♪ ♪ howard: the media world was utterly shocked, and that includes me, when the conservative state of kansas voted to preserve abortion rights by a landslide are margin, and yet this vindicates what the supreme court proclaimed in overturning roe v. wade. not the outcome, of course, after a multimillion dollar battle, record turnout powered a flashing neon light amplified by joe biden and much of the media, a 59-41% vote for keeping abortion rights in the state's constitution. but the essence of the high

court's ruling was to take the issue out of the hands of the justices and return it to the states where they could forge their own policies, and that's what happened in kansas. state lawmakers can still adopt a ban on abortions as indiana did days later, but to-lifers must weigh -- pro-lifers must weigh whether republicans want to go that far especially when it comes to rape, incest and the life of the mother. now, i understand the deep beliefs of the pro-life side which vows to keep on fighting just as the pro-choice side would if it had lost, but this is the kind of democratic process majority envisioned. decisions are far more complicated than a simple yes or no. i'm howard kurtz, and this is "mediabuzz." ♪ if. ♪ ♪ howard: ahead, mike huckabee joins us on a wide range of media issues. we'll look at the senate

voterama that's still going on as democrats are about to push through their big climate, health and taxes bill. the pundits quickly weighed in with opposing views on kansas abortion shocker, but no one disputed the vote's importance. >> the first time the voters got to say what they think, that's a pretty loud message from kansas. >> it's a return to democracy, ability to go to the ballot box and decide for themselves where a state wants to stand on abortion policy. and the voters in kansas did that very thing. >> this is the crazy stuff, this is the republican party of 2022, mika, and you look in kansas and the kansas voters, even people who were pro-life said, no, we're not going in that radical, freakish direction. >> it's a reminder also that as roe v. wade was overturned and abortion law and policy is returned to the states where people get to weigh in, there's a lot of work to be done for people who want to protect women

and children from the scourge of abortion. howard: joining us now to analyze the coverage in florida, susan ferrechio, chief political correspondent for the washington times, and in connecticut, harold ford, a fox news contributor and former democratic congressman. susan, are the media perhaps overplaying the significance of the kansas vote in a state that donald trump carried by 15 points last time, or is this a loud siren the press is portraying? >> i actually think that the media -- first of all, i wasn't that surprised. i think i may have been one of the few people who i would have been more surprised if this wasn't defeated because, you know, kansas, first of all, elected a democratic governor just a few years ago. it's not a state that's incapable of thinking outside of the red, you know, flosses my. philosophy. but i just know from my personal experience talking to female voters, even republican voters that, like you said at the -- beginning of the show, howard, it's not a black or white

issues. -- issue. i think voters were concerned that the the referendum would go too far, that the legislature would ban abortion way before, you know, 15 weeks, right at conception. that that's a bridge too far even for a lot of republicans. and that's showing up in polls. so even republicans feel like that's too far. and so it didn't surprise me that people of kansas rejected this because it would have likely ended up with a total ban on abortion. that's not where people are, that's not where republicans are if you're paying attention to the polls, so i really wasn't that surprised. howard: harold, the media are actively reporting the magnitude of the pro-choice victory in kansas. what's not clear is are they overreaching, misinterpreting in saying that this will absolutely have national impact? >> well, first, happy sunday. i agree largely with susan. i was surprised that kansas voted way they did. i was even more surprised by margin. i think it speaks to, am i

surprised that it speaks to where a lot of us who believe that we are right in the middle on this issue, obviously, the great president clinton frame of legal, rare and safe, the 15, 14, 18-week window and then restrictions after that, i think what probably appalled people and really surprised, i think, a lot of independents and moderate democrats and republicans alike was the seeming opposition -- or, i should say, wanting to criminalize health care to women. and with with that even no protections for victims, women -- girls and women who are victims of rape and incest. i think you combine all of that, and i think that's where the media attention was right. now, i think there's a political side to this. the question is democrats overreach. i think there's some in my party who have advocated for abortion on demand. i'm not for that, and i think on the republican side there's a belief that they want an all-out ban. and kansas showed us that that's

