After wavering on the ongoing push to oust President Joe Biden and appearing to fall back in line, it appears that the Regime Media have found their nerve once again, bolstered by both former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s appearance on Morning Joe and by George Clooney’s op-ed in The New York Times calling for Biden to step down.
These two events anchored network evening news coverage of the ongoing slow-motion train wreck that was triggered by Biden’s disastrous debate performance. The noteworthiest segment among these reports, without a doubt, comes to us via the CBS Evening News. Watch as Ed O’Keefe elitesplains the transcendence of the Clooney op-ed to the people watching at home, and sets expectations for a preference cascade based on Pelosi’s statements:
WATCH as CBS explains the transcendent importance of Clooney's op-ed and Pelosi's shift as well as THE HIGH STAKES of the upcoming "big boy" press conference- setting viewers up for a future preference cascade away from Biden pic.twitter.com/i8cXzK5PNF
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) July 11, 2024
NORAH O’DONNELL: Ed, it seems like each day is bringing more troubling signs for the Biden campaign. What are you hearing from your sources?
ED O’KEEFE: Yeah, Norah, as one senior campaign official put it to me, quote, “there’s no question this is the toughest moment we’ve had of this campaign.” You may be sitting at home wondering, why does George Clooney's opinion matter? Well, he’s someone who’s spent personal time with the president just over three weeks ago and noticed his decline, having met with him several times in years past. So he’s a well-known character witness for many voters concerned about President Biden's age and abilities. Nancy Pelosi's strong suggestion that Biden rethink his future signals she’s hearing real concern from fellow congressional Democrats, big party donors and other party leaders, and it gives others an opening to speak up.
O’DONNELL: You know, Ed, also one other thing. The president’s got this solo press conference tomorrow. I think it's the first one in nearly eight months. Just how high are the stakes?
O’KEEFE: The stakes are incredibly high, Norah. This is another- this is something Washington will be watching closely. Voters concerned about the president's abilities also watching because it's yet another big, unscripted moment where he’s going to be taking questions, having to think on his feet. The big concern is that if he stumbles, it could lead for the floodgates to open.
CBS’s coverage also featured reporting from correspondent Scott MacFarlane, who mentioned Biden’s potential fundraising problems.
Over at ABC- if you had them airing the moment Pelosi snapped at Rachel Scott then please step forward and collect your winnings. And how could they not air that? It was basically a fait accompli once correspondent Rachel Scott tweeted the exchange. The Regime Media WANT you to see them appearing to ask tough questions of Democrats throughout this debacle, after biting their tongues on Biden’s decline over the past several years.
ABC’s report concluded with the same hype of tomorrow’s “high stakes” presidential press conference as did CBS’s coverage. And, for the record, let me just put it out there that it isn’t a “big boy” press conference if Biden is carrying cue cards with the questions of reporters whose names he is reading off of a list.
NBC did not end with press conference hype, choosing instead to promote Lester Holt’s Monday interview with Biden, scheduled to counterprogram the opening night of the 2024 Republican National Convention. The Peacock Network’s coverage echoed some of the major themes, such as Clooney and Pelosi, but also found time to cover George Stephanopoulos’ candid assessment of Biden’s fitness to serve to an undercover TMZ reporter.
Bolstered by Pelosi and Clooney, the Regime Media appear to have returned to the business of Regime Change. At least for the time being.
Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective network evening newscasts on Wednesday, July 10th, 2024:
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
7/10/24
6:36PM
DAVID MUIR: Of course, the other major story tonight, the breaking news involving President Biden. The president on the world stage again today, hosting that high stakes NATO meeting in Washington. But one of the major headlines today involved former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She was asked if the president should stay in the race, and her choice of words made immediate news. And the influential Democratic donor, actor George Clooney, with a plea to the president to get out of the race, saying, "You saved democracy and you must do so again by getting out." And what else Clooney said today. But it was the former speaker Nancy Pelosi saying, “we're all encouraging President Biden to make his decision, because time is running short”, in her words. But the president has already said he's staying in this race, so, what's going on here? Here's Rachel Scott.
JOE BIDEN: Welcome, welcome, welcome.
