On Monday, the partisan network morning shows were gleeful over Georgia Democratic Senate candidate Jon Ossoff being allowed to debate an empty podium during a media-orchestrated stunt Sunday night. After the Atlanta Press Club willingly hosted the Ossoff infomercial, the NBC, ABC, and CBS broadcasts eagerly declared that incumbent Republican Senator David Perdue was a “no show” and “skipped a debate” that his campaign never agreed to in the first place.
“Battleground: Georgia. The President down south for a rally in Republicans in Georgia’s two crucial Senate runoffs. The candidates holding debates over the weekend, but one a no-show,” co-host Savannah Guthrie proclaimed at the top of NBC’s Today show. The slanted intro teed up a soundbite of Ossoff on the attack: “Your senator is refusing to answer questions and debate his opponent.”
Minutes later, correspondent Hallie Jackson repeated the DNC narrative: “Overnight, two debates and two very different scenes. Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff on stage with an empty lectern after Republican incumbent David Perdue declined to appear.”
Opening ABC’s Good Morning America, co-host Amy Robach announced: “No show. Overnight all eyes on Georgia. Those two critical Senate runoffs heating up. One of the Democrats debating an empty podium. His Republican rival refusing to appear.” Reporting from Atlanta minutes later, correspondent Steve Osunsami asserted that “sitting senator David Perdue refused to show, so Democrat Jon Ossoff stood on stage alone.” A clip ran of Ossoff sanctimoniously ranting: “Your senator is refusing to answer questions and debate his opponent because he believes he shouldn’t have to.”
Starting off CBS This Morning, co-host Tony Dokoupil was excited to tell viewers that “the state’s Senate runoff heats up with one candidate debating next to an empty podium.” In the segment that followed, fellow co-host and Democratic donor Gayle King remarked to correspondent Mark Strassmann: “Mark, there was an empty podium the other day – or last night rather – because one of those senators skipped a debate.”
Strassmann then offered campaign talking points:
Republican incumbent David Perdue skipped the debate. He would tell you that he’s already debated Democrat John Ossoff once, and so now he’s just talking directly to Georgia voters. Ossoff would tell you that Perdue skipped it because he got clobbered the first time.
Moments later, the reporter kept pushing the Democratic spin:
STRASSMANN: In Georgia’s other runoff, Democratic challenger John Ossoff, faced an empty podium. Incumbent Republican senator David Perdue was a no show.
JOHN OSSOFF: It shows an astonishing arrogance and sense of entitlement for Georgia’s senior U.S. Senator to believe he shouldn’t have to debate at a moment like this in our history.
In addition to cheering on Ossoff, the networks dismissed Republican incumbent Senator Kelly Loeffler calling out her Democratic opponent Raphael Warnock’s radicalism. On Today, Jackson didn’t even mention the criticism of Warnock. On GMA, Osunsami was aghast: “Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler kept calling her opponent, who’s a Baptist preacher, a radical.”
Though there was no such skepticism as he touted Warnock’s attacks: “Reverend Raphael Warnock accused her of cheating on investments while she was in office.” A soundbite played of Warnock claiming: “So she’s continued to misrepresent my record. She’s lied not only on me but on Jesus.”
Reference to Warnock’s radicalism on This Morning was brief, with Strassmann noting: “Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler keeps her campaign message simple. She backs President Trump all the way and sidestepped when asked if the President won re-election....She called her opponent, Reverend Raphael Warnock, a radical liberal. He described her as out of touch with Georgia voters.”
The leftist media feel their job is to either manufacture events that help Democratic candidates or cover up the radical records of Democrats.
NBC’s blatant DNC cheerleading was sponsored by Walmart, ABC’s was brought to viewers by Colgate, and CBS’s was sponsored by Advil. You can fight back by letting these advertisers know what you think about them sponsoring such content.
Here is a transcript of the December 7 coverage on NBC’s Today show:
7:01 AM ET
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Battleground: Georgia. The President down south for a rally in Republicans in Georgia’s two crucial Senate runoffs. The candidates holding debates over the weekend, but one a no-show.
