The mainstream media just loves manufacturing nontroversies, something we saw, for instance, in the New York Times hit pieces in 2024 on Justice Samuel Alito's wife, Martha, over her once briefly flying the U.S. flag upside down at their home, and for flying the "Appeal to Heaven" flag at their beach home in New Jersey in the summer of 2023.
In the "Appeal to Heaven" flag article, the authors made sure to do the same thing they did in the inverted flag stories: to "link" it to the events of January 6, 2021, and Christian nationalism.
"Also known as the Pine Tree flag, it dates back to the Revolutionary War, but largely fell into obscurity until recent years," the Times proclaimed, "and is now a symbol of support for former President Donald J. Trump, for a religious strand of the 'Stop the Steal' campaign and for a push to remake American government in Christian terms."
SEE ALSO: 'Completely Stupid': NYT Ripped to Shreds After Another Bonkers 'Flag' Hit on Justice Samuel Alito
Discerning readers will no doubt note that the "largely fell into obscurity" part of that Times sentence did a lot of heavy lifting to try and make the point, something we'll get back to in a minute.
But first, let's take a look at the latest incarnation of this tiresome narrative, which doesn't involve the spouse of a current conservative Supreme Court Justice this time around but instead a Trump administration official in the Department of Education who is now being outed by a USA Today reporter for the apparent crime of flying one of these flags outside of his office.
In his since-deleted tweet, USA Today congressional reporter Zach Schermele point-blank described the flag as a "Christian nationalist" flag, but after a wave of backlash and attempts at educating him on the history of the flag, he has revised it to state that "This flag is more accurately described as a 'symbol associated with Christian nationalism.'"
Deleted my initial tweet. This flag is more accurately described as a “symbol associated with Christian nationalism." ⁰⁰Please read our full story with the relevant context here: https://t.co/M09yfxqGf6 pic.twitter.com/IBcXCim0GC
— Zach Schermele (@ZachSchermele) December 16, 2025
"It's not clear how long the banner has been hung outside the D.C. office of Murray Bessette, the principal deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development," the report noted after also linking the flag, which it briefly pointed out was "long tied to the American Revolution," to "the Proud Boys and certain neo-Nazi groups."
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) was one of many on X who went off on the USA Today for its biased reporting on the "Appeal to Heaven" flag:
We’re not doing this again. We’re not letting leftist media ignorance of American history demonize a patriotic flag dating back to the Revolutionary War and the Continental Navy.
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) December 15, 2025
Proud to have it outside my office! https://t.co/Jy8B8fpc2m pic.twitter.com/MFtTo5A8t6
Not only was the Pine Tree flag commissioned by George Washington; its phrase, “an appeal to heaven,” comes from John Locke’s Second Treatise, the founding text of political liberalism. https://t.co/4KYqopJBaM
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) December 16, 2025
Oooh what a scoop! An education official is displaying the same patriotic Revolutionary War-era flag that George Washington commissioned and a Supreme Court Justice flew outside his home. I smell a Pulitzer. https://t.co/r4UJ8C9YCP
— Marc Thiessen 🇺🇸❤️🇺🇦🇹🇼🇮🇱 (@marcthiessen) December 16, 2025
That flag was commissioned by George Washington.
— Angela Morabito (@AngelaLMorabito) December 15, 2025
But hey, while you're at it, how many federal employees have Palestine flags in their offices? Just curious. https://t.co/aAjRRkbD4S
And regarding that whole "largely fell into obscurity" thing, well... no, it hadn't:
As everyone knows, San Francisco has been a Christian nationalist stronghold for the past 60 years. pic.twitter.com/6LRAAYVnAp
— Steve McGuire (@sfmcguire79) December 15, 2025
As I wrote after the Alito hit pieces came out, they do this with every flag conservatives fly. I remember all the wailing and gnashing of teeth every time the Gadsden flag was flown at a conservative rally. You'd have thought we were on the precipice of the next Civil War with the way they breathlessly reported on it.
This is so freakin' tiresome, but it's just who the press are - water carriers for the Democrat Party.
As has often been said, you don't despise the MSM enough. You just don't.
Editor's Note: The mainstream media continues to deflect, gaslight, spin, and lie about President Trump, his administration, and conservatives.
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