On Wednesday’s broadcast of NewsNation’s “On Balance,” Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) acknowledged that debate moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis could have pressed 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris more and “should have challenged her on some of those questions” on fracking, mandatory gun buybacks, and taxpayer-funded gender transition surgeries for prisoners and those in immigration detention and stated that “I wish they would push, and it would serve her well to say, look, I’ve changed my position over the years, rather than ignore or deflect.”
After viewing video of SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly criticizing the moderators for not pressing Harris on fracking and mandatory gun buybacks, Phillips said, “Well, first of all, the moderators should push, and look, Donald Trump lies all the time. And for those who are saying it was unfair, the cards were stacked against him, come on, when you lie the way he does, I think he should be called out. Do I believe they could have challenged her on those two issues? Yes, there’s absolutely, — she has changed.”
Host Leland Vittert then cut in to say, “[A]lso, challenged her on the fact that she said she wants criminals — aliens to have sex change operations paid for at taxpayer expense, on and on.”
Phillips responded, “Of course. At the end of the day, and you know this, Leland, people just want a politician to acknowledge, look, we’re human, we make mistakes, we — when we learn, we change. I wish they would push, and it would serve her well to say, look, I’ve changed my position over the years, rather than ignore or deflect.”
Phillips added, “Donald Trump, he wrote her a campaign check for goodness’ [sake]. He was very pro-choice, and now he’s not.” And the moderators did better than “most” debate moderators and he was “pretty impressed.” But they “should have challenged her on some of those questions.”
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