Vance admitted on CNN that manipulating news coverage was the whole point of the fake stories they were telling (while of course arguing it was “disgusting” to suggest that the ensuing bomb threats that closed schools and hospitals had anything to do with their rhetoric).
I recommend this excellent Jamison Foser post about how the press should cover the lies about Springfield. To quote Foser:
When Donald Trump lies that Haitian immigrants are stealing and eating pets, that should be the hook for an article about Donald Trump’s long history of lying; about the fundamental lack of honesty, character, and integrity that this demonstrates. The result of Trump’s lies shouldn’t be articles about immigration, it should be articles about Donald Trump’s lifelong dishonesty and the consequences it poses, and articles about Trump’s lengthy history of directing hatred at racial minorities, and about his lengthy history of intentionally inciting threats of violence as well as actual violence.
It is possible to have a good-faith discussion of immigration policy, but this isn’t it.
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