In a rare moment in politics, members from both the right and the left came together against a common enemy amid the Florida building collapse.
That common enemy was Washington Post reporter Hannah Dreier.
Dreier tried to blame Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for a poor response to the emergency, which presumably killed over 100 Floridians.
And in the end, her lie backfired enormously.
It all started when the WaPo journalist tweeted:
“There’s a saying in emergency management: The first 24 hours are the only 24 hours. FEMA was ready to deploy to the condo collapse almost immediately, and included the crisis in its daily briefing, but didn’t get permission from Gov. DeSantis to get on the ground for a full day.”
There's a saying in emergency management: The first 24 hours are the only 24 hours.
FEMA was ready to deploy to the condo collapse almost immediately, and included the crisis in its daily briefing, but didn't get permission from Gov. DeSantis to get on the ground for a full day. pic.twitter.com/rVmCN47sQJ
— Hannah Dreier (@hannahdreier) June 26, 2021
It seemed as though the entire political world stepped up to defend the Florida governor — and they blasted Dreier’s claim as a total lie.
According to The Daily Wire, the Florida governor signed off on an emergency declaration in less than an hour shortly after the tragic building collapse…
Responses poured in, including former President Donald Trump’s Acting Director of National Intelligence, Richard Grenell.
“You have a sickness,” he wrote. “This isn’t remotely true.”
https://twitter.com/RichardGrenell/status/1409174444971495424
Even Democrats saw through this blatant lie.
A top ex-emergency official — Jared Moskowitz — who admittedly voted for Biden called Dreier’s tweet “100% malarkey.”
“FEMA’s mantra is ‘locally executed, state managed, and federal supported.’ As the former director in FL who voted for Biden this tweet below is 100% Malarkey. FEMA would have deployed the federally funded USAR teams, which are located in @MiamiDadeCounty. They were already there.”
FEMA’s mantra is “locally executed, state managed, and federal supported.” As the former director in FL who voted for Biden this tweet below is 100% Malarkey. FEMA would have deployed the federally funded USAR teams, which are located in @MiamiDadeCounty. They were already there. https://t.co/Czj0GYY9yV
— Jared Moskowitz (@JaredEMoskowitz) June 28, 2021
Vigilant Twitter followers also chimed in on the claim, defending DeSantis.
“There was nothing anyone could have done differently or better than the first responders on the scene within minutes,” wrote Conservative Media Strategist Giancarlo Sopo. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”
https://twitter.com/GiancarloSopo/status/1409159853810106368
Perhaps even worse than the lie itself, is that Dreier made no effort to retract the statement or apologize for spreading misinformation.
Critics have noted that the liberal WaPo and its journalists are notorious for trying to slander DeSantis ever since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Perhaps Twitter user Arthur Schwartz’ words reflect what many think about the liberal paper.
“Democracy dies in your newsroom.”
https://twitter.com/ArthurSchwartz/status/1409153917427068935
The Horn editorial team