The establishment media on Tuesday accused Republicans of using the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion that overruled Roe v. Wade to create a political backlash.
The unprecedented leak, celebrated by some on the left and which others believed was caused by a left-leaning clerk of the Court, was immediately used against Republicans by some who saw it as a GOP plot to soften the impact of the pending Court decision.
“Theories were flying Monday night, with little known about the motivation of the leaker,” the New York Times penned Tuesday morning. The Times said that conservatives could have “orchestrated putting it out, seeking to soften the impact of the decision by getting Americans used to the idea before it happened — and clouding the importance by raising the distraction of a debate over the propriety of the leak.”
Absolving far-left wrongdoing, the Washington Post was quick to clarify that nobody knows the identity or motivations of the leaker. Republicans “cast the leak as an attempt to intimidate justices,” the paper wrote, or to cause “political backlash.”
“Even without evidence about the leaker’s identity or motivations, several Republicans publicly cast the leak as an attempt to intimidate the justices into backing away from their positions — or at least spark a political backlash,” the article read. It continued:
Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) deemed it a “a shameless attempt to pressure justices into reversing their correct position that individual states can outlaw killing unborn babies.”
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) called on the court and the Justice Department to “get to the bottom of this leak immediately using every investigative tool necessary.”
The Daily Beast published the headline on its homepage: “American Women’s Lives and Dreams Are in Brett Kavanaugh’s Hands Now.” The article paid little attention to the leak and only noted it was “the first time in the court’s history that a draft ruling has been leaked.”
The Huffington Post also paid little attention to the leak in its homepage article. The “leaked opinion before publicly announcing a decision is unprecedented, and will likely have a ripple effect on the next steps for both abortion opponents and pro-choice groups,” it simply wrote.
CNN Anchor Jake Tapper downplayed the leak as “‘rare and remarkable but not unprecedented,'” quoting a professor from the University of Georgia.
Despite the establishment media’s reaction, others outside the establishment media said the leak was devastating to the Supreme Court.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.
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