On Monday night, CNN anchor Brian Stelter claimed on Twitter that calls for former Vice President Joe Biden to reject debating President Trump were the result of a “right-wing media tempest, fueled by hour after hour of Fox commentary.”
It is mostly a right-wing media tempest, fueled by hour after hour of Fox commentary (not reporting), far removed from campaign reality… https://t.co/nQd4b312vX
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 4, 2020
That ludicrous claim was prompted by Townhall.com political editor and Fox News contributor Guy Benson, who had tweeted, “This ‘Biden shouldn’t debate’ boomlet is just a media tempest, right? Right?”
This ‘Biden shouldn’t debate’ boomlet is just a media tempest, right? Right?
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) August 4, 2020
After Stelter’s ridiculous claim, Benson replied by quoting @ReaganBattalion’s brief tutorial as to where the calls for no debates were coming from:
Via @ReaganBattalion, it seems as though this notion wasn’t invented out of whole cloth by conservatives. It’s an idea that has been floated by left-leaning figures/outlets… pic.twitter.com/Ce4s8cnPhh
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) August 4, 2020
That elicited this circuitous answer from Stelter: “I’m well aware. but it’s a mistake to spend lots of precious time yakking about what leftie columnists are suggesting in this case. obviously biden will debate. why imply otherwise to viewers, hour after hour?”
i'm well aware. but it's a mistake to spend lots of precious time yakking about what leftie columnists are suggesting in this case. obviously biden will debate. why imply otherwise to viewers, hour after hour?
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 4, 2020
Appearing on Fox & Friends on Monday, Trump 2020 campaign manager Bill Stepien asserted President Trump wants the debates to happen sooner rather than later.
Host Pete Hegseth noted, “Bill, Joe Biden has the ability to have it both ways because he’s in his basement; he doesn’t answer many questions from the press. A lot of people clinging to the reality that, hey, there are three debates. He’s going to have to come out and stand face to face with President Trump and hash out the issues.”
Hegseth then played a clip of Joe Lockhart, former press secretary for President Bill Clinton saying, “It’s not really a debate if only one side is willing to tell the truth … giving him (Trump) that sort of national forum to continue to spout to get to 21,000 to 22,000 lies I think just isn’t worth it for the Democrats or for Biden.” Hegseth noted that The New York Times on Monday had endorsed the idea of no debates.
Stepien replied: “We want more debates. We want debates starting sooner. The first debate is scheduled for Sept. 29; by that time, 16 states will already have been voting by September 29. That’s a concern to me. I want to see President Trump on the stage against Joe Biden. As you’re noting, we’re already seeing the liberal Left, the liberal media, trying to create trap doors for Joe Biden to escape. His commitment and his obligation to debate Donald Trump on a debate stage in front of the American people — we want more debates.”
“We are going to keep applying pressure to the Biden campaign,” Stepien added. “We take our cues from the American people. The American people in those 16 states that are going to be voting before Sept. 29, they’re the ones who want to see the candidates on the debate stage. You’re really starting to see grassroots pressure amp up from those corners of the country who expect [and] deserve a chance to see their options right in front of them on the debate stage and we join them in that push.”