Fox News Channel will air Sunday programming MediaBuzz anchor Howard Kurtz kicked off the program by tearing apart the liberal media’s narrative that Virginia Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin was appealing to racists with his campaign. And it wasn’t just him, Kurtz leaned on a panel representing separate ideologies who agreed that the narrative was a lie.
Kurtz exposed those who believed that Democrats were having a problem with their listening skills and messaging. “But even with the Democrats falling short, some left-wingers in the media are still pounding away at what they call Youngkin’s racist appeals,” he said.
For those video clips, he drew heavily from MSNBC’s Election Night coverage and beyond (Click “expand”):
NICOLLE WALLACE: What he’s done is he’s laundered Trump’s really, sort of, disgusting, flagrant out racism – he’s wrapped it in “education.” And he’s given it a lie as a label. [Transition]
JOY REID: It was “education” which is code for, “white parents don’t like the idea of teaching about race.” [Transition]
TIFFANY Cross: It’s about white supremacy being accepted by a large number of people. Let’s make a thing of it.
“The Virginia governor’s race wasn’t about white supremacy, come on! It was, as savvier journalists admit about many voters just not feeling heard,” he declared.
Mollie Hemingway from Federalist was the first panelist to call. She was also a Virginia parent so she offered specific insights into this matter. “Well, usually the media and their left-wing bias helps the Democratic candidates. But in this case, their grouping think did not help the Democratic candidates because education had been a huge issue for Virginia parents,” she explained.
She also pointed to how the liberal media “downplayed” and “ignored” how Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe flashed his contempt for parental influence in education during a debate.
Kurtz disproved the second lie, that Youngkin had wanted to ban books. Kurtz switched to Harold Ford (Democrat) and he was elected a former congressman. “But there’s some pundits on your side who are still sort of clinging to this narrative that Youngkin ran a racist campaign and wants to ban book when, in fact, he wanted to give parents the right for them to opt-out from sexually explicit books,” he prefaced to Ford.
Ford’s first point of action was to chide his party for being “wrongheaded” and always crying “racism” all the time. “I think we have a tendency in all of politics to point to race very fast,” he lamented. And he went on to call out how ridiculous it was to call Virginia racist given their voting history and agreed with Hemingway that Democrats were alienating parents (Click “expand”):
My belief is that Glenn Youngkin was there to meet voters in Virginia. The state has been a strong supporter of Democratic candidates for the presidency, including for Governor. So, they didn’t all of a sudden become racist.
I think that Mollie’s point about parents – The parental involvement of parents – and I’m one too – over the last year and a half in our kids’ education; I think probably some parents resented the fact that there were those who thought that they didn’t have good ideas, that they do not have – not only good ideas but the willingness and the right to share those ideas.
“I’m glad you both agree that these are legitimate issues that we can debate but they’re not necessarily racist appeals,” Kurtz thanked them.
Further on, Hemingway dismantled the big lie that Virginia’s education system wasn’t influenced by the poison of Critical Race Theory. “The actual guidance from the Department of Education in Virginia talks about using Critical Race Theory in education. Plus, we have tons of reporting showing how it’s happening in Loudoun County,” she said.
Adding: “This is something that has been really pushing hatred and division in government schools. Parents are becoming more concerned about it. But it is officially a part of Virginia’s Department of Education.”
You can find the transcript below. To read it, please click on “expand”.
Fox News Channel’s MediaBuzz
November 8, 2021
Eastern at 11:01:35(…)
HOWARDS KURTZ: But even with the Democrats falling short, some left-wingers in the media are still pounding away at what they call Youngkin’s racist appeals.
[Cuts to video]
NICOLLE WALLACE: What he’s done is he’s laundered Trump’s really, sort of, disgusting, flagrant out racism – he’s wrapped it in “education.” And he’s given it a lie as a label.
[Transition]
JOY REID: It was “education” which is code for, “white parents don’t like the idea of teaching about race.”
[Transition]
TIFFANY CROOSS: This article is about the fact a majority of white supremacy-loving voters are comfortable with it. Let’s make a thing of it.
[Cuts back to live]
KURTZ: The Virginia governor’s race wasn’t about white supremacy, come on! KURTZ: It wasn’t about white supremacy, let’s be honest!
(…)
Eastern, 11:3:16
KURTZ: Mollie, as a parent in Virginia, what do you think about the way most of the media portrayed Glenn Youngkin’s campaign as a racist dog whistle aimed at parents of school kids?
MOLLIE HEMINGWAY (English): Usually, the media and their left-wing bias help the Democratic candidates. In this particular case however, the Democratic candidates were not helped by their grouping thinking as education was a major issue for Virginia families. It wasn’t just about the hateful and racist Critical Race Theory that’s infecting so many schools, it was also about COVID shutdowns.
And it was also about something Terry McAuliffe himself said, weeks before election day where he said parents didn’t really have a role in their kids’ education. The media downplayed or ignored this until it was too late, and McAuliffe loses.
KURTS: Harold. I believe some media understand that parental control and schools are very important issues. However, there are some pundits who believe Youngkin launched a racist campaign to ban books. When in reality, Youngkin wanted parents to have the option to not read explicit sexually explicit material, they do so by clinging on to that narrative. You don’t know what to make of this.
HAROLD FORD – Happy Sunday! I am grateful for the opportunity to speak with you. I think it’s wrongheaded and it’s certainly not looking forward for anyone, particularly for members of my party to racialize too quickly. In politics, I believe we all have the tendency to see race as a priority very quickly.
The most likely explanation is that Glenn Youngkin went to Virginia and met voters. It is the state that has repeatedly voted Democratic for President and governor many times in recent years. So, they didn’t all of a sudden become racist.
I think that Mollie’s point about parents – The parental involvement of parents – and I’m one too – over the last year and half in our kids’ education; I think probably some parents resented the fact that there were those who thought that they didn’t have good ideas, that they do not have – not only good ideas, but the willingness and the right to share those ideas.
Democrats should look at this and consider the fact that they are currently in Washington, in the Senate, in the House, and in the White House. People are sick to see us putting food on our plates instead of delivering it. That’s the takeaway for me, and I think that we can correct that over the next year.
KURTZ – Not only playing with food but also throwing a lot. And I’m glad you both agree that these are legitimate issues that we can debate but they’re not necessarily racist appeals.
(…)
Eastern, 11:09:32
HEMINGWAY: Critical Race Theory is officially a part of Virginia government – their approach to education, not just by the current administration which is under Ralph Northam, but Terry McAuliffe actually instituted it as well. It’s in government documents–
KURTZ: What does it mean to be an official?
HEMINGWAY The Department of Education of Virginia has provided guidance on the use of Critical Race Theory in education. Additionally, there are tons of data that shows how this is happening in Loudoun County.
And it’s not something that just white parents care about it, all parents care about it, black, brown, white. No black parent wants their kid to be told that she can’t succeed because of the color of her skin. No white parent wants their kid to be told that they’re an oppressor.
This has really led to hatred and division at government schools. Parents are becoming more concerned about this issue. However, it’s an official part of Virginia’s Department of Education.
(…)
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