***To read the full blog, please check out the complete post on NewsBusters***
On Thursday’s edition of The Lead, host Jake Tapper had some “breaking news” to share that he didn’t seem to think was too important: “A source familiar with the investigation prompted by the whistleblower tells me (…) the whistleblower is a registered Democrat.” Despite this revelation about the political bias of the so-called “whistleblower” (whose complaint kicked off the impeachment inquiry), the evening broadcasts on ABC, CBS, and NBC didn’t care to mention it.
Then, there was the way CNN and Tapper handled their scoop, which was to act like it didn’t raise any red flags about impropriety. “We were being told by some Republicans that wait till they find out what the bias is. But it turns out he belongs to one of the two major political parties in the country,” Tapper chided GOP lawmakers in a question to CNN political correspondent Sara Murray.
Arguing it was “pretty thin” evidence of something nefarious, Murray defended the whistleblower:
You're allowed as an employee of the U.S. government, you can register with a political party and even -- can you believe it -- to exercise your right to vote, Jake! You’re still allowed to do that if you work for the U.S. government.
But as the whistleblower complaint points out, the IG did determine this to be credible. And we have seen, over the course of these weeks, the way that the facts in this complaint have continued to check out, you know, almost across the board.
(...)