Sorry, Bret, but you're spewing a bunch of malarkey.

During Bret Baier’s interview with Kamala Harris on his Special Report show, Baier played a misleading clip of Donald Trump in an obvious effort to whitewash his fascist threats to punish his critics. It came up during this exchange in the October 16 interview:

HARRIS: If you listen to Donald Trump, if you watch any of his rallies, he's the one who tends to demean and belittle and diminish the American people. He's the one who talks about an enemy within, an enemy within, talking about the American people, suggesting he would turn the American military on the American people.

BAIER: We asked that question to the former president today. Harris Faulkner had a town hall, and this is how he responded:

(VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I heard about that, they were saying I was, like, threatening. I'm not threatening anybody. They're the ones doing the threatening. They do phony investigations. I've been investigated more than Alphonse Capone. He was the greatest gangster - No, it's true. … It’s called weaponization of government. It’s a terrible thing.

(END CLIP)

HARRIS: Brett, I'm sorry, and with all due respect, that clip was not what he has been saying about the enemy within, that he has repeated when he's speaking about the American people. That's not what you just showed.

BAIER: He was asked about that specifically –

HARRIS: No, no, that's not what you just showed, in all fairness and respect to you –

BAIER: I’m telling you that was the question that we asked -

HARRIS: You didn't show that. And here's the bottom line, He has repeated it many times. And you and I both know that, and you and I both know that he has talked about turning the American military on the American people. He has talked about going after people who are engaged in peaceful protest. He has talked about locking people up because they disagree with him. This is a democracy, and in a democracy, the president of the United States, in the United States of America, should be willing, to be able to handle criticism without saying he'd lock people up for doing it. And this is what is at stake.

It’s very clear that Baier played the clip to counter Harris's accusation, suggest she was exaggerating and even to suggest that maybe she’s the one doing the threatening.

Nevertheless, a day later, Baier claimed he had meant to play Trump's "enemy within" clip, too:

BAIER: I did make a mistake, and I want to say that I did make a mistake. When I called for a soundbite, I was expecting a piece of “the enemy from within,” from Maria Bartiromo's interview, to be tied to the piece from your town hall, Harris, where you asked the former president about the enemy form within. It just had the piece about the town hall.

Then he played the clip of what he now claimed, “I meant to roll.”

It did, indeed, show Trump saying, “I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within – not even the people that have come in and destroying our country. We have some sick people, radical-left lunatics and it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard or, if really necessary, by the military.”

Unfortunately for Baier, there is absolutely no indication he meant to play both soundbites. As the above transcript indicates, he said, "We asked that question to the former president today ... and this is how he responded." Faulkner’s town hall and Harris’ interview were on Wednesday, October 16. Trump’s comments to Maria Bartiromo were made three days before, on Sunday, October 13.

Sure, it’s possible Baier really had meant to pull both clips. But if so, he obviously didn’t care that only one got played and that just happened to be the part that left out what Trump actually said. More importantly, why did it take Baier a full day to say he made a mistake?

I’m not the only one not buying what Baier is now trying to sell. His former colleague, Gretchen Carlson, is not buying it either:

Now Bret Baier says “his mistake” he ran wrong Trump “enemy from within” clip during interview w/ Harris. Newsflash: When wrong clips run (which happens) hosts can easily say “Sorry that was the wrong clip”. He or his producers would have known it was the wrong one right then.

— Gretchen Carlson (@GretchenCarlson) October 18, 2024

The night before Harris’ interview with Baier, I wrote a post called, “I hope Kamala Harris knows Bret Baier is not to be trusted.”

It looks like at least two of his former colleagues with me about that, too:

A former Fox News host agrees. https://t.co/lf6ibqesze

— Gretchen Carlson (@GretchenCarlson) October 16, 2024

I hope you enjoy the $37 million Palm Beach estate you bought not long after you signed your new Fox contract, Bret. Hope it was worth the cost to your reputation and any integrity you had remaining.

Baier owned up to his mistake during the October 17, 2024 Special Report panel discussion. Not surprisingly, the “correct” clip included the Trump’s “I'm not threatening anybody. They're the ones doing the threatening,” denial. Baier offered no apology for his "mistake."

Also not surprising? “Democrat” Harold Ford Jr., one of the panelists, responded to Baier's claim by praising Baier’s interview conduct. “Good political journalism tests candidates,” Ford said. “I thought it was the highest standard of journalism, in this regard: persistence, thoughtfulness, integrity and aggressiveness you brought to every one of those questions.” Hope your paycheck is worth the cost to your character, too, Mr. Ford.

You can watch Baier’s suspicious mea culpa below, from the October 17, 2024 Special Report. He didn’t get to it until 4:48 into the discussion.