On Thursday night, with his path to reelection narrowing, President Trump delivered a rambling diatribe in which he baselessly claimed widespread voter fraud and conspiracy against him.
One by one, TV networks cut away from the speech by the incumbent commander-in-chief, with ABC News switching to airing Jeopardy!, and NBC News and CBS News likewise transitioning away. MSNBC cut from the speech within just 35 seconds: "Okay, here we are again, in the unusual position of not only interrupting the president of the United States, but correcting the president of the United States," the anchor, Brian Williams, said.
On CNN, one of the few networks to air the whole speech uninterrupted, the election team tore into the president when he'd finished talking. "What a sad night for the United States of America to hear their president say that, to falsely accuse people of trying to steal the election, to try to attack democracy that way with his feast of falsehoods. Lie after lie after lie about the election being stolen," Jake Tapper said, adding, "It's time for some Republican lawmakers to find their spine and talk to the president about what he needs to do for the good of the country."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Dana Bash, who was co-anchoring the network's election coverage, said, "I'm not an emotional person, but I'm having trouble keeping it together after listening to what the president said." Abby Phillip likewise added, "This president clearly knows this is not going to end well for him, and he's trying to take the rest of the country down with him."
Even the usually Trump-friendly Fox News, the only other major network to air the whole speech, balked. "We have not seen the hard evidence" of Trump's claims, Fox anchor Bret Baier stressed to his viewers.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
-
US tipped to help Kyiv strike Russian energy sitesSpeed Read Trump has approved providing Ukraine with intelligence for missile strikes on Russian energy infrastructure
-
Netanyahu agrees to Trump’s new Gaza peace planSpeed Read At President Trump's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they agreed upon a plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training
-
Moldova gives decisive win to pro-EU partySpeed Read The country is now on track to join the European Union within five years
-
Interpol arrests hundreds in Africa-wide sextortion crackdownIN THE SPOTLIGHT A series of stings disrupts major cybercrime operations as law enforcement estimates millions in losses from schemes designed to prey on lonely users
-
UK, 3 Western allies recognize Palestinian stateSpeed Read Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal formally recognized the state of Palestine
-
Russia slams Kyiv, hits government buildingSpeed Read This was Moscow's largest aerial assault since launching its full-scale invasion in 2022
-
China's Xi hosts Modi, Putin, Kim in challenge to USSpeed Read Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Asian leaders at an SCO summit
