On Wednesday, Fox News Channel host Bill O’Reilly argued that Fusion and Univision anchor Jorge Ramos was “editorializing” in his confrontation with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a press conference on Tuesday and “Ramos has now become an advocate for people who enter the USA illegally and that has superseded his job as journalist.”
O’Reilly began, “Mr. Ramos jumped the line and began asking Mr. Trump about his immigration policy when he had not been called upon. Trump had Ramos removed, correctly saying that he had no right to ask his questions without being recognized. It is every political candidate’s right to regulate Q and A sessions. If they don’t, chaos will ensue and that’s what happened with Mr. Ramos. That being said, if Trump was avoiding Ramos, the anchorman does have the right to ambush him to try to get some answers to his questions. But that is a last resort. … I believe had Jorge been more patient, Trump would have taken his questions because Donald does not usually avoid confrontation, as we all know. It looked like Mr. Ramos grandstanded the situation, hoping to generate publicity. That’s what it looked like. Again, he should have waited his turn.
He added, “By saying the border wall is a waste of time and money, Mr. Ramos is editorializing, not simply probing for answers. And that is the key here. Jorge Ramos has now become an advocate for people who enter the USA illegally and that has superseded his job as journalist. He is a man who wants amnesty for illegal aliens and not only that, he doesn’t really want to stop illegal border crossings. A case can be made that Mr. Ramos is an open border guy — certainly a far-left position.”
O’Reilly then asked, “So let me ask you a question. What’s the difference between Jorge Ramos on immigration and Black Lives Matter on race? What’s the difference? Both are advocating policies from a distinct political point of view.”
He continued, “That’s allowed in America. However, when an anchorman does it, that becomes a problem.” And “Think about this. Jorge Ramos is the most influential Hispanic anchorman in the USA. And Mr. Ramos is an amnesty guy. So how can he possibly report the immigration issue fairly? The answer is, he cannot. It’s not possible. Jorge Ramos went to Iowa to try to debate and embarrass Donald Trump, not get answers for his audience. If Mr. Ramos wants to be a commentator like me, that’s fine. But if Univision and Fusion are putting the man up as an objective purveyor of news coverage, that’s fraud.”
O’Reilly concluded, “Trump was right to control his press conference. But Ramos has a right to ask his questions. And if they will not be considered, he has the option of ambushing any candidate. However, that should be a last resort. Ramos has become a zealot, advocating far-left positions that most Americans reject. To be fair, Trump is advocating a hard-right position on immigration and specifics are hard to get from him. But he does show up to address the questions.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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