JOE CONCHA: Trump extends his winning streak with victory over ABC, Stephanopoulos

The $15 million deal between ABC News, George Stephanopoulos and President-elect Donald Trump was applauded by those with basic objectivity and common sense, while the left once again lost its collective mind over what has been going on since the November 5th election is the order of the day

The settlement was something ABC News had to pursue because the evidence against them on video was clear. To repeat: Stephanopoulos, who is considered a news anchor but acts and sounds more like the Democratic operative and pit bull he once was in the Clinton administration, continued to repeat ten Occasions during an interview with Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) in March made the false claim that Trump had been convicted of rape in a civil case brought by E. Jean Carroll that took place in a New York courtroom earlier this year be.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS AND ABC apologize to Trump and agree to pay $15 million to settle defamation case

Stephanopoulos also claimed that Trump was found guilty of defaming Carroll.

Two problems: The jury didn’t find that.

“How do you reconcile your support for Donald Trump with the statement we just saw?” Stephanopoulos asked Mace piously on ABC’s “This Week.” on March 10th.

ABC George Stephanopoulos (Getty Images)

“You supported Donald Trump for president. “Judges and two different juries found him guilty of rape and defamation of the victim of that rape,” he also said. Mace was interrogated on her consent for being sexually abused at the age of 16, which led Stephanopoulos to attempt to shame her and portray her as a hypocrite.

Trump immediately sued ABC and the host for defamation. The case was still ongoing when the network made a stunning announcement on Saturday that it would apologize and pay $15 million to Trump’s “Presidential Foundation and Museum, to be established by or for the plaintiff,” according to the lawsuit Presidents of the United States of America have already done so in the past.” ”

The network will also pay Trump’s legal fees, which were about $1 million.

The victory of the 45th and future 47th president underscores his impressive post-election success on the legal front. In the last 40 days, special counsel Jack Smith has dropped his two federal cases against Trump. In Georgia, the RICO case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis continues to fail as Willis has now been ordered by a Georgia judge to turn over any communications she may have had with Smith, with many legal analysts saying the case is already at serious risk. And in New York, Judge Juan Merchan granted a request from Trump’s legal team to dismiss all charges in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case and postponed the sentencing date until after he leaves office. The case is expected to be dismissed on appeal well in advance.

Conservative and moderate commentators criticized Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for pursuing a case against former U.S. Marine Daniel Penny, who was charged in the 2023 death of homeless man Jordan Neely. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

On the left, the meltdown continued over the settlement.

“Wow. “Feels like another mainstream news organization going on its knees,” media analyst Eric Daggans of taxpayer-funded NPR wrote on X.

“Knees bent. Ring kissed. Another legacy news outlet chooses obedience,” said Marc Elias, the Democratic lawyer who helped push the discredited Steele dossier.

“ABC’s deal with Trump appears to be a turning point in the Orbanization of our politics. “I hope that’s not the case,” Bill Kristol told X, trying to link Trump to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-R.C., a rape survivor, says she felt personally attacked by ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos. (Fox News)

In addition to clearly misrepresenting the court’s decision, ABC News likely made this decision because it feared what might come to light during the investigation. Remember, the network’s news department is headed by Dana Walden, an old and dear friend of Vice President Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff. Walden introduced the couple about a decade ago.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE OPINIONS ON FOX NEWS

ABC was also rightly accused of overwhelming bias in the first and only presidential debate between Harris and Trump, with moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis fact-checking Trump five times but never doing the same to Harris despite ample opportunities. And according to the Media Research Center, of the first 100 articles ABC News published about Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee, ALL 100 were positive.

For Trump it is the best six weeks of his life. He won the popular vote when few believed it. He searched every swing state, proving many pollsters and forecasters wrong. Again. The Republicans took back the Senate and held the House of Representatives.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Polls show a majority of voters support his transition. And for the first time, RealClearPolitics polling averages show that more voters view Trump positively than negatively. In 2016 it was over 35 points under water between its favorable/unfavorable numbers.

The media will undoubtedly be more careful with their language and rhetoric in the future.

And maybe, just maybe, they’ll do less activism and more journalism during Trump: The Sequel.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM JOE CONCHA