On his eponymous evening show on NewsNation, Dan Abrams on Tuesday called out NBC's Chuck Todd for hosting a special episode of Meet the Press in which ant-police guests outnumbered those who were advocates for law enforcement by a 3:1 margin.
Abrams -- who is also is a veteran legal analyst for the ABC broadcast network -- complained about Todd using one case of an unarmed black man who died under questionable circumstances without also spending time on all the good things about law enforcement and the challenges they face.
After recalling that, as he watched, he was hoping for a balanced presentation, he added: "And then, not surprisingly, I realized that this special was really just a way to bash police again."
He then played a clip of far-left MSNBC legal analyst Paul Butler from Sunday's Meet the Press show; "If you have a job where you have to follow rules if you're licensed to kill and have to be careful about how to use that power, if you have concerns about that, you should not be police officer --"
Abrams soon showed a clip of Todd fretting that cops have too much immunity as he looked at a map showing states that have "bill of rights" laws protecting cops: "It sounds terrific. Who's going to be against a law enforcement bill of rights when you look at this on here? But these have almost turned into super -- a steroid version of immunity, hasn't it?"
Then came a clip of
"Right. it's special protections for law enforcement that are facing allegations of misconduct. These special protections are beyond the pale."
Abrams then lamented:
Sadly but not surprisingly given the way the left-leaning media tends to cover policing, the show featured just one pro-police advocate defending the profession against three police critics. Law enforcement didn't get anything close to a far shake. Meet the Press examined policing in America entirely through the prism of a single police brutality case.
After noting that the town had hired a cop who had been fired from another jurisdiction after he engaged in questionably violent behavior toward criminal suspects, the NewsNaton host noted that the state of Maryland had already passed a law to address such issues in future by making a cop's record more accessible. Abrams then asked:
And that brings us to the obvious question. Why did Meet the Press feel the need to cherry pick a case from three years ago to hold up as some sort of symbol. They billed their show as an examination of policing in America. But what they really did was examine the problems police, and they used one years old case to do it.
It could also be pointed out that the liberal media mislead their viewers by devoted almost all cases of questionable police violence to highlighting cases of black suspects who experience violence, giving the false impression that the issue is more about racism than it actually is.
Conservative talk radio host Larry Elder has pointed out that a white man died in police custody in Las Angeles the year before George Floyd under similar circumstances, but the liberal media were not interested because it did not promote a liberal narrative about racism.
Butler -- the legal analyst Todd used -- has a history of blatant ant-cop commentary which has included wrongly claiming that most police shooting victims are minorities, comparing cops to gang bangers when they kill suspects, and holding out hope that liberal actor Jussie Smolett was telling the truth and Chicago police were lying after all the other liberal media were admitting that Smollett had staged a hate crime hoax.
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Transcripts follow:
NewsNaton's Dan Abrams Live
September 6, 2022
DAN ABRAMS: NBC's Meet the Press normally concentrates on politics in Washington and beyond. But this week the long-running Sunday morning show devoted an entire hour to a topic that piqued my interest.
CHUCK TODD: This Sunday, policing in America...
ABRAMS: Now, obviously, I was very curious: "policing in America." I was hopeful the show would take a deep look at policing in the U.S. -- examining crucial topics, including the struggle in recruiting new officers, low morale among the officers, overly critical media coverage of the profession, low pay that is not at all commensurate with their incredibly difficult responsibilities -- as well as high-profile incidents that have undermined faith in police. And then, not surprisingly, realized that this special was really just a way to bash police again
PAUL BUTLER, MSNBC LEGAL ANALYST: If you have a job where you have to follow rules if you're licensed to kill and have to be careful about how to use that power, if you have concerns about that, you should not be a police officer --
Dr. ROGER MTCHELL, HARVARD UNVERSTY: -- the culture within the law enforcement agencies culture in those local law enforcement agencies -- yes, we can take our cues from some of these outlier is what we're talking about but also some of the sustained racism that we may see in law enforcement
CHUCK TODD: It sounds terrific. Who's going to be against a law enforcement bill of rights when you look at this on here? But these have almost turned into super -- a steroid version of immunity, hasn't t?
