On MSNBC’s 11th Hour Monday night, disgraced fake news anchor Brian Williams warned of the “danger” of President Trump calling out liberal media bias at CNN International. The left-wing channel’s favorite “Republican,” Steve Schmidt, eagerly agreed with Williams, claiming the President was endangering journalists and behaving like an “autocrat.”
“What’s the danger, in your view, of the President, as we saw over the weekend, declaring a network, in this case CNN International, to be fake and telling a global audience the same thing? And perhaps deciding to give a trophy to the network of his choosing that’s been reporting, giving out the most fake news?,” Williams breathlessly asked Schmidt.
Schmidt began by attacking Trump for praising Fox News in his tweets: “Well, he all about declared Fox News to be American state TV. Extraordinary.” He then blasted the President for daring to criticize CNN International’s political coverage:
And so, what he did is he endangered certainly CNN journalists, all journalists operating in dangerous areas and autocratic areas. And it’s another assault, in spirit, on the concept of a free press, on the spirit of the First Amendment....And I think it bears repeating all the time how far out of the normal range we are. These are the behaviors of an autocrat, not a democratically elected President of the United States. It’s disturbing to say the least.
Williams smugly thanked Schmidt for calling Trump a dictator: “Steve Schmidt, that is why we asked to speak with you again tonight, and why we will again in the future.”
The tone-deafness of having Brian Williams dismissing the notion of “fake news” doubled down on MSNBC’s decision to bring Dan Rather on earlier in the day to similarly condemn Trump.
Perhaps Williams is so worried about a fake news contest because he’s afraid he might win.
The biased segment was brought to viewers by YMCA and Bounty paper towels.
Here is a transcript of the November 27 exchange:
11:45 PM ET
(...)
BRIAN WILLIAMS: What’s the danger, in your view, of the President, as we saw over the weekend, declaring a network, in this case CNN International, to be fake and telling a global audience the same thing? And perhaps deciding to give a trophy to the network of his choosing that’s been reporting, giving out the most fake news?
STEVE SCHMIDT: Well, he all about declared Fox News to be American state TV. Extraordinary. Secondly, with regard to CNN International, with people who live in autocratic countries, who live behind a veil of totalitarianism – CNN International, they thirst for that news coverage because it’s a truth to them, it speaks to what’s happening in the world and all of its cruelty, its injustice, but also the magnanimity, the hope that comes from the notion of free people.
And so, what he did is he endangered certainly CNN journalists, all journalists operating in dangerous areas and autocratic areas. And it’s another assault, in spirit, on the concept of a free press, on the spirit of the First Amendment. And you have a president, in his utterly bizarre claims that the Access Hollywood tape never happened – these are not normal behaviors. And I think it bears repeating all the time how far out of the normal range we are. These are the behaviors of an autocrat, not a democratically elected President of the United States. It’s disturbing to say the least.
WILLIAMS: Steve Schmidt, that is why we asked to speak with you again tonight, and why we will again in the future. Great thanks for joining us tonight.
SCHMIDT: Thank you, Brian.