not where republicans, independents, democrats are. and i would agree with the governor of kansas that kansas is a republican state. i think even mitch mcconnell who our colleague bret baier interviewed a day the or two ago made clear that this is something that they are thinking seriously about as they -- howard: right. well, to be clear, the pro-choice side could not have gone without a lot of votes from republicans because they outnumber democrats in kansas. but some commentators are saying, well, there are lessons here in perhaps advocating a more incremental approach, not an outright ban which might seem too much -- at least according to the polls -- to a lot of people, susan. >> i think what some republicans are pushing is, i mean, i know what it means to the pro-life movement. there's two issues here. les the pro-life philosophy and the pro-life movement, then there's the political side of this. just speaking politically, this is a loser for republicans. i'll tell you right now, if they start pushing -- they're talking

about bans on some forms of contraception, plan b, really early bans on abortion, it's a loser politically. and it always -- i think it always will be. i know just from talking to red state women voters -- [laughter] it is. is and that's just the facts. and i know for the pro-life side, the philosophy is we're here to protect life. we have these two conflicting forces in the republican brief -- base. the political reality and, of course, what the pro-life movement has long wanted to accomplish. and those are the things that the republican party is grappling with right now as they move ahead with what to do next with these abortion laws. howard: right. some are upset with president biden for an executive order, but if you look at them closely, it just says hhs should consider doing that. now, harold, has the media coverage of these questions of exception for rape, for incest, for the life of the mother where doj is suing idaho for not even

allowing consideration of the life of the mother, has that helped the pro-choice side in this battle where everybody tries to paint it as extreme? >> i don't know if it helps what you might if loosely or marrowly define as the pro-choice -- i think it's putting a bigger light on the kinds of things that some elements of the republican party are interested in pursuing when it comes to these freedoms and this choice. and if, indeed, you're going to criminalize the delivery of health care, not provide exception, i think more voters are looking at republicans as being extremists than they are some democrats who i think there are some democrats who want abortion on demand. i don't agree with that. but to your exact question, there's no doubt it's shining more on republicans in a far less favorable light. republicans, if they're going to win in the fall, they need to focus on the economy and inflation. in the hurts them. distractses voters. and some would say it distracts republicans also, hard core

republicans, if they think about the kind of country they want their daughters and sons to grow up in. howard: right. some politicians are softening their rhetoric a little bit on this question of a total ban, partial ban. susan, the new york items based on the 59% margin in kansas -- and says it's a rough estimate -- kind of predicts that abortion will wind up being legal in 40 or more of the 50 states. now, given the unique circumstances of the special election, sort of the only thing on the ballot so organizing and turnout were key, is that media wishful thinking? >> well, i think kansas kind of sets the tone here. look at the shock that everyone felt when kansas voted down this referendum. they, i think, probably speak for a lot of red states where, as i was saying earlier, people are more in the middle on this. i agree with harold, democrats, you know, a lot of them agree with abortion up to birth. it's not where the american

people are. in fact, the american people are way more into the 15-20 week range of accepting abortion and as a rare thing and not just abortion on demand. there's that. but there's also a real fear of just completely banning it from conception and getting rid of the plan b medications and perhaps even going after contraception which is the fear that a lot of women have had when they worry about where the base is going with these abortion laws. how far are they going to go? i think that will drive the debate in all these states. so when you see this ambitious 40-state -- i think that sounds about right to me. in fact, i thought, wow, i'm thinking of the 10 states that are really going to to ban this from birth, how long will that last for? will that eventually be overturned? and this is accomplishing what the supreme court ruled on many june, let the states decide, it means let the voters decide where they want to go with this, and i think it's going to turn out that most voters are more moderate on the issue.

howard: well, not totally up to the voters, which is the interesting part here, harold. and, by the way, it seems to me that there is a lot more focus now on these exceptions. so are the media overlooking the fact that even if there's 60% support in the polls for not a total ban on abortion, that it's ultimately up to state legislators? we saw this in indiana, who may be more conservative than the rank and file in their states or more liberal? they actually get the final say here. >> they do. and in all of those states, i would say that voters are going to have the opportunity to elect, reelect or completely unelect those who may have those views. the last thing i'd say, howie, is that justice thomas in that concurring opinion, i think that ignited a lot of other thinking. as i listened to susan talk about contraception and even words he had around gay marriage and the constitutionality of it, the grounding in the constitution the. you even heard a prominent united states senator echo some

of that last week. all of these things are forming a matrix that, frankly, are helping democrats to paint republicans as out of touch and extreme. howard: well, it looks very different than the predictions when court acted that half the states would make abortion illegal. the fact is when you have 50 debates about this, you run into reality. when we come back, much of the media excited as democrats ready to push through that massive climate change and health care bill which they say will increases inflation. ♪ ♪