JON OSSOFF [D-GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE]: Your senator is refusing to answer questions and debate his opponent.
GUTHRIE: Who holds the upper hand in the battle for the control of the Senate, straight ahead.
(...)
7:11 AM ET
DONALD TRUMP: This is a lot of people.
HALLIE JACKSON: Saturday, President Trump was in Georgia at his first rally since the election, telling supporters he’s consumed by the battle he’s waging.
TRUMP: I’ve probably worked harder in the last three weeks than I’ve ever worked in my life, doing this.
JACKSON: That rally meant to boost support for the Republican candidates ahead of two critical runoff races there, with control of the U.S. Senate at stake. Overnight, two debates and two very different scenes. Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff on stage with an empty lectern after Republican incumbent David Perdue declined to appear.
JON OSSOFF [D-GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE]: Your senator is refusing to answer questions and debate his opponent because he believes he shouldn’t have to.
JACKSON: The candidates in the other race, face-to-face, with GOP Senator Kelly Loeffler up against Reverend Raphael Warnock.
RAPHAEL WARNOCK [D-GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE]: Yes or no, Senator Loeffler, did Donald Trump lose?
SEN. KELLY LOEFFLER [R-GA]: You know, President Trump has every right to use every legal recourse available.
JACKSON: So for Republicans looking at Georgia, there are questions now about whether the President’s baseless claims of a stolen election could actually depress turnout for those really important runoffs. Democrats, for their part, are looking at the history of the state. While Joe Biden flipped it for the first time in nearly three decades in November, Georgia voters have not sent a Democrat to the Senate in something like 20 years, Savannah.
(...)
Here is a transcript of the coverage on ABC’s GMA:
7:01 AM ET
AMY ROBACH: No show. Overnight all eyes on Georgia. Those two critical Senate runoffs heating up. One of the Democrats debating an empty podium. His Republican rival refusing to appear. This morning, the control of the Senate at stake.
(...)
7:15 AM ET
ROBIN ROBERTS: Now to those critical Senate runoff races heating up in Georgia. Both seats up for grabs. Control of the Senate hanging in the balance. President Trump and former President Obama both rallying supporters and there was a fierce debate last night as well. Steve Osunsami has the latest. He’s there in Atlanta for us. Good morning, Steve.
STEVE OSUNSAMI: Good morning to you, Robin. While the President was here he kept calling for state lawmakers, Republican state lawmakers, to call a special session or do something to overturn the election that he lost. But Georgia’s Republican governor says he’s not going to do that because, frankly, it’s against the law and instead is looking forward to the runoff election. And the deadline to register to vote in that runoff election is today.
To many Georgia voters who will decide January 5th if Democrats will end up controlling both houses of Congress, the U.S. Senate debate Sunday evening was a must watch.
SEN. KELLY LOEFFLER [R-GA]: You’ve just heard radical liberal Raphael Warnock lie again.
OSUNSAMI: Like in most of her campaign ads, Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler kept calling her opponent, who’s a Baptist preacher, a radical. Reverend Raphael Warnock accused her of cheating on investments while she was in office.
RAPHAEL WARNOCK [D-GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE]: So she’s continued to misrepresent my record. She’s lied not only on me but on Jesus.
OSUNSAMI: Loeffler, who is a strong supporter of the President, struggled to give a direct answer when asked who won the election.
LOEFFLER: This process is still playing out and President Trump has every right to every legal recourse.
OSUNSAMI: In the other race, sitting senator David Perdue refused to show, so Democrat Jon Ossoff stood on stage alone.
JON OSSOFF [D-GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE]: Your senator is refusing to answer questions and debate his opponent because he believes he shouldn’t have to.
OSUNSAMI: Both parties are bringing all their big guns to Georgia. President Barack Obama here virtually for the Democrats.
BARACK OBAMA: Georgia is going to determine, ultimately, the course of the Biden presidency.
OSUNSAMI: President Trump rallied here in person for Republicans, but spent most of his time talking about the election that he lost.
DONALD TRUMP: We will still win it. We will still win it.
