Fox News host Shannon Bream calls out ‘dozens’ of Biden allies who weren’t ‘able or willing’ to defend president on show

Fox News anchor Shannon Bream told viewers Sunday that despite her team’s “around the clock” efforts, they were unable to find an advocate to defend President Biden on her show.

The “Fox News Sunday” host said her team reached out to “dozens of lawmakers and Biden advocates and allies” in the days before the show in search of a Democrat to defend the president’s decision to stay on the ticket.

Biden has confirmed he will stay in the race — during an ABC interview with George Stephanopoulos, in posts to X and during speeches at rallies — following a disastrous debate performance that saw politicians, policymakers and media outlets across the political spectrum calling for the incumbent candidate to bow out of the race.

“We’ve had numerous interactions with the Biden-Harris campaign, but not a single potential guest was either able or willing to join us on today’s show to defend the president and his decision to stay on the ticket,” Bream said, “so we will be having a conversation without that voice, [a circumstance] which we have been working … to avoid.”

Bream then welcomed former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), who has been outspoken in his calls for Biden to step out of the race and instead make room for Vice President Kamala Harris to run for the presidency.

“I particularly think Kamala Harris can come in and help us heal,” Ryan said on “Fox News Sunday.” “They don’t like Trump. They don’t like Biden. Let’s give them a candidate they can rally around.”

While Biden defenders did not make an appearance on Bream’s show, Dems did speak in defense of the president on other Sunday news programs.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the liberal 82-year-old who led an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2020, downplayed Biden’s age on CBS’ “Face the Nation” and said voters must focus on the president’s policies.

On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) called Biden an “extraordinary president,” though he avoided giving his own opinion on whether the incumbent candidate should exit the race.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Biden is one of the most “effective” presidents he has ever worked under on CNN’s “State of the Union.”