The day after the country marked the 20th anniversary of 9/11, NBC’s Sunday Today was brazen and callous enough to complain that the fight against the coronavirus wasn’t as unifying as that tragic day was; disingenuously ignoring how they weaponized COVID coverage to attack former President Trump. They also suggested that opposition to the Biden administration’s mask and vaccine mandates were akin to opposing the Civil Rights movement and not fighting the Nazis.
After a segment gushing about President Biden’s travels on 9/11 and how he wore a mask outside around other vaccinated people, host Willie Geist looked to political director and Meet the Press moderator, Chuck Todd to commiserate on how the response to the pandemic wasn’t as unifying as terrorists attacking America. Of course, Geist suddenly had respect for former President Bush:
So, you know, today is September 12, and it’s the 20th anniversary today of the date many people think, “okay, this is the new world this is the first morning of the new world where we came together and we were unified.” And you heard a lot of that in President Bush’s extraordinary speech yesterday in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, which led a lot of people to wonder why we haven't been more unified in this moment as we face nearly 700,000 American deaths from COVID-19?
As usual, Todd fumbled with finding where he wanted to go with his comments at first but eventually settled on whining about the American people being able to unify against an “outside invader” rather than an “invisible” enemy. “We had an outside invader in Al Qaeda, and so we were able to unite. We had a common enemy. With COVID this invisible enemy, we're not able to do it,” he said.
He lamented that the “arc of American history” would show that opposition to COVID regulations and mandates would prove to be less like when we unified to fight the Nazis and more like when people (Democrats) tried to oppose the Civil Rights movement:
And, you know, Willie, thinking about this all week, when you actually – sadly you look at the arc of American history, polarization in some ways is more common than us coming together. We came together to beat the Nazis, we came together at times during the Cold War, we came together after 9/11. But we also spent a lot of time fighting each other whether it’s dealing with race in America, or invisible fights.
He then issued an ominous warning about what such opposition would mean for fighting climate change. “Right now it is COVID, just wait until we try to deal with climate mitigation,” he said. “If you think COVID has been polarizing on the country, wait till some of the tough decisions that are going to have to be made regarding water and things like this.”
“So, the sad thing is that if we don't figure this out on this divide, you know, again, COVID's just this fight. We got a lot of other problems to face too,” Todd concluded. And Geist wrapped up by imploring people to go watch Bush’s speech.
NBC’s gross comparison and whining about 9/11 and COVID were made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from Sleep Number and GEICO. Their contact information is linked so you can tell them about the biased news they fund.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
NBC’s Sunday Today
September 12, 2021
8:06:49 p.m. EasternWILLIE GEIST: Chuck Todd is NBC's political director and moderator of Meet the Press. Chuck, good morning, it’s good to see you.
So, you know, today is September 12, and it’s the 20th anniversary today of the date many people think, okay, this is the new world this is the first morning of the new world where we came together and we were unified. And you heard a lot of that in President Bush’s extraordinary speech yesterday in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, which led a lot of people to wonder why we haven't been more unified in this moment as we face nearly 700,000 American deaths from COVID-19?
CHUCK TODD: No, look, this is what colored all the remembrances this week and it’s this – to look at the two – I guess, best way to look at the two battles that the country engaged in. We had an outside invader in Al Qaeda, and so we were able to unite. We had a common enemy. With COVID this invisible enemy, we're not able to do it.
And, you know, Willie, thinking about this all week, when you actually – sadly you look at the arc of American history, polarization in some ways is more common than us coming together. We came together to beat the Nazis, we came together at times during the Cold War, we came together after 9/11. But we also spent a lot of time fighting each other whether it’s dealing with race in America, or invisible fights.
Right now it is COVID, just wait until we try to deal with climate mitigation. If you think COVID has been polarizing on the country, wait till some of the tough decisions that are going to have to be made regarding water and things like this.
So, the sad thing is that if we don't figure this out on this divide, you know, again, COVID's just this fight. We got a lot of other problems to face too.
GEIST: Yeah. And the way out isn't necessarily clear. I do encourage anybody who didn't get a chance to see it to watch President Bush's speech, almost ten minutes yesterday in Shanksville. Chuck, thanks so much.
