The Media Research Center's Rich Noyes on Wednesday blasted the media’s “Hail Mary passes” to stop Donald Trump or undermine his presidency. Appearing on Fox Business, the research director spotlighted the failed recount attempts in Wisconsin and said of the initial efforts, “That got several minutes of air time in the networks. It wasn't laughed at.... Now we have had a recount in Wisconsin and the person who gained votes in that was Donald J. Trump. He won Wisconsin by more after the recount than before.”
He explained, "That got, I think, a few seconds of air time, not nearly as much of the initial recount." Noyes compared, “There's all these hail Mary passes and none are making it to the end zone.” In fact, an MRC study in November found that ABC, CBS and NBC gave Green Party candidate Jill Stein 12 times more coverage to her recount efforts than they did to her entire campaign.
A transcript of the segment is below:
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Cavuto: Coast to Coast
12/14/16
12:52NEIL CAVUTO: The media is jumping all over that Russia report too. No one is questioning that Russia had something to do with Hacking our election either alone or in concert with others as might be the case, that it’s just Russia Russia Russia Russia. To media watcher Rich Noyes. What I do find interesting, Rich, and great to have you, thank you for coming, this is the same media that picks and chooses the intelligence data that it likes or doesn't like. So, when the CIA claimed back in 2003 that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, they later questioned that one ad nauseam because that was a bad report and I could go on and mention other examples. So, this one they are glomming onto. Should we be cautious?
RICH NOYES: Well, of course we should be cautious. I mean, you know, the one suggestion that Russian backed hackers, maybe not Russian government hackers, but Russian backed hackers had some hacking presence, they put out documents through WikiLeaks, that is one story. That should be looked at. But the leap and the suggestion that this was what changed the outcome of the election, you know, that is essentially trying to claim Trump's election is illegitimate. You’ve had people on CBS and other networks suggesting exactly that.
CAVUTO: That’s exactly what they are saying, without outright saying it. They are — And obviously by demanding that the electors meet before they gather next Monday to go over this intelligence they are more or less saying, “Well, vote your conscience but you know what you got to do.”
NOYES: This is exactly what journalists said would be the height of irresponsibility if Donald Trump had lost and then tried to sew the seeds of some kind of rigged election.
CAVUTO: The rigged election, the rigged election view.
NOYES: Right. And, you know, again, we went through this about three weeks ago with the big recounts that are going to change everything. Well, you know, that got several minutes of air time in the networks. It wasn’t laughed at. It wasn’t treated as a major deal, but now we have had a recount in Wisconsin and the person who gained votes in that was Donald J. Trump. He won Wisconsin by more after the recount than before. And that got, I think, a few seconds of air time, not nearly as much of the initial recount.
CAVUTO: Absolutely.
NOYES: So, again, there’s all these hail Mary passes and none are making it to the end zone.
CAVUTO: You know, one thing I find even when I try to take the argument all the way with those who are pushing it, including Christine Pelosi who is leading the effort in California, an elector, daughter of Nancy Pelosi. And I even give them, at face value, their whole argument, that Russia did hack our elections — now they were so shrewd at this before. This time they didn't take care to hide their fingerprints. Be that as it may — Let’s say they did act alone without concert with anyone, even though there have been other players in the past, North Korea China, do you wonder what this is about? I mean, you kinda touched on it. They want those electors to change their mind as a result of this intelligence. Right? That is what this is about.
NOYES: Well, I think they want to put the news out there that electors should change their mind. I mean, it’s a little bit like the Bush 2000 election where, you know, there was always a core of people on the left who said he didn't win legitimately even after all the media sponsored recounts showed he, in fact, would have won Florida just as he did in real life, just as the Supreme Court validated. You weren't allowed to ask questions about President Obama but now we are back to Republican president-elect and they have to cast doubts about legitimacy. I think the suspicion is going to be there, no matter how outrageous or crazy it is. I think the last thing they want is to be really tested because that sort of negates the whole thing. Better to let it stay out there as a cause for liberals to rally around over the next four years.
CAVUTO: Well put. Well put. Rich, always good catching up with you.