President Donald Trump, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) have all participated in CNN town halls, including a recent event featuring Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders. Kaitlan Collins moderated both the Trump town hall during the 2023 campaign and the recent AOC-Bernie discussion.
As the title suggests, there are several reasons why it appears advantageous to be a Democrat in such scenarios. One notable statistic from the Media Research Center indicates that Collins interrupted Trump a staggering 113 times during the 2023 town hall—approximately two interruptions per minute. In stark contrast, AOC and Sanders were interrupted just nine times, over 100 interruptions fewer.
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The second reason for the Democratic advantage is the absence of rigorous fact-checking and follow-up questions. During the town hall, AOC alleged that Deloitte, an accounting firm, was releasing hazardous waste into waterways, stating, “Rivers were on fire because of corporations poisoning the people who lived in those areas! Poor, middle-class communities getting poisoned and dumped on by corporations like Deloitte and 3M!” Collins did not challenge this claim.
This lack of scrutiny recalls a previous CNN interview in 2018, where Ocasio-Cortez asserted that low unemployment during Trump’s first term was due to people working multiple jobs—a statement that misrepresents how employment statistics are calculated. Again, she faced no challenge.
The third reason lies in the bias of omission. A review of the AOC-Bernie town hall transcript reveals that the term “billionaire” was mentioned ten times by Sanders, who argued that they are not paying their fair share in taxes. However, this would have been an opportune moment to address the fact that both AOC and Sanders have been traveling on private jets during their “Fight the Oligarchy” tour, which costs $15,000 per hour and contributes significantly to carbon emissions. AOC previously warned that the earth would be uninhabitable by 2031, making their use of luxury jets seem hypocritical to many viewers.
The fourth reason highlighting the Democratic advantage is the tone of the questions posed. Collins’s questioning of Trump in 2023 was markedly different from her approach with AOC and Sanders this week. For example, when questioning Trump, Collins pressed him multiple times about his commitment to accepting the results of the 2024 election, while her tone with Sanders was far more lenient, allowing him to make unchallenged claims.
Finally, the fifth reason is that Democrats can often treat reporters with apparent disdain. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently responded harshly to a question about her refusal of the National Guard on January 6, 2021, saying, “Shut up! I did not refuse the National Guard. Why are you here with Republican talking points?” In another instance, she dismissed a reporter’s inquiry regarding AOC’s comments about negotiating with Republican senators, retorting, “Wait, wait, why are you saying such a ridiculous thing? She’s not directing this!”
President Biden also made headlines when he called Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy a “stupid son of a bitch” for a question about inflation, prompting discussions on media treatment that contrasted sharply with Trump’s behavior towards reporters.
In summary, it seems that the current political climate provides several advantages for Democrats, leading us to conclude: It truly is nice to be a Democrat…