REBECCA BROWN, NNOCENCE PROJECT: Right. it's special protections for law enforcement that are facing allegations of misconduct. These special protections are beyond the pale.
ABRAMS: Sadly but not surprisingly given the way the left-leaning media tends to cover policing, the show featured just one pro-police advocate defending the profession against three police critics. Law enforcement didn't get anything close to a far shake. Meet the Press examined policing in America entirely through the prism of a single police brutality case. The show spent the entre hour discussing Anton Black -- a 19-year-old African American man who died in police custody in Caroline County, Maryland, back n 2019.
Black was tased and then pinned down on a ramp by officers who handcuffed him and then held him down for six minutes. He died of sudden cardiac arrest. Black's family eventually settled the lawsuit with three local municipalities for $5 million. One of the officers involved == Thomas Webster -- was implicated in 32 use of force allegations during his proer tenure in a Delaware police department, including one incident in which Webster was indicted and found not guilty of second degree assault for kicking a suspect in the face, knocking him unconscious, found not guilty.
But in 2020, Maryland passed Anton's law, which requires more transparency for police disciplinary records when offers switch jurisdictions. Now, think that as long as these are confirmed incidents when the officer has been found to be responsible, think that could be a good thing. In fact, that was one of a series of police reforms the state enacted.
And that brings us to the obvious question. Why did Meet the Press feel the need to cherry pick a case from three years ago to hold up as some sort of symbol. They billed their show as an examination of policing in America. But what they really did was examine the problems police, and they used one years old case to do it.
Now, let me be clear. I'm not defending the police tactics in that case -- $5 million civil settlements don't happen all the time. But it seems many of the issues raised were addressed with a sweeping series of reforms in the state of Maryland. But, see, that doesn't gin up outrage. The politicized media here sought to use this single incident to attack police more broadly. This is what they see as an examination of policing in America. It's like dong a special on school lunches in America and focusing on one story about a kid who got sick off a sloppy joe three years ago. And that's the big problem here, as you see, so much coverage of policing in the politicized media. If they had billed it as an advocacy piece, I would have much less of an issue with it, but policing in America ought to include the countless examples of police heroism and the challenges officers face today. I will we see that featured on a future episode of Meet the Press. I'm not holding my breath.
(...)
NBC's Meet the Press
September 4, 2022
CHUCK TODD: This Sunday, policing in America.
ANTONE BLACK, FATHER OF ANTON BLACK: He didn't attack nobody -- he didn't rob no bank -- he didn't kill nobody.
TODD: A young man with bipolar disorder wrongly believed to be committing a crime.
POLICE OFFICER: Black male wearing all black just fled on foot. Apparently he is a schizophrenic.
TODD: Dies in police custody in front of his mother.
LaTOYA HOLLEY, SSTER OF ANTON BLACK: He told our mother that he loved her.
TODD: Anton Black's story raises so many larger questions about policing n America. How did a police officer who lost his job in one city get a job in another.
LESTER HOLT, NBC NEWS: You called him a monster.
LA MAR GUNN, EX-PRESDENT OF DOVER NAACP: Yes.
TODD: How could Anton's death be ruled an accident?
Dr. ROGER MTCHELL, HARVARD UNVERSTY: Anton Black was in a fight and lost, and that is a homicide.
TODD: And are police unfairly attacked while doing a dangerous job?
JASON JOHNSON, LAW ENFORCEMENT LEGAL DEFENSE FUND: I don't see any indication of malice. I don't see any indication of indifference.
TODD: This morning, we're going to look at the pressure points of policing in America through the lens of one case -- the death of Anton Black.
ANTONE BLACK: My son was George Floyd before George Floyd.
TODD: Welcome to Sunday and a special edition of Meet the Press.
