While MSNBC was raging about the 2020 Democratic candidates not bashing President Trump enough during Wednesday’s debate, the liberal panel on CNN seemed okay with it.
“We saw a range of views on stage tonight in Miami at the Democratic debate, except on the subject of President Trump. On that, the candidates were of one voice and they didn't miss a chance to make to clear who their real opponent is,” host Anderson Cooper stated after coming back from a commercial break.
He added: “And though, Governor McAuliffe spoke to the relative scarcity of Trump mentions, there were still more than a few.”
After playing series of 10 soundbites of Democratic candidates invoking President Trump in some negative way, Cooper noticed that “you didn't hear Senator Warren saying, Donald Trump. I don't know if she actually did at some point and we just didn't put it in there.”
Seeming to reference the soundbite of Washington State Governor Jay Inslee declaring Trump “the biggest threat to the security of the United States,” former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) and former Obama adviser David Axelrod laughed about it being one of the best parts of the night:
MCAULIFFE: First of all, you've got to give Jay Inslee credit, he did have a line of the night.
AXELROD: That was a great line.
MCAULIFFE: Best line of the night.
“I think Castro at the end of the debate, didn't he say adios to Donald Trump? I thought that was a pretty good line,” chief political analyst Gloria Borger beamed.
Liberal commentator and former Hillary Clinton campaign staffer Jess McIntosh noted that the Democrat electorate already believed that Trump was the worst person ever, so they didn’t need the candidates to reiterate that:
It was more of an implicit contrast with Trump and the Trump administration than going after the man directly. Cause I think everybody watching—every Democratic primary voter already believes that Trump is an existential threat to democracy and maybe more. So, they didn't necessarily have to do that.
At least CNN was able to keep their Trump Derangement Syndrome in check and recognize that not every political debate needed to be centered on Trump. MSNBC on the other hand....bless their hearts.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
CNN’s DNC Debate Post Analysis
June 27, 2019
11:29:17 p.m. EasternANDERSON COOPER: We saw a range of views on stage tonight in Miami at the Democratic debate, except on the subject of President Trump. On that, the candidates were of one voice and they didn't miss a chance to make to clear who their real opponent is. And though, Governor McAuliffe spoke to the relative scarcity of Trump mentions, there were still more than a few. Take a look.
[Soundbites of Democratic candidates saying, President Donald Trump’s name]
COOPER: Back now with our own debate lineup. Interesting you didn't hear Senator Warren saying, Donald Trump. I don't know if she actually did at some point and we just didn't put it in there, but –
JESS MCINTOSH: She will.
TERRY MCAULIFFE: First of all, you've got to give Jay Inslee credit, he did have a line of the night.
DAVID AXELROD: That was a great line.
MCAULIFFE: Best line of the night.
(…)
GLORIA BORGER: I think Castro at the end of the debate, didn't he say adios to Donald Trump? I thought that was a pretty good line.
MCINTOSH: It was more of an implicit contrast with Trump and the Trump administration than going after the man directly. Cause I think everybody watching—every Democratic primary voter already believes that Trump is an existential threat to democracy and maybe more. So, they didn't necessarily have to do that.
But I was on the Hillary campaign in 2016. One of the biggest problems that we had was a larger segment of the electorate really feeling like the parties were the same, really feeling like there wasn't much of a difference. Which in my mind just seems so out there, I don't know how to start undermining that. But we weren't able to do it in 2016. That's got to happen now.
(…)
