The corporate media spent Wednesday railing against Republicans who criticized Attorney General Merrick Galrland for sticking by his memo to Department of Justice workers addressing a federal response regarding reports of violence and intimidation of school board officers.
Republicans were offended when Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that the National School Boards Association’s apologies over the letter which inspired his memo would not change the DOJ’s position in regards to intervening in threats against school board officers.
Ted Cruz (Republican from Texas) accused Garland of engaging in political affairs. He was accused of failing to conduct research and issuing an “abusive memo”. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) also pressed Garland. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) claimed that the DOJ memo had a poisonous, chilling impact on speech for parents.
Garland admitted to the House Judiciary Committee that he had been influenced by the NSBA’s initial letter. It cited examples of non-violent behavior from frustrated parents, that didn’t include threats but was deemed disruptive.
CNN reported that “GOP Senators erupt at Garland”, Rolling Stone stated, “Republicans have lost their minds”, and The New York Times added, “Republicans attack Garland” in a headline reporting “Republicans berate” the AG.
Ryan Bort, Rollins Stone’s Ryan Bort, wrote that Garland “ran into an outraged Republican buzzsaw.”
Katie Benner, Times reporter for the Times wrote that “the barrage of criticisms from Republicans on Senate Judiciary Committee arrived one week after Mr. Garland faced similarly sharp questions from Republicans at the House Judiciary Committee.”
Similar approaches were taken by other corporate news organizations.
“Congressional Republicans have found a new political foe.” He is named Attorney General Merrick Garland,” MSNBC’s Steve Benen wrote.
“Practically all GOP senators on the panel — Iowa’s Chuck Grassley and North Carolina’s Thom Tillis, Nebraska’s Ben Sasse, et. al. — pursued the attorney general like a pinata. Missouri’s Josh Hawley, Arkansas’ Tom Cotton, went further and called on Garland “resign in disgrace,” Benen said. “The biggest problem with the GOP’s hysterics, however, is that it is a silly, invented controversy.”
ABC News published a headline saying that Garland was “under GOP Attack” and CNN’s low rated media pundit Brian Stelter called hearings a “Garland bashfest”, criticizing Cruz, Hawley and “scolding the attorney general.”
Mainstream media outlets are often criticized for presenting negative reports about Democrats and Republicans as “weaponizing” or’seizing on an issue. Liberal reporters are prone to pointing out that the “Republicans prey” on news that would otherwise be considered negative.
These headlines indicate that Republicans are the “other,” Tim Graham, conservative Media Research Center, told Fox News Digital in January.
He said, “When Democrats jump, well, they let media do the pouncing”