♪ howard: the media were convinced it would never happen, but now after winning a test vote last night, the democrats are on the verge of passing a massive climate change, health care and tax bill on a party-line vote. that senate voterama, you see the picture there, is about to

end ebb in the next hour or two, perhaps. this after joe manchin agreed to the $700 billion measure, and kyrsten sinema got the concessions she wanted. >> we are going to to see the democrats be able to put evidence on the table come move saying, look, we have made a difference in your lives. maria: it's incredible to me that they can actually say yes to a package that will impact the entire country just because they're getting what they want for their own state and their own donors. >> there's an inflation reduction act of 2022 that no republicans are going to the to vote for. biden gets the credit for doing the thing to stop inflation. he gets to be the empathetic guy. >> don't be fooled, this is a bill hell bent on trying to turn the far-left's fantasies into our living nightmare. it's destructive. howard: susan, most of the media, i think, are cheering on this big bill. kyrsten sinema finally signing on after getting a concession to preserve a very lucrative tax

break or loophole for hedge funy really need help. anybody see this as great for the country? >> i would have liked to have seen more evenhanded reporting on what the percentage is actually about. i did hear reporters -- i was encouraged to hear reporters canning a lot of questions about several reports that came out that indicated this bill is not going to reduce inflation even though it's named the inflation reduction act and that it may result in tax increases or people well below the $400,000 income range paying more many taxes. due to provisions in this legislation. and there's also a lot of concern -- and i didn't see much reporting on this, i myself report on it -- that the pharmaceutical companies are really concerned about certain types of drugs not making it to the market under the price controls that are also part of this bill. there are a lot, there's a lot to weigh in this $75 -- 750-page

bill that really need a lot of examination and reporting, and now it's being ushered lu right now on the senate floor so everybody can get out for their summer break. so i don't think it was as horrow as it deserve to be by -- thorough as it deserve to be by the media, and everybody was sort of cheerleading this thing rather than taking a critical look at what it was going to do. howard: yeah, there was a lack of details. the process would reduce the deficit by $300 billion large wily by raising corporate taxes, but with bernie sanders saying on the floor the so-called inflation reduction act, is press buying into this inflation reduction business? >> no. again, i sound like a broken record, but i think she makes a lot of sense, i agree with susan's kind of framing, curious as to why there was not more examination of the bill by the press. i think there was a lot of examination around the histrionics around how the deal

was achieved between mr. manchin and mr. schumer. and i might add, some of the republicans very critical of this bill were praiseworthy of mr. manchin and larry summers when they said the first build back better bill was too big, and now they've come around. i'd love to have seen them explain even more so why. what they did say they thought it would do two things, lower drug costs and the debt which i think every republican and democrat, at least reasonable ones, want. and, two, increase domestic production and increase our ability to develop clean energy products going forward. that was the only hinge i saw analyzed in any meaningful way, and then you heard voices yell about how destructive it would be. i was in congress from '96-'06, and there was never a drug company that said we want the government to be able to negotiate drug prices. i'm not totally persuade as much as i was by that argument, and that's where we need to press

mt. media to focus a lot more on. howard: right. the big ticket here is the $300 billion for climate change which is far larger than anything anybody has ever gotten through. susan, are the media largely dismissing republican complaints about this being shoved down their throats when it is far more moderate than the original $3.5 trillion that joe biden wanted to spend? actually, less than a quarter of that, so some some on the conservative side, not as terrible as the original legislation would have been. >> it's a fraction of what they were initially asking for in biden's build back better plan. but republicans feel like he were played on because of some inside baseball stuff where democrats hid the fact that they were working on this deal in order to get the chips bill passed. howard: right. >> the semiconductor bill passed, and the are republicans wanted to block that as a way to stop the manchin-schumer bill from going forward. so there's some in the weeds kind of maneuvering going on, and republicans were played by the democrats.

