horrible job for our country. maria: mr. president, we so appreciate your time, sir. thank you very much. president donald j. trump. that is it for "sunday morning futures." the conversation continues. join me tomorrow on fox business. this program will repeat 3:00 p.m. today on fox business. ♪. howie: this is "mediabuzz," i'm howard kurtz. president trump was mount as media blitz he was on the fourth fox show in four days the next political debate is officially off. the president said this to maria bartiromo. >> i'm not going to waste my time on a virtual debate. that is not what debate something all about. you sit behind a computer and do a debate. this is ridiculous. howie: after the president left walter reed to recuperate at the

white house, he climbed the steps on the south lawn, took a pose and took off his mask, heading inside the coverage has been almost relentlessly negative. >> i feel great. i feel like perfect. so i think this was a blessing from god that i caught it. this was a blessing in disguise. >> i hold rallies and i tell you to ignore masks and i rip mine off and i vanquish the virus because i'm a leader. what a bunch of bull [bleep] >> there are children who don't have parents now because of this virus. don't let it dominate your life? >> you don't need to be a trump partisan to feel good about the president's recovery. you just need to be a decent person. >> this is mussolini moment. >> he is standing there as if he is, you know a member of the old russian czar family. >> what kind of people seem visibly disappointed when a president of the united states admitted to an army medical hospital, seems to be turning a

corner? howie: joining us now to analyze the coverage, mollie hemingway, senior editor of "the federalist" a fox news contributor. susan ferrechio, senior correspondent for the washington examiner. leslie marshall from los angeles, radio show host and fox news contributor. mollie, there are questions to be asked about the presidential release from walter reed and things he has done since then, ever since he got out of the hospital the media reaction has been deeply and viscerally negative. >> the media reaction has been so negative, it is almost impossible to quantify or qualify how bad it has been. i saw one "new york times" person say that walter reed destroyed its reputation by taking in a sick donald trump and returning him healthier. that is textbook example of what trump der ringment can do to you. that is the mood across all sort of media platforms.

they seem upset that donald trump is not sitting with the preordained narrative that you have to believe that coronavirus women destroy your life. this is a problem with media coverage going back months. they have relentlessly hyped how dangerous it is. it i a dangerous virus, but always exaggerated how dangerous it is. giving very negative feelings for people. i saw a poll, democrats will bleed these things, 77% of democrat men and 80% of democrat women are very worried to 20% of the republican men and 20% of republican women. there is partisan divide. since the media are overwhelmingly democratic they push that narrative and are relentless about it. howie: susan, the press is pounding president saying don't fear the virus, don't let it dominate your life and that it is disappearing and despite the number of deaths.

your thoughts. >> he is trying to relay a sense of optimism, vaccine development, how quickly he was able to recover, how quickly others have been able to recover from this virus the fact that it seems to impact people who are not young, no children, mostly people who are very old and have preexisting conditions. even said one death is not okay, that this should have never happened. he is trying to relay a sense of optimism and i believe if it was, if it was president hillary clinton relaying a sense of optimism the response from the media would be entirely different. it would be about heroic efforts by the president to lead the nation out of this terrible crisis. instead we have the reverse course here which is that this president is underplaying the virus and i don't think that is really fair. i don't think that is nuanced and careful coverage. it is leading to the kind of things mollie was just talking about. howie: all right. let me get to leslie so we move it around. look, to complete the media

indictment here, highly dismissive of i would say the president saying the virus was blessing from god and talking about unproven antibody cocktail he took as a cure. will make it available to everybody for free. that would be great. everybody in the country doesn't get world class treatment at walter reed medical center. >> exactly and that's why it was so negative from where i sit on the left side of the aisle. it is not that people are -- i personally am certainly glad when nick comes on the other side of this virus. my husband has to practically work in a hazmat suit to go into the hospital to work as surgeon as a result of this virus. our families so many families in the united states know people have been touched by the virus whether they're having long term cardiac problems, respiratory problems or families, literally hundreds of thousands of families littered with the death of loved ones. although not always elderly loved once. that are the majority.

