He’s since deleted the tweet, but he shouldn’t have. Fortunately, someone caught a screengrab of MSNBC’s Chris Hayes’ contribution to the hubbub over Zina Bash reportedly flashing a white power hand sign during the Brett Kavanaugh hearing — a movie still of Eddie Murphy making the same sign.
Chris Hayes dunking on a dumb conspiracy theory followed by a ThinkProgress reporter getting all huffy about being dunked on is my truck of Duff. Just hook it to my veins. pic.twitter.com/1GSenwDiZR
— Sonny Bunch (@SonnyBunch) September 5, 2018
Pay attention to what ThinkProgress’s Aaron Rupar says in that first tweet: “… a hand gesture … racist dogwhistle … when she did it today.” It’s important later.
Chris Hayes responded.
It’s meant to somewhat jokingly suggest that maybe “she’s throwing up a white power sign” is not the most likely explanation for her finger configuration.
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) September 4, 2018
Really looks to me like she was scratching her arm with her thumb.
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) September 4, 2018
or fidgeting, or a million other things.
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) September 4, 2018
You think it's more likely that a woman with a Mexican mother and a Jewish father threw up a white-power sign than that she was holding her hands in a way that looked odd to you?
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) September 4, 2018
You’re familiar with the fact that Stephen Miller is Jewish, right? Or that Milo regularly uses the fact he’s married to a black man to deflect charges of bigotry?
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 4, 2018
She's a person of color. She's not married to one – she is one. And her dad is Jewish. And you're accusing her of throwing up a white-power sign (even though whatever she was doing wasn't even the actual sign). Get a grip.
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) September 4, 2018
Recommended
show me where I accuse her of throwing up a white power sign. I'll wait.
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 4, 2018
Um … right up at the top of the thread, when you said today she made the hand gesture in the movie still and she intended it to be a racist dog whistle. Here, we’ll post it again:
Is this screencap of a hand gesture from a 30-year-old movie meant to serve as an argument that a Trump official didn’t intend it to be a racist dogwhistle when she did it today? Because that doesn’t follow if so. https://t.co/ACATV7mvn9
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 4, 2018
So … Rupar is not accusing Bash of making a white power hand gesture? We have questions.
Wow – Brett-Kavanaugh-style dissembling about what you were clearly implying with the phrase "racist dogwhistle" – in a thread about the Kavanaugh hearing, no less. Impressive.
— James Surowiecki (@JamesSurowiecki) September 4, 2018
i carefully avoided accusing her of anything. but nice try.
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 4, 2018
Careful ?No calculated .
— TMRAUGMAP (@jfcdy2) September 4, 2018
Yeah, careful’s not the word that comes to mind, considering that first tweet.
No, you said it was intended to be a "racist dogwhistle".
Congrats on your hair-splitting skills, I guess.
— Homeless Libertarian (@JoeDan1024) September 5, 2018
https://twitter.com/Gray_Wolfs76/status/1037142678994075648
https://twitter.com/HamDanc3r/status/1037149654683734017
This is what going full corncob looks like….. https://t.co/GJrGtR5BII
— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) September 5, 2018
I AM NOT OWNED! https://t.co/0VtJx2STP6
— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) September 5, 2018
At least Rupar has company while he walks back that non-accusation.
Liberals: That hand-sign might be racist.
Also Liberals: pic.twitter.com/jKZqRlry3b
— EducatëdHillbilly™ (@RobProvince) September 5, 2018
Related:
Attorney called out for peddling "white power signal" conspiracy walks back her claim but still has complaints https://t.co/jPEwx158UM
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) September 4, 2018
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