a lot of them are angry about that -- howard: yeah. let miguel get to harold because i have less than a minute left. pushing through a one-party bill always feels unfair to the out of power side, but republicans did the same thing with the trump tax cuts that also repealed the individual mandate for obamacare. in other words, it's a tool that both sides use. >> and democrats' vote outplayed, to susan's point, around the elevation of jurist amy coney barrett to the supreme court. look, this goes back and forth. i do think that there's a bill that republicans are saying is too big, and it's a spending bill that bernie sanders is saying too too small, it might be where i am. i want to see what this thing can do, and it looks as though it can get passed today. howard: the name of the game is compromise. ahead, mike huckabee joins us on nancy pelosi's taiwan trip. but up next, the senate passes that bill to help ailing veterans exposed to fox thetic

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♪ howard: jon stewart was with everywhere, every network, dropping f-bombs after 25 senate republicans upset with democratic tactics blocked a vote on a bill to provide medical care to ailing veterans exposed to burn pits and other toxins. and all the bad publicity pushed the senate to to try again, this time with 86 votes in favor, serving the bill to president biden. >> i want to apologize for cursing last week. [laughter] >> no, you didn't. >> i don't know what happened. i'm not sure i've ever seen a situation where people who have already given so much had to fight so hard to get so little. howard: joining us now, griff jenkins, fox news correspondent and anchor. griff, did jon stewart bring so much media visibility to this

veterans bill with his endless interviews and pressers -- he was seen crying in the senate chamber after it passed -- that it became impossible for the senators to say, oh, we'll deal with this later on? >> yeah. maybe we got mr. smith goes to washington, the expletive version, clearly, because there were a lot of f-bombs. but you pointed out, howie, he cried because he cares. jon stewart, this wasn't his first visit to washington. he's been coming for a decade or more supporting 9/11 first responders and veterans, he's wearing a uso hat the entire time he's here. and what you watched, i hope k street was paying attention, because they snatched a massive legislative victory from the jaws of defeat. it flipped half of the republican opposition in a matter of days, a master class of using the bully pulpit, if you will. because what he did is he watched how things were unfolding. you saw republicans that supported this bill initially, enthen shifted to op to decision claiming a budgetary gimmick,

that they were not strict enough on the spending, but they coincided with the manchin dealing with being struck, so you saw this full blitz from jon stewart saying this isly dick the louse, it's unacceptable to the promise to veterans. howard: right. he knew the issues inside out. and it passed, so i ask you, since the senate has passed this bill 84-14 in june before the flip, the media kicked it around, but was this a really dumb blunder? >> it was a dumb blunder, i think, in republican opposition to sort of are retaliationuate -- retaliate against democrats for striking this manchin deal. seemingly, they were upset, but you're talking about a group of veterans, those who we owe the most to. the bill is called the pact act a, the promise to address comprehensive toxins. it is the veterans of iraq, ask that are suffering from these illnesses from burn pits and others. so jon stewart clearly called them out and, obviously, the

republican senators did not enjoy having him stand outside on the capitol steps calling them out. in particular, senator pat toomey, who led the opposition -- howard: they got into a fight. veterans have died during this process, more will undoubtedly die. veterans groups played an important role, but they can't naturally command the kind of media attention that jon stewart can. >> that's right. more 50-plus groups that i counted that were out will, but they had a louder voice, a louder advocate in jon stewart. and as you point out, i think the difference maker was he knows how to work washington. perhaps others should take note. howard: and he knows how to keep the media with interested by throwing out some funny the lines. griff jenkins, always great to see you. next on "mediabuzz," nancy pelosi praised by the right for merries key trip to taiwan. media liberals, not so much. mike huckabee is on deck.

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howard: it turned into a melodrama when nancy pelosi defied president of her own party and dire warnings from china, visiting taiwan, prompting military exercises aimed at intimidation. and in a scrambling of the usual partisan lines, some liberal pundits criticized the house speaker while many conservative commentators hail her for standing up to the communists. >> they made a big fuss because i'm speaker, i guess. i don't know if that was a reason or an excuse, because they didn't say anything when the men came. >> i think it's dangerous, and i think the decision to go was a reckless, mistaken decision. >> speaker pelosi has demonstrated that supporting the ccp is inconsistent with modern day liberalism. and when that happens, most in the establishment, hay didn't get angry with china, they got angry with pelosi. howard: joining us now from little rock, mike huckabee, the

