Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin was one of his party’s impeachment managers in their effort to remove Donald Trump from office, and today, according to follow-up reports, his office circulated a letter purporting to be “from members of the U.S. Capitol Police” on their letterhead:
lil scoop: It was Rep. Jamie Raskin's office that circulated that letter from members of the USCP moments ago.
From @RepRaskin's chief: "Mr. Raskin is hoping your bosses will read this letter, and consider the sentiments behind it, before the vote."
— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) May 19, 2021
From Raskin's office: "Attached is a letter from unnamed officers (who remain anonymous because they are afraid of retribution for speaking out) about their profound disappointment in the current politics surrounding the vote on the January 6th commission."
— Sarah Ferris (@sarahnferris) May 19, 2021
One Politico reporter ran with it:
NEWS: MEMBERS of the U.S. Capitol Police have issued a statement to members of Congress expressing "profound disappointment" with McConnell and McCarthy's positions on the Jan. 6 commission, citing the "trauma" that officers endured that day. pic.twitter.com/CRweVhIAnD
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) May 19, 2021
Oh, just one problem: It was in no way an official statement from the U.S. Capitol Police:
USCP does NOT take positions on legislation. pic.twitter.com/LSu38jbIqd
— U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) May 19, 2021
The USCP has responded with a statement saying the letter is "NOT an official USCP statement. The Department has no way of confirming it was even authored by USCP personnel."
— Rebecca Kaplan (@RebeccaRKaplan) May 19, 2021
So basically at this point the letter could have been written by one person:
CNN spoke to the officer who wrote the letter who said it represents the views of 40-50 officers.
“It needed to be out there. It needed to be done,” the officer told @jamiegangel. CNN could not independently verify other officers supported the letter.
— Zachary Cohen (@ZcohenCNN) May 19, 2021
Well that certainly seems like an important detail. Bring on the clarifications!
Clarification: This came from members of the USCP who used official letterhead, but it is NOT a formal statement from the USCP as a whole.
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) May 19, 2021
So to sum it all up…
So one anonymous officer wrote it, claims it represents views of 40-50 out of USCP's ~2,300 officers & civilians, put it on official USCP letterhead, Raskin circulated it, & a Politico reporter made it go viral by falsely claiming it was an official statement from Capitol Police. https://t.co/fc6RZOGcng
— Jerry Dunleavy (@JerryDunleavy) May 19, 2021
Another glorious moment for “journalism.” And as usual the original claim got far more circulation than the “clarification:
5,000+ RTs on the false tweet
33 RTs on the clarification pic.twitter.com/71cT2l4uKN
— Nathan Brand (@NathanBrandWA) May 19, 2021
And the truth tries to catch up… https://t.co/Z3U180C9y8
— Nathan Brand (@NathanBrandWA) May 19, 2021
And yet the media wonders why there’s an incredible level of mistrust from the American public?
Rep. Jamie Raskin's office has said the letter was written by USCP officers who want to remain anonymous.
But to be clear, it's not an official statement from the organization. https://t.co/cVFqUN4Edg— Bleeding Heartland (@LauraRBelin) May 19, 2021
How did an unofficial, unverified, anonymous letter circulated by House Democrats get published on official Capitol Police letterhead? https://t.co/bF2GvTLCtN
— Rep. Ken Buck (@RepKenBuck) May 19, 2021
the libs are attacking the capitol police in the replies https://t.co/5HLQXkokPH
— kaitlin, rino attention seeking whore (@thefactualprep) May 19, 2021
Below is an actual official statement from USCP.
The initial viral letter was falsely attributed to the Department and circulated with the help of Rep. Raskin's chief of staff.
Odd that reporters didn't think to first check in with USCP to verify. https://t.co/UgCGVQUkeP
— Michele Perez Exner (@michelepexner) May 19, 2021
But maybe it’s not so odd to people who have been paying attention to what “journalism” has become in the last few years.
Really bad look for the Raskin team. https://t.co/nmE230SBKE
— Matt Whitlock (@mattdizwhitlock) May 19, 2021
I regret to inform y'all the dems are fabricating evidence again.. https://t.co/IAyqw92M2T
— 🤗 Peaches & Dawgs (@NewYearsDani) May 19, 2021
But, as usual, there are some certainties:
I think it's safe to say there will be absolutely no accountability for this Capitol Police letter, its leak by Raskin's office, and the initial media coverage of it.
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) May 19, 2021
Yep.
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