The Media Mourn the Death of Build Back Better, the Last, Best Hope for Mankind

Welcome back to “Forgotten Fact-Checks,” a weekly column produced by National Review’s News Desk. This week, we document the hysterical reaction to the death of Build Back Better, decry Omicron fearmongering, and hit more media misses.

Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth

The disappointed reaction — if not the temper tantrum — of the White House to the sinking of its signature legislation was to be expected. Eleven months into Joe Biden’s administration, his domestic policy agenda is dead thanks to Senator Joe Manchin’s announcement on Fox News Sunday that he would not support Build Back Better in its current form. 

With 2022 fast approaching, it’s difficult to see the Democrats throwing their weight behind the massive, grab bag of a spending bill in an election year that’s already expected to deliver an end to many of their congressional careers. Especially with President Biden’s approval rating sitting at -37 with independents and -32 with Latinos.

So while the White House’s response was understandable, if overwrought, the reaction of many in the press was flat-out embarrassing and unprofessional. Sam Stein, Politico’s White House editor, is supposed to cover the Biden administration, not cheer on its successes or mourn its failures. Nevertheless, this is how Stein reacted to Manchin’s statement of opposition:

When many chafed at Stein’s partisan cheerleading, hidden behind the word “objectively” — that’s like trying to cover up an elephant with a napkin — he doubled down on the napkin, mixing in a false choice for good measure:

Stein didn’t bother to explain why Build Back Better’s failure would be devastating, or why it was the “last best” chance to countermand the consequences of climate change to the planet, because his opinions and assumptions — not objective facts — are those of the Biden administration. 

Similarly, the New York Times led its story on Manchin’s opposition by declaring that he had “significantly dimmed the prospects for the climate action that scientists say the United States must take to avert the most catastrophic effects of global warming.” Build Back Better, it should be noted, is far more than a climate bill. And its climate-related provisions would have wrought further economic harm on West Virginia during a time of economic uncertainty and rising energy costs. The legislation would have provided $555 billion in subsidies to the climate lobby, disadvantaging the coal producers of West Virginia. Notably, the Biden administration has taken no action to hold countries like China — which has increased its carbon emissions as the U.S. has decreased its own output, and whose absolute emissions are double that of the U.S.’s — for its nonchalance toward climate change.  

Molly Jong-Fast, recent recipient of a newsletter at The Atlantic, adopted the trappings of an expert on the needs and wants of Manchin’s home state, tweeting “West Virginia is the second poorest state in the country, so it makes sense that their Senator wouldn’t support things that help working people. My God, Joe Manchin, who owns you?” Not Jong-Fast, who differs from the 59 percent of West Virginians who oppose the bill. 

Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin meanwhile, saw the end of self-government itself in Manchin’s decision, writing “if Manchin is no on both BBB and voting, Biden is done. Democracy is hanging by a thread. Hard to think of anyone more destructive.”

If, ten years down the line, we live in the 1984–Day After Tomorrow–The Jungle mash-up described by these journalists, perhaps the unprofessionalism can be excused for prudential reasons. But if not, remember the lies — and who offered them.  

Headline Fail of the Week

“I Canceled My Birthday Party Because of Omicron,” announced The Atlantic’s Ed Yong, in an effort to discourage anybody else from engaging in ordinary social activity. “The infectious nature of a virus means that a tiny bad decision can cause exponential harm,” writes Yong, who insists that “Omicron is a bullet. It’s one that we can each choose whether to fire.”

Yong is welcome to cancel as many of his parties as he wants in an effort to mitigate the spread. But viruses are not bullets, and the implication that others who don’t take the same extreme precautions are firing on their fellow citizens is unscientific and dangerous. Now that we’re close to two years into Covid’s emergence, and armed with effective vaccines and therapeutics, it’s time to stop asking people to put their lives on hold.

Headline Fail of the Week: Part 2

“Ghislaine Maxwell looked impeccable. That was the point,” it reads.

The piece begins normally, explaining that Maxwell is accused of helping Jeffrey Epstein recruit, traffic, and sexually abuse underage girls, but quickly takes an inappropriate turn.

“Ms. Maxwell has some familiarity with moving between worlds. As many headlines about this trial remind us, she is a ‘socialite,’ and socialites harness style and status to create connections,” it reads.

The piece adds: “The admiration Ms. Maxwell inspired in these girls would have made them all the more susceptible to the nefarious tactic known as ‘grooming’ — the slow process of eroding a potential victim’s defenses, desensitizing them to increasingly inappropriate or abusive behavior. But, of course, grooming has another, more common meaning, referring to the everyday habits we perform to be socially presentable. While men practice grooming, the process for women is far more complicated, involving myriad products and learned techniques — from hair styling to skin care, makeup to manicures. Grooming is part of beauty culture, and, despite feminism’s strides, the importance of beauty has not materially diminished in women’s lives.”

The article attempts to tease out ways in which we use others’ appearances to make judgments against them, but just appears tone-deaf as it mishandles the sensitive topic of grooming and sex trafficking of minors.

Media Misses

—Greg Sargent at the Washington Post weighed in on Build Back Better and Manchin:

“This slowdown,” argues Sargent, “will be mainly because fiscal stimulus from the covid-19 rescue package earlier this year will wind down,” who also asserts that “Manchin’s inflation fearmongering is saturated in bad faith.” Since Congress passed a $1.9 trillion Covid-relief package in March, growth has fallen behind – and inflation has exceeded – expectations. 

—New York Post columnist Karol Markowicz rightfully called out CNN’s Brian Stelter after he finally stood up to suggest the U.S. should be “doing more to protect children by letting them live normal lives” amid renewed concerns over Covid-19.

—ESPN aired a documentary on NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace in which it implied that Wallace was the victim of a hate crime despite an FBI investigation’s conclusion that he had not. “It’s so sad that people don’t want to take the time to read the facts, and just make a judgment off of B.S.,” reflected Wallace — who does not accept the investigation’s conclusions — in it.