Media top headlines October 28
In media news today, a former ESPN reporter tells Tucker Carlson about leaving her job over the company's vaccine mandate, a CNN reporter attempts to clean up Terry McAuliffe's education comments, and The Washington Post calls for answers on Wuhan lab research
Cenk Uygur, the founder of progressive media outlet The Young Turks, is urging progressive lawmakers to vote against the reconciliation bill being debated on Capitol Hill.
There has been a major divide among Democrats, who have been struggling to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill as well as the multi-trillion-dollar social spending bill. It's been a political showdown between the progressive caucus in the House versus more moderate-leaning Democrats Joe Manchin, W.Va., and Kyrsten Sinema, Ariz., in the Senate.
AOC THREATENS ‘NO’ VOTE ON INFRASTRUCTURE IF DEMOCRATS DON'T PROVIDE SOCIAL SPENDING BILL TEXT
"There is nothing left for progressives in the reconciliation bill," Uygur declared on Tuesday. "If progressives in Congress vote yes and then do bullsh-- cheerleading for the corporate Democratic Party that gutted it, they will be met with a wall of skepticism and disdain. This bill is now trash. VOTE NO."
Cenk Uygur said that any reporter who calls Pelosi a "master legislator" is "not really a reporter" because she failed to get what she initially wanted. (Seb Daly/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
On Wednesday, Uygur doubled down amid reports that paid family leave was being stripped from bill
"Democrats drop paid family leave! This bill now SUCKS. Democrats are total losers. #VoteNo," Uygur tweeted.
RECONCILIATION BILL: PELOSI SCHEDULES HEARING DESPITE LACK OF BILL TEXT, FRAMEWORK: LIVE UPDATES
"If they pass this reconciliation bill completely crafted by President Joe Manchin and Vice President Kyrsten Sinema, then @JoeBiden's legacy is going to be getting owned by Joe Manchin. This is what weakness looks like. #VoteNo," he later wrote.
He went on to call out progressive lawmakers like Reps. Pramila Jayapal, and Ro Khanna, who've been spearheading negotiations on behalf of their caucus, as well as "Squad" members like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, and Cori Bush amid his push to derail the reconciliation bill as it stands.
"No progressive in their right mind would vote for this gutted, abomination of a bill that doesn't even have paid family leave. We have gotten nearly nothing from this bill!" Uygur exclaimed. "It's important to know that we were in favor of this bill until it got eviscerated in the last couple of weeks. Then Pelosi tells everybody the other day to just cheerlead for it no matter what's in it. Unbearable."
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 15: (L-R) U.S. Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) listen during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on July 15, 2019 in Washington, D.C. President Donald Trump stepped up attacks on the four progressive Democratic congresswomen, saying that if they're not happy in the U.S., "they can leave." (Photo by Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images) (Alex Wroblewski)
Uygur added, "If progressives give in after nearly all of their priorities are taken out, they'll have no credibility for the rest of the Biden administration or until they have a new leader. What was the point of standing strong all the way to now if you're going to just give in at the end?"
Uygur's message may have been received as Ocasio-Cortez threatened a "no" vote on the infrastructure bill pending on what's included in the social spending bill.
"I don't see how ethically I can vote to increase U.S. climate emissions," Ocasio-Cortez said Wednesday, noting that a "framework" of President Biden's "Build Back Better" plan isn't enough detail to sway her vote on infrastructure. "We have had a framework for six months. We need text."
The Young Turks radio show host Cenk Uygur (C) leads a protest of government bailout money given to Goldman Sachs, with listeners gathered in front of the US Treasury building in Washington, June 9, 2010. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS CIVIL UNREST ENTERTAINMENT) (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst )
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., expressed optimism that the party was closing in on a deal in a letter to Democrats.
"As we have insisted, we are close to agreement on the priorities and the topline of the legislation, which can and must pass the House and Senate," Pelosi said in the letter. "At the same time, we are facing a crucial deadline for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework to pass."
Fox News' Michael Lee contributed to this report.