By ABC News has faced strong criticism, with many pointing out that the moderators fact-checked several statements made by Donald Trump but did not challenge any of Kamala Harris’s claims, even when it was clear she was lying.
For example, Reason Magazine noted that “ABC’s David Muir and Linsey Davis thrice followed a remark by Trump with an attempt to fact-check him. These fact-checks introduced valid, conflicting information; Trump said violence in the U.S. was out of control and the moderators pointed to FBI data that contradicts this, and Trump said that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets—a completely erroneous claim.
But when Harris made statements that could have been fact-checked, the moderators declined to do so.
Harris said that Trump had threatened there would be a ‘bloodbath’ if he lost the election, and Harris implied that this was a threat of actual political violence; the moderators could have pointed out that Trump was describing the state of the economy under prospective progressive governance. Harris also said there were currently no U.S. military service members in active combat zones; this is flatly untrue, as American troops are currently serving in informal war zones in places like Iraq and Syria.
Then there was bias reflected in the kinds of questions the candidates were asked. Trump was deservedly grilled on his appalling conduct surrounding the 2020–2021 presidential transition, and comments he made about Harris’ race. Meanwhile, Harris fielded zero questions about her complicity in the vast cover-up of Biden’s cognitive decline and infirmity. When she declined to give specific reasons for her flip-flopping on fracking—or even concede that she has flip-flopped—the moderators did not follow up.”
In August The New York Times noted that the head of ABC News at Disney is one of Kamala Harris’ good friends.
Best thing about this is she’s literally exposing herself.
Remember, the internet is forever friends!pic.twitter.com/6GqhVaXX2W
— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) September 12, 2024
On Thursday, Trump criticized the debate moderators, claiming it was unfairly stacked against him, likening it to a “three-on-one” scenario. He also stated that he would not participate in another debate before the election.
Now, following the embarrassing performance by ABC News moderators, Mark Penn, a former senior adviser to Bill and Hillary Clinton, has called on Thursday for ABC to conduct a thorough internal review to understand how things became so biased. Penn believes that such an investigation should examine whether there was any attempt to “influence the outcome of the debate.”
Just The News writes that the former Clinton adviser thinks there was something fishy about the debate on Tuesday.
“I actually think they should do a full internal investigation, hire an outside law firm. I don’t know how much of this was planned in advance,” Penn told the “John Solomon Reports” podcast.
“I don’t know what they told the Harris campaign. I think the day after, suspicion here is really quite high, and I think a review of all their internal texts and emails really should be done by an independent party to find out to what extent they were planning on, in effect, you know, fact-checking just one candidate and in effect, rigging the outcome of this debate. I think the situation demands nothing less than that,” he added.
Penn, chairman of the Harvard CAPS Harris Poll, also said Harris has done a “good job” defining Trump as the incumbent and herself as the change candidate even though she’s the sitting vice president. But he described the mainstream media’s coverage of Harris’ campaign as laughable.
“It’s a 50-50, race. He’s [Trump] got more obvious tools to get across the finish line than she does and part of the thing here is that if the referees have their finger on the scale, it’s harder to, you know, break through and overcome. And certainly, general media coverage has been fairly laughable,” he said.
There can be no fair game or debate no matter what the score when the referees put their fingers on the scale.
What ABC did in poorly fact checking one side while letting the other side repeat serial falsehoods meant that one side had to do its own defense.
It robs all sides…
— Mark Penn (@Mark_Penn) September 11, 2024
Penn is considered one of the most prominent American political strategists, pollsters, and consultants. He gained widespread recognition for his role as the chief strategist for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign, where his polling and messaging strategies were influential in shaping her campaign’s approach.
He also played a significant role in Bill Clinton’s political career, particularly during Clinton’s 1996 re-election campaign. Penn served as a key pollster and advisor, helping to craft the messaging and strategies that appealed to a broad range of voters. He is credited with pioneering the concept of “triangulation,” a strategy that positioned Clinton between traditional Democratic and Republican positions, allowing him to appeal to centrist voters. This approach was instrumental in Clinton’s successful re-election, as it enabled him to maintain broad support while addressing both economic and social issues.
In addition to his work on the re-election campaign, Penn continued to advise Bill Clinton during his presidency, particularly on issues related to public opinion and policy messaging. His ability to analyze voter sentiment and tailor Clinton’s communication to resonate with different demographics was a key component of the administration’s strategy. Penn’s influence extended beyond just political strategy; his insights also shaped policy decisions by ensuring they aligned with public preferences, helping to bolster Clinton’s popularity during his time in office.
[Read More: Kamala Gets Called Out For Hiding]
