Media Spin on Schumer Threats? GOP Is Pouncing and 'Seizing' Again, But Now Media Has a New Term

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., talks to reporters just after the Senate passed a $19 billion disaster aid bill to help a number of states and Puerto Rico recover after a series of hurricanes, floods and wildfires, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, May 23, 2019. Republican leaders agreed to Democrats’ demand to toss out President Donald Trump’s $4.5 billion request to address a record influx of Central American migrants who are fleeing violence in Guatemala, Honduras and elsewhere and coming to the United States. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) tried doing some fancy spinning backtracking Thursday morning after receiving a lot of backlash over his threats against two Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

Check out this justification:

.@SenSchumer: "I shouldn't have used the words I did but in no way was I making a threat. I never, never would do such a thing and Leader McConnell knows that. And Republicans who are busy manufacturing outrage over these comments know that too." pic.twitter.com/3pXSJdqIK2

— CSPAN (@cspan) March 5, 2020

Notice what’s missing in that ridiculous spin job? Absolutely no apology at all to the justices he threatened and tried to intimidate. He even admits again, while claiming he didn’t mean a physical threat that “I didn’t mean to suggest anything other than political and public consequences for the Supreme Court.” So even in his backtrack he’s still justifying threatening them just trying to claim it wasn’t physical. That’s a problem. You wanted to change their votes by intimidating them and now you’re trying to justify it by using women and attacking Republicans. “Republicans who are busy manufacturing outrage over these comments know that too” means he’s not sorry in the least for what he did.

Trust media to generally take the Democratic line and push their narrative.

While MSNBC’s Chris Hayes was a notable exception, many were immediately there to push the “Republicans pounce” narrative.

Here’s the WaPo with their take – “GOP seizes.”

There was some suspense over whether WaPo would go with “pounce” or “seize on” for its headline on Schumer’s menacing language toward Justices.

It went with “seize on.” pic.twitter.com/eP29VyfCF1

— Walter Olson 😷 (@walterolson) March 5, 2020

Then there’s this CNN missive from Oliver D’Arcy, forever obsessed with Fox News.

Top-notch reporting.https://t.co/FWcskX9juW pic.twitter.com/0pcCrNOdb3

— BT (@back_ttys) March 5, 2020

“Not to say it wasn’t a big story, but…” How dare those conservative outlets pounce on the Senate Minority Leader threatening Supreme Court Justices so much!

But definitely the worst was Politico.

MITCH MCCONNELL is set to pour gasoline on a CHUCK SCHUMER/Supreme Court controversy by addressing it on the Senate floor during his opening remarks this morning.

The latest in Playbook: https://t.co/IG707OFBl4

— POLITICO Playbook (@playbookplus) March 5, 2020

So the problem isn’t the “controversy.” Nice way to downplay out and out threats. The problem is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is “set to pour gasoline” on it. Creative new way to say “pounce.”

Thank you for informing us of who the real problem is in all of this. You guys are a valuable service to journalism.

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 5, 2020