there are children that have died. there are young people and millenials have died. that is part of the problem, how he one, saying a blessing to god, it is insensitive to those currently suffering or buried loved ones or continue to suffering, there is the lingering the president spoke of for many people respiratory and cardiacwise. howie: all right. >> they don't have the option to have the treatment the president had. most americans aren't going to have access to that. howie: let me move on to the debate, the second debate now officially canceled bit debate commission after the president objected to the commission's move to make it into a virtual format. joe biden scheduled for something october 15th, a abc town hall with george stephanopoulos. the president said he would do it in person. what do you make it, mollie, the media take that the president blew it, he needed the debate and now it is not happening. >> the people who are blowing it are the presidential debate commission. they have performed horribly this year. i was really struck by what

bob dole, the guy who ran for president as a republican years ago, he said it is supposed to be at bipartisan commission he is every republican on the commission, he is friends with many of them, he doesn't know a single supportive person of trump. after mike pence obliterates kamala harris without consent of the parties to make it a virtual debate to help joe biden. everybody is seeing what is going on. they're destroying their reputation. republicans have been treated like second class citizens for a very long time. this will not be sustainable for the presidential debate commission going forward. howie: susan the president wanted to do it in person, once he started to more fully recover. the debate commission said no. biden wasn't crazy about it. the president's doctor, dr. sean conley the white house physician, said in a statement he is not contagious but he didn't say he tested negative. the president spoke, on the balcony at the white house

event. he has three rallies planned the next three days. there are media questions is he completely over the virus. quick thought. >> he could end the concern by taking a coronavirus test and showing he is negative. that's easy thing to do. i'm not sure why the president's not doing it but there is the protocol that 10 days after you're symptom-free you don't even have to have a test. you're considered not contagious you're allowed to go back to work. there are two sides. the president could end all the speculation by taking a coronavirus test. telling us what the results are. howie: right. president, leslie was just on with maria bartiromo. he talked about joe biden coughing in a speech yesterday. a guy who just got out of the hospital for covid-19 but the white house says, when asked repeatedly by reporters, this is private medical information and of course the press is like, he is the president. we need to know how negative is he? how long did he have it? we're not getting that.

>> you know i spoke to my husband who is physician about this and it is a fine line. doctor conley is not only a physician and he has to abide by hipaa, which is a, national privacy law for all patients which the president is as well, but he is also a member of the navy. the president is the commander-in-chief and he has to follow orders from the president in addition to being a physician. then again on the flipside of this we the american people have the right to know the health and well being of our leaders especially going into an election. here is the problem i have. in california if you were diagnosed, i think this is the way through most states, if you were diagnosed with covid-19 it is recommended that you anyone you came in contact with have a two week, 14 day quarantine, incubation period. howie: i understand. >> i think the debate commission was looking, not in a political partisan bent in favor of joe biden. i think they were looking at any health issues that could come

up. because with all due respect -- howie: let me jump in. >> president's physician, no one knows exactly whether you're contagious or not. it is kind of a guess at this point. >> leslie, all right. the president has been focusing recently on the investigation of the origins of the russia probe. here is what he said in earlier interview with maria bartiromo about the attorney general. >> this was the greatest political crime in the history of our country. that includes obama and it includes biden. bill barr will go down as either the greatest attorney general in the history of the country or go down as a very sad, sad situation. howie: mollie, i know you have strong feelings about this investigation but focus on this question. journalists are saying how can it be appropriate for the president to be openly pressuring his attorney general to bring criminal charges against a former president and a former vice president who happens to be his opponent? >> the last people i would listen to on this story are the media who perpetrated this

russia collusion hoax. we have had so many stories coming out in recent days showing not only we knew hillary clinton had invented the russia collusion hoax. the russians knew that. we know there was disinformation in her dossier. we know the dossier was authored to a russian agent. for years the media was relentlessly dripping this false collusion hoax that caused real damage. now all the stories are coming out the opposite way. they're refusing to cover it. they were pretending they were skeptical about the hoax when they never were. president trump talking about barr and durham there is talking about failing to hold people account. they were done a horrible job, not just perp traiting it but covering it up once the truth came out. howie: leslie, i have half a minute. president told rush limbaugh it is a disgrace and embarassment that barr mass not produced indictments against barr and other. >> i think the president is

right the way attorney general barr will look at in history whether his allegiance is to the united states whether he is supposed to have pledged allegiance to the constitution of the united states. one thing the dossier did tell us russia you'll that was, now we know still is interfering with our election. howie: president made a little news with maria bartiromo moments ago. he wants a bigger package or stimulus bill that republicans or democrats are proposing. republicans want to do it, but some in the republican party think the cost is too high. let me get a break. we'll get sean spicer's take on coverage ever the president's illness. mike pence versus kamala harris, how the media are scoring the vp debate. manage cash flow, and run payroll. and now i'm back on top... with koala kai. save over 30 hours a month with intuit quickbooks.

