CNBC host Shep Smith told his producers to stop playing a video clip of President Donald Trump live on air Wednesday, objecting to the fact that the president pushed his disinformation campaign to claim that the 2020 election was stolen.
Trump posted the video on Twitter Wednesday afternoon after a group of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol as Congress gathered to count the votes of the Electoral College. The rioters attacked police, broke through barriers, and occupied the federal building, blocking the ceremony and forcing the officials to go into lockdown. At least one person was reported to be shot. The insurrectionists had been stirred up by Trump’s false insistence that the election had been stolen and his delusional belief that somehow Congress could overturn the result during the counting. It was clear, however, that Congress would affirm Joe Biden’s win.
In the wake of the violence, some hoped Trump would speak out to calm the situation. But while Trump did tell the rioters to go home in the video, he spent more time stoking the false claims that the election was stolen, and told those who were supporting him in the assault on the Capitol that he loved them and that they were “special.” It seemed at least as likely to rile up his supporters more than calm them down. Continue reading.