Riffed from the Headlines is Townhall’s daily VIP supplement that examines deeply flawed aspects of journalism in the country. We will seek to hold accountable the blunders, misdeeds, wrongdoings, manipulations, unfair practices and fabricated narratives in the mainstream media.
Jill and José Biden left D.C. for hurricane-ravaged parts of Florida, and some people began to notice something different about the fashion outrage in the press about the first lady. Specifically, there was no such outrage. Dr. First Lady Emeritus Jill Biden was wearing heels when they boarded Marine One, and no one in the press thought it was inappropriate. Stephen Miller noted the discrepancy in reporting.
Not without reason, but remember this? https://t.co/nqrilBIQMx photo: twitter.com/avef0lWM8z
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) October 5, 2022
Yes, we remember Melania scalding herself on those shoes as she boarded the plane that was supposed to be destroyed by the hurricane in Texas. She changed into practical footwear once they landed, but in the eyes of the press, the damage was already done. As witty as it may be, Charlie Spiering got to the heart of the matter as to why we didn’t hear any cries of outrage from the press corps today: It turns out Jill’s shoes are completely different and much more acceptable.
I have learned from reliable sources that Jill Biden is wearing duck heels as she heads to visit Florida, where a hurricane has devastated her.
Not the kind of heels Melania Trump wore in 2017 that drew haters when she went to Texas to see the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey photo:twitter.com/CcEm3fLsxQ
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) October 5, 2022
Artisan-made stories – NEW YORK TIMES
The NY Times has been merciless in its criticism of Gov. Ron DeSantis since the hurricane. In one asinine article, the paper tries to suggest that DeSantis shouldn’t have asked for aid since he and other Republicans have fought President Biden’s “climate laws.”
It’s unclear how a state governor can vote against a federal bill, but Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott have also been accused of voting against the legislation. So it’s clear that The New York Times apparently thinks it’s OK to declare hurricanes illegal.
Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Florida Republicans rejected major climate legislation. Now they seek storm relief.https://t.co/Ko3kI4Xs7W
— The New York Times (@nytimes) October 4, 2022
Content Checking Fact Checkers – POLITYFACT
- To rate his accuracy as “Half-True” is simply priceless.
JD Vance is running an ad campaign in Ohio for his Senate opponent, Tim Ryan.
TV Tim is a fraud. DC Tim is bad for Ohio. photo:twitter.com/IdUu6mfdhG
— JD Vance (@JDVance1) September 23, 2022
Well, there’s a Republican who’s making statements — and recovering in the polls — so PolitiFact was sent in to set the record straight — stirring up confusion and providing false details.
Fact checkers have decided to rate this Vance ad as less than right…er, agreeing with him. Author/fact checker Amy Sherman reviewed the comment that Ryan voted with Pelosi 100% of the time and concluded that this right statement results in a statement “Democratic voting records are fairly even.” But then Sherman has to go back six years point to the fact that Ryan ran against Pelosi for House leader as evidence that Vance’s statement is 100% right Half-truth.
Politifact Approaches Hall of Shame Territory with JD Vance’s ‘Most Ridiculous Fact Check’
https://t.co/gHjX6EtemD— RedState (@RedState) October 5, 2022
Low octane gas lighting – Fox News
- Geraldo resorts to the term “lanzar deseos,” implying that Ron DeSantis has lost favor with Latinos.
There is still an underlying tone of outrage in the media over Ron DeSantis’ flights to Martha’s Vineyard. While some reporters are expected to be seething with anger, it is striking that they are allowing their emotions to cloud their ability to perform basic journalistic functions, such as research.
Geraldo Rivera felt the need to attack the Florida governor, suggesting that Latinos would turn away from him in the coming weeks and that the flights had made them “angry.”
Governor DeSantis will soon feel the wrath of Latino voters in Florida outraged by his toying with the lives of Venezuelan refugees he exploited.
— Geraldo Rivera (@GeraldoRivera) October 5, 2022
The only thing, Geraldo – not only does DeSantis have a double-digit lead over Charlie Crist in most polls, but there have been polls asking Latinos directly about their feelings about DeSantis moving in. The results are not exactly what you expect.
A survey was also conducted directly among Latinos about flights.
The results were en fuego!https://t.co/e1Gxn8dkEF— Brad Slager: Distracted at the Car Show (@MartiniShark) October 5, 2022
The Evolution of the Hidden Story – NEW YORK TIMES
- In that way Stuart is definitely right!
The Times reported this story Michigan election company accused of storing its proprietary information on Chinese servers. In an article by Stuart Thompson, it was all a grand conspiracy theory cooked up by election deniers with “baseless claims of voter fraud,” according to Thompson.
But later the story turned out to be completely true, as the head of the company was arrested for activities called conspiracy, as the Los Angeles County District Attorney charged him after…data found stored in Chinawhich constitutes a violation of the company’s agreement with this district.
The story was overthrown the very next day.
The up-to-date story was reported by The New York Times.
The article rebutting Monday’s rebuttal to these claims was written by the same Stuart Thompson.
WOW WOW WOWWWWWWWWWWWWW.
I’ve never seen anything age so badly, so quickly. According to the NYT @stuartathompson
Could adults please stop using the Democratic propaganda term “election denial” to describe those with legitimate challenges to election administration? It’s so childish. photo:twitter.com/YEcevYjhdI
— Mollie (@MZHemingway) October 5, 2022
News avoidance syndrome – DIFFERENT SOCKETS
- It’s starting to get to the point where you can’t trust any source in this administration.
Yes, yes – it’s pretty tiring to hear the news constantly saying, “If it were Trump/the Republican Party,” but there’s no doubt that in less than two years we’ve witnessed a sea change in the way the press approaches what they find troubling about the White House.
Imagine the media reaction if different actors in the Trump administration were making contradictory statements at the same time. Lies would be alleged, and conspiracies would be concocted about what they were hiding, who was really in control, and how the official record was being changed.
It’s just another day at the office for Joe Biden’s team. The latest is the re-use of strategic oil reserves. Jacqui Heinrich reports that the White House issued a statement today confirming that it intends to withdraw more oil from the national stockpile. She also noted that just yesterday, the press secretary said the administration has absolutely no such plans.
A White House statement said POTUS will continue to direct the release of resources from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as appropriate.
Yesterday, @PressSec said that such a step is not being considered.
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) October 5, 2022
