David Muir and Linsey Davis are facing an intense backlash over the obvious bias they expressed while moderating the ABC News debate between President Donald Trump and Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
Both Muir and Davis are being shamed for their clear anti-Trump bias and the way it impacted the way they handled the debate.
The bias manifested itself in several ways, such as asking Trump more hostile “gotcha” questions than they asked Harris.
Muir and Davis also peppered Trump with follow-up questions while letting Harris dodge questions with no pushback.
Arguably the most controversial point was how moderators both repeatedly needled Trump with “fact-checks” that at times bordered on absurd.
Meanwhile, they allowed Harris to lie with impunity and didn’t once “fact-check” any of the vice president’s widely debunked claims.
ABC News’s anti-Trump bias was on full display during the network’s pre-debate coverage.
Media analyst Stephen L. Miller noted:
“ABC’s pre-debate coverage might as well be The View right now. It’s insane*.”
“In media file center they’ve been blaring the sound of ABC’s pre-debate coverage,” added RealClearPolitics President Tom Bevan.
“Except when Tom Cotton was just on.
“Sound went way down, couldn’t hear a word.
“Josh Shapiro comes on and the sound was turned back up. Unreal.”
Once the debate started, the bias was immediately exposed.
Former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell called Davis a “far-left activist.”
Political commentator Noah Pollak posted on X:
“ABC hosts embarrassing themselves protecting Harris from having to answer whether she supports partial birth late term abortions.”
“ABC is making a huge mistake trying to fact-check this live,” said former White House Press Secretary Ari Fletcher.
“They’re only proving how biased they are.
“Harris fabricated an attack on Trump over IVF.
“ABC sat there and said nothing.”
ABC is making a huge mistake trying to fact check this live.
— Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) September 11, 2024
They’re only proving how biased they are.
Harris fabricated an attack on Trump over IVF. ABC sat there and said nothing.
Firebrand Ann Coulter noted: “But it’s great to have 3 Democrats debating Trump tonight. Thanks, ABC!”
Donald Trump Jr. also blasted the moderators for only fact-checking his father, but not Harris.
“Weird how the hack moderators at @abcnews are only ‘Fact checking’ Trump and allowing Kamala to lie nonstop,” he posted.
“The Fake News is the enemy of the people!”
Weird how the hack moderators at @abcnews are only "Fact checking" Trump and allowing Kamala to lie nonstop. The Fake News is the enemy of the people! #ABCDebate
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 11, 2024
Independent journalist Christopher Rufo posted on X:
“These overtly partisan, often misleading ‘fact checks’ are absurd.
“It’s not journalism. It’s propaganda.”
“Harris just lied about the SCOTUS ruling on immunity,” noted conservative commentator AG.
“Zero fact-checks from the moderators after multiple fact-checks against Trump.
“Really bad look for ABC News.”
Sirius XM host Megyn Kelly blasted Muir and Davis, writing:
“These moderators are a disgraceful failure and this is one of the most biased, unfair debates I have ever seen.
“Shame on you @ABC.”
“The pile-on against Trump is so bad and so obvious this will backfire,” she added.
Kelly followed up by publishing a video statement where she shredded ABC News over the moderators’ bias.
“I’m ashamed of those moderators at ABC News,” Kelly blasted.
“They did exactly what their bosses wanted them to do.
“The person who runs ABC News is a close personal friend of Kamala Harris that is responsible for Kamala Harris and her husband meeting.”
WATCH:
Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon added:
“Kamala is holding the moderators back in this joint debate against Trump.
“Definitely the weakest link.”
Even leftist reporter Glenn Greenwald slammed ABC News:
“David Muir is criticizing and attacking Trump more than Kamala is.
“Kamala can relax because the ABC ‘moderators’ are handling the debate for her.”
David Muir is criticizing and attacking Trump more than Kamala is.
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) September 11, 2024
Kamala can relax because the ABC "moderators" are handling the debate for her.
Muir and Davis allowed Harris to lie about her own record when Trump highlighted how she supported defunding the police and she claimed that it was not true.
As the Trump campaign noted, ABC News even covered how Harris wanted to “redirect” police resources in 2020.
Also, the very post that Trump was talking about, in which Harris did raise money for those involved during the 2020 riots, is still live on social media.
“If you’re able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota,” Harris wrote in the 2020 tweet.
If you’re able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota. https://t.co/t8LXowKIbw
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 1, 2020
“It isn’t ‘fact-checking’ when you are only fact-checking Trump and allowing Harris to lie with impunity,” said National Review editor Philip Klein.
