Tonight was NewsNation’s first foray into hosting a presidential primary debate, and then running a post-debate analysis special. No small feat for what amounts to a brand new network. And with that, comes the opportunity for self-congratulation. Which, unfortunately, did not happen off-air.
Watch as the all-star panel headed by Chris Cuomo effusively congratulates itself on a job well-done:
CHRIS CUOMO: To discuss- the all-star panel is with me right now. Geraldo Rivera, Mick Mulvaney, Morgan Ortagus and Sean Spicer. We're watching (the candidates) continue to say goodbye. Nikki Haley is there. We'll keep watching this.
SEAN SPICER: I just- I think before we get too far to the analysis of this. Big winner tonight, NewsNation. This was a top-notch professional debate. You think about how old this news organization is. I put these together for the RNC in 2015. I can tell you this is not an easy thing to do. NewsNation and its team in front of and behind the camera deserve a lot of credit for how well this came off.
MICK MULVANEY: I was talking to a Fox executive today, and he said it took Fox 7 or 8 years to get to where NewsNation got tonight.
SPICER: So this is a big- before we get into the candidate analysis, a big kudos to the team that put this together tonight.
CUOMO: I will honestly say it is the first time: Sean, Nick- I agree with you. Everything you said…
MULVANEY: It’s not the last!
CUOMO: …was spot-on. Spot-on accurate.
In fairness, congratulations are in order. But it wasn’t like the event went off without a hitch, as our friend Nick Fondacaro pointed out. The start of the debate was marred by technical glitches that could have been averted with a walkthrough. Or one more walkthrough. But NewsNation recovered and delivered a more substantive debate with a better panel asking more of the kinds of questions you’d expect in a Republican primary debate (unlike the Reagan Library fiasco).
But anyhoo, back to the post-debate show and the panel. Lots of familiar faces. And I mean, familiar. Geraldo Rivera. Chris Cuomo. Sean Spicer. Mick Mulvaney. Morgan Ortagus. A subsequent panel featured Scottie Nell Hughes, Larry Hogan, Mark Sanford and LaVern Spicer. That’s quite the collection of talent. Segments with Bill O’Reilly and Chris Stirewalt. But the post-show went well.
Overall, not a bad foray for NewsNation. But perhaps keep the self-congratulation off-camera, and learn from the wisdom of Barry Sanders when asked why he never celebrated his touchdowns:
Act like you’ve been there.
