I won’t go so far as to assert that The Washington Post and The New York Times knew from the beginning that the purported Russia “collusion” story — the assertion that Donald Trump conspired with Russia to interfere in the 2016 presidential election — was a hoax, but I will say this: The left-wing rags and other left-wing “news” outlets wanted to be lied to, all along. Why? Stage 4 Trump Derangement Syndrome.

Anyway, WaPo and the NYT garnered Pulitzer Prizes — the most prestigious award in American journalism — for their “deeply sourced, relentlessly reported coverage” of the Democrat-pushed hoax. Uh-huh. Deeply sourced from the likes of thoroughly discredited former FBI director, James Comey and others.

Moreover, both formerly-respected papers refuse to return the Pulitzers, following the release of the damning Durham Report, which concluded: “Neither U.S. nor the Intelligence Community appears to have possessed any actual evidence of collusion in their holdings at the commencement of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation.”

Even worse, a WaPo spokesperson told Daily Mail the paper “stands by its reporting,” and absurdly insisted the report didn’t discredit its coverage of the crock-of-crap lies it continually sucked down — hook, line, and sinker. The New York Times ignored Daily Mail’s requests for comment.

The spokesperson cited a 2022 review by the Pulitzer Board that said no elements of their reports “were discredited by facts that emerged subsequent to the conferral of the prizes.” So, given that the full Durham Report wasn’t publicly released until Monday, how did the Putlizer Board know in 2022 what the report would reveal? (Rhetorical question, of course.)

The bottom line, in my not-so-humble opinion, is the left-wing media sock puppets not only knew they were being lied to; they loved every lying minute of it.

Amid calls for both outlets to return their Pulitizers in the wake of the Durham Report, their refusal to do so should surprise precisely no one; the smug gall is quintessential leftism in (non)-action. Here’s more, via Daily Mail:

Many of the Post’s stories focused on Trump campaign staffers, including ex-National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, making contact with Russian officials.

The New York Times failed to respond to this outlet’s queries as to whether the newspaper stood by all of its so-called “Russiagate” reporting.

DailyMail.com understands that many of those outlets that broke those exclusives were working closely together on the story.

“If Americans saw how this sausage was made, they would be appalled,” said one source familiar with how the media reported the collusion claims.

It comes as Republican lawmakers demand both newspapers return the prizes over what they have branded a “witchhunt.”

Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Ted Cruz (Texas) were among Republicans calling on the discredited papers to return the Pulitzers. Graham told Fox News, as noted by Daily Mail:

I think the Pulitzer Prize given to the Washington Post and New York Times should be taken back. The entire episode was politically motivated crap. That is not something you should get a Pulitzer Prize for.

Cruz slammed both papers “for breathlessly spreading these ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ lies.”

In response to the release of the Durham Report, the FBI frantically released a statement, somewhere between revisionist history and outright lying:

The conduct in 2016 and 2017 that Special Counsel Durham examined was the reason the current FBI leadership already implemented dozens of corrective actions, which have now been in place for some time. Had those reforms been in place in 2016, the missteps identified in the report could have been prevented. This report reinforces the importance of ensuring the FBI continues to do its work with rigor, objectivity, and professionalism the American public deserve and rightly respect.

Oh, please. Translation: We got caught with our TDS pants down and now we’re trying to cover our asses.

Statement on Report by Special Counsel John Durhamhttps://t.co/lcow0ea3mG pic.twitter.com/T4vXqoOMrp

— FBI (@FBI) May 15, 2023

Besides, if “dozens of corrective actions … have now been in place for some time,” why weren’t those actions announced before the release of the report? Gimme a break.

James Comey was unavailable for comment.