It is one thing for the media to discuss Wednesday’s vice presidential debate and give their analysis. It is another to openly complain about the lack of attacks one candidate made on the other. This is exactly what both NBC and CNN did in the wake of the faceoff. On Thursday morning, CNN New Day co-host John Berman worried that Kamala Harris’s coronavirus attacks were not harsh enough: “That was a choice of the way to go after the pandemic and the leader of the coronavirus task force. She didn't talk about the outbreak inside the White House. She talked about the administration not leveling with the American people.”
White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins fretted: “I thought it was interesting that she didn't bring up what the President has said about the FDA in recent days…that's not something the Senator brought up during that moment with the Vice President, as he was talking about how she's talked about vaccines.”
New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman joined in attacking the President and listed other possible lines of attack Harris could have taken:
There were a couple of times, John, where she didn't go after Pence on the coronavirus, as the evening wore on. And I was somewhat surprised by it. She did not mention the President's video yesterday, where he talked about how he had discovered a clinical cure in an experimental antibody cocktail, somehow he described getting the virus was a blessing in disguise because he had learned of this cocktail and what he believes it could do. There were moments where she clearly took it up to the line of what she has been saying, but she did not choose to go further than that.
This was a coordinated effort not just from CNN but the leftist media to score points for their favored Democratic candidates.
Immediately following the debate Wednesday night, during an NBC News Special Report, NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt similarly complained: “I felt like the coronavirus, a lot of the talking points were left on the table, given especially what we've seen over the last four, five, days involving the President.”
Rather than give the American people an honest assessment of the candidates' answers and the policies discussed, like their CNN colleagues, they instead chose to offer advice on how Harris could have attacked the Trump administration. Correspondent Andrea Mitchell responded to Holt saying:
I also thought, Lester, that there have been so many things said by the President in the video tonight, in the video when he first came back, not wearing a mask, I was surprise that the that the whole issue of masks didn't come up because the Vice President talked about mandates, but it's the advice of their own public health officials and their refusal to wear masks and all the things that they've been justly criticized for, him taking off the mask when he first came back to the White House. I was surprised that did not come up and that she didn't score on those points.
With all their post-debate egging on of Senator Harris, it is beyond clear which side the media is on.
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A transcript of the October 7 and 8 coverage is included below:
NBC’s 2020 Vice Presidential Debate: NBC News Special
10/7/20
10:33 PM ET[…]
LESTER HOLT: I'll tell you one of the things that struck me, I felt like the coronavirus, a lot of the talking points were left on the table, given especially what we've seen over the last four, five, days involving the President. I don't know if anybody else —
CHUCK TODD: You know, Lester, I had a feeling that — I think — I felt like there was a little bit of egg shell walking on that. I think that — that because of how personal it is, I — I noticed that, too and this was part of me that thought, you know what, they don't want to go there right now.
ANDREA MITCHELL: But I also thought, Lester, that there have been so many things said by the President in the video tonight, in the video when he first came back, not wearing a mask, I was surprise that the that the whole issue of masks didn't come up because the vice president talked about mandates, but it's the advice of their own public health officials and their refusal to wear masks and all the things that they've been justly criticized for, him taking off the mask when he first came back to the White House. I was surprised that did not come up and that she didn't score on those points.
New Day
10/8/20
7:00 AM ETJOHN BERMAN: …And the pandemic, as it should have been, was the first question at this debate last night. And Mike Pence was the leader of the coronavirus task force, so it took on even added importance. And this is where, I think, perhaps, Senator Harris got in some of her cleanest hits. Let's listen.
KAMALA HARRIS: The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any Presidential administration in the history of our country. And here's the thing, on January 28th, the Vice President and the President were informed about the nature of this pandemic. They were informed that it is lethal in consequence, that it is airborne, that it will affect young people, and that it would be contracted, because it is airborne. And they knew what was happening and they didn't tell you.
BERMAN: That was interesting to hear that. That was a choice of the way to go after the pandemic and the leader of the coronavirus task force. She didn't talk about the outbreak inside the White House. She talked about the administration not leveling with the American people. How do you think it landed?
MAGGIE HABERMAN [CNN Political Analyst]: So I think Kamala Harris' goal for the night was to not rock the boat. All polls show that she and Biden are ahead. So once you're winning, you don't want to do anything that will change that. I think she was trying to deliver lines and lines of attack without appearing overly aggressive, or appearing as if she was taking advantage of a situation in the White House that involves the President of the United States' health. So I think that she probably had her most effective moments in the debate at that point. There were a couple of times, John, where she didn't go after Pence on the coronavirus, as the evening wore on. And I was somewhat surprised by it. She did not mention the President's video yesterday, where he talked about how he had discovered a clinical cure in an experimental antibody cocktail, somehow he described getting the virus was a blessing in disguise because he had learned of this cocktail and what he believes it could do. There were moments where she clearly took it up to the line of what she has been saying, but she did not choose to go further than that.
ALISYN CAMEROTA: We will get to that video in a second, but Kaitlin, first, let's watch a moment where Mike Pence turned the tables.
MIKE PENCE: You continue to undermine public confidence in a vaccine, if the vaccine emerges during the Trump administration, I think is unconscionable. And Senator, I just ask you, stop playing politics with people's lives. The reality is that we will have a vaccine, we believe, before the end of this year. And it will have the capacity to save countless American lives and your continuous undermining of confidence in a vaccine is just -- it's just unacceptable.
CAMEROTA: Okay, well, what Kamala Harris then went on to say, Kaitlin, was, I trust the scientists. I'll take the vaccine if the scientists say so. I don't trust President Trump. Your thoughts?
KAITLAN COLLINS: [CNN White House Correspondent]: I thought it was interesting that she didn't bring up what the President has said about the FDA in recent days, where he has said that it's a political hit job where they've instituted this mandate that any vaccine going through a trial has to wait two months before they give their last dose to participants to make sure there aren't any harmful side effects. That's something the President has been complaining about, the White House was initially holding up before approving it finally and that's not something the Senator brought up during that moment with the Vice President, as he was talking about how she's talked about vaccines, she didn't bring up that the President himself has claimed that the FDA is doing a political hit job on him by delaying a vaccine, which they say is out of safety standards. She didn't take that opportunity. I think her other hits had her on defense at the beginning of this debate. She did not continuously hit him over it, like her aides were expecting her to do. I think actually, he had been preparing for much worse and much more sustained attacks on their coronavirus response. And we did not see that play out much longer than at the beginning of the debate.
