‘Come ON!’ Biden Campaign Ally Hits CNN — Live On CNN — For Not ‘Calling Out’ Trump’s Debate ‘Lies’

Biden-Harris 2024 National Advisory Board member Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) hit CNN — live on CNN’s air — for failing to challenge former President Donald Trump’s “lies” at the debate.

President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump finally went head-to-head at CNN’s debate Thursday night in the earliest general election presidential matchup ever, and the reviews are in. After some deadly early stumbles , President Biden’s performance improved, but not enough to ward off abject panic from some Democrats , and calls for him to drop out .

Those calls to drop out have become the most intense story to emerge from the debate, but CNN also came under intense criticism over their execution of the decision not to have moderators fact-check the candidates when Trump rattled off as many as 50 falsehoods.

One CNN insider called it “a debacle” in comments to Mediaite.

But on Friday’s edition of CNN News Central , Shapiro took that criticism straight to the source on behalf of the Biden campaign, telling anchor John Berman that while the president “had a bad night,” CNN should have called out Trump’s “lies”:

JOHN BERMAN: I know this is not a comfortable discussion, and I appreciate you agreeing to come on and talk to us this morning.

But I know you also know that this is the discussion that is very much out there this morning. Thomas Friedman, other columnists, writing, I’m sure.

What was your phone like last night? Not private top secret text messages that may deal with security in Pennsylvania, but from political people last night, what were you hearing overnight and into this morning?

GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO: Well, John, I’m not going to sit here and read you my texts, but I can just tell you in general, folks were saying what I’m saying to you this morning. Joe Biden had a bad debate night. But it doesn’t change the fact that Donald Trump was a terrible president.

It doesn’t change the fact that there is a clear and stark contrast in this race, and two very different visions for the future.

I don’t think that vision came through from either person last night, but we got work to do to make sure that that clear contrast is displayed.

I mean, understand– (laughs) it ain’t easy debating a pathological liar, which is what Joe Biden had to do last night.

Donald Trump lied about everything from his record to the direction he wants to take people in this country.

I mean, hell, John, he even lied about saying Democrats want to kill babies after they’re born! I mean, come on! It’s nonsense!

And frankly, I think CNN could have done a better job of calling those lies out!

The bottom line here is that there is a clear contrast in this race, and we have a responsibility to prosecute the case against Donald Trump, not get caught up in any hand-wringing right now. Stop worrying and start working and help move this country.

Watch above via CNN News Central .