former arkansas governor and presidential candidate. governor, you're not exactly a big fan of nancy pelosi's politics, but you haven't joined in the media criticism of her trip to taiwan which has provoked china to stage, thankfully, a mock invasion of the island. why not? >> well, let me just say that republicans aren't right all the time, and democrats aren't wrong all the time. i just think they're wrong most of time. [laughter] but in this case, nancy pelosi was right. and let me just say, i raise my glass of southern iced tea. i give her the tip of a hat and a deep bow from the waist for not backing down in the face of the criticism from the chinese communist party. good for her. i don't want people to get used to this, but i'm praising nancy pelosi for sticking to her stuff and showing up in taiwan and paying tribute to a true friend of the united states, a friend of freedom, a friend of free elections and free enterprise, and that's island of taiwan. i've been there many times, i love taiwan, love its people and

culture. so thank you, nancy, good work. howard: we'll save the tape. let me push back a little bit, because how did she make taiwan safer by provoking china and by, you know, unleashing not just the military show of force, but china now reducing military contacts with the u.s., climate contacts with the u.s. for what? a symbolic visit and a last hoorah as speaker? >> i think it's more important than that. it was a matter of not just simply cratering to the demands of china's tantrums. china's acted like a 2-year-old in this and, frankly, when the biden administration senior officials and people from the department of defense questioned whether she should go, i think at that point she had to go. because if she had failed to show up and said, oh, okay, it's controversial and china's upset so i won't go, then suddenly entire united states looks incredibly weak.

we can't afford that. howard: do you agree with the press largely applauding president biden for making the call in the killing of al-qaeda leader ayman al-zawahiri who also, of course, was a key 9/11 plotter? at the same time, you have the cia, you know, doing these drone strikes and taking out this heinous terrorist after 22 years. >> yeah, i think it was the right call. i'm glad he made it. i remember famously that it was joe biden who did not want to go ahead and take out osama bin laden. so i'm glad that something has happened in the 10 year since that decision was made, and he was the only person in the situation room that disagreed with it. now he's decided that we do need to get rid of these terrorists and, frankly, again, party politics aside, joe biden made the right call on that. howard: okay. i like to put party politics aside when we can, neither party has a no -- monopoly on wisdom. what would be the impact of

republicans running for rex or re-election in the midterms if donald trump -- who everybody knows is running -- makes it official and becomes a declared candidate? >> well, i've been on record as saying that i think he should wait until after midterms, because the focus of any election should be the one that's right in front of us. and as the old saying goes, my wife has often said, you know, just don't bring a date to her funeral. you know, i think that's sort of the way it is. tbrowft to get one step first, and then you take more steps. right now republicans need to to focus on only one election, and that's the 2032 midterms. if president trump were -- 2022 midterms. if president trump were to get into the race prior to that, then suddenly everything becomes about 2024, i think we lose momentum. he has not asked me for my opinion or advice, but if he does, that's what i'm going to share with him, and i shay share it with you now that i think let 2024 take care of itself. even if it's the day after the

election but not before. howard: just briefly, you told brian kilmeade it would have disastrous consequences because there would be a laser position about his disputing the 2020 the election as opposed to what voters are concerned about now. >> well, sure. the disaster is suddenly all these candidates who have spent the last year and a half running are not going to be talking about the issues that they're running on. they're going to be talking whether they support or don't support donald trump getting into the race for president. so it's just a distraction that we don't need. we need to win as are republicans in the midterms. and when i look at this bill that's being shoved through senate right now, i'm more convinced than ever we'd better get the republicans in there as quickly as possible, and the last thing we need is something that might distrue rut that. howard: joe biden, arguably, has had the best 10 days of his presidency. we just talked about al-zawahiri, also passing all this legislation, a a lot of

bipartisan stuff, the chips act, for example, to make us more competitive with china. and so at the same time, polls show most democrats don't want him to run again. do you think the fact that his recent successes will have any impact on the midterm given his incredibly low standing in the polls? >> i think we've got to remember that joe should have more successes than he has. i mean, right now the democrats own the whole show. heavy got the white house, they have the senate and they've got the house -- howard: it's a 50-50 senate majority, as you know. >> well, i know, but they still have a majority, they can pass things and he will sign them. for them to ask like, oh, my gosh, we accomplished something, we passed something through the legislature, good gosh, when you have that much of the pie in washington, you better be able to pass something and, quite frankly, the republicans have failed in the past when they get the majority, they don't come up with the necessary votes to get their agenda passed. pleasure. howard: half a minute, governor. as you know, russian court has

