Just as he did on 2016, longtime liberal NBC journalist Tom Brokaw chimed in during the peacock network’s 2020 election returns early Wednesday morning. Not only did Brokaw credit President Trump for having been “very clever” in calling for Americans to return to work amid the coronavirus pandemic, but he also denounced Black Lives Matter riots for “robbing stores” and “tipping over cars.”
NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt probably wasn’t ready for any of this when he tossed to Brokaw, offering him the floor to “[g]ive us your observations of what we're seeing and — versus what a lot ever expectations were going into this night.”
Brokaw began by saying that he’s “been covering presidential politics in this country since 1968” and thus he’s “seen a lot of changes,” but “I have never seen the country as deeply and sharply divided as it is now.”
After saying that Trump “surpris[ed] everybody” in 2016 and seemed to be doing so a second time, Brokaw said that Trump “made a very clever move in the last couple of weeks in which he said to the country, go back to work,” “get the economy going again,” “earn some money[,] and get your business going again.”
“I think it helped him a lot. People were wanting to hear that,” Brokaw added.
Moments later, Brokaw reiterated that Trump was “very clever” to say that even though “[h]e’s dead wrong” about the pandemic getting better because it’ll “get worse, not better and, in fact, this country is going to be under the very dark cloud of that for the foreseeable future.”
As for Black Lives Matter, Brokaw stated that there’s been “difficulty” in America with “police shooting black people under circumstances that were indefensible” and “[t]here were a lot of white people who were supporting the black demonstrators.”
Brokaw then flipped the script on the Black Lives Matter movement, saying that they lost support from said “white people” when “the black demonstrators kind of lost control and they were not just demonstrating anymore, they were going into streets and they were robbing stores and they were tipping over cars and it went on most of the summer.”
He continued: “How much of that had to do with it I'm not sure. But it was a long way from Dr. King who was so successful with a program of nonviolence. So how that played into all of this, I don't know.”
There was clearly some discomfort on the NBC set as Holt took back the stage from Brokaw:
All of — yeah, we are confronting a lot. And of course, a lot of peaceful passion in the streets. Tom, thanks. And we should note that while some important things have gone Donald Trump's way, this is — we are not — no one is near 270 right now, so a lot to cover here.
The discomfort on NBC was made possible by advertisers such as Volvo. Follow the link to the MRC’s Conservatives Fight Back page.
To see the relevant NBC transcript from November 4, click “expand.”
NBC News Special: Decision 2020 Election Night
November 4, 2020
12:12 a.m. EasternLESTER HOLT: Tom Brokaw is up. NBC News senior correspondent, veteran of more than a half century of presidential elections. Tom Brokaw joins us. Tom, great to see you. Give us your observations of what we're seeing and — versus what a lot ever expectations were going into this night.
TOM BROKAW: You know, I've been covering presidential politics in this country since 1968. And I've seen a lot of changes. I have never seen the country as deeply and sharply divided as it is now and it's the second cycle of this kind of division with President Trump surprising everybody the first time and, fair to say, surprising everyone a second time with his strong showing. I think he made a very clever move in the last couple of weeks in which he said to the country, go back to work. It's time to get the economy going again. COVID, we're close to getting that solved so you can go back and earn some money and get your business going again. I think it helped him a lot. People were wanting to hear that. I also think over the course of the last year, there's been some difficulty. And, if you will, in the country about police shooting black people under circumstances that were indefensible. And at the end of the episode, there were a lot of white people who were supporting the black demonstrators until the black demonstrators kind of lost control and they were not just demonstrating anymore, they were going into streets and they were robbing stores and they were tipping over cars and it went on most of the summer. How much of that had to do with it I'm not sure. But it was a long way from Dr. King who was so successful with a program of nonviolence. So how that played into all of this, I don't know. But I think in the last couple of weeks that Trump made a very clever move by saying you can go back to work. He's dead wrong. COVID virus is going to get worse, not better. And, in fact, this country is going to be under the very dark cloud of that for the foreseeable future. So however this turns out tonight, we've got a lot of things to worry about in this country. The only way we're going to get them resolved is to find a way to work together.
HOLT: All of — yeah, we are confronting a lot. And of course, a lot of peaceful passion in the streets. Tom, thanks. And we should note that while some important things have gone Donald Trump's way, this is — we are not — no one is near 270 right now, so a lot to cover here.
