Margaret Brennan and Norah O'Donnell Under Fire for VP Debate Bias

CBS News debate moderators Margaret Brennan and Norah O’Donnell are facing major backlash for their performance during Tuesday night's vice-presidential debate, with viewers accusing them of displaying overt left-wing bias. Many criticized the moderators for repeatedly interrupting Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) and even cutting off his microphone when he challenged their fact-checks.

Donald Trump Jr. took to social media to slam the CBS moderators, accusing them of breaking their promise not to engage in biased fact-checking. "Of course the Fake News hacks at @CBSNews are only ‘fact checking’ JD Vance,” Trump Jr. wrote, calling Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan “the enemy of the people.”

The most heated criticism came after O'Donnell turned a question about the tragedy in Western North Carolina and Appalachia into a discussion about climate change, a move that many found tasteless, given the recent loss of over 100 lives due to natural disasters in the region. Fox Business host Dagen McDowell blasted O'Donnell, saying, “Can a ghoul be grotesque?” for using the moment to push a political agenda. Others, like Red State writer Bonchie, called it “disgusting” for O'Donnell to shift the focus away from the victims and onto a climate change narrative.

New York Post columnist Karol Markowicz suggested O'Donnell interrupted because she knew Vance was winning the exchange on climate. Meanwhile, CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp outright called her a “disgrace,” accusing her of breaking the debate rules by incorrectly fact-checking Vance on climate change.

The moderators also drew fire for silencing Vance's rebuttal when he corrected misinformation. Wall Street Journal critic Kyle Smith called it a “historically awful moment” for CBS News, as Brennan interrupted Vance during his rebuttal to a false claim. Instead of allowing him to respond, CBS muted his microphone, leading Smith to accuse Brennan of overstepping her role. “She isn’t supposed to debate the candidates,” Smith posted on X.

Political commentator Stephen L. Miller added his criticism, pointing out that Vance’s microphone was cut off not because of heated cross-talk or yelling, but because Vance was making a valid point. “They cut it because Vance was right,” Miller wrote, referencing Vance's correction of the false claim about the CBP One app.

Bill O’Reilly praised Vance for “embarrassing Margaret Brennan” after she falsely fact-checked him, adding that the Ohio senator scored “big points” for standing his ground.

The overwhelming consensus online was that CBS News displayed a clear bias during the debate, with O'Donnell and Brennan ganging up on Vance while letting Democratic candidate Tim Walz off the hook. Independent journalist Mark Halperin described their performance as “just completely one-sided,” noting that the moderators treated the candidates unfairly despite each having support from roughly half the country.

As more viewers and commentators voice their outrage, CBS News may have some explaining to do. For now, the moderators’ conduct during the debate is drawing fire from across the political spectrum for turning what should have been a balanced and fair discussion into a partisan showdown.

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