CNN 'Fact Checker' Humiliated...Live On CNN

There may no more pernicious industry than the "fact checking" complex. As the number of "fact checkers" has exploded in recent years, a clear pattern among that profession has emerged: a preference for opinions from Democrats.

Often, these fact-checkers will "debunk" a statement from Republicans by giving Democrats the opportunity to respond, then taking the Democrats' views as inarguable fact. They served to uphold conventional narratives during the COVID-19 pandemic, often incorrectly stating that "The Science" showed that masks were effective or that COVID vaccines reduced transmission.

So it's always refreshing to see one of the top "fact-checkers" forced to hear how disgraceful their process is, and how often the "facts" they claim to be disseminating are wrong and based on ideological preferences. One of the worst offenders is CNN's Daniel Dale. Dale, who frequently happens to be on vacation or unavailable when President Joe Biden goes off on one of his nonsensical rants, views his primary objective as protecting his political party by criticizing Republicans. 

One of those Republicans, Rep. Mike Waltz from Florida, didn't take one of Dale's misinformed "fact checks" lying down. In an interview on CNN, Waltz responded to Dale, humiliating him in the process.

"And just while we're talking that," Waltz said. "I do want to talk, Daniel Dale, the CNN lead fact-checker, who, I mean, directly got on air last night and spoke to my speech, right? I talked about Biden's military and his misguided priorities. Let's get to that."

Dale had "debunked" Waltz's claim that the BIden administration was focusing its military development on the wrong priorities, like making "electric tanks." Dale's claim was that there were no such projects under development. There's just one problem: he had his facts wrong.

"Let me fact-check your fact-checker," Waltz continued. "I have here Bloomberg reporting the U.S. Army putting its electric tanks on hold because they have to further invest in and develop the battery technology. I have testimony with the Secretary of the Army of this issue. I have the budget where they're investing in research and development on electric fighting vehicles, in addition to the non-tactical vehicles mentioned in that climate strategy.

"So I would just suggest that Daniel Dale sit down with the chairman of the readiness committee who reviews and approves these budgets and has the testimony and has the actual facts before he questions someone's credibility on national television."

Ouch.

Representative Mike Waltz, a Republican from Florida, speaks during a news conference following an all member House briefing on Afghanistan.  (Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Mike Waltz Continues Debunking CNN ‘Fact Check’

In response to Waltz saying Dale should sit down with the person who has the actual facts, in this case Waltz, the CNN host said that he was given that opportunity now to correct the record. Waltz, understandably, didn't take well to that.

"Well, he should do that before he publicly puts it," he said. "I mean, it's forever on the Internet. He said it on air. And when we talk about misleading, he's misleading the public. And so if he's misleading on I have all the facts, if he's misleading on that, what else is he misleading on?"

That's when the CNN host accidentally undermined the entire "fact checking" industrial complex. 

"…Getting to the truth is a process," he said. "It's not as cut and dry as it may seem sometimes."

So if getting to the truth is a "process" and not as "cut and dry" as it's often made out to be, why do "fact-checkers" exist in the first place? The entire justification for this ludicrous profession is to make a clear, definitive statement of inarguable fact that's irrefutably correct. That's what "facts" are supposed to mean. 

Waltz made the same point: "But literally minutes after my speech, he's telling the world I'm misleading. There's no way he could review the Army's budget, the research and development, the testimony that I personally received under oath. Or how about just Google and get the facts?"

Therein lies the real issue with the entire profession, which is populated almost exclusively by people like Dale. They're not "fact-checking," they're providing cover for individuals and media members to criticize the right, in favor of protecting their ideology.

When Biden or Fauci lies, they describe it as "mostly true" or "missing context." When they fact-check those on the right, they often get their facts wrong, while labeling it with indefinite "Pinocchios."

What happened to Dale was a humiliation, one that hopefully gets repeated after Waltz's example.