Since Friday, when CNN first reported that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team had secured an indictment, the liberal media had been running rampant with speculation about who it was for and how it would topple President Trump. And during ABC’s Sunday Good Morning America, they appeared giddy that the indictment could go all the way up. Yet, on NBC’s Sunday Today, they noted how the indictment could be for something “unrelated” to the Russia investigation. But both outlets went to great lengths to try to discredit revelations that Clinton and the DNC colluded with Russia on the Trump dossier.
“This White House is girding for battle this morning. They know that the first indictment is about to drop in the Russia probe. And like us, they're not sure who is about to be charged,” flaunted ABC’s sensationalist reporter David Wright at the start of his segment.
As Wright’s taped report began, “Call it Russian roulette,” he declared in an overly flamboyant and excited manner. “The first criminal charges imminent in the independent counsel's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible collusion by Trump associates.” And for much of the report, he speculated about who in Trump’s team could be headed to court for working with Russians.
Following Wright’s report, host Cecilia Vega and Dan Harris questioned Clinton lackey George Stephanopoulos about who would the receiver of the indictment. “Is it someone close to the White House? Is he going straight to the top,” Stephanopoulos theorized. “Or is it someone relatively lower level that perhaps Mueller and his team hope to flip and get information on those who may be higher up the chain?”
Meanwhile, on NBC, White House correspondent Kelly O’Donnell took a much more measured approach to covering what none of them knew. In fact, she actually poked a little fun at the 24-hour speculation mill cable news was. “Those big unknowns could be explained as early as tomorrow. Until then, Washington intrigue blankets cable news,” she said.
And in an interview with O’Donnell, NBC analyst Ken Dilanian explained that the indictment didn’t need to be about the Russia investigation. “Will these charges be about collusion with Russia or will they be about something ancillary like lying to a federal investigator or tax evasion,” he wondered. O’Donnell also noted that General Mike Flynn and Paul Manafort both had questions surrounding their lobbying work for foreign governments.
Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd, after her report, claimed that judging by the lawyers Mueller hired, “it seems to me that it's most likely this is going to be an indictment of somebody who committed crimes unrelated to the issue of Russian interference…” Todd noted that the unrelated charges could be the foreign lobbying questions of Tony Podesta, the brother John Podesta, Clinton’s former campaign chair.
In addition to covering the possible indictment on Monday, both networks went out of their way to smear and discredit the revelations connection Clinton and the DNC to the foreign spies that put together the salacious Trump dossier.
“But what the President is doing with the White House right now, they have a strategy of tarnishing the entire investigation. No matter what it finds,” asserted Stephanopoulos. “They're trying to muddy up the waters in that way, hoping to color whatever actions Mueller takes.”
On NBC, Todd smeared anyone who would dare raise critical questions of Hillary Clinton or the Democrats as just cogs in “the impressive Trump media propaganda machine.” And to prove he was a just a cog in the Democrat media propaganda machine, Todd declared that it didn’t matter who paid for the British spy to talk to Russian agents as long as the salacious accusations against Trump were true.
Between their hyperventilation over Trump possibly being indicted and their dismissal of any accountability for serious questions regarding Clinton’s and the Democrats’ collusion with foreign agents, it’s clear they’re a part of the liberal media propaganda machine.
Transcripts below:
ABC
Good Morning America
October 29, 2017
8:04:09 AM EasternCECILIA VEGA: We want to turn now to those developments overnight in Washington. Sources confirming to ABC News that Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his team have filed the first criminal charges in the Russia investigation.
DAN HARRIS: An indictment and arrest could come as early as tomorrow. Who could be the target? ABC’s David Wright is at the White House. David, good morning to you.
DAVID WRIGHT: Good morning, Dan and Cecilia, this White House is girding for battle this morning. They know that the first indictment is about to drop in the Russia probe. And like us, they're not sure who is about to be charged.
[Cuts to video]
Call it Russian roulette. The first criminal charges imminent in the independent counsel's investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible collusion by Trump associates.
DONALD TRUMP: We didn't win because of Russia. We won because of you.
WRIGHT: ABC News has confirmed that a senior prosecutor from Robert Mueller's office, who specializes in fraud cases, was at the federal courthouse in Washington Friday, where the grand jury was in session. Mueller's team filed papers with the court. And sources tell ABC News an arrest could come as soon as tomorrow. But who? The special counsel’s office declines to say. ABC News reached out to former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort’s legal team, who tell us Manafort has no indication any charges against him could be imminent. We also reached out to former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn's team. No response. The President himself has long dismissed the investigation as a politically motivated witch hunt.
(…)
HARRIS: So, give us a little perspective here. Granted we don't have much information at this point about who’s going to be charged. But, how significant a development do these charges have the potential to be?
