Sanders Calls Out WaPo, Slams Front-Page Trump-Shooting Connection
Hours after President Donald Trump condemned Saturday’s massacre at a Pittsburgh synagogue, The Washington Post’s Sunday print edition all but linked the president to the crime.
A front-page headline above the fold read that “Trump, allies set the tone for the violence they condemn, critics say.”
A second front-page headline, about last week’s rash of bombs mailed to prominent Democrats, said the suspect in the case “found an inspiration in Trump.”
The paper’s presentation brought swift rebuke from White House press secretary Sarah Sanders.
“Is there any tragedy the Washington Post won’t exploit to attack President @realDonaldTrump? The evil act of anti-Semitism in Pittsburg was committed by a coward who hated President Trump because @POTUS is such an unapologetic defender of the Jewish community and state of Israel,” she tweeted.
Is there any tragedy the Washington Post won’t exploit to attack President @realDonaldTrump? The evil act of anti-Semitism in Pittsburg was committed by a coward who hated President Trump because @POTUS is such an unapologetic defender of the Jewish community and state of Israel. https://t.co/0tCNpepC9k
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) October 28, 2018
Others also noted that blame for all political violence is now laid at Trump’s door by many in the mainstream media.
As I recall, we’ve always had madmen and mass acts of violence, long before anyone ever thought of a President Trump. But now, in a classic example of a post hoc fallacy, because Trump is POTUS, all madmen are inspired by him, while the great economy is inspired by Obama.
— Bill Mitchell (@mitchellvii) October 28, 2018
Trump had already voiced his concerns for the atrocity on Saturday.
All of America is in mourning over the mass murder of Jewish Americans at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. We pray for those who perished and their loved ones, and our hearts go out to the brave police officers who sustained serious injuries…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 27, 2018
…This evil Anti-Semitic attack is an assault on humanity. It will take all of us working together to extract the poison of Anti-Semitism from our world. We must unite to conquer hate.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 27, 2018
Although Trump is a master of the no-holds-barred school of political rhetoric, Vice President Mike Pence said it is unfair to blame Trump for the violence of the past week.
“Everyone has their own style, and frankly, people on both sides of the aisle use strong language about our political differences,” Pence told NBC. “But I just don’t think you can connect it to acts or threats of violence.”
Pence said there is a difference between strong words in politics and violent acts for political ends.
“The American people believe in the freedom of speech,” Pence said. “And throughout the history of this country we’ve always had vigorous debates and then we settle those debates in the ballot box. We don’t settle them through acts or threats of violence like the pipe bombs we saw sent to the Obamas, the Clintons, to CNN and others.”
Conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt sought to capture the temper of the times in a commentary piece in The Washington Post.
After making the case that fringe elements of both political extremes can resort to violence, Hewitt noted that the political left is far from innocent.
“We are now arguing over what is properly considered ‘incitement’ to violent action of all segments of that fringe. Consider the moron who accosted Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Labor Secretary Elaine Chao in a Louisville restaurant, or the mobs that chased Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) and his wife or Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen or Stephen Miller from their eateries: Who is responsible for inciting that behavior? For the physical attacks on two GOP candidates in Minnesota? For the Portland Antifa gang harassing motorists and a woman in a wheelchair? The reasonable apprehension of physical violence is assault, not free speech. Who is responsible for the assaults and the far worse violence of the bombs and the shootings?” Hewitt wrote.
After discussing previous efforts to link political violence to specific parties, and explaining how dangerous the word “incitement” is to the idea of free speech, Hewitt concluded with the following rule:
“One standard: Don’t blame political figures for violence they don’t specifically encourage and intend, and don’t confuse rally rhetoric with criminal behavior because you don’t like the speaker or the message,” he wrote. “Prosecute criminals, not speech.”
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