New York Times Hit Piece on Issa Found Riddled with Errors
I woke up this morning to see another sad example of Washington’s pervasive”gotcha journalism” that passes as news. This time it was a New York Times‘ voluminous 2,700-word front page slam on Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), the chairman of the House Government Operations and Reform Committee.
The Times‘ meme by reporter Eric Lichtblau was that Mr. Issa, a self-made millionaire who grew up in poverty, was a corrupt political predator who enriched himself by mixing political power with his private company and financial empire.
It made for riveting reading. But as the day wore on it was disclosed that much of it was patently false. Moreover, pieces of it had been lifted entirely from left wing web sites who had previously made wild, unsubstantiated accusations about Mr. Issa’s finances.
The Times money quote is here:
“As his private wealth and public power have grown, so too has the overlap between his private and business lives, with at least some of the congressman’s government actions helping to make a rich man even richer and raising the potential for conflicts.”
To set the scene Lichtblau gives us an opening scene of the luxurious lifestyle of the California congressman:
“Here on the third floor of a gleaming office building overlooking a golf course in the rugged foothills north of San Diego,Darrell Issa, the entrepreneur, oversees the hub of a growing financial empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Now it appears that the article is riddle by many factual errors that it takes your breath away.
Among the errors identified today:
- Rep. Issa’s office does not overlook a golf course. It is surrounded by office and apartment complexes and a highway. The closest golf course is 20 minutes away.
- The Times charges, “Mr. Issa has … spilt a holding company into separate multibillion-dollar businesses.” Issa does not own a single multibillion-dollar business.
- The Times claims Issa has gone easy on Toyota because of “his electronics company’s role as a major supplier of alarms to Toyota . Rep. Issa’s former company, Directed Electronics, is not a “major supplier” or even a supplier to Toyota.
- The Times claims Issa made a financial killing on an AIM fund investment, converting a $19,000 investment into a $357,000 profit. In fact the investment was a family investment $500,000 that was later sold for $375,000 resulting in a $125,000 loss.
-
The Times’ charged the value of a medical complex and other properties owned by Issa “has soared, at least in part because of the government-sponsored road work.” The story alleges that Issa’s 2008 purchase of the property was “for $10.3 million and now assessed “at $16 million – a 60 percent appreciation.” However, Issa’s company paid exactly $16.6 milliion, the current tax assessment. As most real estate novices, know southern California’s commercial real estate market has collapsed and property purchased in 2008 has not appreciated 60%.
To top it off, Lichtblau’s article seems to be a product of plagiarism. He apparently lifted whole passages from left wing blogs, including one by the left wing Center for American Progress (CAP) and the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). As Rob Bluey of the Heritage Foundation noted today CAP’s Lee Fang called him out on Twitter, noting “your NYT Issa piece looks awfully familiar.” CREW also charged that Licthblau lifted whole accusations from their web site.
Frederick Hill, an Issa spokesman said “It’s disappointing that the so-called ‘paper of record’ has decided to publish a story that is nothing more than a compilation of left-wing blog posts that are easily found by a simple Google search.”
For the record, the Times is standing by its article.
What an honor for Mr Issa.
I was becoming a little disappointed in him, but this is a significant credential in his favor.
It’s worth a modest campaign contribution.
To top it off, Lichtblau’s article seems to be a product of plagiarism.
Plagiarism and fakery are certainly nothing new for the Left’s “paper of record.”
Jayson Blair, Zachery Kouwe, Maureen Dowd (caught cutting-and-pasting paragraphs from Talking Points Memo)…
The relentless bias of the Times is obvious and indisputable. But the slipshod and unethical habits of several of its employees are also a problem.
Every time you think the New York Slimes can’t crawl any lower, they prove, Yes, they can!
I can’t remember, would this be slander or libel????? Either way, it would be nice if one time one of these liberal bastions of dishonesty was sued… and lost.
It’s libel.
Slander is what the koolaid-intoxicated idiots on MSNBC engage in on a nightly basis…
But the retraction and correction won’t be on the front page. Issa will have to refute these charges for the rest of his life.
A modest proposal, meant more seriously than Swift’s:
Everytime this happens, preface the headline with “The New York
Times Lies Again:…”
Oh, do you mean the same Eric Lichtblau who co-wrote the NY Times “…article revealing the terrorist surveillance program of international banking transactions known as SWIFT, thus letting the jihadists know that the US was monitoring its financial transaction and thereby rendering the intelligence gathering useless thereafter.
Why, yes, as a matter of fact, that is the same Eric Lictblau.
In fact, searching Newsbusters for his name brings up 50 articles, and assume not many are complimentary. He’s a leftist political hack, like 98% of the “reporters” and “editors” at the fishwrap of record.
I think we can safely say that this is just the opening salvo of the left’s attempt to destroy Issa before he can pin Holder to the wall over the gunrunning to the drug cartels, and the rest of the Lewinskyite media will be picking this up wholesale as truth. They will then have cover to dismiss anything Issa finds as “tainted” by corruption.
Gee, the NYT got caught telling lies?
Color me surprised.
Rep Darrell along with Senator Chuck Grassley are investigating the role of Attorney General Eric Holder and several other high level public servants in various federal departments and agencies. He is looking into the commission of multiple felonies leading to the deaths of two American law enforcement officers and countless Mexicans. It appears that in an effort to make the case for more “gun control”, these miscreants sent at least two thousand weapons to Mexican drug gangs. Should we be surprised to find Rep. Issa under attack?
There is a very close connection between mainstream media and some of the criminal politicians at high level. All I can say is thank God for the Internet.
And now you know why they want so bad to “control” the Internet.
The New York Times: “Fake, plagiarized, and wrong but accurate!”
All the news that fits our views, that’s what we print.
Considering the vigor through which Issa is pursuing the facts in the “Fast & Furious” matter–never mind, those who knew and approved of the operation–this type of hit piece was to be expected. That it has appeared clearly demonstrates that Issa and the committee are on the correct path. I trust they remain dogged and diligent in their explorations of this hideous display of bureaucratic stupidity.
Another new Narrative.
It’s funny that the Lefty bloggers are complaining a bit. They should be flattered, right? Oh, they want a little attribution, maybe get paid a smidgeon? Capitalists!
Given the number of inaccuracies in the hit piece, I wonder why leftard blogs are so angry about the plagiarism. Could it be that coming up with the biggest lie for the longest period of time is a point of pride amongst leftards?