sentenced wnba's brittney griner to nine and a half if years, and biden has been pushing for a prisoner swap. what do you think of his handling of matter? >> well, i think we put a lot of people in prison in the united states for marijuana possession, so it's a little hypocritical to act like, my gosh, look what the russians have done. while i think the sentence is ridiculously unjust and long, i don't want us to trade a murderous villain for somebody, you know, who basically doesn't care much for the u.s., somebody who has opined that the one thing brittney griner will be able another is to avoid having to listen to the national anthem percent next nine years. howard: right. i think we can agree the sentence is ridiculous. >> yes. howard: mike huckabee, always great to see you. thanks so much. >> you bet. thanks, howely. howard: after the break, the u.s. takes out the leader of al-qaeda, and the mixed media reviews to joe biden's decisions. and and later, ron desantis

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howard: when president biden announced that a drone strike had killed leader of al-qaeda, ayman al-zawahiri, a key plotter of 9/11, osama bin laden's number two, the mediat . >> justices has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more. people around the world no

longer need to peer the vicious and determined killer -- fear. >> proving that what he committed to doing after withdrawing from afghanistan is a promise made and a promise kept. >> biden made a speech boasting. feel safer? of course you don't. >> you might think that a national security success of this magnitude was translate into a huge political win or at least a push for president biden and his party. >> well, obviously, a great win for the united states and a clear victory over terrorism. politically for the president, some in the media have been framing this as the resurgence of biden presidency. >> unsurprisingly, he was killed in afghanistan where terrorist organizations, it's now become a safe haven, they have been rapidly gaining ground since biden abandoned the country last year. howard: joining us now, marie harf, fox news contributor and state department spokeswoman in the obama years. you saw the praise, you saw the criticism.

i predicted it wouldn't affect the election. the story seemed to paid in about two days. didn't even take two days, howie. i was watching other networks, they did the story and a half hour later moved on to politics and the midterms. i was also the cia smokesman -- spokesperson when we got osama bin laden. now, look, it was a bigger story, but this was his number two. he had been elevated to number one. he helped plan attacks that kill thousands of americans. i don't really get the point that this story habit a been covered more, talked about more. howard: why hasn't it? >> your guess is as good as min- howard: attention deficit syndrome? >> i think that's right. we are more obsessed with the political horse race, midterms, there are primaries going on, than we were in 2012. 2011, excuse me. bin laden was a bigger fish, as with we say, a bigger

terrorist to take off the battlefield -- howard: but what about the criticism that this shows the taliban lied and have, in fact, been harboring terrorists? in that agreement negotiate by donald trump and then accepted by joe bidensome. >> it's not breaking news that the al ban isn't telling the truth. -- taliban isn't telling truth. it is concerning that a senior al-qaeda leader felt comfortable living in ca bull. on the flipside, he shouldn't have felt too comfortable because intelligence community found him, tracked him and took him off the battlefield. so when the biden administration said we will still be able to get terrorists in afghanistan, it looks like that turned out to be true. howard: president biden did not want, at least initially, nancy close city to to go to taiwan given the situation in ukraine. now we have china firing missiles into the taiwan strait, doing a mock invasion is, reducing contact with the u.s. tom friedman called the speaker's visit utterly

reckless. do you agree? >> i don't agree. i i think it's breaking news that mike huckabee both agree with each other and nancy pelosi. howard: that's a headline. >> as you said, we'll keep the tape. she could not cancel visit because china asked her too. -- her to. this is not what happens outside a normal diplomatic visit, and if china is using this as an excuse to do escalatory things, that's on china, not on speaker pelosi. howard: should she have announced she was going? what do we get out of a symbolic visit? it seems to have complicated the cause of taiwan, our ally, which is not exactly what, perhaps, she wanted to accomplish. >> symbols are important in diplomacy in media. there is this question about whether she should have announced it or just showed up, you know, like she did in ukraine, for example. she showed up unannounced. people do that all the time. i think when the media coverage

as has -- has focused more on china and not on should nancy pelosi have gone, that's actually a better story. what is china doing, why are they using this as a pretext, not some domestic political story about nancy pelosi and should she have gone or not. howard: despite all this bipartisan legislation, obviously, we're going to see in a couple of hours, i think, passage of the big climate bill now joe manchin and kyrsten sinema are onboard, taxes and health care, so forth. you have this spectacle of two new york democrats running in a single district in manhattan, jerry nadler and carolyn maloney saying either it's too soon to talk about whether they would support joe biden or he's not going to run. the media don't want the 79-year-old president to run either. >> i think media want us to focus on 2024 because we talk about donald trump again and joe biden. it is not if incorrect or it's

