CNN correspondent Donie O’Sullivan went to bat for the Biden Campaign on Thursday’s edition of Anderson Cooper 360, where he said of conservative Christian concerns about Biden, “Some of these fears are fueled by misinformation.” The segment would re-air on Friday’s CNN New Central, but showing the segment a second time did not make O’Sullivan’s claims any truer.
In a pre-recorded report, O’Sullivan reported on the dangers of so-called Christian Nationalism, a scary sounding phrase with no discernible definition other than traditionally understood social conservatism. He also cited polling showing, “Forty-four percent of Americans say the Bible should have at least some influence on U.S. law.”
That poll question is meaningless because when some people hear the question, they think of Old Testament dietary laws, while other people think of not allowing men to compete on women’s sports teams, which is something everyone agreed with until a couple of years ago, but such nuances weren’t the point of O’Sullivan’s segment. His point was to portray conservatives as a bunch of out-touch, paranoid weirdos.
Interviewing an unidentified woman on the street, O’Sullivan asked, “Do you think, is America a Christian country?” After the woman affirmed she does, O’Sullivan argued with her, “But obviously in the Constitution there is that separation of church and state.”
Earlier in the segment, O’Sullivan interviewed some anti-Trump pastors and they got much easier questions, such as “Why is Christian nationalism? In your view, such a threat?” They also cited the Bible to justify their opposition to Trump’s policies on things like immigration, but they probably would answer no to the above poll question.
The woman held her ground, recalling that “Yes, but then there's also, always, when I went to public school, we were allowed to pray.”
After O’Sullivan followed up by asking what exactly she meant, “When you say Christianity is under attack in America, you're talking about in the schools, the teaching of --”
She answered, “Not so much in the schools, but just -- I just can't come up with anything right now. But I think the biggest thing is I just don't trust Joe Biden.”
In a voiceover, O’Sullivan claimed that “some of these fears are fueled by misinformation.”
After a clip of Trump discussing Biden’s Easter/Transgender Visibility Day proclamation, O’Sullivan spun “International Transgender Visibility Day takes place every year on March 31. This year, Easter Sunday also happened to fall on that day.”
No matter how many times the media pretends that Biden had nothing to do with Transgender Visibility Day, it will not change the fact that he decided to issue the proclamation acknowledging it.
A second unidentified woman was then shown claiming, “I think more that Christians are going to be discriminated against under Biden or a second term.”
After O’Sullivan asked her what that meant, she added, “By making yesterday, which was the worldwide Christian celebration of the resurrection, Transgender Day. That was quite a slap in the face.”
O’Sullivan, again, started spinning “I will just say that the days, they've had the Trans Awareness Day on the same date the past few years. It just happened that this year it fell on Easter Sunday.”
The woman replied, “Okay. Thank you for correcting me. I appreciate that.”
Two things could be said of that. First, the fact, that woman was willing to listen to facts shows that conservative Christians are not the intransigent people O’Sullivan and Biden are trying to portray them as. Second, O’Sullivan’s should make sure those facts are actually facts and not spin.
Here is a transcript for the April 11 show:
Anderson Cooper 360
4/11/2024
8:36 PM ET
DONIE O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Forty-four percent of Americans say the Bible should have at least some influence on U.S. law.
Do you think, is America a Christian country?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believed that growing up, I did.
O'SULLIVAN: Yeah. Founded as a Christian country?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it was founded as a Christian country.
O'SULLIVAN: But obviously in the Constitution there is that separation of church and state.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, but then there's also, always, when I went to public school, we were allowed to pray.
O'SULLIVAN: When you say Christianity is under attack in America, you're talking about in the schools, the teaching of –
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Not so much in the schools, but just -- I just can't come up with anything right now. But I think the biggest thing is I just don't trust Joe Biden.
O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): Some of these fears are fueled by misinformation.
DONALD TRUMP: And what the hell was Biden thinking when he declared Easter Sunday to be Trans Visibility Day?
O'SULLIVAN (voice-over): International Transgender Visibility Day takes place every year on March 31. This year, Easter Sunday also happened to fall on that day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE 2: I think more that Christians are going to be discriminated against under Biden or a second term.
O'SULLIVAN: How -- what do you mean by that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE 2: By making yesterday, which was the worldwide Christian celebration of the resurrection, Transgender Day. That was quite a slap in the face.
O'SULLIVAN: I will just say that the days, they've had the Trans Awareness Day on the same date the past few years. It just happened that this year it fell on Easter Sunday.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE 2: Okay. Thank you for correcting me. I appreciate that.
O'SULLIVAN: So do you understand it better now?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE 2: Yup. Yup. I do.
O'SULLIVAN: Okay.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I do. God loves transgenders and he wants them to come to him too.
