Neil Cavuto of Fox News abruptly broke away from Kayleigh McEnany's press conference on fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Here is an excerpt from her statement:
"There is only one party that opposes voter id, verifying signatures, citizenship, residency eligibility. There’s only one party in America trying to keep observers out of the count room. You don’t take these positions because you want an honest election."
Cavuto came back on to cut her off. It was a bit of slick coordination on the news set, cutting away from the press conference and back to Cavuto.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, I just think we have to be very clear. She’s charging that the other side is welcoming fraud and welcoming illegal voting. Unless she has more details to back that up, I can’t in good countenance continue showing you this.”
Imagine that — Fox news deciding that there are announcements from the White House that viewers must not see and hear. Here's the video of Cavuto shielding the public. If I were to describe him in one word it would be smug. One word is not enough, though. He is also dishonest. Wasn't it perfectly acceptable to call President Trump a Russian asset? A racist, xenophobic, serial liar? Was anybody ever shut down for saying that?
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Kayleigh McEnany, on the other hand, made specific, credible accusations, for which there is evidence. Here is her full statement.
Democrats routinely invent smears of their opponents while hiding their own criminality, and they get a lot of help from Big Tech and MSM. Now Fox News has joined the team. But when Fox made its early call, projecting Joe Biden winner in Arizona, it drove away a big slice of its viewing base. At the same time, Fox refused to call Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia where Trump had sizable leads and larger percentages of votes already counted than Arizona. But as the night progressed counting was stopped in Democrat run states, and when it resumed Trump's leads in all of them began to disappear. Meanwhile in Arizona, as vote counting continued, Trump continued to cut Biden's lead.
I think Fox has been coordinating with the Democrats. It's speculation, of course. But how else would Fox know to call the Arizona race, and not any of the others? Who at Fox knew that vote counting would stop in certain states, and know not to call them? And why would Fox not treat Kayleigh's charges, true or not — and I believe they are true — as the explosive news that they are? Instead Cavuto's effort was to cast doubt, to dismiss as obviously false. And then move on, promising to return to the news conference if Cavuto judged that Kayleigh would offer "details."
If there was anything left of Fox's credibility and its viewing base after the early Arizona call, Cavuto torched them with his smug and condescending dismissal of Kayleigh's press conference. So Fox News has thrown away its credibility. Not really a big deal to me. It's been working at it for a while. Recently Newt Gingrich was cut off when he brought up George Soros.
"Progressive district attorneys are anti-police, pro-criminal, and overwhelmingly elected with George Soros's money. And they're a major cause of the violence we're seeing because they keep putting the violent criminals back on the street," Gingrich said Wednesday.
"I'm not sure we need to bring George Soros into this," said co-host Melissa Francis.
"I was going to say you get the last word, Speaker," Faulker said.
"He paid for it. I mean, why can't we discuss the fact that millions of dollars..." Gingrich said before co-host Marie Harf injected.
"No, he didn't. I agree with Melissa. George Soros doesn't need to be a part of this conversation," Harf said.
"OK. So it's verboten," Gingrich replied.
"OK. We're going to move on," Faulkner said.
Whose voice was in Melissa Frances's ear piece, telling her to cut off any talk of George Soros? Who pulls those strings? Fox personalities know what they're not supposed to say, or even allow to be said. Some seem uncomfortable with it, like Harris Faulkner, but others, like Cavuto, seem to relish the job.
But there is a more dangerous consequence than the lower ratings that come from the way the media, including Fox, have behaved. They are instilling expectations in the American public that the 2020 elections are a done deal, and Biden will be inaugurated on January 20, 2021. The elections are not done. Certification can't happen until all recounts and challenges have been dealt with. Fox and the rest of the media can't possibly be unaware that they are setting up a threat of violence. If, at the end of it all, Trump prevails in the courts and in the recounts, and is still the president, he will be called the usurper, the illegitimate president. We are all but guaranteed there will be rioting, looting. Cities will burn, property and livelihoods will be destroyed, and people will be killed. It won't be Trump supporters rioting. Riots and looting are part of the Democrat strategy, and the media know it.
My sense of the sentiment on the right is, "We hope that doesn't happen, but if you must riot, well... bring it." It's hard to imagine how and where this will end, but it won't be before Trump's had his day in court, and the recounts have all been completed.
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