Hitting Girls

No, not hitting on girls though that’s loutish enough. I mean actually striking a woman is an act that carries a deep moral revulsion among enlightened men. Bible Believing Christians like Sarah Huckabee Sanders of course think that women should be submissive to their husbands and fathers and if a little physical coercion is used to compel compliance it’s simply Yahweh’s will.

So on at least one level it’s incredibly hypocritical of her (but normal in context) to denounce CNN Reporter Jim Acosta’s “violence” against the female intern (I’d call her “poor” and sympathize but what kind of Right Wing Whack do you have to be to accept a job as an unpaid coffee fetching flunky- note: guys get assigned the same kinds of demeaning tasks, in the cesspool of lies and mendacity that is any Republican regime let alone this one) who assaulted and battered him (a threat is an assault, a touch is battery- whether there is physical injury or not).

Plié.

But there is a deeper level of lying and doublespeak going on when Ms. Sanders (and I use the feminist honorific because I know it will annoy her) puts forth a doctored and falsified video from Alex Jones’ snakepit of lies and conspiracy theories, InfoWars.

White House uses doctored video to justify stripping CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s press credentials
by Zack Ford, Think Progress
Nov 8, 2018

The White House revoked CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s hard pass Wednesday evening, after President Trump berated him as a “rude, terrible person” at a press conference earlier in the day. Acosta said he had also been banned from White House grounds.

Within hours, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders began twisting the story, claiming the White House would not tolerate a reporter “placing his hands on a young woman,” referring to an aide who had tried to pull a microphone from Acosta’s hands during the press conference.

Video of the incident clearly shows the aide in question attempting to yank the mic away multiple times, as Acosta tries to finish asking a question. “Pardon me, ma’am,” he he can be heard saying on the third attempt, as the two make brief contact.

Paul Joseph Watson, editor-at-large for the conspiracy site Infowars, later posted what appeared to be a slightly doctored version of the video. Unlike the original clip, it appears to show Acosta forcing his hand down on the aide’s arm.

Sanders later appeared to share the doctored video on her own Twitter timeline, using it to justify the White House decision to pull Acosta’s credentials.

“We stand by our decision to revoke this individual’s hard pass,” she wrote. “We will not tolerate the inappropriate behavior clearly documented in this video.”

Numerous video editors have since weighed in with their own expertise on Twitter, demonstrating how the video Sanders shared could have been doctored. The Indepedent’s analysis of the doctored editing describes the video as being frozen for three frames the moment before Acosta’s hand comes down on the aide’s arm.

Watson, for his part, denies that he “sped up the footage,” claiming that all that he did was zoom in on the original video. He credited another conservative site, The Daily Wire, as his source for the footage.

Acosta has since responded to Sanders’ claims, calling them a blatant lie. Many other reporters who were present to witness the encounter have backed his account as well.

CNN stood by Acosta, issuing a statement Wednesday night accusing Sanders of having “provided fraudulent accusations and cit[ing] an incident that never happened.”

The White House Correspondents’ Association also condemned the White House’s decision to revoke Acosta’s access, urging it to “immediately reverse this weak and misguided action.”

But it’s not so bad Jim. At the next WHCA Dinner you can sit at Candice Bergen’s table.