Kim Strassel: Fusion GPS Fed an Absurd Story About RUSSIA Infiltrating the NRA to Its Thousand Best Media Friends, And You'll Never Guess What Happened Next...!

Let's just make it all up as we go.

Fusion injected another one of its #FakeNews specials into the media -- this one, a tale of Russian infiltration into the NRA. Various useful idiots in the media were duped into running the story, citing "sources," all anonymous.

Except for one.Well this one wasn't a source -- this was someone the anonymous sources had claimed had spoken of the NRA-RUSSIA connection.

Who denied the quote attributed to her, demanded to know to whom and in what context she had supposedly said the quote to.

The reporters couldn't answer her -- but they ran Fusion's nonsense anyway.

[T]he NRA flatly denied the accusation. It explained how it scrupulously monitors its donations and noted that all its political decisions are made by U.S. citizens. It also reported it had had no contact with the FBI. House Intelligence Committee Democrats nonetheless last week issued a document demanding they get to continue investigating the "NRA's relationship" with Mr. Torshin and Ms. Butina as well as . . . Washington lawyer Cleta Mitchell, who hasn’t done legal work for the NRA in a decade.

A few days later, the same two McClatchy reporters were out with this: "NRA lawyer expressed concerns about group's Russia ties, investigators told." It again cited two anonymous sources claiming Congress was investigating Ms. Mitchell's worries that the NRA had been "channeling Russia funds into the 2016 elections to help Donald Trump."

Ms. Mitchell tells me she told McClatchy before publication that this was false, that she has spoken to no one about the NRA’s actions in 2016, and that she believes the entire NRA-Russia story line is preposterous. She asked the reporters to explain to whom she supposedly said this, when and in what context. They couldn't, but ran the story anyway. Ms. Mitchell calls it "the quintessential definition of fake news."

A McClatchy editor explained to Kim Strassel that it doesn't matter if Cleta Mitchell actually ever said this or not; the important thing is their anonymous "sources" say the FBI is looking into her statement, whether she actually made it or not.

Strassel notes:

Fusion GPS did not respond to a request for comment.

When Glenn Simpson has a #FakeNews sneeze, all of his dupes in the media catch a #FakeNews cold.

posted by Ace of Spades at 05:59 PM

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