CNSNews.com reporter Susan Jones has ably demonstrated her ability to turn “news” articles into partisan attacks or right-wing cheerleading. She did the latter once again in a July 18 article that she effectively turns into a press release for a declared Republican opponent to Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Under the gushy, servile headline “Meet the Candidate Who Will Challenge AOC…” Jones plays stenographer after said candidate’s Fox News appearance:
Scherie Murray, a New York Republican, has just announced her intention to run for the congressional seat now occupied by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
In her first television interview, Murray told Fox News’s Sean Hannity she believes that AOC, caught up in the “limelight,” has neglected issues of importance to New York’s 14th congressional district:
Jones uncritically repeated Murray’s claim that Ocasio-Cortez “went on to kill the Amazon deal in New York, which would have put some 25,000 jobs in Queens” — in fact, numerous other New York politicians joined her in opposing the massive incentives that were trying to lure the company to New York.
Instead of fact-checking, Jones was too busy quoting Murray spout the typical right-wing narrative:
Murray also took her campaign to Twitter on Wednesday, writing:
There’s a crisis in Queens and it’s called AOC. She isn’t worried about us – she’s worried about being famous. That’s why I’m running for Congress.
Murray also tweeted:
I‘m a Jamaican immigrant. And I love America. Not the America radical socialists want to see, but the America that is a land of opportunity for all. That’s what I’m fighting for.
In contrast to Jones’ loyal stenography, other right-wing sites aren’t nearly as excited about Murray. The Washington Examiner, for example, points out that Murray’s campaign is doomed given that “no Republican congressional candidate has cracked more than 21.6% of the vote this century” in the district and, more distressingly, there’s “far more compelling evidence that Murray is not actually conservative” in the form of (gasp!) Murray congratulating Ocasio-Cortez on her election. And the New York Post noted that Murray voted for Barack Obama for president and, perhaps more importantly, doesn’t even live in the district. Oh, and there are four other Republicans running for the nomination, which Jones didn’t even mention.
Of course, Jones wasn’t being paid to fully and accurately report on Murray — it was her job to give Murray a platform to attack Ocasio-Cortez, which CNS has been doing for months.