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howie: many journalists say the vp debate between mike pence and kamala harris was basically a draw but the commentators were of course quick to take sides. >> harris was uncomfortable when confronted with the truth. at time she made awkward smiles and shake her head. >> problem that mike president pence appeared flaccid and anemic that will hurt him with men. he had to looked presidential tonight and he looked limp and lame. >> pence looked fine tonight. he obviously won. harris did nothing to contradict with what we know about her and eye rolling, insect moving on pence's head will change a simple fact. >> a black woman went out there, nine minutes later, you may not like the, nobody is saying she could not be president of the united states. howie: but both candidates ducked the questions they didn't want to answer from the moderator, "usa today"'s susan

page. >> how would your administration protect americans with preexisting conditions, have access to affordable insurance if the affordable care act is struck down? >> i couldn't be more proud to serve as vice president to a president who stands without apology to the sanctity of human life. i'm pro-life. are you and joe biden, if somehow you win this election going to pack the supreme court to get your way? >> i'm so glad we went through a little history lesson. let's do that a little more. in 164 -- >> i would like you to answer the question. howie: molly, it looked bad that kamala harris repeatedly refused to answer the question about court packing if they win and killed time with a story about abe lincoln in 1864. isn't that on the biden campaign to obviously told her not to take a stance, not provide a clear answer? >> right. people who debate are always ducking questions. it is up to the voters decide how to deal with that you saw both vice president pence and

kamala harris declining to answer they didn't want to. what i thought it was interesting mike pence who brought the question to kamala harris. it hasn't been the media. clearly kamala harris is in favor of court packing and joe biden who used to say it was horrible and tyrannical is, declining to say anything. but more importantly than that i think this shows consider why a virtual debate is not acceptable. the media refuses to ask tough questions of democratic candidates. only people who will ask joe biden and kamala harris are president trump and vice president pence. moderators try to keep a debate from breaking out. pence enable to pursue that line of questioning we're thinking about her refusal to answer the question and how court packing would affect first amendment rights and second amendment rights and why democrats are threatening to do it. howie: they have to provide some kind of answer before the election. leslie, should senator harris have come up with some kind of answer are and what about vice president pence ducking

questions about the peaceful transfer of power. >> i'm glad you asked about that question. i thought both of them were not prepared enough for the debate. you know that as a leader of the task force on covid-19 you were going to get the question, how do you explain the death of hundreds of thousand of people. he skirted that. didn't have an answer to that. in the question you posed and clip we saw. same would go to senator harris. you know they're going to ask about court packing and certain things you did as attorney general in state of california. i don't think they were prepared. what i heard former vice president, democratic nominee joe biden will not respond to that unless he is elected president. i get it and the reason i get it, if an individual is voting for joe biden, they know that this is possibility. if they don't want that possibility they don't have to vote for joe biden. joe biden does not become president it's a moot point and futile to discuss. howie: susan, i thought susan page did a good job of asking

hard questions of both candidates but she often didn't follow up when the candidates were ducking questions or answering what they wished they had been asked. of course the time limits got out of control. first pence and harris busting through that. what is your assessment how she handled it? >> this time the around the debate commission did not want the moderators to serve as fact checkers. think what happened in the last presidential election there was a lot of criticism about moderators becoming fact-checkers. i think the moderators were trying to be as okay jeb tiff as possible, -- okay tiff as possible and controlling the time and flow of conversation. the problem it is getting harder and harder to do that the insults are flying. contradictions are flying. the candidates are going at it the as mollie said this was a debate trying to break out. you can look at it that way. on the other hand people are not hearing the candidates and can't hear what their ideas about important issues because they're