RACHEL SCOTT: President Biden just moments ago welcoming the new British prime minister to the Oval Office, hoping to turn the page from the crisis engulfing his campaign. The president has defiantly rejected calls to drop out, insisting he's staying in the race and urging Democrats to rally around him. Still today, the powerful former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi went on television and said she'll support whatever decision the president makes. But she was pressed, hasn't he already announced he's staying in the race?
NANCY PELOSI: It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to make that decision, because time is running short. I think the overwhelming support of the caucus -- it's not for me to say. I'm not the head of the caucus anymore. But he's beloved. He is respected. And people want him to make that decision. Not me.
JON LEMIRE: He has said he has made the decision. He has said firmly this week he is going to run. Do you want him to run?
PELOSI: I want him to do whatever he decides to do. And that's -- that's the way it is, whatever he decides, we go with.
SCOTT: Pelosi urging Democrats to give the president space until the NATO conference ends this week.
PELOSI: I think it's really important, and I would hope everyone would join in to let him deal with this NATO conference. And I've said, everyone, let's just hold off. Whatever you're thinking, either tell somebody privately, but you don't have to put that out on the table until we see how we go this week.
SCOTT: But Pelosi's suggestion that Biden's decision might not be final sent shockwaves rippling through the Capitol, where I caught up with her.
Do you believe that him waiting so long to make this decision --
PELOSI: I'm not going to be making any statements in the hallway about the state of our nation. Okay?
SCOTT: Are you concerned whether or not he can win in November?
PELOSI: I think he can win in November.
SCOTT: Do you think he should run for re-election?
PELOSI: I'm not -- am I speaking English to you? I'm not going to be making any statements about any of that right now in the hallway.
SCOTT: At a meeting of NATO leaders, the president asked about Pelosi's comments.
REPORTER: President Biden, is Nancy Pelosi still behind you, sir?
SCOTT: Hours later, another blow. The New York Times publishing this op-ed from actor and Democratic megadonor George Clooney. "I love Joe Biden. But we need a new nominee." Just three weeks ago, Clooney raised $30 million for the president at a star-studded Hollywood fund-raiser. But today, Clooney writes, "It's devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fund-raiser was not the Joe Biden of 2010. He wasn't even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate." Clooney was blunt. "We are not going to win in November with this president. On top of that, we won't win the House, and we're going to lose the Senate. This isn't only my opinion. This is the opinion of every senator and Congress member and governor that I've spoken with in private. Every single one, irrespective of what he or she is saying publicly." Clooney, a major player in Democratic politics, ending with this -- "Joe Biden is a hero. He saved democracy in 2020. We need him to do it again in 2024." But tonight, the president giving no indication he's dropping out.
BIDEN SUPPORTERS: Four more years. Four more years.
SCOTT: The first president to walk a picket line, making a personal visit to the headquarters of the crucial labor powerhouse, the AFL-CIO.
BIDEN: We're in a better position than any country in the world to own the remainder of the 21st century because of union labor.
SCOTT: The brief appearance meant to send the signal that unions are on his side.
MUIR: So let's bring in Rachel Scott, live at the Capitol again tonight. Rachel, tomorrow, top officials from the Biden campaign are expected to head up to Capitol Hill to make the case to Democrats as to why they should rally behind the president. On the flip side, you've also learned tonight that House Democratic Speaker Hakeem Jeffries, the leader- the Democratic leader, I should say, has promised his members he'll take their concerns to the president, so it would appear messages are going back and forth here?
SCOTT: Yes, David. I'm told that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited top advisers from the Biden campaign to meet with Senate Democrats directly to address their concerns about the president's campaign, and his path forward. Meanwhile, we know that leader Hakeem Jeffries has been doing a round of meetings with his members, promising to relay their concerns directly to the president. David?
MUIR: Rachel Scott live up on The Hill. Rachel, thank you. One more quick question on this tonight, let's get right to Mary Bruce, live at The White House. And, Mary, The White House had to have been listening very closely to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi today. She's still very influential, of course. And you heard there Pelosi suggested today, give the president the week, and that she'll stand behind whatever decision he makes. But you've reported here, the president has said he's staying in this race, so, this certainly does not appear to be settled.
