Well, we have already seen them try to blame Trump for the foiled plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Why wouldn’t they also try to convince their audience to believe that the extremist group engaged in the scheme are somehow similar to those who protested against Whitmer’s draconian coronavirus restrictions?

The New York Times published a piece on Thursday reporting on the FBI’s announcement concerning the conspiracy to take the governor as hostage. At first, it seems like a normal report, informing the reader on the details of the plot and the investigation that led to the arrests of the 13 men involved. But then, it becomes an indictment on the people who took to the streets to demonstrate against Whitmer’s COVID-19 rules earlier this year. 

Within the first few paragraphs of the article, the authors discuss the men who hatched the scheme. “At least six of them, officials said, had hatched a detailed plan to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat who has become a focal point of anti-government views and anger over coronavirus control measures,” they wrote. 

The piece goes on to describe the plot and the men who are allegedly involved. It details the Democrats’ attempts to blame Trump for the conspiracy. But then, it brings up the protests that occurred in April. 

From The New York Times:

“In April, thousands of people gathered at the State Capitol to protest the executive orders she issued shutting down most of the state. Mr. Trump openly encouraged such protests, tweeting, ‘LIBERATE MICHIGAN!’”

From there, the authors discussed the protests, which included people carrying firearms. The article highlights the fact that some in the crowd were carrying Confederate flags and signs with swastikas. Of course, the authors fail to point out that these individuals were a very small minority of those who attended. They wrote: 

“In May, a man was charged with threatening to kill Ms. Whitmer and Ms. Nessel. And the protests at the Capitol in Lansing featured some signs with swastikas, Confederate flags and demonstrators who advocated for violence against Ms. Whitmer, including one man who carried a doll with brown hair hanging from a noose. Many in the crowd carried semiautomatic weapons, leading some Democrats in the Legislature to call for a ban on guns in the Capitol.”

The overwhelming majority of those who participated in the protests against Whitmer’s restrictions were not those that The New York Times describes. These were normal, everyday people who had grown weary of living under the governor’s onerous rules that dictated how many people one can have in their home and shutdown a significant number of businesses, putting people out of work. 

But this is a common tactic used by the corporate media. It is a trick called “nutpicking.” It occurs when members of the press highlight the most crazed people in a group and use them to paint the entire gathering as loonies. It happens when they pretend that the majority of conservatives are no different from right wing hate groups. Unfortunately, many people are easily deceived by this journalistic ruse. 

As it turns out, there is not much information regarding the political beliefs of the suspects. But at least one of them has been identified as an anarchist who dislikes President Trump. As more information comes out about this story, the corporate media will likely introduce more spin and lies, especially since election day is drawing near. The question is: How many people will they fool? 

Let me know what you think in the comments below! 

Follow me on Twitter: @JeffOnTheRight