KING: President Obama begins his European tour by dining with Queen Elizabeth, but the timing of his visit is very controversial.
...
7:17am ETNORAH O'DONNELL: President Obama is in London this morning. He arrived with a message that some British politicians say he should have left at home. Margaret Brennan is traveling with the president. She's outside the houses of Parliament. Margaret, good morning.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Good morning. Well, the official reason for the visit by the President and First Lady is lunch with the queen to celebrate her 90th birthday. But the timing is very controversial. The President is helping prime minister David Cameron win a tough upcoming vote. He's trying to convince Britons to stay members of the E.U. That's the 28-nation club that binds European countries together. In an op-ed today, the President wrote, quote, "As your friend, let me say that the E.U. Makes Britain even greater."
But skeptics like London mayor Boris Johnson are accusing Mr. Obama of being a bully, writing, "The U.S. guards its democracy with more hysterical jealousy than any other country on Earth. It's a breathtaking example of the principle do as I say, but not as I do." Well, the President's going to hold a press conference later today with David Cameron to emphasize the special relationship. And the Obamas will end the day on a less scandalous notes, having dinner with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, better known as will and Kate. Charlie?
