Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Green New Deal” was such a laughing stock that even Democrats like Nancy Pelosi verbally dismissed it. The chicken herd that is the media, however, had already invested in it and had been treating it like the most amazing that had come from Congress since Obamacare.
By the time everyone had gotten themselves together, wiped the tears from their eyes and nursed their aching sides from laughing at it, the media began to run a different narrative of victimhood and rewrites of very recent history.
Not only did they kick into defense mode to protect their democratic socialist “It Girl,” but they also began making Republicans out to be villains for daring to make light of something AOC made. This was perfectly highlighted by Emily Zanotti of the Daily Wire, who sifted through the media’s reaction and found that they doth protest too much.
She first found that Businesses Insider actually accused Republicans of pouncing on an “accidentally” leaked, unfinished version of the Green New Deal, which had ridiculous language about providing for those who are “unwilling” to work.
It's truly amazing to watch the story about AOC's #GreenNewDeal plan turn into how Republicans are attacking her for wanting to provide economic security to those "unwilling to work for it."
This idea that the plan she talked about all day was released on accident is laughable. pic.twitter.com/vvY2JlfGW7
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) February 10, 2019
As Zanotti highlighted, Business Insider’s foul play was easily exposed, and they were forced to change the headline:
Business Insider was ultimately forced to rewrite the headline and issue a new tweet after right-leaning reporters pointed out that the leak appeared to be far from “accidental.” Ocasio-Cortez’s team posted the FAQ to the congresswoman’s official website, and members of her press team sent a pitch containing the FAQ to a number of high-profile media outlets, including National Public Radio, which posted the document in full on its website as soon as the congresswoman’s embargo on the material lifted.
Even The Hill and the Washington Post ran D for Ocasio-Cortez and the Green New Deal’s ridiculous requirements, with The Hill putting AOC in a position of being “forced to clarify” and the Washington post claiming the origination of the FAQ that AOC and her team posted was a “mystery.”
As many pointed out, there is no mystery. Ocasio-Cortez and her team proudly posted it themselves.
“Forced to clarify”
I believe this is what @continetti calls our “secretarial media” https://t.co/UNs4frY5IM
— Seth Mandel (@SethAMandel) February 10, 2019
https://twitter.com/JStein_WaPo/status/1094238690782646272
In truth, it’s more likely that both AOC and the media had misjudged the position of the Overton window, and believed that the American people were as enthusiastic as they were about the fantasy Utopian world they cheer for. The overwhelmingly negative reaction to the hitherto untouchable Ocasio-Cortez rocked them on their heels enough to the point where they actively began creating blatantly false narratives in order to save face.
The real story is that the media once again got ahead of itself, and is once again trying to restore its journalist credentials by telling an alternate version of the story and hoping that we’ll be willing to disbelieve our own eyes enough to believe them.
And people wonder why the media isn’t trusted anymore.
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