Melissa Joskow / Media Matters
House Republicans used their question time during Wednesday’s congressional hearings with former special counsel Robert Mueller to echo Fox News disinformation about the investigation into Russia’s interference with the 2016 presidential election.
As I noted Tuesday in detailing how Fox personalities were urging Republican members of Congress to ask Mueller about their conspiracy theories:
Since the launch of Mueller’s probe in May 2017, Sean Hannity and other prominent Fox hosts have warned their viewers that [President Donald] Trump and his associates are the innocent victims of a sinister conspiracy fomented by “deep state” operatives, Democrats, and the press -- all working together to take down the president and, perhaps, the republic.
But Fox’s counternarrative is based on falsehood and fantasy. It claims a dossier assembled by a former British intelligence officer and funded by the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee kicked off the probe (it didn’t), cites a FISA warrant against a former Trump campaign aide as evidence of an anti-Trump conspiracy (it isn’t), misreads text messages between FBI officials to suggest they show an all-out effort to stop Trump’s election (they don’t), and smears Mueller and members of his team as having conflicts of interest (they don’t).
Before the House Judiciary Committee hearing began this morning, Trump reeled off a series of inaccurate tweets steeped in Fox’s false alternative narrative. As The Washington Post’s Greg Sargent noted, “It's key to understand [the tweets] as nothing more than rank disinformation, designed to flood the media zone so that the press gives equal weight to a series of lies alongside the truth about Trump's corruption, misconduct, and likely criminality, thus diluting the latter's impact.”
Throughout the hearings, congressional Republicans leaned on questions and narratives promoted by Hannity and his ilk.
House Judiciary Committee
Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH)
Rep. Steve Chabot is the first House Republican to use his question time to promote Fox News' Mueller probe alternate narrative, asking repeatedly about Fusion GPS and falsely claiming the Steele Dossier started the probe. He won't be the last. pic.twitter.com/Vn0T5mWE6X
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX)
Now he's ranting about the Strzok-Page texts, going full Hannity. pic.twitter.com/Er4lJmHs9M
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH)
In a monologue distinguishable from one of Hannity's only by his lack of a suit jacket, Jim Jordan rants about the need to investigate the start of the investigation. pic.twitter.com/nztDZwIikF
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL)
Gaetz moves on to Strzok. pic.twitter.com/gjFN1DCM6X
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA)
God help me but a U.S. congressman, Tom McClintock, just brought Gregg Jarrett's opinions into this. Jarrett is the Fox legal analyst that Hannity and company use to put a legal gloss on their conspiracy theories. pic.twitter.com/th5JOJbzpZ
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA)
Rep. Ben Cline spends his time on Andrew Weissmann, a Sean Hannity obsession. pic.twitter.com/joQZpZsTTb
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL)
And Rep. Greg Steube's questioning is deeply steeped in various Fox conspiracy theories, all about Steele and the start of the probe. pic.twitter.com/NyB6BL9qk8
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND)
Rep. Kelly Armstrong goes through all of the bogus conflicts of interest stuff you can see on any random episode of Hannity. Mueller shuts him down. pic.twitter.com/JqdikkH2Im
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
House Intelligence Committee
Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA)
“The real Russian collusion was with the Democrats” is a Hannity trope. pic.twitter.com/HHXj2lVq8Y
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
More on this in Nunes' questioning. pic.twitter.com/XZtIoL6x3E
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY)
Rep. Elise Stefanik also asking about the Steele dossier. pic.twitter.com/mBOI8SmDTc
— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) July 24, 2019
This post will be updated as more House Republicans echo Fox’s bogus talking points.