On Tuesday, ABC’s Good Morning America essentially gave an in-kind donation to the Biden campaign ahead of Thursday’s debate. They highlighted a Biden Campaign ad while parroting talking points about how former President Trump was going to take away people’s right, while also decrying attacks against President Biden and calling them conspiracy theories.
Chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce began by claiming that President Biden was “hoping that he can hold Donald Trump accountable for his actions in office.” She goes on to state that abortion rights will be “front and center” in the upcoming debate and, as expected, declared that Trump was to blame.
Bruce continued her Trump-abortion rant as she professed that “Twenty-one states have now banned or severely restricted abortion and Trump has bragged about appointing three of the justices who overturned Roe.” She described abortion as a “winning issue for Democrats” and concluded that “the Biden team is hoping it will continue to drive voters to the polls in November.”
Video from the Biden ad played as Bruce reported:
We are now getting a bit of a preview of what is to come on the debate stage on Thursday night. The President is hoping that he can hold Donald Trump accountable for his actions in office and he is trying to put abortion rights front and center, marking the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The Biden team is saying Donald Trump is to blame.
Co-anchor George Stephanopoulos turned to senior congressional correspondent Rachel Scott and asked her about the “wild and unsubstantiated allegation about President Biden” -- referring to Trump's request for Biden to take a drug test before the debate. Trump has made it clear that he was willing to take the drug test if it means that Biden will as well.
Scott called Trump's request “a page straight out” of his “playbook.” She proclaimed that “Donald Trump has done everything, from questioning President Biden's mental fitness to mock his debate preparations.” Continuing to portray Biden as the victim, Scott noted that Trump was “calling on the President to get a drug test before he gets on the debate stage and he's fundraising off of that point.”
In regards to Trump suggesting that Biden was “jacked up” on supplements, Scott wanted to make it exceptionally clear that she did not agree: “To be absolutely clear here, there is no evidence of that. These are baseless and unfounded claims and it's not the first time that we have heard Donald Trump use these claims.”
Scott concluded that “the Biden campaign insists that Donald Trump is resorting to baseless and obviously false lies.” Unsurprisingly, throughout this segment there were no negative words said in regards to Biden or his campaign.
Click "Expand" to view the transcript:
ABC's Good Morning America
6/25/2024
7:07:27 – 7:09:25GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And the race for the White House now -- I want to thank Matt Gutman for that. The first presidential debate is just two days away. Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce and Rachel Scott, who's following the Trump campaign are tracking the latest on all that and Mary let me start with you: Biden campaign focused on abortion.
MARY BRUCE (CHIEF WHITEHOUSE CORRESPONDENT): Yeah, George. We are now getting a bit of a preview of what is to come on the debate stage on Thursday night. The President is hoping that he can hold Donald Trump accountable for his actions in office and he is trying to put abortion rights front and center, marking the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The Biden team is saying Donald Trump is to blame.
Out on the campaign trail, the Vice President saying Trump is “guilty of stealing reproductive freedom from the women of America.” Twenty-one states have now banned or severely restricted abortion and Trump has bragged about appointing three of the justices who overturned Roe. He says abortion laws should be up to the states but Biden has said that he will go even further if he is re-elected and of course, abortion has been a winning issue for Democrats in recent years. The Biden team is hoping it will continue to drive voters to the polls in November, George.
STEPHANOPOULOS: And Rachel -- thank you, Mary and, Rachel, the Trump campaign, Donald Trump following a familiar playbook, making a wild and unsubstantiated allegation about President Biden.
RACHEL SCOTT (Senior Congressional Correspondent): Yeah, this is a page straight out of Donald Trump's playbook, George. Donald Trump has done everything, from question President Biden's mental fitness to mock his debate preparations. Now, he's calling on the President to get a drug test before he gets on the debate stage and he's fundraising off of that point.
Over the weekend, the former president suggested that President Biden was using supplements to get “jacked up” before his public appearances. To be absolutely clear here, there is no evidence of that. These are baseless and unfounded claims and it's not the first time that we have heard Donald Trump use these claims. He once called on Hillary Clinton to get a drug test before they faced off during the 2016 debate. This morning, the Biden campaign insists Donald Trump is resorting to baseless and obviously false lies, but George, this is a sign of just how nasty things could get on the debate stage in 48 hours.
STEPHANOPOULOS: Okay Rachel, Mary thanks very much.
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