Sullivan first said he couldn't comment on Trump and white supremacists
The headline in the Anchorage Daily News missed the point: “Sen. Sullivan condemns white supremacy following Trump’s comments in presidential debate.”
First things first.
On Thursday, Sen. Dan Sullivan told a CNN reporter he didn’t see the Trump-Biden debate and couldn't comment. Sullivan never criticizes Trump, a story that Alaska reporters have missed since 2017.
“I’m not commenting. I didn’t see the debate,” Sullivan said to a CNN reporter.
Alaska Public Media had the recording Thursday night.
“You didn't see the debate? the CNN reporter asked. Sullivan went on to say, "I was doing another thing for myself." After that the tape was garbled for a few moments.
The exchange continued. "Surely you've heard about it,” the reporter said. "Does it hurt your race him saying things like that?"
Sullivan, who had walked into the elevator, stared silently at the reporter for 7-8 seconds before the door closed.
As soon as the elevator rose, it was obvious that Sullivan’s office would issue a prepared statement saying Sullivan opposed white supremacists without attacking Trump.
Following the script, Sullivan’s office released the public statement that everyone knew was coming—a general denunciation of white supremacy that didn’t mention Trump, who had refused to denounce white supremacy.
The Anchorage Daily News included none of the relevant background about Sullivan refusing to comment, just this far-fetched claim from Sullivan speechwriter Amanda Coyne, “Senator Sullivan makes it a point to stay clear of answering campaign questions in the hallway of the Capitol.”
Sullivan could have told the CNN reporter that he never discusses campaign politics in the halls of Congress, but everyone would recognize that as a flimsy excuse, even worse than claiming he didn’t know about Trump’s behavior during the debate.
The damage control statements issued by his employees followed. Sullivan's office succeeded in shaping the news coverage and headline in the Anchorage Daily News.
The Alaska Public Media report included the necessary background about the CNN exchange and another relevant action that deals with a real point of contention in Sullivan’s campaign.
After campaigning in 2014 to repeal Obamacare and voting to do so three years ago, Sullivan and four other Republicans sided with New York Sen. Chuck Schumer on a proposal to stop paying for the lawsuit seeking an end to Obamacare.
Sullivan, along with Susan Collins of Maine, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Martha McSally of Arizona realize that Obamacare is popular with many of their constituents and they don’t want to be seen as opponents of the law. Sen, Lisa Murkowski, who is not up for re-election until 2022, also supported the measure.
Sullivan voted against Obamacare in 2017, while Murkowski and Collins were the only two GOP senators to oppose repealing the law.
Coyne, Sullivan’s speechwriter, was reported by Alaska Public Media as saying Sullivan wants a broader Senate debate. “She didn’t say how he felt about the substance of the bill.”
In 2017, Sullivan said he supported repealing Obamacare to fulfill part of the “repeal and replace” campaign promise he made in 2014, as if a mindless three-word slogan reflected the complex world of health care.
At that time, Trump was still claiming that health insurance only costs consumers $12 or $15 a year and already making the promise he has yet to fulfill about his secret plan for great health care.
The contrast between Sullivan and challenger Al Gross on health care deserves a thorough examination by Alaska news organizations, but so far there as been more coverage of the shooting-the-bear story than anything else, a serious journalistic failure.
