When it comes to serial liar Adam Schiff, it looks like CNN can’t handle the truth — literally.
The Democratic congressman from California appeared on “State of the Union” on Sunday with fellow Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Eric Swalwell to cry about House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s decision to remove them from the House Intelligence Committee.
Most of it was the expected liberal propaganda. But even host Dana Bash can surprise sometimes.
In a moment that might have been unexpected for regular CNN viewers, Bash actually called out Schiff — oh-so-gently of course — for lies that fostered the “Russia collusion” hoax that plagued the Donald Trump presidency and surrounded the first Trump impeachment trial.
A funny thing happened to the chyron that appeared at the bottom of the screen, though.
Schiff’s party affiliation magically changed from (D) for Deception — er, Democrat — to (R) for Republican.
The switch is clearly visible when Bash brought up Schiff’s infamous, repeated lie that he knew of evidence — even evidence “in plain sight” — that the Trump presidential campaign colluded with Russia. Special counsel Robert Mueller had found none, after his team of rabid partisan leftists spent two years looking for it.
Watch the chyron beneath. About the 31-second mark, it identifies Schiff as (D). By the 36-second mark, he’s been switched to an (R).
Democrat Adam Schiff triples down on the Russian collusion hoax. pic.twitter.com/T4HmvT1QVe
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 29, 2023
For her next question, as the transcript shows, Bash turned to another notable Schiff lie: That the House Intelligence Committee had not spoken to the “whistleblower” at the heart of the ludicrous first Trump impeachment case before the “whistleblower” filed his complaint.
Even the libs at The Washington Post called that out, with “Fact Checker” Glenn Kessler giving Schiff “four Pinocchios” — a rating reserved for “whopper.”
This time, the chyron called Schiff a “(R)” right from the get-go.
Dana Bash: “Ahead of the first Trump impeachment, you said the committee had not spoken to a whistleblower. In fact, that turned out not to be true.”
Adam.Schiff: “I should’ve been more clear.” pic.twitter.com/stNMcMSKjf
— Becker News (@NewsBecker) January 29, 2023
Schiff’s answers aren’t all that relevant here, his lies are both tiresome and redundant. In the “whistleblower” question, for instance, he repeated his own response, virtually verbatim, to the same question in October 2019. (“I should have been much more clear” then, “I should have been more clear in my answer,” now.)
For anyone who pays attention to American politics, the case against Schiff as a malevolent liar for partisan purposes was established long before McCarthy made his announcement official about the Intelligence Committee — and before he swatted down a reporter with the brutal truth of the matter.
What matters here is CNN’s treatment of the interview. Was something like this just a harmless mistake? If it was, why was the chyron correct in its first reference to Schiff as a “(D)” then changed to the incorrect “(R)”?
Do you think Adam Schiff is dangerous?
Yes: 99% (250 Votes)
No: 1% (2 Votes)
And if it was, are the staffers at CNN so ignorant that they don’t know the party affiliation of one of the biggest stars in the Democratic Party? Schiff, remember, is not only the man who chaired the Intelligence Committee behind Trump’s impeachment, but he was also the impeachment trial’s most visible face as lead manager. And he just announced he’s running for the Senate seat now held by the doddering Dianne Feinstein.
Or was a CNN staffer simply unaccustomed to a host like Bash calling out a Democrat on a lie, and therefore assumed Schiff had to be a Republican? Twitter and Facebook messages sent Monday afternoon to Matthew Dornic, CNN’s head of strategic communications, were not answered by publishing time.
Regardless, the letter might have been small, but it represented a big change on the television screen of CNN viewers. In the poisoned well of contemporary American politics, it’s hard to think of a bigger change. (Except maybe Bernie Sanders remembering he’s actually an American.)
And the affiliation switch didn’t go unnoticed on social media:
It’s a conditioned response. CNN “talent” pushes back against a politician; that politician get labeled an R.
— BeachOso (@BeachOso) January 29, 2023
so he is switching parties. I think the RNC might not accept him.
— Mark (@Memelordtwit) January 29, 2023
It’s a conditioned response. CNN “talent” pushes back against a politician; that politician get labeled an R.
— BeachOso (@BeachOso) January 29, 2023
Unreal
— CRD (@misstrissy6) January 29, 2023
For the masochists who want to watch more of Schiff, Swalwell and Omar on CNN, check it out here:
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Of course, there’s a serious side to all this.
Adam Schiff is a dangerous man in American politics. With obvious disregard for the truth himself, and years worth of experience to know that neither his party’s leaders nor its base give a damn about whether something is true as long as it serves their political goals, he’s essentially untethered from decency.
And not content to be among 435 voices in the House, he wants to move up to be one of 100 in the Senate.
No one should be surprised if his climb doesn’t stop there. Schiff has demonstrated he cares about nothing but power.
He’s demonstrated he cares nothing about the good of his country.
It’s a very good chance he cares about nothing but the advancement of Adam Schiff.
And as far as CNN goes? Even on the rare occasions when it comes out of the mouths of one of its personalities, the network can’t handle the truth.
CNN has been proving that for years. Sunday’s chyron was just one more piece of proof Americans who pay attention stopped needing it a long, long time ago.
