Shortly after noon on Friday, at the draw for the 2026 World Cup, President Donald Trump was presented with the first ever "FIFA Peace Prize" by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) President Gianni Infantino at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. The draw is a huge deal, as it determines which countries will play each other and where, as they open the competition next summer.
Both CNN and Fox News carried part of it live, but it didn't take long for CNN to dump out of their coverage, once Trump received his award, and that wasn't the worst part. Dana Bash, hosting CNN's Inside Politics in the noon hour, not only cut out of the event early as mentioned, but she and a panel member each had an apparent chuckle over what they had just seen.
Bash took a backhanded shot at President Trump, during the introduction, while explaining to her viewers what they were about to see, as he took the stage. "This is the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw. Billions of people around the world are going to tune in to see what happens, not necessarily with president Trump's speech, but with the actual draw."
This is obvious to sports fans, but she had to diminish Trump, as CNN viewers expect.
The FIFA President presented Trump with a medal and then read from the certificate that went along with it.
INFANTINO:.. So the FIFA Peace Prize is presented annually on behalf of the billions of football loving people from around the world to a distinguished individual who exemplifies an unwavering commitment to advancing peace and unity throughout the world through their notable leadership and action. And therefore, FIFA... awards the 2025 FIFA Peace Prize, Football unites the world to Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, in recognition of his exceptional and extraordinary actions to promote peace and unity around the world...
Infantino continued, but it became too much for Bash (and CNN's small audience) to bear.
INFANTINO: Before giving you the floor, Mr. President, if I may say two words... Like everyone here in the room, we see images of war all over the world.
BASH: Okay, we're going to continue to monitor this ceremony at the Kennedy Center. And let me just explain what just happened.
At this point Bash paused, a female panel member could be heard giggling, and then Bash herself tried to suppress a giggle. Bash went on to diminish the significance and legitimacy of the award as a lame attempt to butter up Trump before turning to panelist Amy Walter, who continued to delegitimize the whole thing.
BASH: ..Now, it was only created a few weeks ago after President Trump didn't win the Nobel Peace Prize. And here's the way FIFA explains what this prize is. This is in their official explanation, "In an increasingly unsettled and divided world, it's fundamental to recognize the outstanding contribution of those who work hard to end conflicts and bring people together in the spirit of peace". Amy.
WALTER: Well there is no better way to the President's heart then giving him --
BASH: Flattering.
WALTER: -- something gold, and giving him literally something that sparkles and then the flattery that goes along with it.
Disrespectful not only to our President but to FIFA and their President, too. Compare this with how Fox News's Outnumbered handled it. They did not take a dig at Trump when he took the stage, they did not cut away seconds after Trump received the award. Isn't it something that a so-called "news" network cuts out before the President speaks live?
Fox stayed an extra 3 minutes and 45 seconds until President Trump left the stage, and then Harris Faulkner treated what we just saw with the respect and gravitas it deserved. Liberals all think hailing Trump as a peacemaker is preposterous, because he's so aggressive in attacking them that they can't acknowledge his administration as helped peace break out anywhere.
FAULKNER: But what we just saw there was the very first, and that is FIFA getting into a mission, if you will, of recognizing on behalf of all of their sports fans and those sports fans around the world of soccer, who love peace breaking out. And who are the peacemakers on the globe? And can they give something out on behalf of FIFA and its sports fans to show their appreciation for those people who bring about peace. And you heard the president after Infantino listed all of the areas, the Abraham accords, the Cambodia and Thailand peace that broke out and the Congo, saving millions of lives by brokering a peace deal there, in Gaza.
Respectful, dignified, thoughtful, fair analysis, and no giggling or chuckling. The antithesis of what we witnessed on CNN. Par for the course.
