‘No One Wants to Go Through That Again’: Jake Tapper Cites 2000 Recount as Reason Why Networks Gun-Shy on Calling Election

CNN’s Jake Tapper addressed the many, many Americans who are very, very, very tired waiting for the election results, delivering a heartfelt one-minute monologue, explaining that the infamous 2000 recount had left the networks understandably cautious about making premature calls.

“I know there are a lot of viewers out there who are frustrated that we are not calling these states,” said Tapper, referring to the final states that had yet to be called.

The latest data reported by CNN showed Joe Biden with a lead over President Donald Trump in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, and the numbers steadily trending in Biden’s direction.

“Just to remind you, we are just waiting for the data to justify confidence in projecting this,” continued Tapper, looking right in the camera as he spoke.

The final outcome of the election was “very high stakes,” he said, so it was “very important that people in the media, and the people in the election centers, get it right.”

“Of course you at home, whether you’re rooting for Donald Trump or Joe Biden, you want an answer, you want to know, it’s been dragging on for a long time — We get it, we hear you. We just want to make sure we get it right.”

“Some people might remember in 2000 when the media awarded the state of Florida to George W. Bush,” Tapper continued. “Al Gore saw that, conceded, and then people in the media retracted Florida and Al Gore had to call George W. Bush and retract his concession.”

“No one wants to go through that again,” he concluded. “Everyone in the media wants to get it right. But of course you’re frustrated — imagine how the two men running for president feel.”

Watch the video above, via CNN.

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