NYTimes downplays role of liberal politics in baseball shooter’s motive but emphasizes ‘anti-Muslim’ Portland stabber – TheBlaze.com

The New York Times was criticized over the weekend after running a story where the paper seemingly tried to rewrite the motives of James Hodgkinson, the lone gunman who is responsible for the ambush shooting on congressional Republicans last week.

While the motive behind the attack will likely never be known, most believe hyper-partisan politics are to blame. After all, Hodgkinson only attacked Republicans and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) continues to fight for his life in the hospital after being gravely injured from a bullet fired by Hodgkinson.

Indeed, when authorities confirmed last Wednesday that Hodgkinson was the shooter, the 66-year-olds social media postings began to be heavily scrutinized because they painted a clear picture: Hodgkinson was a stalwart supporter of socialist politics and had a deep hatred for President Donald Trump and Republicans.

Despite the wealth of evidence that supports the motive being partisan hatred, the Times on Saturday attempted to paint a much different picture: that Hodgkinson attacked the congressmen because he was an unstable man and it had nothing to do with politics.

The storys headline emphasizes that idea: Before the Gunfire in Virginia, a Volatile Home Life in Illinois.

The story said:

No one can truly know what motivates a man to drive halfway across the country, live out of his car as Mr. Hodgkinson apparently did and attempt a mass killing of members of Congress. In the days since the shooting, much has been made of Mr. Hodgkinsons strong political views he was an ardent supporter of Senator Bernie Sanderss bid for the 2016 presidential nomination, and he railed against President Trump and Republicans in Washington on his Facebook page and in letters to the editor of the local newspaper.

But another aspect of his personality may have also presaged the shooting: his troubled home life.

The story goes on to say that Hodgkinson likely suffered from some sort of mental illness and his political beliefs had little to do with his desire to target only congressional Republicans, even quoting a local Democratic staffer who categorically denied that Hodgkinson ever volunteered for them.

The paper then went on to describe in detail Hodgkinsons life as a foster parent and detailed the much darker moments of his life like one instance of domestic abuse and the decision of one foster child to commit suicide.

And while it is helpful for investigators to know Hodgkinsons background in order to develop a better understanding of who the shooter was, the Times story seemingly ignores what most others dont, including one of Hodgkinsons Illinois neighbors, who told the paper that while life moved on for other people following the 2016 election, the election never ended for Hodgkinson.

People voiced their criticisms of the paper on Twitter:

One person even tweeted to one of the storys authors that the Times is playing to its base with the story:

The author then said the story was just journalism, before being accused of trying to cover up the shooters actual motive:

But, of course, the Times doesnt always try to whitewash the ideological beliefs of people who commit atrocities.

Last month, when a racist man killed two people on a Portland commuter train, the Times emphasized the fact that the perpetrator was racist and had anti-Muslim views.

One story read: Three Men Stood Up to Anti-Muslim Attack. Two Paid With Their Lives.

Another was headlined: Oregon Man Accused of Deadly Anti-Muslim Tirade Continues Rant in Court.

And even another: Two Killed in Portland While Trying to Stop Anti-Muslim Rant, Police Say.

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NYTimes downplays role of liberal politics in baseball shooter's motive but emphasizes 'anti-Muslim' Portland stabber - TheBlaze.com