Covering President Obama’s Sunday night address on Monday’s CBS This Morning, co-host Norah O’Donnell turned to White House correspondent Major Garrett for “new insight on why the President spoke last night.” After briefly noting “lukewarm” reviews of the speech, Garrett proceeded to parrot administration talking points excusing the President’s poor performance.
Garrett began by declaring: “...it was the consensus this administration was losing control, losing grip on the entire national conversation about ISIS and the President needed to get involved in that conversation to try to accomplish three things. First, to convey to the nation that the campaign against ISIS is more muscular and more aggressive.”
He continued: “The President also wanted to address the gun control argument, even though the political climate on Capitol Hill with Republicans in control of the House and Senate remains hostile. The President believes the fact pattern in San Bernardino strengthens, not weakens, his gun control argument and he wanted to make that case.”
Wrapping up the list, Garrett noted: “Thirdly, and possibly most importantly, when you talk to people at the White House, the President believes that the country could turn on itself. And this message of tolerance for Muslim Americans is not just about that, pure tolerance, but it is a counterterrorism strategy.”
Garrett never bothered to fact-check any of assertions made in the White House spin. He concluded the segment by touting how Obama “has long relied on speeches and ignored short-term analysis to play what we always talk about here at the White House as President Obama's long game, whether it's rhetoric or strategy to defeat ISIS.”
ABC’s Good Morning America labeled the President’s speech as “rare” and “historic.” In a report on the topic, correspondent Jon Karl highlighted Obama lecturing Americans on intolerance: “The President also answered his critics who called for a war against radical Islam. He instead labeled ISIS a cult of death that does not represent Muslims....[he] urged Americans not to demonize Muslims in the United States, saying they're our friends, neighbors, and our co-workers.”
In sharp contrast to CBS and ABC, NBC’s Today provided harsh criticism of the President’s remarks, with Bloomberg’s Mark Halperin and correspondent Andrea Mitchell both being dismayed by Obama’s “stay the course” mentality on fighting ISIS.
Here is a full transcript of Garrett’s December 7 report on CBS This Morning:
7:03 AM ET
CHARLIE ROSE: President Obama says the terror attack in San Bernardino, California shows terrorism is in a new phase. In a primetime speech last night, he said America will overcome the threat.
NORAH O’DONNELL: The President's address was his first from the Oval Office in five years. He laid out his plan to defeat ISIS, also known as ISIL. He also urged Americans to remember the country's values.
BARACK OBAMA: We will destroy ISIL and any other organization that tries to harm us. Our success won't depend on tough talk or abandoning our values or giving into fear. That's what groups like ISIL are hoping for. We cannot turn against one another by letting this fight be defined as a war between America and Islam. That, too, is what groups like ISIL want. ISIL does not speak for Islam. They are thugs and killers, part of a cult of death. And they account for a tiny fraction of a more than a billion Muslims around the world, including millions of patriotic Muslim Americans who reject their hateful ideology.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: The Evolving Threat; President Speaks on ISIS, Gun Control & Tolerance]
O’DONNELL: Major Garrett is at the White House and he has new insight on why the President spoke last night. Major, good morning.
MAJOR GARRETT: Good morning, the reviews are in, they’re lukewarm to be charitable, and the White House was bracing for precisely that. So why did the President give an Oval office address that had no new news, no initiatives or ideas or military strategies against ISIS? Well, the genesis of the speech started Saturday here at the White House.
After the President met with his national security team, it was the consensus this administration was losing control, losing grip on the entire national conversation about ISIS and the President needed to get involved in that conversation to try to accomplish three things. First, to convey to the nation that the campaign against ISIS is more muscular and more aggressive. There are more U.S. bombing runs, the British are now bombing in Syria, there are troop commitments from Germany, and there is much greater intelligence sharing with the French.
The President also wanted to address the gun control argument, even though the political climate on Capitol Hill with Republicans in control of the House and Senate remains hostile. The President believes the fact pattern in San Bernardino strengthens, not weakens, his gun control argument and he wanted to make that case.
Thirdly, and possibly most importantly, when you talk to people at the White House, the President believes that the country could turn on itself. And this message of tolerance for Muslim Americans is not just about that, pure tolerance, but it is a counterterrorism strategy. The President believes it is crucial that this country maintain good solid working relationships with the Muslim community in this country, not just as an matter of tolerance, but as a matter of counterterrorism success, being able to detect, infiltrate, and potentially stop terrorist attacks before they start.
Now, there was a good deal of conversation about whether this president should give this address today or possibly tonight. But the President wanted the largest primetime audience he could find, Sunday was it. He knows the reviews are tepid, but this President has long relied on speeches and ignored short-term analysis to play what we always talk about here at the White House as President Obama's long game, whether it's rhetoric or strategy to defeat ISIS. Gayle?
GAYLE KING: Alright, Major, thank you very much.
