Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Kamala Harris of California claimed falsely this weekend that Michael Brown of Ferguson, Missouri, was murdered by a police officer. But a handful of newsrooms got it right and challenged their claim.
“Michael Brown’s murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement,” Harris said this weekend on social media. “We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.”
Michael Brown’s murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement. We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 9, 2019
Not to be outdone by a 2020 Democratic primary opponent, Warren tweeted 35 minutes later, “5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.”
5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 9, 2019
The obvious problem with characterizing Brown’s death as “murder” is that it relies on a lie. To call it a “murder” is to stand in direct contradiction to the findings of an independent investigation by President Barack Obama’s Justice Department, which found that there was no credible evidence to back the assertion that Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson “murdered” Brown. Rather, the report found that Wilson acted in self-defense. It should be noted here that the Justice Department at the time was headed by Eric Holder, whose interest in racial discrimination is well-documented.
Like failed gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams’ conspiracy theory alleging the 2018 election was stolen from her, I expected newsrooms would allow Warren’s and Harris’ outrageous claims to go unchallenged. I am happy to say I was wrong.
At least three — count them, three! — media organizations have published articles noting correctly that the two 2020 Democratic primary candidates are way off in their characterization of Brown’s death. Of course, this may just be a case of the desire to protect Obama’s legacy overriding the normal routine of ignoring lies told by Democratic lawmakers. But hey, when you’re right, you’re right.
“Harris, Warren Wrong About Brown Shooting,” reads an Aug. 12 headline published by FactCheck.org. The article itself, which is overly generous for what is an out-and-out lie, adds, “Harris and Warren may disagree with the findings of the Obama administration’s Justice Department, as Michael Brown’s father does.”
Over at Vox, the fact-check of Harris’ and Warren’s tweets was similarly cautious and undeservedly apologetic toward the senators. But hey, at least there is a fact-check (ah, the tyranny of low expectations).
“The tweets claimed a police officer ‘murdered’ Michael Brown,” writes Vox’s German Lopez. “But that’s not what investigators, including those from the Obama administration, concluded.”
“[T]his wasn’t a murder or a federal civil rights violation, based on the evidence we have,” he adds. “Five years after the shooting … major presidential campaigns are still getting the details wrong.”
Lastly, there is the Washington Post’s fact checker, Glenn Kessler, who is appropriately appalled by the senators’ embrace of a long debunked falsehood.
“One can certainly raise questions about whether Wilson should have fired as many shots as he did or acted appropriately under the circumstances,” Kessler writes. “But Harris and Warren have ignored the findings of the Justice Department to accuse Wilson of murder, even though the Justice Department found no credible evidence to support that claim.”
“The department produced a comprehensive report to determine what happened,” he adds, “making the senators’ dismissal of it even more galling.”
When he is right, he is right.
