WhatFinger

There's no 'high road' in the trenches

Sarah Palin sues New York Times over editorial linking her to Gabrielle Giffords shooting

By Robert Laurie ——--June 28, 2017

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Well, well, well. It looks like Sarah Palin has finally had enough of the Gray Lady's lies. News broke last night that she is going to sue the New York Times for defamation - a claim stemming from the Times Editorial Board's decision to once again portray her as the inspiration for the Gabrielle Giffords shooting. I previously discussed the story here, but in case you missed it, here's the short version. Back in 2011, the website for Sarah Palin's PAC ran an image featuring stylized crosshairs hovering over "targeted" political districts. One of those districts was held by Gabrielle Giffords who was gravely injured when Jared Lee Loughner opened fire in a supermarket parking lot. Ghoulish Democrats began using the website in their fundraising, despite the fact that we know - with 100% certainty - that Loughner's sick plan had been gestating for years before the website even existed.
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On top of that, there was no indication that Loughner had ever seen the website, or even knew who Palin was. Facts be damned, the left continued to spread the false narrative that, somehow, Palin's website had caused a mass shooting. Fast-forward to 2017, when, in response to the Alexandria VA assassination attempt, the New York Times Editorial Board wrote:
Was this attack evidence of how vicious American politics has become? Probably. In 2011, when Jared Lee Loughner opened fire in a supermarket parking lot, grievously wounding Representative Gabby Giffords and killing six people, including a 9-year-old girl, the link to political incitement was clear. Before the shooting, Sarah Palin’s political action committee circulated a map of targeted electoral districts that put Ms. Giffords and 19 other Democrats under stylized cross hairs. Conservatives and right-wing media were quick on Wednesday to demand forceful condemnation of hate speech and crimes by anti-Trump liberals. They’re right. Though there’s no sign of incitement as direct as in the Giffords attack, liberals should of course hold themselves to the same standard of decency that they ask of the right.
Their editorial was later "corrected," but it was a half measure. Instead of admitting that no such "link to incitement" existed, they simply softened their language to make the supposed link seem more tenuous. That seems to be what triggered Palin's lawsuit:
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As Fox News Reports:
Former Alaska Governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin filed a lawsuit against the New York Times Tuesday over an editorial that tied her to the January 2011 shooting of an Arizona congresswoman. Palin's attorneys claim the paper defamed her in the June 14 editorial, published hours after House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., was shot and wounded by a deranged man while Scalise was practicing with the GOP's baseball team in Alexandria, Va. "We have not reviewed the claim yet but will defend against any claim vigorously," New York Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha told Fox News. Palin is being represented by Kenneth Turkel, Shane Vogt and S. Preston Ricardo in the suit. Turkel and Vogt were part of the team that secured Hulk Hogan a $115 million award at trial from Gawker Media Group. Gawker appealed, but the two sides eventually settled for $31 million and Gawker and its founder, Nick Denton, were forced to file for bankruptcy. I have no idea if she'll win this. I'm not a lawyer. However, I do know that the team which brought down Gawker is nothing to scoff at. I doubt they'd take the case if they didn't think they had a solid shot at prevailing.
Regardless, it's nice to see the right fighting back against this kind of targeted left-wing hokum. For too long, Republicans having been playing a game where they over-value the moral victories that come from "taking the high road" in media battles. George W. Bush decided not to fight back against the slander, lies, and innuendos that swirled around the latter half of his presidency, and it all but destroyed his administration and paved the way for the election of Barack Obama. Similarly, false media narratives - coupled with the 'high road' mentality - did irreparable damage to the already ill-conceived candidacy of Mitt Romney. So, whether Palin wins or loses, it's great to see people on the right fighting back against biased, lying, media. Many in the press are now sworn enemies of not just conservative candidates and politicians, but of the very concept of the United States as a constitutionally limited capitalist Republic. If there was ever an honest mainstream media (and I'm not sure there was) it's long since been obliterated by the current propaganda machine. We are in a battle for the future of the country - and there's no 'high road' in the trenches.

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Robert Laurie——

Robert Laurie’s column is distributed by HermanCain.com, which can be found at HermanCain.com

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