On Monday's New Day, CNN's Chris Cuomo hinted NewsBusters was an Internet backwater. During a panel discussion segment with contributor Jeffrey Lord, Cuomo wondered if Donald Trump's "use of the phrase, 'China is raping us'" would become "a cause for concern in building a bigger tent." Lord replied by citing his Sunday piece on NewsBusters "that points out...[how] liberals feel free to pillory [Sarah Palin] as an idiot...there is a strange silence about sexism on the left." The anchor retorted, "Where is your column? NewsBusters...is where it is? Boy, oh, boy! No one wanted that one, huh?" [video below]
Cuomo first sought former Mitt Romney adviser Kevin Sheridan's take on two of Trump's most recent remarks. The anchor admitted that "when I ask this kind of question to Jeffrey, he uses his ridiculous knowledge of history to dig up some arcane analogy to what I'm going to ask." Sheridan underlined that the billionaire has "succeeded in the Republican primary by being this, kind of, insult comic...But whether or not he can actually appeal to millennials; whether or not he can appeal to women, the numbers are looking...historically high against him in that regard."
Lord then gave his response to the liberal CNN journalist's question. Cuomo replied with his dismissive remark about NewsBusters. Lord responded with a compliment: "It's one of my favorite sites — no doubt."
Cuomo might have a bone to pick with NewsBusters, given how he's a regular target for criticism over his liberal bias and over his gaffes. Back in January 2015, the anchor labeled one of the Islamist terrorists in Paris "African American." He dubiously claimed in a series of Twitter posts in May 2015 that "hate speech is excluded from protection" by the First Amendment. He later touted a homosexual activist during Pope Francis's visit to the White House in September 2015, and lobbied a sheriff from Oregon to reconsider his support for gun rights during an October 2015 segment.
The transcript of the relevant portion of the Sheridan/Lord segment from the May 2, 2016 edition of CNN's New Day:
CHRIS CUOMO: The next question I have — when I ask this kind of question to Jeffrey, he uses his ridiculous knowledge of history to dig up some arcane analogy to what I'm going to ask. So, I'm going to skip him, and I'm going to come back to you, Kevin. The use of the 'woman card;' the use of the phrase, 'China is raping us' — is this the kind of language that fires up the base, or is it a cause for concern in building a bigger tent if you have the nominee named Trump?
[CNN Graphic: "2016 Election: Presidential Hopefuls Make Final Push In Indiana"]
KEVIN SHERIDAN, FMR. SR. ADVISER, ROMNEY FOR PRESIDENT: Well, that's the great test right now — is that he has — he's succeeded in the Republican primary by being this, kind of, insult comic routine, where he's just — you know, he's taken down every other opponent. But whether or not he can actually appeal to millennials; whether or not he can appeal to women, the numbers are looking really, really — like, historically high against him in that regard. So, he's going to have to — he's going to have to show that he — he's got a different dimension here — a different ability to actually reach out to a general election electorate, rather than just — you know, the Republican primary voters that he's been able to capture so far; because right now, his unapproval (sic) ratings are very, very high.
CUOMO: Do you feel the need to respond, Jeffrey Lord, or should I ask you something else?
JEFFREY LORD: (laughs) I have a column at NewsBusters this very day that points out that when the woman in question is Sarah Palin and liberals feel free to pillory her as an — as an idiot, a moron, a joke, mock her clothes, et cetera, et cetera, there is a strange silence about sexism on the left. So, to be perfectly candid, I don't think this is going to stick.
CUOMO: Where is your column? NewsBusters, you said, today, is where it is?
LORD: NewsBusters. Thank you, Christopher. Thank you!
CUOMO: Boy, oh, boy! No one wanted that one, huh? (laughs) Let me ask you something else.
LORD: It's one of my favorite sites — no doubt.
CUOMO: Yeah — for sure.
