Did the Associated Press Airbrush an Inconvenient Quote?

On Tuesday the Department of Justice called a witness in its trial against Texas’ voter ID law. The witness, 18-year-old Victoria Rose Rodriguez, was originally noted in this AP story accordingly:

Victoria Rose Rodriguez, 18, told a federal court in Washington that she had limited documentation — a birth certificate, a high school transcript and a student ID card with a photo on it — but is currently a registered voter in Texas. She said her parents are too busy to take her or her twin sister to get the new voter identification cards required by the law. (emphasis added)

Rodriguez’s story contains a glaring hole: She flew to Washington to testify. How did she have time to do that, but not have time to get a photo ID?

Since Christian Adams noted the discrepancy here at PJM, the AP story has changed and now reads:

In her testimony Tuesday, Rodriguez testified that she’s currently a registered voter but would not be able to meet the requirements of Texas’ new law. She said she lacked the necessary documents and the ability to travel to a location where she can obtain the newly required voter ID.

Her obvious problem remains: If she has the time to fly from San Antonio to Washington to testify and fly back to Texas, she has time to get an ID. But the time reference is now gone from the AP story.

For the Department of Justice to attempt such a snow job is a disgrace. For the Associated Press to buy her story hook, line and sinker is a joke. For the AP to also airbrush its story once the hole in her testimony is exposed is an act of dishonesty.