Jennifer Talhelm, Arthur Rotstein, Terry Tang mislead about Randy Graf

Jennifer Talhelm, Arthur Rotstein, and Terry Tang (reporting from... Scottsdale) of the AP offer a superficial, misleading, pro-Democratic Party article called "GOP Shuns Immigration Hardliner in Ariz." The headline is the first part that's wrong in that Graf is opposed to the illegal variety of immigration and wanting to enforce our laws is not a "hardline" position. It continues:

Randy Graf is a tough-on-immigration [a false statement] Republican in a district that is fed up with people pouring illegally across the border and hasn't elected a Democrat to the House in two decades... Yet Graf's national party is turning its back on him, the retiring Republican congressman he wants to succeed has disavowed his candidacy and he's finding trouble getting traction beyond the most secure GOP voters _ and a border militia that's backing him.

Calling the Minuteman Project a "militia" is an attempt to conjure up images of compounds in Idaho and the like. I hadn't seen an MSM source say something similar for a while, but either I haven't been paying attention or they're repurposing their old smears for the 2006 season.

And, prominent GOP members have not "turned their back on him." While the pro-illegal immigration Kolbe has not supported him, McCain and others have, and Hastert will be campaigning for him next week.

As for why the national GOP leaders would "turn their backs on him", Talhelm, Rotstein, and Tang don't try to find out what might really be behind that. Is it because of the stated reason that they think he can't win? Or, is it because they think he might win and if he does he'll cost those companies - GOP donors - that profit from illegal immigration money?

Then, flanked by an AP picture of Gabrielle Giffords, we get this article's "man-on-the-street/voice-of-reason":

Voters such as Sue Malusa, a mother of four from Tucson, think Graf and his supporters go too far. Graf is backed by the Minutemen, self-appointed border-watchers. Malusa will vote for a candidate who supports "a humane and fair way of controlling the border," she said. "That's important."

As detailed in the past many times, anything that allows illegal immigration to continue is not humane, and what Giffords supports will allow illegal immigration to continue. Malusa needs to think with her head and not buy what those who hide behind "compassion" try to sell.

Then, we get to the smears:

Graf made waves last week defending a state lawmaker who endorsed reinstatement of a 1950s federal deportation program called "Operation Wetback" and sent supporters information from a white separatist group... In a candidates' debate, Graf said the lawmaker, state Rep. Russell Pearce, is a friend and they agree on how to control the border.

As previously discussed just recently, the word "reinstatement" is a lie. As for the second smear, he realized the error right away and sent a followup email. Only the most delusional Democratic hack could think that he would have sent that article if he'd read the whole thing or knew about the group involved.

It continues, but it's clear that Jennifer Talhelm, Arthur Rotstein, and Terry Tang of the AP are willing to mislead in order to support either Giffords or illegal immigration. And, it's clear that they aren't willing or able to dig into a story and discover what's really going on.

Comments

listen to savage nation, the end of freedom may- be coming real soon.

The AP hated Reagan from 1964 when he gave "The Speech" until after he died. Of course anyone that is conservative they will dislike and go out of thier way to misreport on. Almost to the point of Rathergating conservatives. But the liberals that are in charge of the GOP are not without blame on this either. They would rather a Dem get elected than a conservative.
As Malike said 2 months ago their name should be "Associated with Terrorists Propaganda".