Sean Hannity really wanted to give Roy Moore the benefit of the doubt. Then the advertisers started jumping ship. Finally, Moore’s position has become indefensible and the Fox News host is calling it quits.
Several companies pulled their advertisements from Hannity in response to public outcry over the host’s “innocent until proven guilty” defense of Moore, But when a fifth accuser came forward saying Moore had raped her when she was 16-years-old, Hannity had to throw in the towel.
“For me, the judge has 24 hours,” Hannity said on his program Tuesday night. “He must immediately and fully come up with a satisfactory explanation for your inconsistencies that I just showed. You must remove any doubt. If he can’t do that, then Judge Moore needs to get out of this race.”
Hannity, to his credit, made his position open to equal debate while on the air, but his approach to Moore’s defense was cringeworthy. He regurgitated the old myth that women often lie about sexual harassment for some sort of gain. At one point, he seemed to posit that Moore’s sexual grooming of a 14-year-old was “consensual,” but he later walked back that notion and said he misspoke.
It’s not certain how Hannity expects Moore to “remove any doubt” about his innocence, but his public reversal is a sign that Moore is running out of his most staunch defenders, fast.
Watch the video below:
Hannity gives Roy Moore 24 hours to prove he didn't sexually assault teenage girls. pic.twitter.com/39RHPDmNcy
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) November 15, 2017
Featured image via screen grab
