Corporate media distanced themselves from President Joe Biden on Thursday night with multiple networks refusing to air his prime-time speech where he tore into “MAGA Republicans” surrounded by ominous red uplighting.
ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News all had better things to air in lieu of Biden’s Philadelphia address because it was too “political” and found conflict with airing it just two months shy of the midterm elections, The Washington Post reported.
The lighthearted game show “Press Your Luck” aired on ABC while CBS played the”Big Bang Theory” spinoff “Young Sheldon” rerun and NBC replayed an episode of “Law and Order.” Fox News chose the most recent episode of the popular “Tucker Carlson Tonight” over the president’s speech.
The 8:00 pm EST address was widely criticized for being divisive as he attacked Trump supporters and reinforced his rant on social media on Thursday, tweeting, “Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are a threat to the very soul of this country.”
Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are a threat to the very soul of this country.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 2, 2022
At Independence National Historical Park he told the audience, “Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic.”
While he embraced “mainstream Republicans,” he went on to condemn the rest of the pack stating, “But there is no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven, and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans, and that is a threat to this country.”
Biden feebly attempted to back off from his inflammatory words the following day after backlash.
“Come on, look, guys, you keep on and make that case,” Biden told reporter Peter Doocy on Friday. “I don’t consider any Trump supporter to be a threat to the country. I do think anyone who calls for the use of violence, fails to condemn violence or who refuses to acknowledge an election has been won, who insists upon changing the way and the rules with which to count votes, that is a threat to democracy.”
Biden forgot? Baffled when asked about creepy speech next day: ‘Come on guys” I don’t believe that via @BIZPACReview – https://t.co/AKXykXKHVm
— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) September 3, 2022
Venture a guess as to the two networks complicit in airing the Commander in Chief’s political prime-time message.
To CNN’s credit, “New Day” host Brianna Keilar raised an eyebrow at the use of the military during the polarizing speech.
“Whatever you think of this speech the military is supposed to be apolitical,” Keilar tweeted. “Positioning Marines in uniform behind President Biden for a political speech flies in the face of that. It’s wrong when Democrats do it. It’s wrong when Republicans do it.”
Whatever you think of this speech the military is supposed to be apolitical. Positioning Marines in uniform behind President Biden for a political speech flies in the face of that. It’s wrong when Democrats do it. It’s wrong when Republicans do it.
— Brianna Keilar (@brikeilarcnn) September 2, 2022
CNN colleague Jeff Zeleny agreed that attendance of the Marines and the Marine Band was not appropriate.
There’s nothing unusual or wrong with a President delivering a political speech — it’s inherent in the job description — but doing it against a backdrop of two Marines standing at attention and the Marine Band is a break with White House traditions. pic.twitter.com/s3TSYHtkcA
— Jeff Zeleny (@jeffzeleny) September 2, 2022
The White House tried to convince the networks that the speech was “not a speech about a particular politician or even about a particular political party,” according to the Post.
But the words that rolled off his tongue claimed, “As I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise.”
“There’s no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans,” Biden continued in his “awkward and angry” address. “And that is a threat to this country.”
But perhaps the networks not airing the Pennsylvania address is to Biden’s benefit as it likely minimized the number of viewers in what former senior advisor at the U.S. Department of Justice called a “Kabul-sized catastrophe.”
Dr. Jonathan Bronitsky called the speech “the darkest, most toxic presidential speech of the modern era” and called the president out for “trying to gaslight America to believe he didn’t say what it just heard him say,” when he attempted his feeble back-peddle the next day.
Networks tend to air prime-time presidential addresses although typically reserved for drastic times of national crisis. In 2014, NBC and CBS chose alternate programming over then-President Barack Obama’s immigration reform speech.
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