talking over each other. it is hard job for the moderator other than cutting the microphone and other than walking up on the stage how do you get them from cross-talking? great sympathies for susan page. i think they did a good job. howie: 50 million people watched. that is huge for vp debate. fox led the pack with 11 million viewers. can we agree, no matter which candidate thought did better this was serious substantive debate that didn't have anywhere near the level of interruptions of cacophony in cleveland? mollie, first. >> great to see policy. the reason the viewership so high because never has a vice presidential pick been so important given the people's age running for president. howie: leslie. >> god, mollie, we just agreed. i would concur with that. it definitely shows that this vice presidential debate is different than any other because the american people are looking pat them, not just as number two

but potentially number one. howie: susan? >> yeah. i thought you definitely got more of an idea where they stood on policy. most of the time vice presidential debates don't matter at all really when it comes to the presidential election as mollie was saying. much more important this time. people are looking at the age and the capacity for each of these presidential candidates and they're looking at harris an pence next in line. howie: i agree with all that. i still question how much debate, effect this debate had on the overall campaign. you all stuck to time. you get an "a" grade. susan ferrechio, mollie hemingway, leslie marshall thank you very much. up next, frank luntz, what the focus group said about the debate and how he views the vp coverage.

♪. howie: frank luntz held a focus group after the vp debate asking folks in swing states for a one

word reaction to mike pence. >> florida. >> bit after robot. >> curt from florida. >> presidential. >> laura from florida? >> even keeled. >> from ohio. >> presidential. >> tony from new hampshire. >> bland. howie: he asked the same question about kamala harris. >> nervous. >> nick from arizona. >> focused on the past. >> james from nevada. >> shifting blame. >> minnie from nevada. >> caring. >> debbie from florida? >> snarky and sarcastic. howie: joining us now from los angeles is the veteran republican pollster frank luntz. frank, somes like some of the focus group didn't like mike pence and more didn't like kamala harris n her case the

criticism often seemed more personal. why? >> because they didn't like her response and her, i know you're not supposed to talk about style. the news disgorges that, always say talk about substance. the fact is the president and vice president are give an aura, presentation. the americans whether or not have to decide if they trust it. senator harris simply in her presentation, in her scoffing, facial expressions really irritated our focus group participants. howie, i will acknowledge i did the session the day after just with women. they thought she was absolutely fine. in fact the criticism they saw as being typical of what a white male would say. still, i stand behind what that first night's focus group said. you can see it on youtube if you want to see the whole thing. in the end, if you want to be presidential, it is how you look, not just what you say, how you present yourself. how you carry yourself. they had an issue with senator harris on that. howie: right. as you alluded to there is

often, it is often said female candidates are judged a little bit differently. much of the media favored kamala harris' performance. they say pence had a tougher case to make because he had to defend the administration on covid-19. does it matter at all she is a newcomer to the national stage? a freshman senator going up against an incumbent vice president, if it is even close to being a draw that helps the biden campaign? in the larger scheme of things how much does the debate mattered at all? >> i don't think it mattered at all because donald trump stepped on the message. mike pence did better than senator harris and calm, collected, rational response as she was trying to needle him was impressive to my swing voters. next morning donald trump says he will not participate in the debate. everybody forgot what happened the night before. this weren't on five years ago. mike pence had a brilliant performance four years ago,

donald trump allowed that performance to breathe for a couple days. i think the trump campaign made a big mistake making issue of the next debate rather than taking the time to enjoy the benefits of this vice presidential debate. howie: yeah. i pointed out by the very next morning we were all talking about president trump again, things he was saying, not about pence and harris. finally, i don't imagine most people fixate on the details, now there will not be a second presidential debate is that a bigger loss for the media which loves these events or for the trump campaign because he had two more cracks at directly going at biden. now he got one? he needed that confrontation. he needed the chance to stand side by side with the vice president, with the voters themselves and challenge and not behave the way he did in the first debate but demonstrate where he stands and where biden stands. i think this makes it virtually impossible for trump to catch biden. biden has a lead in the swing

states. he has a lead nationwide. without that confrontation the ads won't do it, speeches weren't do it. rallies won't do it. debate 70, 80 million people watching. only the debate watching. howie: we'll come back to that when we have you later in the program. they wouldn't be standing side by side. it was supposed to be virtual. that is the sticking point. sean spicer talks about the debates and president trump's illness and other media controversies. ile safe promise. we've got you covered, in every way, giving deep cleaning a whole new meaning. and if you don't have insurance, we'll give you an extra safety net, too, with a free new patient exam and x-rays. at aspen dental, we're making it alright to feel safe and get smiling. we promise. call 1-800-aspendental.

