Among the major broadcast network evening newscasts, ABC’s is often the likeliest to go into over-the-top campaign propaganda for Democrats holding power. Case in point, ABC Whirled News Tonight’s coverage of President Joe Biden’s Florida speech on abortion.
Watch as anchor David Muir and Chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce being a heavy dose of hopium to their abortion coverage:
DAVID MUIR: We turn now to President Biden tonight, hoping to put the state of Florida back in play this November. Tonight, the president's major abortion rights speech in Florida, with that state's new six-week abortion ban just days now from going into effect. Mary Bruce in Florida.
MARY BRUCE: President Biden today traveling to Florida, just days before the state's strict new abortion law goes into effect. Banning the procedure at just six weeks, when many women don't even know they're pregnant.
JOE BIDEN: There's one person responsible for this nightmare, and he's acknowledged, and he brags about it, Donald Trump.
BRUCE: It's Biden's first major campaign speech on abortion, an issue he’s putting at the center of his re-election bid.
Disney-owned ABC got into the dream business with this report, and I will respectfully remind you all that a dream is a wish your heart makes. Or in this instance, a wish Muir and Bruce make- the idea that abortion will help Biden carry Florida.
The report was laden with what our friend Curtis Houck calls Team Biden apple-polishing. There was tons of that, for sure, crammed into 2 minutes and 11 seconds. After the usual Biden talking point-parroting, Bruce trots out someone from out of state to talk about how abortion is on the ballot.
And then Bruce proves the dangers of being an Acela type parachuting into a state to talk local politics. She closes out her report by saying:
BRUCE: And Florida is one of 14 states where abortion could be on the ballot in November The Biden campaign hoping that could put this state in play for them. They know every time the issue's been on the ballot, even in red states, abortion rights have won.
In fact, an abortion question is on the Florida ballot in November. Not “could be”. Bruce might have known this had she read about it on ABC News dot com. A little more reading would’ve yielded the fact that recreational marijuana is also on the ballot, and that Florida Republicans have in the past won elections where there are also liberal ballot questions before the voters.
Consider the sparse attendance at Biden’s Florida events where he was hyping abortion despite abortion already being on the ballot. Abortion isn’t the driver that Bruce and Muir are telling viewers it is.
But, alas, those apples aren’t going to polish themselves.
Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned report as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Tuesday, April 23rd, 2024:
DAVID MUIR: We turn now to President Biden tonight, hoping to put the state of Florida back in play this November. Tonight, the president's major abortion rights speech in Florida, with that state's new six-week abortion ban just days now from going into effect. Mary Bruce in Florida.
MARY BRUCE: President Biden today traveling to Florida, just days before the state's strict new abortion law goes into effect. Banning the procedure at just six weeks, when many women don't even know they're pregnant.
JOE BIDEN: There's one person responsible for this nightmare, and he's acknowledged, and he brags about it, Donald Trump.
BRUCE: It's Biden's first major campaign speech on abortion, an issue he’s putting at the center of his re-election bid. Florida one of 21 states to ban or severely restrict abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Trump boasts of appointing three of the justices who struck Roe down.
DONALD TRUMP: We broke Roe v. Wade, and we did something that nobody thought was possible. We gave it back to the states. And the states are working very brilliantly.
BRUCE: Today, Biden calling Trump out.
BIDEN: Individual state laws are working, in his words, brilliantly. Brilliantly. It's a six-week ban in Florida, it's really brilliant, isn't it? Even before women know they're pregnant. Is that brilliant?
BRUCE: Biden is counting on the issue to energize voters, especially women. He was introduced today by Kaitlyn Joshua of Louisiana. She was almost 12 weeks pregnant when she suffered a miscarriage. When she showed up at the hospital bleeding, doctors refused to treat her, afraid of running afoul of Louisiana’s near-total abortion ban.
KAITLYN JOSHUA: Another hospital basically just told me they would send me home with prayers, but were not able to medically diagnose miscarriage.
BRUCE: They said they would send you home with prayers…
JOSHUA: Correct.
BRUCE: …but couldn't give you medical advice?
JOSHUA: That's correct.
BRUCE: Her message to women tonight --
JOSHUA: Abortion is absolutely on the ballot this year. If this is not a topic that you think is going to touch you or doesn't touch you currently. It absolutely will.
BRUCE: And Florida is one of 14 states where abortion could be on the ballot in November The Biden campaign hoping that could put this state in play for them. They know every time the issue's been on the ballot, even in red states, abortion rights have won. David.
MUIR: Mary Bruce, traveling with the president in Florida. Mary, thank you.
