PolitiFact reportedly came under fire after posting a tweet in which it attempted to provide further context to the accurate allegation made by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg had reduced the majority of felonies in his jurisdiction.
Once the organization’s Twitter account publicized the article on Tuesday, the fact-check, which had been published the previous Saturday, came under scrutiny from the general public.
Although the tweet recognized that DeSantis’ assertion that under Bragg more than half of all crimes were reduced to misdemeanors was true, it also tried to claim that the practice was “common.”
Bryan Griffin, who serves as the press secretary for DeSantis, responded to the tweet by criticizing PolitiFact for feeling compelled to interpret DeSantis’ statement.
Yes, @GovRonDeSantis was correct. But @PolitiFact feels compelled to note it's simply "common practice" to refuse to hold criminals accountable in NY. https://t.co/b1orfgIFmL
— Bryan Griffin (@BryanDGriffin) April 11, 2023
Several users of social media were quite critical of PolitiFact for their reluctant admission that DeSantis’ remark was factually accurate.
"We regret to inform you that Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida is correct." https://t.co/jXx3ekBiop
— Joe Cunningham (@JoePCunningham) April 11, 2023
Most of our public safety problems in Minnesota and nationally would be solved by judges and prosecutors enforcing sentences pursuant to state law.
Insane that it's become "common practice" for half of felonies to be downgraded. #mnleg https://t.co/L9CxaRtPns
— Andrew Wagner (@andrewwagner) April 11, 2023
Since news leaked that Bragg was planning to indict the previous president of the United States, DeSantis has been quite critical of and hostile toward Bragg.
[READ MORE: DeSantis Moves Massive New Bill Cracking down on Illegal Migrants Forward in Florida Legislature]
So he thinks it’s OK to change Trumps misdemeanors (if any) to felonies? I guess that makes snse in a liberals mind, but, then, liberalism is a mental condition!
Not very journalistic. “Common practice”? What does that even mean. A handful of other DAs do this? That could be it. A bigger number reduce sentences, but not nearly half. Could be. A majority of DAs do this in a majority of cases? Could be. The point is “common practice” is about as ambiguous and meaningless a statement as could be made–and totally unnewsworthy.
Someone might say, but they aren’t a news organization, they are a fact-checker organization. Well, that just made it worse!
YES!!! This practice IS INSANE!!! BUT unfortunately INSANITY is “Par For The Course” in our nation today! Neither criminals nor children nor everyday citizens are held responsible for their actions.
We are destroying OURSELVES by not being accountable to God or man!!!