♪ howie: joining us now, a man who knows the president well, sean spicer former white house press secretary, newsmax host and author of a new book, "leading america." sean, let me start i'm very happy the president's condition is improving but the media absolutely pounding him as you know, saying don't be afraid from the virus, don't let it dominate your life, it is disappearing given the fact we

lost 214,000 americans. >> they have been pounding it since day one. that is nothing new. the topic has changed. he has been under assault from the media since the day he stepped into the white house and will not end until even after the day after. we're closer to the election t counts. the president will be back out there making his case to the american people and hopefully focusing on those lines he said at the debate. 4months of accomplishments versus 47 years of doing nothing in joe biden's case. howie: he has three rallies scheduled in the next three days. he wants to get out there. if you were still the press secretary, you were asked when was the last time the president tested negative for covid as journalists tried to assess was he are is he still a danger to others could you get away with saying, sorry that is private medical information? >> if i was still the press secretary i would have lost all my hair by now, and i think i

would look a lot older but look, more transparent they can be the better. there is a balance. you discussed this earlier in the show trying to be transparent with understanding he has some degree of privacy as a citizen under hippa. the more they give the better. if they could say here is when he was tested, it is negative. it would take the talking point away. here is what happens, howie, you're not talking about the issues and economy what he has been able to do for the military and veterans, they will talk about covid and testing. the more you take things off the table t allows the focus to get back on his policies and accomplishments. howie: the president as you know attacked steve scully of c-span who was to be the moderator of the debate. calling him a never-trumper. this morning on fox he called him a fraud after there was a message posted, scully sent to

anthony scaramucci, a fierce critic. you looked into this. tell us what you found? >> i talked to steve. he didn't do it. only time he talked to anthony scaramucci on two separate c-span interviews. i've known steve a long time. he is a good up standing man. he is a pro. the way he conduct the himself on c-span, if you're looking for someone who will be a straight, good moderator, focuses on candidates and not themselves i think steve would be a great person to do that. howie: fbi is looking into scully's explanation into his account was hacked. he was once a student intern for joe biden. but he is a solid record of fairness over decade now at c-span. look, i mentioned this earlier the president telling maria bartiromo in an earlier interview unless attorney general bill barr indicts these people, he mentioned obama, and biden by name, he will go down in history as a very sad situation. those are the president's words. he also wants mike pompeo to

release hillary clinton's emails. that is deja vu from 2016. the media reaction, when the with bill clinton your side went nuts, justifiably so. who do you you deal with him calling for indictments of his predecessors. >> this president has strong record of accomplishments. it moved company forward. i have written an entire book. he should stick to the policies. he has has a done. this amy coney barrett would be the third conservative supreme court justice. the president should focus on policies he made, policies gotten us here he may do in second term. i gather he may do that. i don't know the legality tore evidence exists. at the end. day no one out there isn't already going to vote for him because additional emails will come out or not.

what they will vote on whether his policies help the economy, eradicate the coronavirus, help our veterans. that is what he should stay focused on and the economy and policies and concentrate on 47 years in washington. no one additionally will vote for you over emails. howie: just briefly, sean, you worked for him. obviously a more disciplined approach would make sense to talk about what he has done, what he will do in the second term, why does he keep going back to obama, biden, hillary? why does he do it? >> i think to some degree there is a level of unfairness there. he looks at some of the activities they engaged with and they got away with. wait a second. i had a mueller report. i've been impeached and these people are not held accountable for they have done. i think there is level of unfairness especially how the media looks into it or not. joe biden getting away with not answering basic questions. there is a level of unfairness. i understand that. it is not fair. but at the end of the day like i

said people women not vote for you because of that. they will vote for you because you done for the country. howie: i mentioned biden in the context of the last administration. you write in america that the legacy media has a view, guests that come on fox compromise their credibility. sitting alongside the likes of extreme leftists like msnbc's rachel maddow and joe reid is just fine. explain. >> that is what i'm saying, somehow they look at the things joy reid or chris hayes or rachel maddow, numerous others say, yet there is no accountability f a journalist goes on there, that makings total sense f they come on fox or newsmax, they are tainted. it is ridiculous. they are in the pocket of the left. whole chapter in journalism school. they're not learning to report on the facts but learning to make the world a better place. when you start realizing how the journalists born and bred, how

