During her appearance on Jonathan Capehart's MSNBC show on Sunday, NPR journalist Maria Hinojosa claimed it was vital to "get the narrative straight and correct"
But Hinojosa herself then proceeded to perpetrate a false narrative. She accused border patrol agents of having "whipped" black Haitian migrants.
Here's the moment:
I'm very sorry to have to say this and I know the administration really dislikes it when I say this. But the one thing I think that at least try doing is get the narrative straight and correct.
And so, Joe Biden has had so many opportunities, horrific opportunities. Like when we saw Haitian black people being whipped by men on horses. That would have been his moment to stand in front of the horse and say this stops, never again. We're going to reform Border Patrol entirely, top/bottom.
This, despite the fact that the agents have been cleared of charges, and the photographer who took the photos in question having said that they had been misconstrued, and that he had never seen any whipping.
When news of the incident broke, President Biden put his thumb on the scales of justice, saying the agents involved "will pay." The Biden administration launched an inquiry, which DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said would be completed in "days, if not weeks." The 500-page report was completed back in September 2021. Seven months later, and despite Republican demands for it to be released, the Biden administration has withheld the report.
Surely, if the report had supported the whipping allegations, Biden would have rushed to make it public, and proceeded, in accordance with his vow, to make the culpable parties "pay." That it continues to collect dust strongly suggests that the report is exculpatory in nature.
So, did Capehart push back on Hinojosa's unfounded accusation of whipping? Of course not. He ended the segment by profusely thanking her for "giving voice to the people you've been talking to on the other side of the border."
Note: incredibly, Capehart seemed to suggest that there is no such thing as illegal immigration. At one point, he said:
"The previous administration used every tool it could possibly use to basically stop immigration. Legal immigration, and quote unquote, illegal immigration."
"Quote unquote, illegal immigration?" Would Capehart throw the immigration laws in the trash, and open the borders to the billion or more people around the world who'd like to come to the US?
On Jonathan Capehart's MSNBC show, NPR's Maria Hinojosa falsely accusing border agents of having "whipped" Haitians attempting to cross the southern border was sponsored in part by Johnson & Johnson, maker of Zyrtec, Intel, Dell, GlaxoSmith Kline, maker of Parodontax, Walmart, and Dove.
Here's the transcript. Click "expand" to read more.
MSNBC
The Sunday Show
4/17/22
10:17 am ETMARIA HINOJOSA: People think, oh my God, tens of thousands of people are coming. It is going to be disorganized. The people who are coming. The overwhelming majority have people who are waiting for them here in the United States. Family members, probably even a place to live and a job. So let's get that straight, and the one thing the Biden administration can start to do is correct the narrative. This is not a threat. He is a welcoming president, we are a welcoming country, or we are not.
JONATHAN CAPEHART: And you know, that is a key point. This is not a threat. Because the previous administration used every tool it could possibly use to basically stop immigration. Legal immigration, and quote unquote, illegal immigration.
So, do you think the Biden administration is actually doing a better job on the rhetorical side of communicating to Americans in particular, but to the rest of the world, that the folks who are trying to be reunited with family members, as you say, are not a threat?
HINOJOSA: No, I am sorry, Jonathan. I'm very sorry to have to say this and I know the administration really dislikes it when I say this. But the one thing I think that at least try doing is get the narrative straight and correct.
And so, Joe Biden has had so many opportunities, horrific opportunities. Like when we saw Haitian black people being whipped by men on horses. That would have been his moment to stand in front of the horse and say this stops, never again. We're going to reform Border Patrol entirely, top/bottom.
CAPEHART: Maria Hinojosa, thank you for coming to The Sunday Show, and also for giving voice to the people you've been talking to on the other side of the border. Thank you.
