NPR reminds us former Japan PM Shinzo Abe was 'a divisive arch-conservative' (then deletes the tweet & doubles down)

As we told you earlier, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been assassinated:

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Japan’s longest-serving leader, died on Friday hours after he was shot while campaigning for a parliamentary election, shocking a country in which political violence is rare and guns are tightly controlled.

The shooter opened fire on Abe, 67, from behind as the former premier addressed members of the public on a drab traffic island in the western city of Nara. Japanese media reported that the weapon appeared to be a homemade gun.

“This attack is an act of brutality that happened during the elections – the very foundation of our democracy – and is absolutely unforgivable,” said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Abe’s protege, struggling to keep his emotions in check.

NPR’s story on the assassination was something else, and as you can see the tweet’s been deleted:

They cannot help themselves, even abroad. https://t.co/nvo3G06vN4

— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) July 8, 2022

The assassinated former Prime Minister of Japan was reported as a “divisive arch-conservative”:

NPR doing their thing this morning. pic.twitter.com/V5NBtLm0tV

— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) July 8, 2022

NPR's propaganda is as thick as North Korea's.

— Liberty Newspost (@LibertyNews) July 8, 2022

Even NK state media might advise NPR to take it down a notch so it isn’t quite as obvious.

Got a screenshot of it before they deleted it. 👇 pic.twitter.com/bLBRYSRF9y

— Blaine Stewart (@BlaineStewart16) July 8, 2022

Absolutely shameful smear of a positively transformational leader and one of America's best friends and allies. Such a long-tenured PM certainly united more than he divided. He was a reformer and defender of democratic Japan, and of the free world. pic.twitter.com/LsSiXmyOjZ

— Steve Yates (葉望輝) (@YatesComms) July 8, 2022