“When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser.”
This anonymous quote, often incorrectly attributed to the Greek philosopher Socrates, seems to nevertheless sum up the entire strategy of President Joe Biden and his team to combat the Trump phenomenon.
But while political spin and dirty tactics are unfortunately commonplace during election campaigns, especially on the Democratic side, the situation becomes much more concerning when major media outlets become active participants in spreading deceptions.
The Biden campaign attempted to push another myth by posting a brief clip of Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump speaking in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The seven-second clip posted by the Biden-Harris HQ social media accounts showed Trump saying, “The Democrats say, ‘Please don’t call them animals. They’re humans.’ I said, ‘No, they’re not humans. They’re not humans. They’re animals.”
The caption read, “Democrats said please don’t call immigrants animals. I said, no, they’re not humans, they’re animals.”
Trump: Democrats said please don’t call immigrants animals. I said, no, they’re not humans, they’re animals pic.twitter.com/yJ7fFHEUlh
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) April 2, 2024
Social media users were quick to point out the clip was edited to mislead viewers.
Is Trump abused by the media?
The full video makes it clear Trump was referring not to all immigrants but only to illegal immigrants who commit murder when he used the word “animal.”
“Just a few weeks ago, I met with the grieving family of Laken Riley … the 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia who was barbarically murdered by an illegal alien animal,” the former president said. “The Democrats say, ‘Please don’t call them animals. They’re humans.’ I said, ‘No, they’re not humans. They’re not humans. They’re animals.’”
However, on Wednesday, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer continued to push the distortion during a conversation with commentators Scott Jennings and Bakari Sellers.
“When he says these immigrants are animals, they’re not humans, what does that suggest?” Blitzer asked his guests, adding, “I mean, isn’t that brutal, shouldn’t people be condemning that?”
But Jennings wasn’t buying it.
“I listened to the entire tape,” he responded. “He was specifically talking about the person who murdered Laken Riley in Georgia.”
“And to be honest with you, Wolf, if somebody murders another human being, I think they deserve to be called ‘animals,’ and I don’t think any American is really going to reject that kind of rhetoric,” Jennings continued.
“That poor girl was murdered in cold blood. Is that person who did it not an animal?” he asked. “I think that’s an apt term.”
“So you think he was only referring to those murderers, not referring in general to illegal immigrants who coming into the United States?” Blitzer asked — as if there were any doubt.
“I listened to the tape, that’s exactly what he was talking about in my opinion,” Jennings said firmly.
CNN gets roasted for pushing the “animals” hoax:
“[Pres. Trump] was specifically talking about the person who MURDERED Laken Riley,” says @ScottJenningsKY. “That poor girl was murdered in cold blood. Is that person who did it not an animal?” pic.twitter.com/wIfz3coTD7
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 3, 2024
It should make so-called journalists like Blitzer hide their faces in shame to be called out for such blatant dishonesty on the air.
Displays of partisan ideology masquerading as journalism are a betrayal of the credibility and moral authority on which a free press is built.
It was almost hilarious to hear Sellers, when asked about the “animals” quote, lamenting that Democrats have been calling Trump “a xenophobic bigot” for the “past 10, 15 years” but “people are no longer hearing that message.” (See the clip below around the 3:40 mark.)
4.3.24 1130 am ET CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer @wolfblitzer w/
CNN Senior Political Commentator, Scott Jennings @ScottJenningsKY
CNN Political Commentator, Bakari Sellers @Bakari_Sellers pic.twitter.com/LSVL54gEg3
— Jeff Storobinsky (@jeffstorobinsky) April 3, 2024
What Sellers and Blitzer fail to realize is that you can only cry wolf so many times before people realize it’s a false alarm and tune out.
