CHARLES HURT: Behold, the anatomy of a “fake news” smear.
The latest drive-by character assassination of White House adviser Stephen Miller began, as it so often does, in a fact-free live TV orgy of public posturing by a journalist eager to display his virgin-snow virtue when it comes to unalloyed hatred of President Donald Trump.This time it was CNN anchor Jake (Mr. Trump calls him “Fake”) Tapper, who invited Mr. Miller on his Sunday show to respond to Mr. Tapper’s complex conspiracy theory about how the president is somehow unfit or too mentally unstable to occupy the White House.Obviously, Fake Tapper missed the report on Twitter that actually Mr. Trump is a “very stable genius.”Anyhoo, Mr. Miller had no intention of playing any of Fake Tapper’s reindeer games. Instead, he wanted to talk about the unrelenting unfairness of CNN and its coverage of Mr. Trump.When Mr. Miller refused to engage in Mr. Tapper’s conspiracy fantasy, the anchor changed his mind and decided he no longer wanted Mr. Miller on his show.“I think I’ve wasted enough of my viewer’s time,” he petulantly whined before cutting off Mr. Miller’s mic.
I lost faith in Tapper nearly eight years ago.
You might remember a story from June of 2010, during the "Free Gaza" campaign to send "supply" ships past an Israeli blockade to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas terrorists there. One such ship, the Mavi Marmara, was chartered by an purported charity organization in Turkey. Israeli commandos boarded to inspect the cargo, were attacked by what ABC News described as "passengers," and several people were killed and many more were injured, including a few Israeli soldiers.
One of those killed was 19-year-old Furkan Dogan, who held dual Turkish-American citizenship. He was born in New York state, but moved to Turkey at the age of two, and apparently never even visited the US again.
Jake Tapper took this opportunity to grandstand on This Week with his guest, Senator John Cornyn, demanding to know how the US should react after "a US ally kills a US citizen."
The transcript has disappeared from ABCNews.com, but I still have the partial quote saved in my notes for a segment I did on this back then for PJTV. My response to Tapper then was: "When a former American ally [Turkey] is making the first of several broadcast moves to reestablish hegemony over the near east, our very first concern should be, 'Did the Israelis first check the passports of all the men who were attacking them, just in case one of them might have lived in the US when he was two years old'."
But, hey, Jake -- don't let the realities on the ground (or on board the ship) stop you from making hay against Israel or a Republican Senator.
Sheesh. This happened eight years ago and Tapper still has me irritated like a fresh rash.
I suppose it would be easier for me to let go if Tapper would stop with the grandstanding -- but I think we both know that's not going to happen.
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