On Thursday's New Day on CNN, as New York Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo made his first appearance on the show since word broke that he went against CDC guidelines and pressured nursing homes to take in COVID-19 patients, leading to thousands of unnecessary deaths, CNN co-host Alisyn Camerota failed to bring up the important issue.
By contrast, just a couple of days ago, Fox News Channel's Fox and Friends show, which runs opposite New Day, devoted a segment to discussing calls by New York assembly members for an investigation of the matter.
On CNN, Governor Cuomo was appearing to discuss his recent decision to require non-New Yorkers to quarantine themselves for two weeks after entering the state, and Camerota spent much of the interview pressing him on whether he was being hypocritical for speaking out against quarantines in the past if they were directed at residents of his state.
But she totally ignored the issue of his mismanagement of the pandemic in the early days.
After spending the first two questions asking about how the quarantine order would be enforced, she then followed up: "Remember when Florida did this to New Yorkers? And I remember you being not so pleased, calling it 'political' at that time. So what's different now?"
She soon played a clip of Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis complaining about New York politicians who complained when his state imposed a quarantine directed at New York residents. Camerota then followed up: "So what do you say to him today now that the tables have turned?"
In contrast with Camerota not getting around to the brewing nursing home scandal at all, on Tuesday's Fox and Friends, co-host Ainsley Earhardt reminded viewers of the issue as she set up a segment on the matter:
AINSLEY EARHARDT: New York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, facing backlash after his controversial March 25 executive order directing nursing homes to take in COVID-19 patients. In total, the state confirming over 7,800 confirmed or presumed nursing homes deaths.
She then introduced New York Republican assemblywoman Nicole Mallionakis as a guest and began by posing: "I understand you're calling for an investigation now, right?"
Mallionakis recalled that, not only has she demanded an investigation, but so has the leading Democrat on health issues in the New York state assembly,
CNN has so far given little attention to the scandal, and, in when it has, accepts Governor Cuomo's deceptive attempt to blame the CDC for his own misreading of their guidelines.
Relevant transcripts follow:
CNN
New Day
June 24, 2020
8:14 a.m. Eastern
ALISYN CAMEROTA: First, let me just ask you, in practical terms, can you just explain how this is going to work? If there's a driver driving up I-95 from Florida, who's going to stop her at the border of New York?
...
CAMEROTA: But, Governor, what do you mean there'll be "random checks"? At people's homes? At people's work places? What does that look like?
...
CAMEROTA: Remember when Florida did this to New Yorkers? And I remember you being not so pleased, calling it "political" at that time. So what's different now?
...
CAMEROTA: Remember back in May when Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida had been talking about how basically blocking people from hot spots -- at that time, New York -- had been very effective for Florida. So let me play that for you.
GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS (R-FL) CLIP #1: I quarantined them in March, and everyone -- and New York media was blowing a gasket: "How could you do this?" That was the right decision. That was the number one landing pad.
DESANTIS CLIP #2: Had we not done the quarantine, we would have had way more cases, hospitalizations, the whole nine yards. I have no doubt that that quarantine saved lives.
CAMEROTA: So what do you say to him today now that the tables have turned?
...
CAMEROTA: Today? You say New York today is setting a record (low number of hospitalizations).
...
CAMEROTA: Well, Governor, we're very happy to hear that the numbers have gone in the right direction, and you have something to celebrate in New York today at least. Thank you very much for being on New Day.
(…)
FNC
Fox and Friends
June 23, 2020
7:31 a.m. Eastern
AINSLEY EARHARDT: New York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, facing backlash after his controversial March 25 executive order directing nursing homes to take in COVID-19 patients. In total, the state confirming over 7,800 confirmed or presumed nursing homes deaths.
(…)
Assemblywoman, what are you doing? I understand you're calling for an investigation now, right?
STATE ASSEMBLY MEMBER NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS (R-NY): Sure. I may have been the first person to call for an investigation into this decision. However, I'm not the last, and certainly it's not fallen on party lines. We have the very powerful Democratic health Assembly chairman of the committee here in New York state legislature that has also called for an independent investigation. And I have to tell you, what he's saying is not accurate. If you look at the directive -- and even CMS administrator Verma came on your show and talked about this.
They said that nursing homes can accept, but they have to be put in a separate wing, and they could also turn them away. Here in New York, they really weren't given a choice. As a matter of fact, the nursing homes that I've spoken with have told me that they felt that they were pressured and being forced to take individuals even though they couldn't provide care for them. And then on top of it, the governor didn't even provide them with the proper PPE and safety equipment to stop the spread within the nursing homes. So there's two reasons why this needs to be investigated further.
EARHARDT: Have you heard the governor or any of the governors from those three or four states that were doing this why they did that when they were telling everyone -- when the CDC was telling everyone -- elderly, underlying conditions, "You are most at risk"?
MALLIOTAKIS: It makes absolutely no sense, and the fact that other states didn't do it shows that this was not a mandate from the federal government...
