It is a rare and welcome moment when a policy win for America cannot be laughed away by the coastal media elite, and yet that is exactly what happened this week when President Trump helped shepherd a ceasefire that brought home the last living Israeli hostages. For months the chattering class insisted such an outcome was impossible, and now they scramble to reframe reality rather than admit a political opponent achieved what diplomats had failed to do. This should be celebrated for what it is: American leadership producing results when others offered only lectures.
The deal signed in Sharm el-Sheikh set in motion the release of the remaining hostages and a massive prisoner exchange, with both sides agreeing to painful compromises so mothers and fathers could return home. Israel’s government approved the framework and international partners lined up for humanitarian relief while the agreement’s mechanics moved forward under the watch of U.S. envoys and regional allies. Ordinary Americans watching from home felt the simple human relief of reunions that political elites too often reduce to talking points.
Contrast that sober, human reality with Monday’s performance on ABC’s The View, where Alyssa Farah Griffin—the one conservative voice on that panel—explicitly credited Mr. Trump and his team for playing a central role and reminded viewers that partisan reflexes should not blind anyone to success. Griffin even reminded her cohosts of a past promise to wear a MAGA hat if the hostages were freed, a pledge that conservatives have not forgotten and that sheepish cohosts like Sunny Hostin and Whoopi Goldberg seemed eager to dodge. The clip of that exchange has been making the rounds because it exposes the mental gymnastics applied by the media to avoid admitting when Republicans deliver.
Conservative commentators rightly scoffed as the same anchors who spent two years predicting American failure tried to minimize the achievement, clinging to grievance instead of gratitude. Folks like Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who quietly did the hard work of back-channel diplomacy, deserve credit—yet the left’s reflex is to focus on packaging and slogans instead of results. Americans who pay taxes and pray for peace expect leaders to produce outcomes, not performative lectures on virtue signaling.
This episode is a perfect illustration of the double standard in elite media: when a Republican negotiates peace, we see incredulous gasps and moral posturing; when their own side fails, we get soft-focus pity and excuses. Hardworking patriots know that leadership is judged by outcomes, not by which cable network gives you the best seat. It’s past time to reward competence and hold pundits accountable when they refuse to call a win a win.
Finally, accountability matters on the small things too. Alyssa Farah Griffin made a promise in public, and conservatives who cheered this victory are within their rights to remind her of it—Donald Trump Jr. and others have already circulated the old clip and called for her to honor it. If the left wants to lecture about principles, they should be ready to live up to them when the facts run counter to their narrative. Americans want peace, they want hostages home, and they want a media brave enough to admit when the country succeeds.
