Mark Halperin and former Politico reporter scorch 'liberal media bias' on networks like MSNBC
Political commentator Mark Halperin and Axios White House reporter Marc Caputo skewered much of the modern media for brazen bias against President Donald Trump and conservatives in general.
MSNBC has been in the national spotlight after the network underwent a major shakeup, elevating former President Biden's first press secretary Jen Psaki's show to primetime, while purging "The Reidout" and "Alex Wagner Tonight." On Halperin's "2WAY TONIGHT" podcast, Caputo, who was a reporter for Politico, said Psaki joining MSNBC network at all during Biden's presidency, after she left her White House role, was an indictment of modern media.
"Jen Psaki's hiring by MSNBC was one of the many examples of how utterly broken the Acela media industrial complex is," Caputo said. "For the first time in United States history, a sitting president seeking reelection had his press secretary go and work for a major media enterprise and anchor a show. And no one f---ing said anything about how irregular, how newsworthy, how out of line that was."
He added "So when we come to our current moment, Jen Psaki, MSNBC represents a very particular inflection point, as does the Biden presidency, in the way in which the press covered it. That leads us to where we are today."
Halperin agreed, but suggested, "Of all of the examples of liberal media bias denied by the people who run the big organizations, of all the examples, perhaps the most egregious is they hire media writers who are far, far left—as if they're covering the media fairly."
"If you're going to have a media writer whose job it is to hold the media to account, you cannot hire people who hate Donald Trump. And their coverage isn't subtle," Halperin added.
"It's not like some of The New York Times coverage, for instance, where within the crevices of the paragraphs, you can see they're biased against Trump," he said. "They are full-on resistance writers, and that's why they write negative things about Marc Caputo, and me, and why they did not touch this Jen Psaki story."
The silence of media reporters on certain specific stories, Halperin said, speaks volumes about who they are.
"It's bats--t crazy for these organizations, who claim to be serious news organizations, to have as their media reporters leading members of the resistance - unapologetic and explicit - who, to this day, have not written about Joe Biden, the lack of coverage of Joe Biden's loss of mental acuity - to this day, they have not written about the biggest media story of all time, and instead they are writing about Stephen Miller's demeanor in a cable news hit," he said.
Halperin also called out the media for not platforming now-Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and former Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., as each of them attempted to run against Biden for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2024 election. By contrast, he recalled how networks have platformed Sen. Adam Schiff of California, who was censured by the House for 'false' allegations on Trump-Russia collusion.
"And they will put Adam Schiff on, whose public failures of credibility are more pronounced than Dean Phillips. And in terms of implications, I would say you could argue comparable to Bobby Kennedy's," he argued. "It's insane that they didn't put them on, but it's more insane that people whose job it is to write about the press and hold the press accountable didn't write a word about it."
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Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Democrats see political trap in Trump's Biden probe
Democrats are warning members of their party not to fall into a political trap after President Trump ordered an investigation into former President Biden's mental state and executive actions at the end of his term. Trump directed his counsel, in consultation with the attorney general, to probe 'whether certain individuals conspired to deceive the public about Biden's mental state' amid renewed scrutiny of his predecessor's age and health in the lead-up to last year's election. The probe threatens to keep an issue in the news that Democrats would like to move on from and could force them into the uncomfortable position of having to defend Biden despite his unpopularity. 'We need to avoid taking the bait for a totally unfounded political stunt, which is what this investigation is,' said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). 'It's a distraction from the problems that everyday Americans face in our economy: tariffs, rising prices and the 'Great Big, Beautiful Bill.'' Biden also cast the play as a distraction from controversy swirling around the current White House, pushing back sharply against Trump's suggestion that he was not the one making the decisions from the Oval Office. Trump's call for an investigation fixates on Biden's use of an autopen to sign executive actions, claiming that, if advisers 'secretly used' the mechanism 'to conceal his incapacity,' it would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of presidential power. 'Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency,' Biden said in a statement. 'This is nothing more than a distraction by Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans who are working to push disastrous legislation that would cut essential programs like Medicaid and raise costs on American families, all to pay for tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy and big corporations.' On Capitol Hill, where Trump's House-passed spending bill is hitting snags in the Senate as Elon Musk feuds with Trump and calls to kill the legislation, other Democrats are echoing that framing. 'He's clearly trying to deflect attention from the disastrous effect he's had on the US economy,' said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.). 'He only brings up Joe Biden when he's really worried about something, like 'Vladimir Putin is playing me and the world sees it. My tariffs thing is not working out.'' 'So I would say, give it as little attention as possible,' Kaine said, suggesting Democrats should turn the inquiry around on Trump and say, ''You're the president now. What about your evidence of mental decline?'' Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) and Ruben Gallego (D-N.M.) concurred that the move is a distraction from the bill and that Democrats should respond by drawing Americans' focus to the budget concerns instead. Engaging could also risk legitimizing some of Trump's claims about the end of Biden's term, suggested Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright. He called the push for an investigation 'a distraction pitch that Donald Trump is trying to throw down at the batter's box, hoping somebody will swing at it.' 'Anytime we fall into the trap, then we trap our own selves,' Seawright said of Democrats. 'We should focus on this moment and not try to get caught up into conversations that don't gain us anything electorally or politically.' Questions about Biden's age and health dogged him along the 2024 campaign trail, contributing to his eventual exit from the race. Trump, who railed against his two-time rival as 'Sleepy Joe' as they jostled for the White House, has continued to raise the issue, while Democrats seek to turn the page and look toward the midterms and 2028. Trump has repeatedly blasted Biden over his autopen use, questioning whether orders signed by his predecessor — including 11th-hour preemptive pardons for his family members and others to protect against 'politically motivated prosecutions' — are void as a result. The White House confirmed this week that the Department of Justice is reviewing Biden's pardons. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has also started its own inquiry into what Republicans have cast as a 'mental decline cover up.' This week, Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) demanded interviews from some of Biden's former top aides as well as his doctor, Kevin O'Connor. At the same time, new books, including 'Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again' from CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson, have renewed debate about his mental acuity. The scrutiny also comes after Biden was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer last month. The diagnosis itself prompted questions about whether the timing was intended as a distraction and did little to quell talk about whether the 82-year-old should have dropped out of the race earlier. Republicans, for their part, are largely heralding the inquiries as a pursuit in transparency. 'The American people deserve to know who was making decisions from the White House between 2021-2025. I hope this investigation uncovers the truth,' Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.) said on X of Trump's probe. A number of Democrats seen as 2028 hopefuls, asked in recent weeks about the end of Biden's presidency, have acknowledged his weaknesses. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told an Iowa town hall last month that his then-boss's decision to run for reelection 'maybe' hurt Democrats, and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told Politico there's 'no doubt' Biden suffered cognitive decline. Across the board, though, Democrats have been pointing toward the future and hoping to move on from questions about their former party leader as they stare down the high-stakes midterms next year and aim for the White House in 2028. Biden's favorability was at 39 percent in the latest YouGov/The Economist polling, compared to Trump's 44 percent and former Vice President Harris's 42 percent. 'If Democrats shift their focus to this, then they risk further alienating and frustrating their base that is ready to put Biden behind them,' said Democratic strategist Fred Hicks. He pointed out Trump's public fallout this week with Musk, who's suggested that Trump's bill could be 'bankrupting America,' and suggested it could be opening for Democrats in their pushback against the administration. But although Democrats are pushing for the party to ignore not just the probe but the Biden discourse more broadly, many have acknowledged that the issue is likely to dog them through 2028 and could even be a political liability for some potential presidential contenders. Strategist Hank Sheinkopfinterpreted Trump's new probe not as a trap or bait, but as a direct attack, and countered some of his fellow Democrats by arguing that the party ought to respond. ''Take [Trump] on or lose in 2026' is really the reality which they don't want to deal with. They somehow believe that if they don't take them on, they'll win anyway,' Sheinkopf said of party leaders. 'What they want is [to say], 'Biden, we're not talking about that, that's the past.' But that's the present. So it's a delusional argument,' he said. 'Trump is making this the present. He's defining the Demcoratic Party by Biden, and the things he's going to say about Biden, whether they are true or not. So you can't let that stand.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
4 hours ago
- The Hill
Democrats see political trap in Trump's Biden probe
Democrats are warning members of their party not to fall into a political trap after President Trump ordered an investigation into former President Biden's mental state and executive actions at the end of his term. Trump directed his counsel, in consultation with the attorney general, to probe 'whether certain individuals conspired to deceive the public about Biden's mental state' amid renewed scrutiny of his predecessor's age and health in the lead-up to last year's election. The probe threatens to keep an issue in the news that Democrats would like to move on from and could force them into the uncomfortable position of having to defend Biden despite his unpopularity. 'We need to avoid taking the bait for a totally unfounded political stunt, which is what this investigation is,' said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). 'It's a distraction from the problems that everyday Americans face in our economy: tariffs, rising prices and the 'Great Big, Beautiful Bill.'' Biden also cast the play as a distraction from controversy swirling around the current White House, pushing back sharply against Trump's suggestion that he was not the one making the decisions from the Oval Office. Trump's call for an investigation fixates on Biden's use of an autopen to sign executive actions, claiming that, if advisers 'secretly used' the mechanism 'to conceal his incapacity,' it would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of presidential power. 'Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency,' Biden said in a statement. 