Social media users came down heavily on Newsmax host Greg Kelly after he and a panel of historians ridiculed the appearance of President Joe Biden's pet dog Champ. The conservative news host and the historians said the canine seemed to have come "from the junkyard" and appeared "very dirty and disheveled," which was "very unlike a presidential dog."
The comments from Kelly and historians Craig Shirley and Doug Wead came on Friday in Greg Kelly Reports. The Newsmax host went on to compare Champ to previous presidential dogs such as Bill Clinton's chocolate-colored Labrador Retriever named Buddy and George H.W. Bush's English Spaniel Millie.
The entire aim of the discussion was to hint at the possibility that the Biden family did not look after Champ. Throughout the segment Kelly insisted that he loved dogs, but he continued to shame the innocent canine over his appearance.
"I want to show you something I noticed. Does anybody look a little, uh, a little rough?" Kelly said. "I love dogs, but this dog needs a bath and a comb and all kinds of love and care. I've never seen a dog in the White House like this."
Kelly continued: "I remember Buddy. I remember Millie. I remember lots of dogs, but not a dog who seems, I don't know. I don't know how much love and care he is getting. Let's bring in the historians. I'm having fun with this obviously but I do want to talk about some stuff."
The Newsmax host then asked the panel to weigh in on the matter. He did that by further mocking Champ's appearance.
"Millie had like a staff, and they really took care of her. Very beautiful dog," Kelly told Shirley and Wead. "This dog looks like from, I'm sorry, from the junkyard. And I love that dog, but he looks like he's not been well cared for."
Shirley, who authored four books on former president Ronald Reagan, picked up from where Kelly left and continued to shame Champ.
"No, he looks very dirty and disheveled, and very unlike a presidential dog like Millie or Victory or something else in the past in the White House," Shirley said.
However, nobody in the segment criticized Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for leaving his family poodle Snowflake in freezing temperatures of Houston as he and his family enjoyed warm temperatures of Cancun, Mexico, on Wednesday.
Kelly and the panel's comments on Champ irked social media users who called the Newsmax host "desperate" and a "bully."
Who is Champ Biden?
Champ Biden is a 12-year-old German Shepard who became a member of the Biden family in late 2008. He has been photographed with the Bidens on multiple occasions.
The Bidens purchased Champ as a puppy from a breeder in Pennsylvania. Biden's granddaughters Finnegan and Maisy named him Champ in honor of one of Biden's advices — one his father would often tell him: "Any time you get knocked down, champ, get back up!"
During his tenure as vice president, Biden gave plush toy versions of Champ to children, especially those who were victims of floods and other natural disasters.