they get jobs, it totally starts to make sense this. is the problem that we have right now. journalists are viewed as good if they go do certain things and bad if they do others. i mean exposing is part of the reason i wrote the book. howie: all right. sean, good luck with the book. good to see you. thanks very much for joining us this sunday. >> thanks, howie. howie: after the break is the media criticism of kamala harris too personal? joe biden gets mostly softballs at an msnbc town hall. ♪. tardive dyskines ia, a condition that may be related to important medications i take for my bipolar disorder. tardive dyskinesia can affect different parts of the body. it may also affect people who take medication for depression and schizophrenia. - [narrator] in today's trying times, we're here to help you manage td. visit talkabouttd.com for a doctor discussion guide to prep for your next appointment in person, over the phone, or online. - it's a relief to know there are treatments for td.

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♪. howie: when president trump called in to maria bartiromo's fox business show the morning after the vp debate he had some pretty harsh words for kamala harris. >> i thought that wasn't ion a contest last night. she was terrible. she was, i don't think you could get worse and totally unlikeable and she is. she is a communist. she's left of bernie. howie: joining us now with another viewpoint, harmed ford, chairman of rx sabre, a former democratic congressman. welcome. we heard the president say that kamala harris was totally unlikeable, called her a monster. some of his conservatives allies said she was smug or condescending charge. is the likeable one aimed most often at female candidates and particularly women of color? >> first off, thanks for having

me on. there is history at the politics, certainly at the national level women are treated differently than men in language, temperament, disposition, especially how people talk to them, certainly how their opponents do. president trump has history of taking on political opponents and cabinet members. my friend sean spicer is part of that. i was reminding my kids come into the office, grab books off the shelves normally to play with them, but hopefully they will read about kennedy and lincoln and lbj, mandela, people fought for change and used a discourse to pull the nation up instead of shoving us down. civility, honesty, good temperment, those are the kind of things we want restored in politics. i think those issues much as any other issues are in november. howie: now kamala harris as you know, the senator at the debate

repeatedly refused to answer a question about packing the supreme court in the future. joe biden, her running mate the other day asked by a reporter in phoenix had this response. >> my opinion on court packing when the election is over. look, i know it's a great question. i don't blame you for asking but you know the moment i answer that question the headline in every one of your papers will be about that. howie: congressman, biden says he doesn't want to make headlines in papers across the country. what kind of lame excuse is that? don't voters have the right to know his position before the election? >> look, i probably would answer that question differently. i would just say my answer. vice president biden is on the record at least two times publicly paying packing or putting more people on the court, passing legislation to do that is something he wouldn't support. i think he is trying hardest to help the senate democrats focus their attention on the judicial philosophy of judge barrett who is impressive on every level. i think the real challenge she

faces in terms of the mechanics of this is just the timing. i think she deserves to be questioned in a forthright, direct, maybe even aggressive way about health care about big business or small business or even obviously women reproductive rights of women. i imagine those questions will come. and democrats will have to wait and see. if she passes and voted in favor, by something that country and for that matter our politics will have to digest. howie: look, in my view if biden still holds the position that we shouldn't have the court he would say so. amy coney barrett putting out a statement to the media today about what she will testify on the hill tomorrow, praising both ruth bader ginsburg by the way as well as antonin scalia. play another sound bite. msnbc anchor lester holt in town meeting with joe biden, doesn't do that many national interviews, here is some of what he got. >> so when you hear that this president was infected with covid-19 were you surprised?