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: It depends on who it is. I think you're right. We don't really know all that much right now. We know Mueller's been at work for five months. We know reaching an indictment after that period of time is relatively quick for a special prosecutor like this. But the fact that we don't know who it is -- when we find out who it is, that will reveal a lot more about Mueller's strategy. Is it someone close to the White House? Is he going straight to the top, or is it someone relatively lower level that perhaps Mueller and his team hope to flip and get information on those who may be higher up the chain? We just don't know the answer right now. But what we do know is that Mueller has hired a serious team of federal prosecutors. And we know apparently that that first indictment will be announced tomorrow. That shows that this is a serious investigation. Likely to go on for some time.
VEGA: And George, you know this. The White House, the President himself has long maintained this is a witch hunt. It's something we hear from him over and over again. How much longer can they, can he continue to use this line of defense?
STEPHANOPOULOS: I don't think anything is going to stop the President from using that language all throughout the investigation, no matter what Mueller finds. Although, the President, as you just reported, David Wright just reported, his lawyers are saying, listen, he has nothing to worry about. His actions, however, say he has a lot to worry about. Beginning with his firing of James Comey, which led to the appointment of this special counsel, Robert Mueller. But what the President is doing with the White House right now, they have a strategy of tarnishing the entire investigation. No matter what it finds. Which is why they're raising a lot of questions about past actions of former Secretary of State Clinton and others in the Obama administration. They're trying to muddy up the waters in that way, hoping to color whatever actions Mueller takes.
(…)
...
NBC
Sunday Today
October 29, 2017
8:03:03 AM Eastern(…)
KELLY O’DONNELL: What has Robert Mueller found and who will face charges? Those big unknowns could be explained as early as tomorrow. Until then, Washington intrigue blankets cable news. NBC News has confirmed from officials that an indictment is expected Monday stemming from the investigation of Russian intrusion into the 2016 campaign. But critical specifics remain sealed.
KEN DILANIAN: Will these charges be about collusion with Russia or will they be about something ancillary like lying to a federal investigator or tax evasion?
(…)
O’DONNELL: Among those considered under scrutiny the President's former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Each had foreign lobbying work under examination.
(…)
WILLIE GEIST: Let’s just put it out there, the million dollar question right now. Wherever you go people say, who is it? Who is it? Who's going to be indicted on Monday? We know the names that have been mentioned, Kelly mentioned them before. Paul Manafort, General Flynn, you can throw Carter Page's name in there, the campaign national security adviser. Jared Kushner has been out there in the course of this investigation. Do you have any better sense – not necessarily who it might be, but what kind of character it might be?
CHUCK TODD: Look, it seems to me, and if you look at the way Mueller's been going about this investigation, the type of lawyers he's hired, it seems to me that it's most likely this is going to be an indictment of somebody who committed crimes unrelated to the issue of Russian interference but perhaps related to maybe the foreign corrupt practices act or things like that, in an attempt that this is an indictment and in an attempt to squeeze somebody who may have more information. So, for instance, that could be Michael Flynn's son. Or Michael Flynn the former National Security Adviser. But either way—or with Paul Manafort. Especially if it’s Manafort. Manafort, possibly even Tony Podesta the brother of John Podesta the former chairman of Hillary Clinton’s campaign. That will tell you it’s a side issue. He perhaps found both of those men breaking the law when it came to lobbing on foreign governments. But that is a sign he’s looking to squeeze people to get more information on what Russia was trying to do in the United States.
(…)
GEIST: And the President and others have flipped this this week and said not only did we not collude with Russia, but the evidence now shows it was the Democrats. Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign in fact through its attorney that launched this dossier. It was initially launched--nnot the dossier but the relationship with this group was initiated by a republican-conservative website. The dossier that has been the source of so much discussion and consternation, was initiated through the DNC. The DNC says this is oppo research. The Clinton campaign says this is oppo research. Donald Trump calls it could he collusion. Where do you fall?
TODD: Look, to me, it only matters who paid for the dossier if it was not true and if it was people actively trying to make something up. Then you very much want to know who paid for the dossier because that could be criminal, frankly, if it was made up on purpose in an attempt to do this. To me, it doesn't matter who paid for it if what's in the dossier gets confirmed by Bob Mueller. And so, ultimately, I think this lies in the hands of Bob Mueller. But I’ll tell you this: The President ramped up the impressive Trump media propaganda machine over the last ten days. They are doing the best to dilute and diverge from what's going on. Tomorrow though I think they have their work cut out for them if they think they can create a diversionary tactic on Hillary Clinton to avoid scrutiny tomorrow.
GEIST: Bob Mueller's going to cut through that cloud.
(…)
