On Thursday, the House Judiciary Committee held its first official congressional field hearing in Yuma, Arizona on the crisis at the southern border. The GOP members of the committee showed up to hear testimony from Border Patrol agents and other members of the community who had been negatively affected by the Biden administration's refusal to secure the southern border. Every Democrat member of the committee boycotted the hearing. Democrats claimed it's a political stunt and that they weren’t given advanced notice, which Townhall has reported was a lie. All three network newscasts ignored the Democrats boycotting the hearing. Not only that, but there was no coverage of the hearing at all.
Instead of reporting on the Democrats playing hooky, ABC’s World News Tonight and CBS Evening News spent considerable time on local weather forecasts, while NBC Nightly News whined about a challenge to the constitutionality of abortion pills.
On Fox News’s Special Report, national correspondent Bill Melugin reported how “Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee [were] sounding off in Yuma, Arizona this afternoon as the committee holds its first field hearing on the border crisis.”
“Notably absent were all Democrats on the committee who say they weren't consulted, called the event a political stunt, and boycotted it,” Melugin noted.
He then read from a statement form ranking member Jerry Nadler who huffed that “Judiciary Republicans will once again not hear from any federal government witnesses at their hearing, further cementing this hearing as a brazen act of political grandstanding.”
Providing details on the trip that the Democrats irresponsibly skipped, Melugin revealed how “Republicans met with leadership at Yuma Regional Medical Center, Yuma's only hospital,” and that “the CEO there says they are on the verge of financial collapse after the hospital spent more than $20 million in six months providing care for illegal immigrants with no reimbursement and nobody to foot the bill.”
“Last night Fox News was with the Republican delegation as they received a tour of the Yuma sector from the border patrol union. The tour they say Democrats should not have boycotted,” Melugin added.
It’s obvious why the three leftist networks ignored the story. It made Democrat members of the House Judiciary Committee look terrible. ABC, CBS, & NBC couldn’t have Democrats looking bad so they refuse to cover it.
This bias by omission from the three networks was made possible by Progressive on ABC, United Healthcare on CBS, and Liberty Mutual on NBC. Their information is linked.
To read the transcript click “expand”:
FNC’s Special Report
2/23/2023
6:22:38 p.m. EasternBRET BAIER: Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee are holding a field hearing on the border crisis. Democrats boycotted the meeting in Yuma, Arizona. Correspondent Bill Melugin is there tonight with the latest.
REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH): Democrats were here and saw what we’re seeing, maybe we’d have a chance at ending this crisis and actually securing our southern border.
BILL MELUGIN: Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee sounding off in Yuma, Arizona this afternoon as the committee holds its first field hearing on the border crisis.
REP. TOM MCCLINTOCK (R-CA): While the border patrol has been overwhelmed, changing diapers and taking names, another 1.2 million known got aways have entered our country as well.
MELUGIN: Notably absent were all Democrats on the committee who say they weren't consulted, called the event a political stunt, and boycotted it. With ranking member Jerry Nadler writing in part, quote: Judiciary Republicans will once again not hear from any federal government witnesses at their hearing, further cementing this hearing as a brazen act of political grandstanding.
REP. JEFF VAN DREW (R-NJ): They owe it to you to be here today.
MELUGIN: This morning, the Republicans met with leadership at Yuma Regional Medical Center, Yuma's only hospital. The CEO there says they are on the verge of financial collapse after the hospital spent more than $20 million in six months providing care for illegal immigrants with no reimbursement and nobody to foot the bill.
DR. ROBERT TRENSCHEL: It is an unsustainable model to have a hospital like ours bear the entire burden of paying for migrant healthcare.
MELUGIN: Last night Fox News was with the Republican delegation as they received a tour of the Yuma sector from the border patrol union. The tour they say Democrats should not have boycotted.
