President Trump was in Fort Myers, Florida on Thursday where he surveyed the damage from Hurricane Irma first hand. He also met with local officials and even served food to some of the survivors. But one could easily miss any mention of the event on ABC’s and NBC’s evening broadcasts since each of those networks only dedicated six seconds to the President’s visit while burying it in reports slamming him.
On NBC Nightly News, White House Correspondent Peter Alexander hid the news of the President’s travel at the end of a report about how Trump had made no progress on building the wall on the southern border.
“And tonight on the trip back from touring hurricane damage in Florida where he tried to buck up storm survivors and local officials, President Trump was asked about meeting with the Senate's only African-American Republican yesterday, and again brought up his controversial comments after Charlottesville,” Alexander Slammed.
He also appeared to defend the ultra-violent leftist group known as Antifa, lamenting that Trump “in his words, “bad dudes,” not just among the white supremacists but among the left-wing anti-fascist groups that came out to confront them.” Between Chuck Todd’s willingness to give the group a platform on his shows and Katy Tur questioning the ‘pitfalls of free speech,’ it appears to be a company policy to defend the leftist violence.
ABC White House Correspondent Cecilia Vega briefly mentioned Trump’s trip on World News Tonight, before moving on to complaining about the administration’s mixed signals on the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA).
“President Trump in Florida today surveying the damage on the ground,” She noted as she played a very short clip of Trump speaking to local people. “And talking to reporters about his bombshell support of a deal with Democrats to protect the Dreamers.”
CBS, on the other hand, ran an entire report on the President’s visit and aid efforts. Reporter Carter Evens even highlighted a local Trump supporter praising the President:
DONALD TRUMP: He has a couple of questions. Go ahead.
TRUMP SUPPORTER: Where was Obama in the last hurricane? He was playing golf.
DONALD TRUMP: Was this a good vote?
TRUMP SUPPORTER: The Best.
DONALD TRUMP: He said the best vote of his life.
Thursday clearly demonstrated how ABC and NBC blatantly chose to overlook the positive things Trump and his administration were doing in favor of harping on their negative narrative. This came 24 hours after both networks were praising Trump for eating with and sounding like Democrats. Oh, how fickle the liberal media can be.
Transcripts below:
NBC Nightly News
September 14, 2017
7:08:46 PM Eastern(…)
PETER ALEXANDER: And tonight on the trip back from touring hurricane damage in Florida where he tried to buck up storm survivors and local officials, President Trump was asked about meeting with the Senate's only African-American Republican yesterday, and again brought up his controversial comments after Charlottesville that there were, in his words, “bad dudes,” not just among the white supremacists but among the left-wing anti-fascist groups that came out to confront them. Lester?
...
ABC
World News Tonight
September 14, 2017
6:38:14 PM Eastern [6 seconds on the trip to Florida](…)
CECILIA VEGA: President Trump in Florida today surveying the damage on the ground.
DONALD TRUMP: We are there for you 100 percent.
VEGA: And talking to reporters about his bombshell support of a deal with Democrats to protect the Dreamers.
(…)
...
CBS Evening News
September 14, 2017
6:35:23 PM EasternANTHONY MASON: The President went to Florida today to see for himself the damage done by Hurricane Irma last weekend and to talk to some of the victims. Here's Carter Evans.
[Cuts to video]
CARTER EVANS: On the tarmac in Fort Myers, President Trump praised Florida Governor Rick Scott for the response to Hurricane Irma.
DONALD TRUMP: The job that Rick has done is being talked about all over.
EVANS: And couldn't resist injecting a little politics.
TRUMP: What do I know? But I hope this man right here, Rick Scott, runs for the senate.
EVANS: Aboard Marine One, the President and First Lady got an aerial view of the destruction in Naples below. On the ground, they visited a mobile home park that was badly damaged.
TRUMP: We love the people of Florida, and they went through something that I guess the likes of which we can really say nobody's ever seen before. They've never seen a category like this come in because it came in really at a 5. All you have to do is look at what happened in the keys.
EVANS: Hurricane Irma made landfall Sunday on Cudjoe key as a category 4. Later, the President handed out sandwiches and met with supporters.
TRUMP: He has a couple of questions. Go ahead.
TRUMP SUPPORTER: Where was Obama in the last hurricane? He was playing golf.
TRUMP: Was this a good vote?
TRUMP SUPPORTER: The Best.
TRUMP: He said the best vote of his life.
[Cuts back to live]
EVANS: After the President left the airport here at Fort Myers, he told reporters on Air Force one that he hopes to visit Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and possibly even the Florida Keys to see the damage for himself, perhaps as early as next week. Anthony.
MASON: Carter Evans. Thanks, Carter.
