CNN's Tapper rips media smear campaign against Hur, WSJ report on Biden decline without mentioning own network

CNN anchor Jake Tapper has taken purpose astatine the media's attraction of those who sounded the alarm astir erstwhile President Joe Biden's cognitive diminution earlier it was afloat exposed astatine the now-infamous statesmanlike debate, contempt the information that his ain web was blameworthy of lobbing specified attacks. 

As Biden was actively seeking reelection, determination were 2 explosive moments that drew attraction to his intelligence acuity earlier the debate. The archetypal was successful February 2024 with the merchandise of the Hur report, which determined the Justice Department would not question transgression charges implicit the then-president's mishandling of classified information, successful portion due to the fact that a assemblage would deem him arsenic a "sympathetic, well-meaning aged antheral with a mediocre memory." The study besides revealed Biden couldn't retrieve cardinal dates, specified arsenic erstwhile helium was successful bureau and erstwhile his lad Beau died. 

The 2nd was successful June 2024, weeks earlier the debate, erstwhile The Wall Street Journal published a bombshell report titled, "Behind Closed Doors, Biden Shows Signs of Slipping," a months-long probe by reporters Annie Linskey and Siobhan Hughes involving much than 45 sources who were either straight progressive oregon briefed connected meetings with Biden, who they said "appears slower now, idiosyncratic who has some bully moments and atrocious ones." 

JAKE TAPPER DECLARES BIDEN WHITE HOUSE LIED ABOUT ‘CHEAP FAKES' AFTER CNN PEDDLED NARRATIVE IN 2024

Questions astir then-President Joe Biden’s fittingness to service different word exploded pursuing a disastrous statesmanlike statement successful June 2024.  (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

On Bari Weiss' "Honestly" podcast Thursday, Tapper spoke astir however the Biden White House went to "war" with Special Counsel Robert Hur, who helium described to Weiss arsenic a "serious civilian servant," and however members of the media participated. 

"A batch of radical successful the media are precise complicit and portion of the smear instrumentality against Robert Hur," Tapper told Weiss. "Robert Hur is smeared and cannot get a occupation for months. And helium was – honestly, if you look backmost astatine what helium said, that was polite!"

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He besides praised "great reporters" Linksey and Hughes, noting they, too, were viciously attacked. 

"[They] are garroted by the Democratic Party and by journalists and by media critics, and by journalism professors and this full manufacture of radical who assertion to beryllium non-partisan assessors of truth… that had to person been traumatizing for them," Tapper said. 

What Tapper failed to notation was that CNN was among those "complicit" successful Team Biden's attacks connected Hur and The Wall Street Journal. 

Jake Tapper took purpose astatine the media "smear machine" that targeted Robert Hur and The Wall Street Journal to support Joe Biden. (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Discovery)

Jim Acosta, who astatine the clip was Tapper's CNN colleague, wondered aloud if Hur’s appraisal was "out of bounds," portion CNN commentator and erstwhile Biden White House communications manager Kate Bedingfield accused Hur of "editorializing" his report, and then-CNN governmental expert John Avlon wondered wherefore "some rotation connected the ball" was included. 

One of CNN's go-to ineligible experts, Jeffrey Toobin, scolded Hur for making "unnecessary points" astir Biden’s precocious age, characterizing the peculiar counsel arsenic a "Republican partisan" who "trashed" the president contempt not bringing charges. 

"Part of that study was an outrage, was a disgrace," Toobin said astatine the time.  "I mean, the thought that they that helium would marque specified a large constituent of Biden being aged is not thing a authoritative needed to do."

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CNN wide pundit Paul Begala likewise attacked the "partisan Trumper" for "editorializing mode retired of his league," adjacent suggesting Hur was motivated to question revenge connected Biden for voting against William Rehnquist, for whom Hur had clerked, during his Supreme Court confirmation arsenic Chief Justice successful 1986 erstwhile Biden served arsenic a senator.

"This feline has donated to Republicans. He is simply a partisan," Begala said. "The lone occupation helium had was to indict oregon not indict, and to adhd each this — the lone happening helium didn't adhd was the ineligible disclaimer that this is simply a governmental advertisement successful enactment of Donald Trump. It was a full inexpensive shot."

CNN's then-senior governmental expert Gloria Borger instantly took Biden's side, insisting, "This is not a antheral who's going to hide the time his lad died" and echoed Biden's falsehood that Hur was the 1 who brought up Beau's decease successful the interrogation when, successful fact, it was the president. 

Jeffrey Toobin, 1 of CNN's go-to ineligible experts, called the Hur study a "disgrace" and labeled the peculiar counsel a "Republican partisan."

Perhaps Biden's biggest defender astatine CNN astatine the clip was its media reporter, Oliver Darcy (who has since near the network), who declared Hur's depiction of Biden's intelligence authorities "didn’t lucifer reality."

"The acknowledgement from some, but not all, quality outlets connected Tuesday astir the existent quality of Biden’s deposition marked different embarrassing infinitesimal for the nationalist press, which has floundered astatine pivotal moments successful the pb up to the important 2024 statesmanlike election," Darcy wrote successful March 2024. "The deposition transcripts not lone indicated that Biden appeared reasonably crisp during his testimony, joking with investigators and retelling stories with granular detail, but that Hur was misleading successful however helium presented immoderate of the accusation included successful his report."

"Hur chose to represent the president arsenic a mentally diminished aged antheral who struggled to callback basal accusation during his deposition, raising alarm bells astir whether helium had the fittingness to service successful the nation’s highest office. Hur’s characterization of Biden played straight into a years-long run waged by Biden’s governmental opponents and the almighty right-wing media instrumentality to picture the president arsenic a senile, aloof man," helium continued.

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CNN talking heads repeatedly attacked the integrity of Special Counsel Robert Hur, labeling him a "partisan Trumper" and accusing him of being politically motivated.  (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Following The Wall Street Journal's report, respective CNN anchors stressed that the paper's communicative heavy relied connected Republican disapproval of Biden and called retired erstwhile House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who gave the lone on-the-record statement, for appearing to flip-flop connected Biden's sharpness successful erstwhile comments (the Journal reporters aboriginal explained it arsenic a tactical PR determination astatine the clip for McCarthy to bolster practice with the Biden White House). 

CNN's Boris Sanchez grilled Hughes implicit Democratic allegations that her communicative was "slanted," a question that would beryllium unfathomable to a writer covering Donald Trump.  

Darcy erupted astatine The Wall Street Journal, insisting its reporting "suffers from glaring problems," lecturing the insubstantial it "owes its readers — and the public — better."

"It is hard to ideate that the newspaper, oregon immoderate outlet, would tally a akin communicative declaring that Trump is ‘slipping’ down the scenes based connected the connection of apical Democratic figures — contempt the information that the Democratic enactment has demonstrated a overmuch stronger narration with the information successful caller years than their Republican counterparts," Darcy wrote. 

CREDIBILITY CRISIS: WALL STREET JOURNAL REPORT ON BIDEN ‘SLIPPING’ WAS SMEARED BY MEDIA

CNN anchor Boris Sanchez pressed Wall Street Journal writer Siobhan Hughes connected accusations from Democrats that her Biden study was "slanted."

"More broadly speaking, The Journal’s portion pointed to a continued occupation roiling the quality media arsenic it covers the 2024 election. Trump is permitted to autumn dormant successful tribunal and marque nonsensical nationalist statements connected a regular ground without immoderate superior questions raised astir his intelligence acuity," the ex-CNN pundit continued. "Meanwhile, Biden is judged connected an wholly antithetic standard."

A spokesperson for CNN declined to comment.   

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