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Spin Cycle: Media Hard-Pressed To Find Narrative That Will Stick To ‘Teflon Don’

Legacy outlets in particular struggle to find their footing six months into President Donald Trump's second term.

By  Virginia Kruta
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   DailyWire.com
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Spin Cycle: Media Hard-Pressed To Find Narrative That Will Stick To ‘Teflon Don’

As members of Congress begin to leave the U.S. Capitol for their annual August recess, media outlets appear to be at a loss – and not just because their regular guests have gone on vacation. No one clear narrative emerged on Sunday as the legacy outlets in particular struggle to find their footing six months into President Donald Trump’s second term.

For those who don’t spend their Sunday mornings glued to the television — and their Sunday afternoons attempting to dig through a week’s worth of network and cable news media spin — The Daily Wire has compiled a short summary of what you may have missed.

After a number of weeks laser-focused on the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein — and the way President Trump’s administration handled the release of information related to his case and his alleged client list — poll numbers may have finally begun to drive the message home: the American people aren’t turning away from Trump over this particular issue.

ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos raised the issue on “This Week” during a panel discussion that included former Democratic National Committee Chair Donna Brazile and former Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ), and they briefly addressed reports on the Justice Department’s dealings with convicted Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.

Christie claimed that the issue would continue to dog President Trump because a lot of the people pushing hardest for answers and transparency were Republicans — and also “because this has now leaked into popular culture.” Brazile commented on the recent decision to move Maxwell to a lower security facility amid her cooperation with federal law enforcement, and argued that Alligator Alcatraz was “where she belongs” based on the crimes for which she was convicted.

But Stephanopoulos spent the rest of the show going in multiple directions, apparently in search of a narrative that might stick. He brought in Doctors Without Borders CEO Avril Benoit to discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and of course they talked about the starving civilians and the difficulties in getting aid to them. Benoit noted that the conditions on the ground were “insecure” and it was hard to ensure that once aid made it to the area, it went to the people who truly needed it.

Benoit also mentioned “injuries and deaths” that occurred during every major delivery — whether people are trampled by others also trying to get food from the aid facilities or shot as they leave — and claimed that the solution was “a ceasefire.”

Stephanopoulos brought up the recent photos and videos of hostages still being held by Hamas terrorists, asking whether those images constituted “war crimes.”

“Well, look, I think that the situation for the hostages is absolutely horrific as well. If no food aid is coming in, everyone is at risk,” she replied, seeming to suggest that the hostages were being starved because their captors were not getting food aid either.

And with a pivot to the economy and the recently-revised jobs numbers — which President Trump complained had been manipulated to make him and his administration look bad — the Clinton-aide-turned-ABC-anchor brought in Larry Summers to counter Trump’s claims.

“There’s no conceivable way that the head of the BLS could have manipulated this number … This is the stuff of democracies giving way to authoritarianism,” Summers said, responding to the news that Trump had directed his administration to fire the Biden-appointee who was in charge.

On CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” the focus was similarly splintered. A series of comments on the recent trade deals and spending bill gave way to a conversation between host Margaret Brennan and Governor Michell Lujan Grisham (D-NM) about her decision to deploy the National Guard within her state.

When asked how it was different from Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to protect federal property and personnel during the riots and raucous protests in California, the New Mexico Governor replied, “They’re doing the back-end work so that … local police officers, they’re on the streets … And it is working. We’re beginning to see more productive fentanyl, drug dealing, high-end arrests than we did without the Guard.”

On CNN’s “State of the Union,” the question turned to 2028 and whether former Vice President Kamala Harris should take another crack at the nation’s highest office. Governor Jared Polis (D-CO) evaded the direct question, saying instead, I think it’s great that many people will hopefully run.”

And on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” anchor Kristen Welker and Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) discussed how to address concerns of gerrymandering in Texas.

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