'This is nothing more than a distraction by Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans who are working to push disastrous legislation that would cut essential programs like Medicaid and raise costs on American families, all to pay for tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy and big corporations.' On Capitol Hill, where Trump's House-passed spending bill is hitting snags in the Senate as Elon Musk feuds with Trump and calls to kill the legislation, other Democrats are echoing that framing. 'He's clearly trying to deflect attention from the disastrous effect he's had on the US economy,' said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.). 'He only brings up Joe Biden when he's really worried about something, like 'Vladimir Putin is playing me and the world sees it. My tariffs thing is not working out.'' 'So I would say, give it as little attention as possible,' Kaine said, suggesting Democrats should turn the inquiry around on Trump and say, ''You're the president now. What about your evidence of mental decline?'' Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) and Ruben Gallego (D-N.M.) concurred that the move is a distraction from the bill and that Democrats should respond by drawing Americans' focus to the budget concerns instead. Engaging could also risk legitimizing some of Trump's claims about the end of Biden's term, suggested Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright. He called the push for an investigation 'a distraction pitch that Donald Trump is trying to throw down at the batter's box, hoping somebody will swing at it.' 'Anytime we fall into the trap, then we trap our own selves,' Seawright said of Democrats. 'We should focus on this moment and not try to get caught up into conversations that don't gain us anything electorally or politically.' Questions about Biden's age and health dogged him along the 2024 campaign trail, contributing to his eventual exit from the race. Trump, who railed against his two-time rival as 'Sleepy Joe' as they jostled for the White House, has continued to raise the issue, while Democrats seek to turn the page and look toward the midterms and 2028. Trump has repeatedly blasted Biden over his autopen use, questioning whether orders signed by his predecessor — including 11th-hour preemptive pardons for his family members and others to protect against 'politically motivated prosecutions' — are void as a result. The White House confirmed this week that the Department of Justice is reviewing Biden's pardons. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has also started its own inquiry into what Republicans have cast as a 'mental decline cover up.' This week, Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) demanded interviews from some of Biden's former top aides as well as his doctor, Kevin O'Connor. At the same time, new books, including 'Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again' from CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson, have renewed debate about his mental acuity. The scrutiny also comes after Biden was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer last month. The diagnosis itself prompted questions about whether the timing was intended as a distraction and did little to quell talk about whether the 82-year-old should have dropped out of the race earlier. Republicans, for their part, are largely heralding the inquiries as a pursuit in transparency. 'The American people deserve to know who was making decisions from the White House between 2021-2025. I hope this investigation uncovers the truth,' Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.) said on X of Trump's probe. A number of Democrats seen as 2028 hopefuls, asked in recent weeks about the end of Biden's presidency, have acknowledged his weaknesses. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told an Iowa town hall last month that his then-boss's decision to run for reelection 'maybe' hurt Democrats, and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told Politico there's 'no doubt' Biden suffered cognitive decline. Across the board, though, Democrats have been pointing toward the future and hoping to move on from questions about their former party leader as they stare down the high-stakes midterms next year and aim for the White House in 2028. Biden's favorability was at 39 percent in the latest YouGov/The Economist polling, compared to Trump's 44 percent and former Vice President Harris's 42 percent. 'If Democrats shift their focus to this, then they risk further alienating and frustrating their base that is ready to put Biden behind them,' said Democratic strategist Fred Hicks. He pointed out Trump's public fallout this week with Musk, who's suggested that Trump's bill could be 'bankrupting America,' and suggested it could be opening for Democrats in their pushback against the administration. But although Democrats are pushing for the party to ignore not just the probe but the Biden discourse more broadly, many have acknowledged that the issue is likely to dog them through 2028 and could even be a political liability for some potential presidential contenders. Strategist Hank Sheinkopfinterpreted Trump's new probe not as a trap or bait, but as a direct attack, and countered some of his fellow Democrats by arguing that the party ought to respond. ''Take [Trump] on or lose in 2026' is really the reality which they don't want to deal with. They somehow believe that if they don't take them on, they'll win anyway,' Sheinkopf said of party leaders. 'What they want is [to say], 'Biden, we're not talking about that, that's the past.' But that's the present. So it's a delusional argument,' he said. 'Trump is making this the present. He's defining the Demcoratic Party by Biden, and the things he's going to say about Biden, whether they are true or not. So you can't let that stand.'
