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The unhinged media meltdowns over the coronavirus outbreak at the White House continue apace, with the latest example being one reporter’s hysterical reaction to the news that press secretary Kayleigh McEnany has tested positive.
McEnany issued a statement posted to Twitter noting she had tested positive this morning “while experiencing no symptoms.” She also pushed back on claims from CNN’s Brian Stelter and others in the media who alleged she knowingly held Thursday’s press briefing with full knowledge that Trump senior advisor Hope Hicks had tested positive:
— Kayleigh McEnany (@PressSec) October 5, 2020
Without question, the most insane reaction from a member of the White House press corps to the news of McEnany’s diagnosis came from CBS News White House correspondent Ben Tracy, who proclaimed he “felt safer reporting in North Korea” than here in America:
I felt safer reporting in North Korea than I currently do reporting at The White House. This is just crazy.
— Ben Tracy (@benstracy) October 5, 2020
It goes without saying that this reaction is so completely over the top and bat sh*t crazy that it defies logic. Twitter users responded accordingly, so much so that “North Korea” is trending as of this writing:
It would be almost impossible to assess the level of stupidity in this comment. North Korea regularly kills people who give the government the side eye. Can you imagine how delusional you must be to say something so incredibly ridiculous? My face hurts even typing this! https://t.co/QnU8TB7LGG
— Joe Pags Pagliarulo (@JoeTalkShow) October 5, 2020
Interestingly, this actually reads like the kind of thing that a "reporter" working for North Korean state media would say. https://t.co/fOcBWzt3vo
— JERRY DUNLEAVY (@JerryDunleavy) October 5, 2020
According to DRNK’s three-generation rule, if you or your relative commits a crime, you & the next three generations of your family must also spend their life in labor camp, including unborn children but I’m glad you felt safe in North Korea, Ben.
— The Red-Headed Libertarian ™ (@TRHLofficial) October 5, 2020
The glory with which they continue to cover themselves knows no bounds. https://t.co/zmSyg7gNHq
— Anna James Zeigler (@ajzeigler) October 5, 2020
This is just a massive slap in the face to the people who live under the brutal North Korean dictatorship. A truly disgusting tweet.
— Abigail Marone 🇺🇸 (@abigailmarone) October 5, 2020
Ben, their government just shot and killed a defector. Their leader killed a family member. They massacre and imprison dissidents. No matter how smart you think this tweet is, this is dumb shit.
— Justin Rowland (@RowlandRIVALS) October 5, 2020
Not only that, but it appears reporters were more than the CDC-recommended 6 feet away from McEnany as she was being interviewed by the press Sunday, and presumably the journalists there were all wearing masks outside of the ones who rip them off once the cameras stop rolling:
McEnany talked to reporters yesterday without a mask on and now she has tested positive for the virus https://t.co/oTe4juVCkn
— Ben Tracy (@benstracy) October 5, 2020
What’s especially unprofessional about Tracy’s tweet (beyond the absurd claim about North Korea) is that it assumes without evidence McEnany has been spreading the virus to others this whole time and not the other way around, which is exactly what has been insinuated about Trump and the Rose Garden ceremony where he announced Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s SCOTUS nomination.
Reporters or any other number of people (including aides, staffers, wait staff, etc) who have been around her (or Trump) over the last several days could have given it to them. But instead of waiting for the results of the contract tracing that is no doubt being done as we speak, “reporters” are lashing out and making accusations before knowing facts about how the virus spread to those who have tested positive since the Rose Garden ceremony.
Highly irresponsible “journalism” here, but that should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with how the partisans in the White House press corps operate.
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