Former President Donald Trump blasted the media's response to his debate performance and has recommended that ABC News fire all of those responsible for what he called "a disgrace."
"People are just starting to give me credit for having a GREAT DEBATE. The Voters and Voter Polls showed it, but the Fake News Media wasn't giving the credit that was due. Now they are seeing the results with independent Voters, Evangelicals, and more — and saying, WOW!" Trump wrote.
Following Tuesday night's debate between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, many critics have assessed the debate moderators as well as the two candidates. ABC News chose "World News Tonight" anchor David Muir and ABC News Live "Prime" anchor Linsey Davis to moderate the debate and were criticized for what many saw as favoring Harris and only fact checking Trump.
"Remember, I wasn't debating one person, I was debating three. They should fire everybody at ABC Fake News, whose two lightweight "anchors" have brought disgrace onto the company!," Trump posted on his Truth Social on Wednesday evening.
Some pundits in the conservative sphere noted that while Trump was instantly fact checked with some of his statements, Harris was given a notable pass. "ABC is making a huge mistake trying to fact check this live. They're only proving how biased they are. Harris fabricated an attack on Trump over IVF. ABC sat there and said nothing," wrote former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer on X.
In addition to the one side fact checking of Muir and Davis, many critics of ABC have noted that Disney senior executive Dana Walden is "extraordinary friends" with Harris, according to the New York Times. The two have known each other for more than 20 years and their husbands have known each other since the 1980s.
Further stacking the deck against Trump in the minds of supporters was the implied connection between Harris and debate moderator Davis. It was recently revealed that both were members of the same sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha, although at different schools. The two claim no known meeting of each other prior to Tuesday debate.