CNN Newsroom coverage of Joe Biden's prospective national security team's Tuesday press conference celebrated the replacement of President Trump's idea of an America First foreign policy with one that is based on truth, facts, and science.
Political director David Chalian touted an end to seeking America's interests first: "The idea of America First is gone. Everything Joe Biden led this unveiling of national security and foreign policy team with was all about America at its strongest working with its allies around the world, that that is what makes America stronger. It’s just fundamentally a different approach substantively from what the Trump Administration put forth in its foreign policy." It is, and so is the sound of CNN.
The media's lazy focus on Trump's relationship with allies usually boils down to diverging views with European allies over Iran, but ignores the success of getting Israeli and Arab allies to normalize relations without solving the Palestinian question that conventional wisdom assumed was a pre-condition, as well as deepening relationships with Asian allies. The concepts of Trump and diplomacy can't possibly mesh in these fertile media minds.
But, another fundamental difference between Trump and Biden, according to Chalian is "the words that were used, vice President-Elect Harris at the end used a lot of these words, so did Joe Biden, so did a lot of the nominees when they spoke, truth, facts, science."
Chalian also hyped John Kerry's remarks about "Joe Biden's belief in God and also belief in science to protect God's work here on Earth. All of that was designed stylistically to contrast with what you're seeing day-in and day-out in the Trump Administration."\
The apple-polishing here was very energetic.
Host Brianna Keilar then turned to Susan Glasser of The New Yorker to underline their delight: "Yeah, Susan, there was an emphasis on truth, emphasis on science as well. But this was time and again, and look, Joe Biden just tweeted “America is back” Or his campaign transition tweeted that. They're signaling in a way the Trump years were departure for America and that now they're course correcting to kind of get back on track. What do you think?"
Glasser, repeating the team's "America is back" meme, noted "And it is striking that's the same language that we're using today. I do agree. Donald Trump's name was never used by a single person today, yet of course it is him and his legacy and appointees that hung over this event."
After alleging that Trump "so politicized intelligence," she claimed that Biden's team will be a bunch of technocratic truth-tellers divorced from politics, "I heard several nominees talk about the fact that this was not about politics, that they would offer a kind of expertise, a return to working together, and just as David said on a stylistic note, I haven't heard the word service used as in public service so much in the last four years as I did in a few minutes on the stage today."
Finally, Glasser returned to the question of allies, "It really was a remarkable change in tone and a message to the world I think that we're not going to be treating allies as adversaries any more certainly."
This fawning segment was sponsored by Subway.
Here is a transcript for the November 24 show:
CNN
CNN Newsroom
1:45 PM
DAVID CHALIAN: Your ears picked up on what my ears picked up on the substance piece, the idea of America First is gone. Everything Joe Biden led this unveiling of national security and foreign policy team with was all about America at its strongest working with its allies around the world, that that is what makes America stronger. It’s just fundamentally a different approach substantively from what the Trump Administration put forth in its foreign policy. Then on style, you know, the words that were used, vice President-Elect Harris at the end used a lot of these words, so did Joe Biden, so did a lot of the nominees when they spoke, truth, facts, science. The President-Elect talked about I am going to demand these folks tell me what I need to hear, not what I want to hear. Vice President-Elect Harris said Joe Biden will ask very tough questions of these people. Those are all stylistic cues, especially John Kerry’s words when he said about Joe Biden's belief in God and also belief in science to protect God's work here on Earth. All of that was designed stylistically to contrast with what you're seeing day-in and day-out in the Trump Administration.
BRIANNA KEILAR: Yeah, Susan, there was an emphasis on truth, emphasis on science as well. But this was time and again, and look, Joe Biden just tweeted “America is back” Or his campaign transition tweeted that. They're signaling in a way the Trump years were departure for America and that now they're course correcting to kind of get back on track. What do you think?
SUSAN GLASSER: Brianna, that is exactly the reason that Joe Biden ran for president and now that he is President-Elect, he is signaling he is going to fulfill that. I heard him before he announced campaign for president standing alongside future secretary of state nominee Tony Blinken at the Munich Security Conference and Joe Biden said there “hold on, world, we'll be back.”And it is striking that's the same language that we're using today. I do agree. Donald Trump's name was never used by a single person today, yet of course it is him and his legacy and appointees that hung over this event, the implicit rebukes for what would have been a cliché to say the head of intelligence will give the president of the United States open and candid advice. In the past, that was never controversial. Today, it sounds like a rebuke of the president who has so politicized intelligence. I heard several nominees talk about the fact that this was not about politics, that they would offer a kind of expertise, a return to working together, and just as David said on a stylistic note, I haven't heard the word service used as in public service so much in the last four years as I did in a few minutes on the stage today. It really was a remarkable change in tone and a message to the world I think that we're not going to be treating allies as adversaries any more certainly.