New York Post
7 hours ago
- New York Post
Trump warns of possible military action if Iran enriches more uranium: ‘We're going to have no choice'
WASHINGTON — President Trump warned Friday that Iran will not be allowed to enrich uranium — hinting at possible military strikes following the revelation that Tehran has been secretly building out a near weapons-grade nuclear program for months. 'They won't be enriching. If they enrich, then we're going to have to do it the other way,' Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. 'And I don't really want to do it the other way but we're going to have no choice,' he added. 'There's not going to be enrichment.' 5 'They won't be enriching. If they enrich, then we're going to have to do it the other way,' President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday. AP Israel also reassured the White House earlier this week that it won't launch an attack on Iranian nuclear sites unless Trump signals that ongoing talks with Tehran about its nuclear program have failed, Axios reported. 'He may go into a war. But we're not getting dragged in,' Trump had said of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a Time magazine interview in April to mark his first 100 days in office. 'I may go in very willingly if we can't get a deal. If we don't make a deal, I'll be leading the pack.' In May, the president said he'd warned Netanyahu not to bomb Tehran's nuclear facilities because the US had been 'having very good discussions with' Iranian negotiators. But Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday that ending uranium enrichment was '100%' against his country's interests — and lashed out at the US for being 'arrogant' in its proposal for a revamped nuclear deal. That drafted agreement, submitted by Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff on May 31, permitted low-level uranium enrichment for civilian use. 5 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday that ending uranium enrichment was '100%' against his country's interests. via Getty Images 'Who are you to decide whether Iran should have enrichment?' Khamenei said in a televised speech. 'If we had 100 nuclear power plants while not having enrichment, they are not usable for us.' On Tuesday, the State Department clarified that the US did not support Iran enriching uranium at any level. 5 Levels of 90% uranium enrichment are considered weapons-grade. REUTERS 'The fact is, President Trump tweeted that there is going to be no uranium enrichment,' spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters. The US and Iran have already gone through five rounds of talks over the nuclear issue — without any breakthroughs. The UN's International Atomic Energy Agency last week reportedly disclosed that, in the background, Tehran had been upping its 60%-enriched uranium stockpile — from 274.8 kilograms to 408.6 kilograms between February and May — a roughly 50% jump between February and May. 5 A nuclear deal proposal, submitted by Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff on May 31, would permit low-level uranium enrichment for civilian use. Getty Images Levels of 90% are considered weapons-grade, and US officials have warned that Iran could convert their stockpile to reach that threshold needed for a single weapon in two weeks' time. That prompted Netanyahu to call on international allies 'to stop Iran,' sounding the alarm about the uranium enrichment levels being only appropriate for 'countries actively pursuing nuclear weapons.' Trump previously revived a 'maximum pressure' of sanctions on Iran after returning to the White House — and European nations privy to the UN nuclear report's findings may also be considering further snapback sanctions previously lifted under former President Barack Obama's nuclear agreement with Tehran. 5 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week called on international allies 'to stop Iran,' sounding the alarm about the uranium enrichment levels being only appropriate for 'countries actively pursuing nuclear weapons.' AP That 2015 deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, was supposed to reduce Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium by 98%, though the UN findings have undercut that. Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018.
