“Real Time” host Bill Maher questioned whether it would be wise for liberal media to continue avoiding the growing controversy surrounding Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff.
“There's been a lot of terrible stuff about Doug in the news this week,” Maher said Friday during a panel discussion on HBO's “Overtime.”
“If people don't know what's going on, the Daily Mail reports that three women [Emhoff’s ex-girlfriend] As is often the case in cases like this, she said that they were speaking at the same time when they were at the Cannes Film Festival, I think it was 2011 or so. he slapped her. He thought she was flirting with the servant. ”
“He pushed the nanny, right? That's confirmed,” conservative radio host Buck Sexton chimed in.
“That's confirmed. He definitely beat the nanny,” Maher replied with a laugh.
“What I'm saying is, is this going to be more reliable? We don't know yet. I mean, a lot of conservative news outlets haven't reported on this yet, so these things should be checked. I'm not going to blame them for not reporting it yet, because it needs to be done. But if it's going to be more reliable, it's certainly at the Brett Kavanaugh level, and something like that is going to happen soon. Everybody reported it. Will the liberal media continue to ignore it?”
“Yes, it will, of course,” Sexton replied.
“Wouldn't that make it look worse?'' Maher asked.
In response, CNN anchor Laura Coates said it would be “wise” for the media to be “cautious” about serious allegations like Emhoff's “until we have supporting details” and investigated the claims. He added that it was “fair” to do so.
“What I don't think is fair is to tar and feather it without doing anything more,” Coates said. “I think people have to be informed and they have to actually do their homework and background. I don't think it's about not reporting. Again, I think all of the allegations involved here I don't know much about it, but I think it's appropriate to investigate, simply because it's appropriate to be cautious before putting anything into the ether.''
Atlantic staff writer Tim Alberta said the Emhoff controversy is a “problem” for Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign and “must be addressed now.”
“Regardless of what's been confirmed or not, I think there's a little bit of blood in the water right now. The nanny thing was the first drop, and now there's some more,” Alberta said. Said.
“And it won't be long. I can assure you that investigative teams from the likes of the Times and the Post are looking into this.”
Emhoff, who has been featured in the media as a positive representation of masculinity, has been embroiled in controversy in recent weeks. Emhoff admitted to having an extramarital affair with his family's nanny and impregnating her, which resulted in the end of his marriage to his first wife, Kirstin Emhoff.
“During our first marriage, Kerstin and I went through some tough times because of my actions,” Emhoff said in a statement. “I took responsibility, and in the years since, we've gotten through things as a family and come out stronger on the other side.”
The Daily Mail later reported that he had “forcefully slapped” his then-girlfriend in 2012, and that he had “inappropriate” and “female” behavior during his tenure as head of the Los Angeles law firm Venable from 2006. The report continued to list abhorrent allegations, including that he had engaged in “disrespectful” office conduct. Until 2017.
Since the controversy erupted, nearly every media interviewer has avoided the topic entirely during conversations with Emhoff, although MSNBC's Joe Scarborough did not hesitate to highlight “tabloid articles” about Emhoff. Even when quoted, the second gentleman did not deny the suspicion.
“We don't have time to be angry. We don't have time to focus on it. It's all a distraction. It's designed to try to take us out of the game,” Emhoff told Scarborough last week.
