The Biden presidency has had plenty of chaotic things to deal with in the early weeks of its control over the federal government. The COVID-19 pandemic continues, and a vaccine rollout has occupied much of its time as it picks up the pieces left by Donald Trump’s coup-filled administration. But despite plenty to do — the latest a disaster relief effort in Texas — some of Biden’s biggest critics are lobbing insults at… his dog?
Newsmax, a right wing, Trump-supporting cable news channel, has had some issues with sticking to facts in the final months of Trump’s term when it came to election results and baseless claims of voter fraud. And now it seems its anchors are focusing on something the Trump presidency lacked: dogs. On Friday, anchor Greg Kelly unleashed a segment where he blasted a 12-year-old German Shepherd named Champ in a clip that quickly went viral.
Newsmax guest attacks Biden’s dogs for being dirty and “unlike a presidential dog” pic.twitter.com/6yitOlM765
— aliciasadowski (@aliciasadowski6) February 20, 2021
“Did you see the dog?” Kelly asked on the show Friday. “Doesn’t he look a little, uh, a little rough? I love dogs, but this dog needs a bath and a comb and all kinds of love and care. I’ve never seen a dog in the White House like this.”
Kelly is trying to joke about Biden’s dog, calling it unpresidential. But there are, of course, lots of other things currently going on in America that could deserve some airtime. This segment, mind you, comes a day after Ted Cruz’s international escape amid a climate disaster in Texas. And the network’s beloved Trump, mind you, broke a fairly substantial unofficial presidential tradition by not having a pet of any kind in the White House during his time in office.
There are a lot of ways to look at the line of attack here, either as a blatant ploy to go viral or simply a look at how desperate far right news organizations are to find something wrong with Biden’s administration. But even Brian Williams couldn’t let it go, addressing in on 11th Hour on Friday night.
Tonight’s #LastThingBeforeWeGo? Why did Newsmax’s Greg Kelly decide to go after the Bidens’ dog?
Watch more: https://t.co/FXzovPPGT8#11thHour pic.twitter.com/KBVnqnlc8g
— 11th Hour (@11thHour) February 20, 2021
“Think of it this way: If Champ were to meet Greg Kelly, he would probably love Greg Kelly unconditionally,” Williams said. “That’s what dogs do. Probably also why there are no dogs anchoring Newsmax.”
It’s unclear if Champ, who is a dog, has any comment on the rough (ruff?) treatment on a news network. We’ll keep you posted if he speaks up, though.