not a lie when politicians will say to you, i am focused on the midterms, and we should be focused on the midterms. mike huckabee just said is it from the other side of the aisle, we need to focus on the midterms, not on whether trump is running. i think the media likes the is biden too old to run, is there going to be a rematch. real story is this november, that is the midterms, and that's what we want to focus on. howard: but the media didn't create the is joe biden too old to run, and when you have 75% of democrats in one poll saying he shouldn't run, that's a real story as well as politicians that seem to be running away from him. my point is do the successes he's having now affect that, or is the whole image of biden baked into the midterm cake? >> i think the successes will have an impact. for the first time this week, the generic poll of house districts, if you want a republican or democrat generically, democrats for the

first time in months have overtaken republicans. so i do think this is helping democrats, it'll help in the midterms, and i think they're helping joe biden. we'll see in november, but that's what my party feels today. howard: right. you do have inflation and other issues. marie harf, thanks so much. still to come, ron desantis tells "the view" to get lost, alex jones hit with massive financial losses, and the buzz meter is next.

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howard: time to go up against the buzz meter clock, go. a jury hit info wars' alex jones is a staggering $49 million in damages, the suit by sandy hook

elementary parents whose lives he made utterly miserable by insisting it was staged. now he may have bigger problems. >> your attorneys messed up. they sent you an entire digital copy of your entire cell phone with every text message you've sent for the past two years. >> i mean, i'm not a tech guy. i told you, i gave in my testimony my phone to the lawyers before, so you've got my phone, but we didn't give it to you. howard: jones claimed he had no texts related to sandy hook, not true. he claims he never used e-mail many, not true. his company has filed for bankruptcy, but this master of misinformation has finally been held accountable, and he may hear from doj because he was also involved in promoting the january 6th rally. "view" sent an invitation to

ron desantiss. a spokesman responded, which of the below statements from the host of "the the view" do you recommend our team consider? there was sunny hosten calling him a fascist and a bigot, joy behar calling him a negligent homicidal sociopath. needless to say, desantis ain't doing it. donald trump on his truth social app was promoting comments by a conservative who said msnbc, cnn, rest of liberal media desperately need trump to run in 2024. the former president added, and fox, which would die without me. mr. president, i respect my suggest you look at the numbers. in july fox news drew a bigger audience than cnn and msnbc combined and was the third watched network in all of television, so we seem to be doing okay. even if you're a casual baseball fan, you know vin scully's voice, the network broadcaster who died the other day. he'd been doing this so long, 67

years, to be precise, that he started with the dodgers in brooklyn before becoming a fixture in l.a. scully seamlessly weaved in anecdotes, and then his signature move calling a big play and hen staying quiet for a minute or more so the viewers and audience could -- >> a high fly to deep left center field, back, it is gone! [cheers and applause] what a marvelous moment for baseball, what a marvelous are moment for atlanta and the state of georgia. what a marvelous moment for the country and the world. howard: what a marvelous sportscaster. vin scully's broadcasting record will never be broken. just made it. that's it for this edition of "mediabuzz." i'm howard kurtz can. check out my podcast, subscribe

through apple itunes, google podcast or on your amazon device. we're continuing to look at the senate voterama, the climate, health and tax act. fox will stay with that until it happens. it's going to pass. we're back here next sunday, 11 eastern. see you then with the latest "buzz." ♪ purchases on your discover card. this is john. he hasn't worked this hard to only get this far with his cholesterol. taken with a statin, leqvio can lower bad cholesterol and keep it low with two doses a year. side effects were injection site reaction, joint pain, urinary tract infection, diarrhea, chest cold, pain in legs or arms, and shortness of breath. with leqvio, lowering cholesterol becomes just one more thing life throws your way.

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arthel: fox news alert. the senate closing in on passing democrats sweeping tax health and climate bill as the marathon known as voter mama continues but were going to take alive look at the senate floor were the process has been ongoing since 11:30 p.m. eastern last night. the series of amendment votes must be completed before a final vote can be held. that is likely to happen this afternoon. we of course will bring it to you live what it does. welcome to fox news lifetime arthel neville per hello eric. ic