This unidentified statement, frequently misattributed to the Greek philosopher Socrates, appears to encapsulate the overall approach of President Joe Biden and his team in countering the Trump phenomenon. However, the situation becomes significantly more troubling when prominent media organizations actively engage in disseminating falsehoods, despite the prevalence of political spin and unethical tactics during election campaigns, particularly within the Democratic party. The Biden campaign sought to propagate another falsehood by sharing a short video clip of Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump addressing the audience in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The Biden-Harris HQ X account posted a deceptively edited video showing Trump saying, “The Democrats say, ‘Please don’t call them animals. They’re humans.’ I said, ‘No, they’re not humans. They’re not humans. They’re animals.”
The caption read, “Democrats said please don’t call immigrants animals. I said, no, they’re not humans, they’re animals.”
Trump: Democrats said please don’t call immigrants animals. I said, no, they’re not humans, they’re animals pic.twitter.com/yJ7fFHEUlh
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) April 2, 2024
Social media users were prompt in highlighting that the video was manipulated to deceive viewers. The complete footage explicitly shows that Trump was not referring to all immigrants, but solely to illegal immigrants who commit murder when he used the term “animal.”
“Just a few weeks ago, I met with the grieving family of Laken Riley … the 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia who was barbarically murdered by an illegal alien animal,” the former president said. “The Democrats say, ‘Please don’t call them animals. They’re humans.’ I said, ‘No, they’re not humans. They’re not humans. They’re animals.’”
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“When he says these immigrants are animals, they’re not humans, what does that suggest?” Blitzer asked his guests, adding, “I mean, isn’t that brutal, shouldn’t people be condemning that?”
However Jennings was quick to call out the blatant distortion:
“I listened to the entire tape,” he responded. “He was specifically talking about the person who murdered Laken Riley in Georgia.”
“And to be honest with you, Wolf, if somebody murders another human being, I think they deserve to be called ‘animals,’ and I don’t think any American is really going to reject that kind of rhetoric,” Jennings continued.
“That poor girl was murdered in cold blood. Is that person who did it not an animal?” he asked. “I think that’s an apt term.”
“So you think he was only referring to those murderers, not referring in general to illegal immigrants who coming into the United States?” Blitzer asked — as if there were any doubt.
“I listened to the tape, that’s exactly what he was talking about in my opinion,” Jennings said firmly.
Watch:
CNN gets roasted for pushing the “animals” hoax:
“[Pres. Trump] was specifically talking about the person who MURDERED Laken Riley,” says @ScottJenningsKY. “That poor girl was murdered in cold blood. Is that person who did it not an animal?” pic.twitter.com/wIfz3coTD7
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 3, 2024
