Even if outgoing Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos was simply encouraging her successors to be the “the resistance,” we wouldn’t have a problem with it — how could we after seeing the #RESIST hashtag on Twitter the day after the 2016 election and every day since? And remember when “resistance forces” took over the Twitter accounts of federal agencies and went rogue?
And as the Reason Foundation’s director of school choice, Corey DeAngelis, points out, a ton of media outlets chose to focus on that one quote, with MSNBC even saying DeVos’s statement “sounds quite a bit like an ironic call for some kind of ‘deep state.'”
So what did she actually say in a virtual meeting on Tuesday?
Betsy DeVos: “Be the resistance against forces that will derail you from doing what’s right for students. In everything you do, please put students first — always.”
Headline: pic.twitter.com/AA92KKZiqb
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
We thought resistance was patriotic? Whatever happened to sick-and-tired Hillary Clinton’s claim that “we need to stand up and say we’re Americans, and we have the right to debate and disagree with any administration”?
As we said above, DeVos’s use of the R-word suddenly made her meeting newsworthy:
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
MSNBC wasn't the only onehttps://t.co/UaVf265MpP
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
“Betsy DeVos pressed staffers at the Education Department to ‘resist’ the incoming Biden administration.”
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
Recommended
At least the Daily Mail included the whole quote.
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
“Betsy DeVos tells staff to ‘resist’ Biden.” When did she say that?
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
Unspecified “forces.” Yeah, we’ll get to those in the comments.
— Corey A. DeAngelis (@DeAngelisCorey) December 16, 2020
Our media is a joke
— 1st World Parent (@1stWorldParent) December 17, 2020
This has been their tactic for the last 4 years. Create a headline for retweets to please their followers and hardly anyone reads the content of the article.
— Owlen Rose (@OwlenRose) December 16, 2020
Unions she was talking about the unions.
— tsrblke (@tsrblke) December 17, 2020
Correct
— Craigé Schmuckatelli (@CraigR3521) December 17, 2020
Teacher's Unions: "No."
— Justin (@Justncred1ble) December 16, 2020
It's amazing how they all have the same exact wrong take
— Merry fish ??? (@bstud82) December 17, 2020
Journalists at it again. They are really great at obscuring what people actually said, huh?
— Dr. Caroline, Dejazmach, Jedi Knight (@Carolin45762919) December 16, 2020
Insane how some people can so heavily distort and manipulate a quote – not good for society, or the profession of journalism!
— Christos Makridis (@camakridis) December 16, 2020
It is disgusting how this was framed by the media.
— judy (@judy060709) December 17, 2020
Just wow! Fake news IS the enemy of the people.
— Huili Stout (@HuiliStout) December 16, 2020
Crazy to watch the MSM twist her quote around. Think what you want about DeVos, but the way MSM manipulate her words in the headline to intentionally spark negative reaction should bother everyone. They will do it to whomever, whenever.
— Payton Turpin (@payton_turpin) December 17, 2020
Nah, just Republicans
— Dan Austin (@danoman59) December 17, 2020
— CallaLilly33 (@CLilly33) December 16, 2020
Stakeholders in the teacher unions celebrated Joe Biden's victory because it means the end of choice for students, and any chance of getting a decent education for many.
— Gyneth (@gyneth007) December 17, 2020
Democrats are the bitch of teacher’s unions. No chance the DOE or anyone in that party do what’s best for the kids.
— Wartime Consigliere (@ExpatD1) December 17, 2020
Careful. This is a "Republicans pounce" story in the making.
— James Kane (@jaskane) December 16, 2020
MSNBC/Maddow are too stupid to realize that with this headline and sub-header they are admitting Biden/Harris will in fact derail the Dept of Ed from doing what is right for students.
— Guy Broman (@RealGuyBroman) December 17, 2020
So democrats admit that all of their resistance talk since 2016 has been deep state action.
— Common Sense (@JackBondNJ) December 16, 2020
You really don't expect the monkeys at @MSNBC to be fair with a headline for a GOP person do you ??? That's like asking #HunterBiden to put down the crack pipe.
— The Rabid Cat (@battlecat847) December 16, 2020
I wish @realDonaldTrump would sign an Executive Order on school choice. Make the democrats strike it down. Show who really cares about education in the underserved communities
— Cookie G (@smonag5131) December 17, 2020
It’s amazing how the media can take a call to “put students first” and turn it into something treasonous.
Related:
Joe Biden has spoken with teachers’ unions, says elementary schools could reopen for $100 billion a year https://t.co/5Xh3lcphET
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) December 5, 2020
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