>> quite frankly i wasn't surprised. >> if you become president, can you pledge transparency about your health? 65% of americans think the president bears some responsibility for contracting this virus, do you agree? howie: you have to admit ex-politician who has been interviewed many times you would love to have soft questions like that, a political writer called it infomercial. the audience seemed to favor biden. doesn't that fuel the accusations that media are soft on candidates that you favor? >> look, i want to see both of these candidates take tough questions, direct questions what they she america's future looking like, and how they will advance policy to deal with that, eradicating covid, growing the economy. howie: we didn't see it there. >> right. i think there were questions during that time that i think are important that were asked by the audience and by lester holt. look, i'm not one to defend easiness in politics. when you run for president it is the biggest job in the world and

most important. one thing i hope president trump will discontinue doing or stop doing at least the last 30 days of campaign, last 23 days stop complaining that everything is rigged against him. 214,000 americans are dead. 11 million are without work an one in five small businesses won't ever return. that is hardship f you can't take a little hardship whether joe biden or donald trump you shouldn't be in this business. up to this point i think joe biden has taken tough questions from all sides. i do hope he sits down with this network soon, perhaps, you howie, or bret baier, martha maccallum, will take direct questions about where he sees the future of our nation. howie: thank you for saying that. he has an open invitation on this program, other fox shows. i've also asked his campaign for surrogates. they have not provided one but able to get people like you, we thank you this sunday, harold ford. >> thanks for having me. howie: still to come are the media over reacting to all the

polls showing biden with a growing lead? that's next. i'm happy to give you the tour, i love doing it.

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♪. howie: the polls have all been moving in one direction, one that is not encouraging news for president trump. fox news gives joe biden a 10 point lead over trump, 53-434. "washington post" abc "washington post" gives biden 12 point margin. "wall street journal," 14, and cnn 16. we're back with frank luntz. obviously some of the polls may be off. they're is vied variation, they're not battleground state polls which is crucial. they drive a huge amount of media coverage, do you not? >> they deserve it. this is all in response to the first debate when you had 80 or 90 million people tuning in on television to their camera and

their web and this is in reaction to the performance of the two candidates. every survey had joe biden beating donald trump in that first debate. this is why the president needed the town hall. this is why he should not have made that decision. i think it will come back to haunt him 23 days from now. howie: i see you've moved from the oval office to the lincoln bedroom at your home in l.a. jump to another question, you made news on the program because of the cancellation of the debate you believe it is extremely unlikely or almost impossible for the president to catch up but, you're entitled to your opinion. that is why we have you on the show. the more the media taught numbers, numbers can change. 2016 we're all familiar. are they giving the impression this race is basically over? >> and they should not be because those confrontations when they are standing face-to-face or even boxes on tuesday, that is what changes voters mind. if you don't give them those opportunities, their minds

cannot be changed. the ads only do so much. the ads only move two or 3%. turnout matters. participation matters. but in the end you don't have the crystallizing key moments paid again and again. let me give you an example historically. ronald reagan was one point behind jimmy carter the thursday before the election. because of his superior performance in the debate he beat jimmy carter nine points six days later that is the kind of thing donald trump needs. he only has one more 90 minute confrontation with joe biden. that is not much to close a 10 point gap. howie: as journalist i will be very careful here. he is competitive race. i think we should report the poll numbers which the president calls fake news but lots can change as we have seen. who knew he would end up in the hospital. on that point, last question to you, frank luntz, obviously covid-19 is the defining issue of this campaign and the administration's handling of it. the fact the president was in the hospital, got out, now seems

to be close to fully recovered, does that linger as an issue? is there symbolism there, by everything else by next week we'll be fixated on 16 other things. >> not by next week, i would say by tomorrow, but maybe by this afternoon. there is so much going on you can never turn off the computer. never turn off your tv. there is some major event or statement every six hours. number one statement we're getting about this election campaign and so tired about being so tired. that is how the american people feel. they are desperate for this thing to come to an end. howie: there is a suggestion, perhaps even in the media. frank luntz, very good to see you. thanks very much for joining us. wish i had a backdrop like that. that's it for this edition of media puz. i'm howard kurtz. we hope you like our facebook page. we post my columns there during the week. continue the conversation on twitter. check out my podcast, media buzz

meter. apple itunes, google podcast on the amazon device. on the final statement. we're down to the last three weeks. there is so much to deal with every single day or hour. you can't turn off your tv or computer. see you next sunday. oose. all. . ready when you are.

♪ ♪ eric: president trump boasting, quote: i beat this crazy, horrible i china virus. he slammed joe biden an hour ago telling fox news the democratic nominee will drive gasoline to $6 a gallon, and he warned that biden wants to take your car away. he also said he's no longer contagious for coronavirus and is immune. medical science, though, has not yet proven conclusively that covid makes all patients immune, and the white house still has not said whether or not the president has tested negative for the virus. his doctors, tug