MARY BRUCE: No, it certainly does not. Look, even as the president tries to turn the page here with this NATO summit here in Washington, the president, The White House, his campaign have all been adamant that he has made up his mind and that he isn't going anywhere. It was just two days ago that the president sent that letter to Democrats, stating bluntly, quote, “I am firmly committed to staying in this race.” And he hasn't been budging, which is why Pelosi's comments today were so surprising. Tonight, his campaign is clear-eyed that it's going to take a lot of work here to get everyone on the same page. And tomorrow will be a critical test of that. The president facing reporters in a rare solo news conference and we, of course, will be carrying it live here on ABC right before World News Tonight, David.
MUIR: We will carry that live with you, Mary, and Mary laser-focused even with the band behind her for these NATO events at The White House. Mary, thank you.
CBS EVENING NEWS
CBS EVENING NEWS
7/10/24
6:30 PM
NORAH O’DONNELL: Democratic calls for President Biden to drop out of the race stretch from Capitol Hill to Hollywood tonight. Good evening. I'm Norah O'Donnell, and thank you for being with us. The word “blockbuster” is normally used to describe a box office hit, but today, one of the biggest movie stars, George Clooney, dropped a political blockbuster in the form of a New York Times editorial, writing that even though he is a lifelong Democrat and loves Joe Biden, quote, “our party leaders need to stop telling us that 51 million people didn't see what we just saw," referring to the debate. And those party leaders are now under pressure from their own members to deliver a message to the president. All of this is clouding the NATO summit of world leaders right here in Washington, where the big news is that the first F-16 fighter jets are on their way to Ukraine to fend off Russian forces. We have team coverage tonight. CBS's Ed O'Keefe is at The White House and we begin with CBS’s Scott MacFarlane on Capitol Hill.
SCOTT MACFARLANE: The political ground is wobbling beneath President Biden. One of the biggest tremors from one of America's biggest stars. Weeks after appearing side-by-side at a fundraiser, actor George Clooney split with the president, writing in a blistering editorial for The New York Times, "I love Joe Biden, but we need a new nominee," adding when he saw the president three weeks ago, "He wasn't even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate." Another quake on cable TV this morning.
NANCY PELOSI It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We are all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short.
MACFARLANE: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants a decision. But
president Biden has already made his stance clear.
JOE BIDEN: I'm staying in the race! [Cheers and applause]
MACFARLANE: But speaking later with reporters, she declined to press harder.
PELOSI: The decision is the president's.
MACFARLANE: At the NATO summit in Washington, the president posing with top European leaders, was asked about the comments from Pelosi, his longtime ally.
REPORTER: Is Nancy Pelosi still behind you, sir?
MACFARLANE: But at nearly the same time, another U.S. House Democrat, New York's Pat Ryan, today publicly urged the president to end his campaign. CBS News has learned House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, who has been hearing complaints from many of his caucus, says he will share those concerns with the president himself by Friday. Democrats who have already defected wouldn't say if or how many others are poised to join.
Has anybody joined you or expressed interest in joining you in your call for the president to withdraw?
MARK TAKANO: I don't have any more- anything to say about this.
MACFARLANE: CBS News has confirmed Senate Democrats have scheduled a closed-door meeting with the president's campaign team tomorrow.
MICHAEL BENNET: I think that we could lose the whole thing, and it's staggering to me.
MACFARLANE: After Michael Bennet of Colorado became the first Democratic senator to publicly predict the president could lose in a landslide. Two senior Democrats tell CBS News the Biden campaign could face financial problems. Concerns about the president's health and wavering Democratic support, campaign donations could dry up in a race that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, Norah.
O’DONNELL: Scott MacFarlane, thank you so much for your reporting. It is hard to overstate how critical this week is for the president's reelection campaign, so let's bring in CBS's Ed O'Keefe. Ed, it seems like each day is bringing more troubling signs for the Biden campaign. What are you hearing from your sources?
