Critics are coming down hard on Joe Biden’s performance at the CNN town hall. While the former vice president did score some points for his ability to show empathy toward the Pennsylvania voters picked to ask questions, CNN’s “softball” treatment of Biden was widely panned. Especially considering the harsh grilling President Trump received at the ABC News town hall earlier in the week.
“In the first moments, the contrast between what Trump was asked and what Biden is being asked is striking,” Politico columnist Jeff Greenfield said in a tweet pointing out the stark differences between events.
He added that “this is not exactly getting him ready to face tough questions from a Chris Wallace or Jake Tapper (should he decide to do so).”
NewsBusters managing editor Curtis Houck’s analysis of the event shows that of the 16 participants who asked Biden questions, 13 of them were Democrats while at Trump’s town hall he faced three Hillary Clinton voters, one Jill Stein voter, three non-voters, one unidentified, and just four Trump voters.
Others took notice of the biased questions at the CNN town hall.
The Daily Beast politics reporter Hanna Trudo noted the profuse number of Democratic voters in a tweet that was later deleted, “Has CNN asked a question to anyone who’s not a Democrat? (may have missed)”
“So far the questions at CNN’s drive-in #BidenTownHall sound as if they were written by Biden’s campaign: “Tell us how bad Trump is”. Reversal of the president’s ABC town hall,” columnist Miranda Devine pointed out.
Many critics noticed that while maintaining social distancing for the cameras, both Biden and host Anderson Cooper were seen standing next to each other with the former VP whispering directly into the anchor’s ear unaware that they were still on camera.
Joe Biden and Anderson Cooper are making a point of social distancing during the CNN Town Hall while on the stage.
But when they think they’ve gone to commercial break, they get so close to each other that Biden is whispering in Cooper’s ear: pic.twitter.com/ClZXrxFfSo
— Steve Krakauer (@SteveKrak) September 18, 2020
The Trump campaign released a statement slamming the one-sided event.
Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh listed subjects that Biden was not asked such as his economic record and his opposition to Trump’s travel ban during the coronavirus outbreak.
“Virtually every question for Joe Biden was an invitation for him to attack President Trump, while moderator Anderson Cooper offered almost no pushback, giving Biden a total pass on his lies and misrepresentations,” said Murtaugh.
