Defamation on the Left: Cruel Irony

“You have written words as cruel, bitter and heartless as the creed of Calvin. Hereafter you will stand in the pillory of history as a defamer—a calumniator of the dead.”

Robert G. Ingersoll

Democrat hopeful Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) accused fellow Democrat hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders (Socialist-VT) of telling her, in a private conversation at which no one else was present, that a woman could not be elected president. Mr. Sanders denied the allegation on national television during the January 14, 2020 Democrat presidential primary debate. Whereupon, Ms. Warren accused Mr. Sanders of calling her a liar. It was vintage Elizabeth Warren – the scold of the United States Senate at her finger-wagging best. It was vintage Elizabeth Warren playing the victim.

Please pause a moment and think about the circularity of that exchange and Ms. Warren’s accusation. And while you are pondering that, let’s also examine the background leading up to this.

Ms. Warran is a demonstrable liar and has been for years. She lied about her ancestry as a Native American – she has none. She lied about using the lie about her ancestry to achieve employment, obtain admission, or otherwise take advantage of her false statements about her ancestry. She lied about her mother and father being forced to elope because of some imagined racial discrimination – their bands of their marriage were routinely published and they were feted with a large reception upon their return from the “elopement” thirty miles down the road. She exaggerated the truth about her service as a “special needs” teacher. She lied about the reason for her termination of employment as a special needs teacher – she lacked the requisite certification and instead of getting the certification she quit and went to law school. In each and every instance the lies inure to her victimhood. Poor Elizabeth, everyone is trying to bring her down.
2. Ms. Warren leaked the original story about Mr. Sanders to CNN who published it without any verification as to its accuracy or cautionary warning that it could not be verified. CNN was not present during the exchange between Ms. Warren and Mr. Sanders – nobody was – and when challenged regarding verification stated that it confirmed the story with Ms. Warren’s staff. Of course, Ms. Warren was the source for Ms. Warren’s staff also. Again the circular verification.
3. CNN is routinely identified as one of the most biased, least accurate, news sources in the country. And, in this instance, they had a bone to pick with Mr. Sanders who had recently sent a letter of support to the union representing employees of CNN who had just received a $76 Million settlement against CNN relating to allegations of violations of federal labor laws resulting from the wrongful termination of broadcast technicians. None of that was disclosed by Ms. Warren or CNN at the time of the accusations against Mr. Sanders. Instead the CNN moderator at the Democrat primary debate asked Mr. Sanders whether it was true that he told Ms. Warren that a woman could not win the presidency. Mr. Sanders denied it and the moderator immediately turned to Ms. Warren and asked her how it felt when Mr. Sanders told her that a woman couldn’t win. For CNN Mr. Sanders’ denial was treated as irrelevant and they accepted Ms. Warren’s version as if it were the truth – truth without any verification.

Just those revelations put a whole different light on Ms. Warren’s accusations regarding Mr. Sanders.

In today’s hypersensitive atmosphere, accusations of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia and the like are easy to make and virtually impossible to refute. They are deadly accusations meant to destroy the accused. It is a favorite tactic of the far left – if you question the ethos of the opponent you never have to answer the substance of the opponent’s position. (Ms. Warren is not alone. Mr. Sanders routinely hauls out accusations of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia, etc. when attacking Republicans and conservatives.)

In reality, the initial exchange between Ms. Warren and Mr. Sanders was more likely as suggested by Mr. Sanders – that being a woman would be an issue in a presidential race. (It isn’t whether it is fair or even correct; it is simply a recognition that it exists.) Ms. Warren, who seems to get all of her exercise by jumping to conclusions, transmogrified that into an accusation that a woman could not win the presidency. Just like she transmogrified Mr. Sanders’ denial of saying that a woman could not be elected into calling Ms. Warren a liar. It was all just her projection of what she wanted to be the truth. It was just her playing the role of the victim.

But this isn’t just another instance of Ms. Warren lying. This was a revelation of the type of human being that Ms. Warren is under pressure. Ms. Warren is losing – despite the recent endorsement by The New York Times of both remaining females in the Democrat primary. She is losing because she has difficulty with the truth, has difficulty being forthcoming about the true cost of all of her grandiose “solutions” and difficulty connecting with audiences rather than lecturing them. As her losses mount the pressure intensifies and she cannot handle the pressure. She is no longer in the United States Senate where she is protected by Senate rules from conflict and direct disagreement. She is no longer at the lectern at Harvard’s Law School where students are not allowed to disagree with their professors. She is out in the rough and tumble where she is called out on her every comment. Her response to Mr. Sander’s denial was that of a child – immature, brash, anything to avoid the truth.

Ms. Warren has no demonstrable history of dealing with conflict and difficult situations. Striking out like a child as she did calls into question how she might react to a global confrontation. Would she cut and run crying like a child or would she lash out with an irresponsible accusation or action? Running your mouth when you are a candidate is one thing – acting intelligently in times of stress and confrontation where your response has impact is quite another. Ms. Warren’s actions of late lead one to wonder whether she has the right stuff to assume the mantle of the most powerful leader on earth. It’s best we don’t take the chance.

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