ED O’KEEFE: Yeah, Norah, as one senior campaign official put it to me, quote, “there’s no question this is the toughest moment we’ve had of this campaign.” You may be sitting at home wondering, why does George Clooney's opinion matter? Well, he’s someone who’s spent personal time with the president just over three weeks ago and noticed his decline, having met with him several times in years past. So he’s a well-known character witness for many voters concerned about President Biden's age and abilities. Nancy Pelosi's strong suggestion that Biden rethink his future signals she’s hearing real concern from fellow congressional Democrats, big party donors and other party leaders, and it gives others an opening to speak up.
O’DONNELL: You know, Ed, also one other thing. The president’s got this solo press conference tomorrow. I think it's the first one in nearly eight months. Just how high are the stakes?
O’KEEFE: The stakes are incredibly high, Norah. This is another- this is something Washington will be watching closely. Voters concerned about the president's abilities also watching because it's yet another big, unscripted moment where he’s going to be taking questions, having to think on his feet. The big concern is that if he stumbles, it could lead for the floodgates to open. Norah.
O’DONNELL: Ed O’Keefe at The White House with that new reporting. Thank you.
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
7/10/24
6:31 PM
LESTER HOLT: Good evening, and welcome. It is increasingly looking like President Biden is doing battle with members of his own party as much as he is Donald Trump. The president's loyalists from Hollywood to Capitol Hill including some notable names now riding that deep wave of concern over the president's ability to go the distance against Donald Trump, with not just the presidency but control of Congress potentially at stake. There's been no change of heart from President Biden, who has made it clear he is still in the race. The president remaining visible today and in charge, hosting NATO leaders, all while new pressure for him to exit the race from some of his most prominent backers swirls around him. Senior White House Correspondent Gabe Gutierrez has late details.
GABE GUTIERREZ: Tonight, while hosting dozens of world leaders at the NATO summit in Washington, President Biden is promoting unity and strength.
JOE BIDEN: Today we're stronger than we've ever been.
GUTIERREZ: But that message comes as the president faces fresh calls to leave the race. Today one of his most prominent Hollywood backers going off script. George Clooney, who hosted a star-studded fund-raiser for the president just three weeks ago, writing a guest essay in The New York Times, arguing, “we are not going to win in November with this president”, and urging Democrats to coalesce behind a new nominee. The actor making the case that the president he spent time with at the fund-raiser had changed from prior elections, and that night was the same man we all witnessed at the debate and this morning, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi became the highest-ranking Democrat to signal he could still drop out.
NANCY PELOSI: It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We're all encouraging him to make that decision, because time is running short.
GUTIERREZ: A striking statement considering the president has repeatedly said, he has decided.
BIDEN: I'm staying in the race.
GUTIERREZ: Pelosi later clarifying she still supports the president.
REPORTER: President Biden, is Nancy Pelosi still behind you, sir?
GUTIERREZ: Still, top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries has told worried lawmakers that he plans to relay their concerns to President Biden, four sources confirm to NBC News. And, senior Biden advisers are set to brief Democratic senators at a special caucus luncheon tomorrow, after Michael Bennet of Colorado became the first sitting senator to say this publicly:
MICHAEL BENNET: Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election and maybe win it by a landslide and take with him the Senate and the House.
GUTIERREZ: The question now, will the floodgates open on Capitol Hill?
DICK BLUMENTHAL: I am deeply concerned about Joe Biden winning this November. We have to reach a conclusion as soon as possible.
GUTIERREZ: ABC's George Stephanopoulos apparently reaching his own conclusion. Now acknowledging he should not have said this in a video posted on TMZ just days after interviewing the president.
RANDO ON THE STREET: What do you think? Do you think Biden should step down? You’ve talked to him more than anybody else has lately. And you can be honest.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: I don't think he can serve four more years.
GUTIERREZ: Tonight the Biden campaign is promising more unscripted events to convince lawmakers, donors, and voters that the president is all in.
HOLT: And Gabe, there's late word from Capitol Hill tonight about subpoenas regarding the president's health?
GUTIERREZ: Yes, Lester, late today the Republican-led House Oversight Committee said it had subpoenaed three senior White House aides demanding they sit for depositions regarding the president's mental fitness. The White House is calling it a baseless political stunt. Lester.
HOLT: All right, Gabe, thank you.
