Chris Cuomo is Shameless
When I first conceptualized this article I thought I would be writing about the recent debate between Chris Cuomo and Dave Smith but during the exchange, Cuomo revealed a lot about himself for those who were paying attention.
By the way, big thanks to Chris and Dave for taking the debate and their willingness to share their thoughts and positions. Bigger thanks to Patrick Bet-David for hosting the event.
I was interested to see how Cuomo would handle this tough position he found himself in but after about halfway through I realized that he can convince himself of anything. He’s smart, well-spoken, and tenacious but very ego-driven. I don’t believe his ego causes him to seek attention but it does seem to prevent him from honest conversations. Throughout the debate, he accepted fault but stopped short in just about every instance. He conceded that there shouldn’t have been mandates but also argued that the U.S. COVID policies weren’t totalitarian. At 20:16 of the debate, Dave refutes this claim in pitch-perfect fashion.
“When you’re waking up every morning to watch your TV to find out from your governor what you’re allowed to do today, including ‘Am I allowed to go to work? Am I allowed to have a funeral for my father? Am I allowed to see my family?’. . . there is one word and one word only for that. . .” — Dave Smith
Chris also seemed to guide the conversation to and away from things that I assume serve him in some fashion. He doesn’t want the blame and attention to be on Dr. Anthony Fauci. Instead, he wants us to question China’s involvement more. Anyone actually searching for the truth of the matter would wonder why a choice has to be made between the two. Dave remarks early on that every time the corporate media makes a “mistake” it tends to suit people in power.
Cuomo’s utter refusal to apologize to anyone other than his wife is fascinating. Even hearing him defend his stance on apologies gave such a glimpse into his mind and how it works. He feels that apologies ultimately serve as a weapon for any opponents you may have. Of course, there’s evidence of this but what does that have to do with rectifying a mistake or showing remorse? It seems all ego-driven to me. There are several times within the debate where clips are played that directly counter some of his points and he takes it in stride. I feel like the average person would be even slightly embarrassed about their misstep but I’m not sure his hubris allows for such a thing. At 1:03:29, a clip is shown about his previous stance on Ivermectin usage. A stance that he is now downplaying.
Patrick Bet-David has taken a lot of criticism for employing a Cuomo on his network but PBD indirectly reveals his interest in a redemption arc for the former CNN analyst. Again, I think Cuomo’s arrogance and stubborn nature will prevent any meaningful change in how he carries himself. There’s a curious part of the debate, in the later half, where Chris admits that he gets phone calls from people in power if he says the wrong thing. I’m not sure if he’ll ever understand that his critics could’ve guessed, which is where issues with him stem.
The debate was a good watch and a bit of vindication for the people who heavily oppose the U.S. government’s COVID response. I’m not very familiar with the PBD Podcast and I was very impressed with how well the show went. The production value was great, Bet-David did a great job moderating, and there were heckles from the crowd but if anything they added to the show, rather than hijacked it. There were also polls ran throughout the live stream that helped the consistent 50k live viewers engage further with the show.
Chris did have a good message about over-politicizing things and cautioned against tribal politics (even though he engaged in it throughout the debate). In that same vein, our country’s future would be much brighter if we could own up to the mistakes and blatant corruption committed by our elected officials. It can all start with simple and honest discussion.
I’m on Twitter: https://x.com/KillMThomas
