Liberal media outlets CNN and MSNBC went to bat for the FBI this week after the raid on former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home.
News anchors and guests on both networks repeatedly insisted that the FBI’s actions, at the discretion of the Justice Department, were apolitical and consistent with the procedures of the law enforcement agency.
On Wednesday’s installment of CNN Newsroom with Alisyn Camerota and Victor Blackwell, colleague S.E. Cupp and former Trump campaign adviser David Urban quickly went off the rails during a discussion of the raid.
Urban was quickly dismissed by Cupp after he claimed many Republicans believed the move was a "repugnant" overreach by the Department of Justice and had made Trump a sympathetic character in the eyes of many Americans. Cupp said Urban’s assessment was a "MAGA world" talking point and that the notion of FBI corruption is "preposterous" to most Americans.
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"If you didn’t leave the White House with classified documents you don’t have to worry that the FBI is coming to raid your home office. I think most people think holding even the president accountable is good. That’s a good thing. That’s a sign of a healthy Justice Department and a healthy FBI," Cupp also noted.
Just a day earlier on the channel, attorney and Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway made similar comments when he slammed conservative Americans and Republican politicians that believe law enforcement is engaging in a "political attack" against the former president.
"The fact of the matter is, there’s no reason to believe that," he added.
A large swathe of the FBI water-carrying came from MSNBC anchors and guests, who went to great lengths to mock critics of the raid and defend the agency, whose credibility and reputation for impartiality came under fire after revelations of misconduct during the Russiagate investigation.
Attorney and civil rights activist Maya Wiley, who frequently joins the network, claimed on Wednesday that those questioning the FBI raid were essentially attacking a "non-politicized and independent law enforcement," while contributor Charlie Sykes said Republicans owed the FBI the "benefit of the doubt."
During MSNBC's "All in with Chris Hayes," guest host Alicia Menendez spoke with NBC News' justice reporter Ryan Reilly and former RNC chairman Michael Steele. Both panel guests attempted to defend the FBI.
Reilly went a step further than Wiley’s description of the FBI, calling it a "conservative-leaning law enforcement organization," while Steele said Americans should assume that all Republicans are "dangerous until proven otherwise."
MSNBC’s "Way to Early" host Jonathan Lemire said the FBI would never have taken the actions they did, unless they felt there was something "really significant" Trump had, and weren’t concerned about whom he might show it to.
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The next day, Lemire’s colleagues and hosts of "Morning Joe" Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough went all in on their defense of the FBI, making sure to convey that the move was not a raid.
"These attacks against the FBI, these attacks against the most important federal agency--," Scarborough said, before he was cut off by his wife.
"Less than 24 hours after a peaceful search that they gave them a heads-up on," Brzezinski said.
Perhaps nobody was more enthusiastic about the FBI’s actions than CBS late night host Stephen Colbert, who could hardly contain his excitement on the news.
"It may be hot outside, but in here it’s Christmas. Because yesterday we all got the present we wanted. FBI agents raided Mar-a-Lago," Colbert jubilantly announced as his audience erupted into cheers.
Former President Trump on Monday said that his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida was "under siege" by a "large group" of FBI agents executing a search warrant, and the story has dominated the news cycle all week.
After days with no direct comment, Attorney General Merrick Garland revealed he personally approved the search warrant and announced that the Department of Justice called to unseal the warrant for the public to see. It was revealed the FBI was searching for highly classified documents that Trump may have taken from the White House, some of which they were concerned had to do with nuclear weapons.
Fox News’ David Rutz contributed to this report.
