Just as they did on November 10 in his first post-election press conference, liberal journalists played the role of lap dogs for Joe Biden, giving him free reign to attack President Trump and nudge him to the left on the coronavirus pandemic and the economy.
NBC’s Geoff Bennett went first and set the tone. With a smile affixed to his face and invoking the coronavirus vaccine rollout plans, Bennett wondered: “What do you see is the biggest threat to your transition right now given President Trump's unprecedented attempt to obstruct and delay a smooth transfer of power?”
Somewhere, Jim Acosta had to be jealous of that softball question.
Bennett had a second question and nudged Biden on the left by wondering why student loan forgiveness wasn’t mentioned in the remarks from Biden or Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) concerning their economic plan.
Speaking of suck-ups, ABC senior congressional correspondent Mary Bruce has had zero issue parroting the Biden team’s line and lobbed softballs with both of her questions:
You just spoke of some of the dangers of the President's continued stonewalling of this transition. But it doesn't appear that the President is going to come around any time soon and admit defeat. So what are you going to do? What options do you have to try to ensure that you are ready to go on day one?
(....)
And what is your message to Republicans who are backing up the President's refusal to concede? You clearly need to work with them going forward.
The third reporter was CBS’s Nikole Killion, who gave Biden the floor to respond to Trump’s weekend tweeting “where he first seemed to acknowledge that you won then he said he won't concede.”
Killion’s second question was an objectively good and tough question concerning the vaccines: “If the FDA gives emergency authorization to the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine in the coming weeks, will you get vaccinated? And if you're hesitant, why should any American have confidence in the vaccine?”
CNN political analyst and Wall Street Journal reporter Sabrina Siddiqui used both of her questions to push the left’s consensus on coronavirus.
With her first, she lobbied Biden to see if governors would reissue lockdowns: “You have been urging the American public to continue practicing social distancing and wearing a mask. But with cases skyrocketing across the country, do you think that more governors should be closing nonessential businesses and reinstating stay-at-home orders?”
Siddiqui also pushed Biden from the left in wondering what he believes Americans should be doing for Thanksgiving: “[W]hat is your message to people who are considering, for example, getting together with their families and others for Thanksgiving? Would you consider — would you urge people to reconsider their plans?”
Of course, there was no discussion to be found concerning the thousands that took to the streets on November 7 after news organizations declared the election for Biden.
Before ending the event and press availability, Biden called on PBS’s Lisa Desjardins, who had questions about job creation and trade agreements (so actual policy questions as opposed to strictly political pontifications) (click “expand”):
DESJARDINS: Your plan you have outlined just now, about a million union jobs, clean energy jobs, investments in HBCUs. Those are things that take time. We have a problem with long-term unemployment that's growing fast right now. What would you do right away, specifically, to address jobs that may not return for months, may not return ever, including in communities of color?
(....)
DESJARDINS: And also, on the economic front, as we fight the pandemic, world trade continues, and there is great debate over world trade agreements — International trade agreements. It seems that, in the last couple days, 15 countries, Asian-Pacific countries, have signed on to a new trade deal, the RCEP. Should the United States consider joining that trade agreement?
(....)
DESJARDINS: You have indicated changes you want to make in U.S. international policy on other fronts like the Paris climate deal.
BIDEN: Yes, that's a generic notion of rejoining. But I didn't get into the detail of what we'll do in that agreement. I — the same thing with rejoining the World Health Organization.
DESJARDINS: Why not here?
BIDEN: Because you're asking me about whether I would join a specific proposal, the details of which are now only now being negotiated among those nations. It requires negotiation.
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To see the relevant transcript from November 16, click “expand.”
Biden Press Conference
November 16, 2020
3:28 p.m. EasternGEOFF BENNETT: Good to see you. I wanted to start with a question about your pandemic planning and then a question about your economic plan. You spoke about the need to access the outgoing COVID vaccine distribution administration plans. What do you see is the biggest threat to your transition right now given President Trump's unprecedented attempt to obstruct and delay a smooth transfer of power?
(....)
3:29 p.m. Eastern
BENNETT: On the economy, the Vice President-elect talked about having an economy that works for working people. One thing I didn't hear you talk specifically about is canceling student loan debt. Does student loan forgiveness figure in your plan? Would you take executive action to achieve it?
(....)
3:31 p.m. Eastern
MARY BRUCE: You just spoke of some of the dangers of the President's continued stonewalling of this transition. But it doesn't appear that the President is going to come around any time soon and admit defeat. So what are you going to do? What options do you have to try to ensure that you are ready to go on day one?
(....)
3:32 p.m. Eastern
BRUCE: And what is your message to Republicans who are backing up the President's refusal to concede? You clearly need to work with them going forward.
(....)
3:33 p.m. Eastern
NIKOLE KILLION: I want to kind of piggyback off that. I want to get your thoughts on the President's tweet over the weekend where he first seemed to acknowledge that you won. Then he said he won't concede, then he said “I won.” How did you interpret that, and at the end of the day, do you want him to concede?
(....)
3:34 p.m. Eastern
KILLION: And then secondly, I want to follow up with you on the vaccine. If the FDA gives emergency authorization to the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine in the coming weeks, will you get vaccinated? And if you're hesitant, why should any American have confidence in the vaccine?
(....)
3:36 p.m. Eastern
SABRINA SIDDIQUI: You have been urging the American public to continue practicing social distancing and wearing a mask. But with cases skyrocketing across the country, do you think that more governors should be closing nonessential businesses and reinstating stay-at-home orders?
(....)
3:38 p.m. Eastern
SIDDIQUI: And just following up on that, especially with many states reporting new highs in terms of the daily number of cases and a lot of public health officials sounding the alarm over the holidays, what is your message to people who are considering, for example, getting together with their families and others for Thanksgiving? Would you consider — would you urge people to reconsider their plans?
(....)
3:41 p.m. Eastern
LISA DESJARDINS: Your plan you have outlined just now, about a million union jobs, clean energy jobs, investments in HBCUs. Those are things that take time. We have a problem with long-term unemployment that's growing fast right now. What would you do right away, specifically, to address jobs that may not return for months, may not return ever, including in communities of color?
(....)
3:44 p.m. Eastern
DESJARDINS: And also, on the economic front, as we fight the pandemic, world trade continues, and there is great debate over world trade agreements — International trade agreements. It seems that, in the last couple days, 15 countries, Asian-Pacific countries, have signed on to a new trade deal, the RCEP. Should the United States consider joining that trade agreement?
(....)
3:46 p.m. Eastern
DESJARDINS: You have indicated changes you want to make in U.S. international policy on other fronts like the Paris climate deal.
JOE BIDEN: Yes, that's a generic notion of rejoining. But I didn't get into the detail of what we'll do in that agreement. I — the same thing with rejoining the World Health Organization.
DESJARDINS: Why not here?
BIDEN: Because you're asking me about whether I would join a specific proposal, the details of which are now only now being negotiated among those nations. It requires negotiation.
