The ideal of a town hall – where citizens can spontaneously ask politicians questions they would like answered – is not what city hall is in today’s politics.

There are too many risks for politicians, or for the Television networks who organizes the event.

A humorous example occurred Monday during a so-called town hall with the vice president Kamala Harris and her ally, former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. An audience member asked former NBC reporter Maria Shriver if they could ask questions.

“That’s not the case, unfortunately. We have predetermined questions,” Shriver said. “I hope I can ask some of the questions that might be on your mind.”

Harris only answered three of these predetermined questions during an hour-long event.

On May 10, 2023, CNN hosted a town hall with the former president Donald Trump. CNN host Kaitlan Collins constantly interrupted Trump, “correcting” him. The left they called it a “disaster” – for CNN, because they didn’t want Trump to appear on CNN.

As so often happens, Collins felt compelled to interrupt Trump incessantly on behalf of those who believe Trump needs to be “real-time fact-checked.” Collins badgered him for 25 minutes about the 2020 election and January 6 denials, as you would expect. Trump lost; it’s a fact. But since the public seemed to support Trump, it was something of a triumph for him.

On Wednesday, CNN broadcast a town hall event with Harris, and the difference was evident within the first few minutes. Anderson Cooper asked his first question: You call Trump unhinged, but he is now more popular than he has ever been. Harris provided a 500-word response. Cooper asked Harris if she thought Trump was a fascist, and she answered yes in 300 words, without interruption.

Calling Trump a “fascist” was apparently not an opportunity for “real-time fact-checking.” Fact-checker Daniel Dale then ignored it.

Cooper addressed Harris on a few topics, including immigration. He noted that she had changed her mind on the border wall. But none of the speakers at the town hall really pushed Harris to move in a conservative direction.

Seven of the callers were identified by Cooper as being inclined to support Harris. A “leaner” came towards Harris with a hard ball coming from the left. Annalize Kean jumped in: “My question is: As president, what would you do to ensure that there is no other Palestinian dies because of bombs financed by American taxpayers’ money?

But many were very open: What is your greatest weakness? What is the proudest moment of your political career? What is your first political priority? The answers may have been evasive, but the questions were nothing like the barrage Trump faced.

Near the end, CNN’s Dana Bash said she was hearing from people who felt Harris wasn’t offering real answers about her weaknesses or priorities, but hey, “any time she can be in front of an audience and interact with voters. It’s a victory, as far as his campaign is concerned, and they’re very happy about it.

Collins really appreciated the bluntness of his response that Trump is a fascist. It seems like she wants everyone to forget that she ever worked for the conservative Daily Caller.

Most of the postgame show was typical liberal analysis, with a David Urban clip here and a Scott Jennings moment there. Jennings had enough time to summarize the evening. It was “empty, empty, empty. If she were an animal, she would be a duck-billed platitude.

If Harris failed to “close the sale” on CNN, no one should blame CNN. They gave her a bland promotional platform to call her opponent a fascist, then later praised her for her fervent fascist chatter. Hating Trump defines CNN.

COPYRIGHT 2024 CRÉATEURS.COM

We publish a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here should be construed as representing the views of The Daily Signal.