Dig in folks, we’ve got a story here that takes the cake. CNN’s Dana Bash, our upcoming debate moderator, appears oh-so-concerned that the Department of Justice (DOJ) criticism by Republicans might throw a wrench into the Democrats’ strategy, all the way from ol’ Joe Biden down.
Bash was responding to Lauren Fox, CNN’s Congressional correspondent, who suggested claims by Republicans that the DOJ was used against Trump have no merit. She cited ongoing legal issues involving Democrat players like Senator Robert Menendez and Representative Henry Cuellar as evidence. Then, Bash handed off to Leigh Ann Caldwell, Washington Post Live anchor, asking if she thought these “attack” (as they refer to GOP opposition) on the DOJ would hurt Democrats’ chances.
In our humble opinion, it feels like they’re missing a bigger point. The Supreme Court is grappling with a legitimacy crisis, ignited by Justice Samuel Alito’s wife showing her revolutionary spirit with flags outside their home, but the DOJ surely isn’t? And we should turn a blind eye to the fact that the third-highest Biden DOJ official switched lanes to go after Trump? Sure, we might be in for a Candy Crowley moment with Bash soon.
Caldwell feels the Democrats are torn on how to react to these critiques by Republicans. With a ‘don’t give it more airtime’ camp and those willing to go toe-to-toe on this issue, the strategy is unclear. She seems to argue that each district’s unique forces will shape their response, be it expressing concerns over Trump, highlighting Republican actions against the DOJ, or, shockingly, suggesting that the GOP is now an extreme party with no answers for economic problems. This last point is served with a heavy scoop of assumption.
Think about this people, we’re weeks away from the first presidential debate, and one of its moderators seems worried about “baseless” attacks potentially hurting one side. You’d think a debate should be a fair square-off and not one where the fighters outnumber their opponent, but we’ll keep watching.
Wrapping up, remember, a debate is a platform for discussion, not a battleground that needs to be refereed to favor a side. CNN’s line-up reminiscing the Alito flags shows bias, but refusing to discuss a DOJ official’s sudden career twist seems like selective reporting to me. Instead of worrying about future “attacks”, maybe we should be more focused on keeping our debates neutral to let the candidates and the audiences decide by merit, not by predisposed assumption. Fair is fair.