OSUNSAMI: The fact remains that Joe Biden won this state by about 12,000 votes, and on this week, the state’s Republican secretary of state continued to fight back against the President’s false claims of a rigged election.
BRAD RAFFENSPERGER [R-GA]: We’ve never found systemic fraud, not enough to overturn the election.
OSUNSAMI: Already nearly a million requests for absentee ballots have been filed for this runoff election. A super large number and most of those votes in the end are expected to break well for Democrats. But Republicans historically do better here in runoffs. Robin?
ROBERTS: Alright, Steve, thank you.
Here is a transcript of the coverage on CBS This Morning:
7:00 AM ET
TONY DOKOUPIL: Georgia’s Republican governor says no to the president. Governor Brian Kemp rejects Mr. Trumps demands to bypass voters and overturn Biden’s win in Georgia. Plus, the state’s Senate runoff heats up with one candidate debating next to an empty podium.
(...)
7:15 AM ET
GAYLE KING: Georgia's Governor says he cannot obey President Trump’s demand to call the legislature into session to reverse the state's presidential vote. Governor Brian Kemp says that would be illegal. The President complained bitterly about Georgia’s vote count at a weekend rally with the state’s two Republican senators who face runoffs, Mark Strassmann in Marietta, Georgia near Atlanta with more. Mark, there was an empty podium the other day – or last night rather – because one of those senators skipped a debate. Good morning.
MARK STRASSMANN: Yeah. Good morning to you, Gayle. Republican incumbent David Perdue skipped the debate. He would tell you that he’s already debated Democrat John Ossoff once, and so now he’s just talking directly to Georgia voters. Ossoff would tell you that Perdue skipped it because he got clobbered the first time. Georgia voters will decide with these runoff elections less than a month away.
SENATOR KELLY LOEFFLER: I have built my career.
STRASSMANN: Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler keeps her campaign message simple. She backs President Trump all the way and sidestepped when asked if the President won re-election.
KELLY LOEFFLER: President Trump has every right to use every legal recourse available. In our own state, we have seen time and again we have investigations that need to be completed.
STRASSMANN: She called her opponent, Reverend Raphael Warnock, a radical liberal. He described her as out of touch with Georgia voters.
RAPHAEL WARNOCK: After being in the Senate for ten months, she does not have a case to be made for why the people of Georgia should keep her there.
STRASSMANN: But at least they debated on the same stage. In Georgia’s other runoff, Democratic challenger John Ossoff, faced an empty podium. Incumbent Republican senator David Perdue was a no show.
JOHN OSSOFF: It shows an astonishing arrogance and sense of entitlement for Georgia’s senior U.S. Senator to believe he shouldn’t have to debate at a moment like this in our history.
STRASSMANN: The President campaigned for both candidates Saturday night in Georgia, spent most of his hour and a half speech complaining about his own election results. The candidates themselves spent less than three minutes on stage with the President.
DONALD TRUMP: You must go vote and vote early.
STRASSMANN: He pushed supporters to vote, while casting doubt on the process, repeating false claims he was cheated out of a victory.
TRUMP: We’ll still win it. They’re going to try to rig this election, too.
STRASSMANN: His refusal to concede has sparked a Republican battle in Georgia. He pressured Governor Brian Kemp to call the legislature into special session to overturn Joe Biden’s victory. Kemp refused again in a statement Sunday night saying, “That is not an option allowed under state or federal law.”
TRUMP: You got to make sure your governor gets a lot tougher than he has been. He has to get a lot tougher.
STRASSMANN: The President has been tough on Georgia’s Republican secretary of state. Brad Raffensperger says there was no evidence of fraud in Georgia.
BRAD RAFFENSPERGER: Right now, we don’t see anything that would overturn will of the people here in Georgia.
STRASSMANN: But many top Republicans here are worried at the way the President is trying to undermine integrity of Georgia’s elections. Here’s why, Tony. They worry Republican voters might be discouraged from showing up at next month's runoffs.
ANTHONY MASON: I will take it. Mark, thank you. Control of the senate at stake in Georgia.
