Most Americans were under the impression that this week's presidential debate had been canceled. Then they turned on NBC and realized they were wrong. The only change, it turns out, is that the "Today" show's Savannah Guthrie was taking on the president in what the network hilariously billed as a "townhall." Twenty minutes into Guthrie's interrogation, not one audience member had asked a question. It was a stark contrast to the Joe Biden lovefest happening on ABC, where even softball questions were changed out for Nerfs.
Of course, the president predicted the "townhall" would be an ambush, even tweeting beforehand: "I will be doing a major Fake @NBCNews Town Hall Forum, live tonight from Miami, at 8:00 P.M... I wonder if they'll treat me as well as Sleepy Joe? They should!" They didn't. From demanding he again denounce white supremacy to haranguing him about the virus, the debate wasn't about getting in legitimate policy questions but giving the leftist press a free shot at Trump. By the event's conclusion, it was such a set-up that even MSNBC's Rachel Maddow felt compelled to distance her sister network from the debacle, saying, "Let me remind you that what you just saw was a production of NBC News," she said. "We are MSNBC. We did not produce that event."
Meanwhile, over at kid-gloved ABC, Joe Biden wasn't asked a single question about the bombshell Hunter Biden reports, which nearly broke the internet Wednesday when the New York Post released his emails. Despite the fact that it may have been a criminal abuse of the former vice president's power -- agreeing to pay-to-play meetings arranged by his son -- and despite new revelations that Hunter may have pursued lucrative off-the-book deals with China, Stephanopoulos ignored the allegations completely. "Tonight," the Wall Street Journal had written, "represents an opportunity for ABC to set itself apart from the raft of media companies, new and old, that have dedicated the last 36 hours to suppressing a damning report about their favorite candidate." Separate themselves, it did not.
Despite the gentle questioning, Biden still managed to provide plenty of shocking moments. When Stephanopoulos finally asked about an issue of significance -- court packing -- the vice president first said he wasn't "a fan," then insisted it would all hinge on the Amy Coney Barrett vote. "It depends on how this turns out," he went on. "How it's handled." "What does that mean?" Stephanopoulos asked, "'how it's handled?' How will that determine -- " "It depends on how much they [Republicans] rush this," Biden fired back. So, Stephanopoulos prodded, "If they vote on [her] before the election, you are open to expanding the court?" "I'm open to considering what happens from that point on," Biden answered -- in other words a Harris-Biden administration will pack the court.
Then, in one particularly troubling conversation with the mother of a transgender-identifying third-grader, Biden had an exchange that should have stopped every American in their tracks.
MIEKE HAECK: I'm the proud mom of two girls, 8 and 10. My youngest daughter is transgender. The Trump administration has attacked the rights of transgender people... How will you as president reverse this dangerous and discriminatory agenda and ensure that the lives and rights of LGBTQ people are protected under U.S. law?
BIDEN: I will flat out just change the law. Every -- eliminate those executive orders, number one... The idea that an 8-year-old child or a 10-year-old child decides, 'You know, I decided I want to be transgender. That's what I think I'd like to be. It would make my life a lot easier.' There should be zero discrimination. And what's happening is too many transgender women of color are being murdered. They're being murdered. And I think it's up now to 17, don't hold me to that number. But it's -- it's higher now?... And that's just this year. And so I promise you there is no reason to suggest that there should be any right denied your daughter or daughters, whichever one or two... One, your daughter -- that your other daughter has a right to be and do. None, zero...
Joe Biden, the man vying to be your next president, thinks eight-year-olds have the capacity to make life-altering decisions to change their gender. And if you -- the parent, doctor, or any other adult -- try to stop them, it's "discrimination!" On day one of his administration, he's announced, he'll even punish you for trying. He doesn't care that there's no scientific evidence proving these treatments are safe. He doesn't care that 98 percent of boys and 88 percent of girls grow out of it. Or that it's been called "child abuse" by the American College of Pediatricians. He doesn't even care that hundreds of teenagers who've transitioned are pleading with adults to stop others from making the mistake. What do they care about? Nothing -- except the approval of radical LGBT activists.
The idea that anyone -- let alone a candidate for the highest office in the land -- would want to lock hurting children into a lifetime of misery is unconscionable. Parents of the teenagers who've walked that path will tell you what comes next: heartbreak. "Once we have cut that beautiful body, when the voice is permanently broken, the beard is there for good, the breasts are gone, what happens if the body was never wrong to start with? What will you tell the daughters [who] realize, too late, that they have destroyed their ability to bear children, or to nurse them?" Girls like Sydney Wright say, "I was struggling with a big hole in my heart." But instead of helping her, adults pushed her down a path that has permanently scarred her. "Nobody told me," she said emotionally, "that most people outgrow their feelings."
Joe Biden isn't just wrong, he's dangerous. And in a brand-new publication, "Do Not Sterilize Children," just released today, FRC's Peter Sprigg explains why.
