Home HuffPost’s history of venomous smears against Sen. McCain, and his wife, Cindy — for which it was richly rewarded by President Obama

HuffPost’s history of venomous smears against Sen. McCain, and his wife, Cindy — for which it was richly rewarded by President Obama

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Continued from “HuffPost praises McCain in death – after viciously smearing him for 10 years”

Contents

Background: HuffPost’s role in helping then-Sen. Obama to secure the Democratic nomination for president, in 2008

(I) Ten examples of HuffPost’s venomous smears Sen. McCain and his wife, Cindy, from 2007-2017

(II) Examples of how President Obama richly rewarded HuffPost for all it did for him

(III) Examples of how HuffPost praised Sen. McCain after he passed, presumably because of his virulent opposition to President Trump

(I) Ten examples of HuffPost’s venomous smears Sen. McCain and his wife, Cindy, from 2007-2017

(1) March 2008: HuffPost falsely claimed Sen. McCain said he didn’t know if condoms help to stop the spread of STDs

(2) April 2008: HuffPost smeared Sen. McCain as a “white supremacist”

(3) April 2008: HuffPost falsely claimed Sen. McCain was wrong in asserting that Iran had a history of collaborating with Al Qaeda

(4) April 2008: HuffPost gave top coverage to a proof-less, discredited rumor that Sen. McCain called his wife, Cindy, a “c*nt”

(5) August 2008: HuffPost called Cindy McCain “a dick,” trashed her looks, and mocked her addiction to painkillers

(6) September 2008: HuffPost asked, “Is John McCain Mentally Fit To Be President?,” and speculated whether he had Alzheimer’s Disease, as a pretext for repeatedly demanding his medical records — which is the exact opposite of what it did in 2016 regarding Sec. Clinton’s obvious health problems

(7) September-October 2008: HuffPost repeatedly smeared Sen. McCain as a “racist” and “anti-Semite,” and claimed his supporters were, as well

(8) October 2008: HuffPost claimed Hitler, Satan and cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer were supporting Sen. McCain’s candidacy for president

(9) November 2012: HuffPost again smeared Sen. McCain as a “racist” and “misogynist,” and claimed he was “unhinged”

(10) November 2017: A HuffPost “senior reporter” congratulated Sen. McCain’s family on the financial inheritance they’ll receive — after he dies

Background: HuffPost’s role in helping then-Sen. Obama to secure the Democratic nomination for president, in 2008

Prior to then-Sen. Obama securing the Democratic nomination for president in June 2008, HuffPost was so demonstrably supportive of his candidacy that Sen. Clinton’s campaign called the site “‘a conveyor belt’ for material that is pro-Obama and anti-Hillary.” [Note: It may be assumed that at least some of Sen. Clinton’s anger arose from her lingering resentment over the fact that Arianna Huffington — as a staunch conservative in 1997 — humiliated President Clinton, by exposing the fact that he authorized a major campaign donor to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, even though he’d never served in the U.S. military. As a result of Huffington’s research, the grave of the donor, Larry Lawrence, was exhumed, and relocated to another cemetery.]

In 2007, HuffPost’s CEO held a fundraiser for Sen. Obama, inside his (CEO’s) New York apartment. In early 2008, HuffPost allowed Obama to become an official site blogger — while it was praising him and trashing Sen. Clinton in news and editorial pieces, as well as the paid advertisements that amplified this narrative:

HuffPost, May 2008; Note ad and “news” article at right
HuffPost, May 2008; Note ad and “news” article at right

In March 2008, once it became clear that Sen. McCain was on track to become the Republican nominee for president, HuffPost began a relentless series of smears against him, as documented in Section II.

In June 2008, Sen. Clinton’s criticism of HuffPost achieved new legitimacy when Arianna Huffington, HuffPost’s Editor-In-Chief, began openly advising Sen. Obama on strategy and messaging — even though since its May 2005 debut, she’d been insisting to the public — and its advertisers — that it is a completely objective, nonpartisan “news” site:

  • “The news is not right-wing news or left-wing news, it’s the news. And that will be the sensibility, that will basically permeate our news coverage.”
  • “We do news. I don’t believe news is left wing or right wing.”
  • “The editorial stance of the Huffington Post is to debunk the right-left way of thinking, which has become completely obsolete.”

(1) March 2008: HuffPost falsely claimed Sen. McCain said he didn’t know if condoms help to stop the spread of STDs

Clicking on that headline brought the the reader to this page:

Do Condoms Help Stop Spread Of HIV? McCain: “You’ve Stumped Me,” Huffington Post, March 27, 2008.

HuffPost knew this headline and its story were lies, as documented by the anonymously-published blog “Huff-Watch,” produced a detailed article about this incident, here.  In summary:

HuffPost’s “news” story was based on an interview McCain gave to the New York Times, which included the following exchange:

NYT: “So no contraception, no counseling on contraception. Just abstinence. Do you think contraceptives help stop the spread of HIV?”

Sen. McCain: “You’ve stumped me.”

As Huff-Watch noted:

Can you detect the error in the front-page and story-page headlines?

The headlines say McCain was asked if condoms help prevent the spread of HIV. But the copy on the story thread shows that he was asked if contraceptives help stop the spread of HIV. To which he answered, “You’ve stumped me.”

The fact is that most “contraceptives” do nothing to help stop the spread of HIV.  Contraceptives include any of a number of things — including birth-control pills, spermicidal foams and jellies, IUDs, etc., none of which do anything help stop the spread of HIV. Condoms, which do help to stop the spread of HIV, are also contraceptives. But that is clearly not the question that McCain was asked.

Further, HuffPost explicitly asked its readers to help “spread the news” (first screencap, green box), to make its fake “news” story go viral:

Further, as Huff-Watch documented, HuffPost’s lie “incited a torrent of hate comments,” which it reviewed, approved and chose to publish, including:

  • “Well, that solves that: McCain is officially a moron. There are teenagers who know that condoms stop the spread of HIV. For McCain to be so uninformed — or unwilling to give a real opinion so as not to piss off the Bible belters — is inexcusable.”
  • “LOFL”you’ve stumped me”What a coincidence … that’s what the pedophilia lovin republicans say every time they swap positions with the local GOP children! The GOP … way out of their closet … and well into yours!”
  • “Cool. Then bend over, John, and let me plow a load into you bareback.A few months later you’ll be wishing you were pro-condom, Bitch.”
  • “Sorry to spring that NEW HIV/AIDS subject on ya grandpa.MOTHERF*CKER! how many years have we been educating people about HIV?oh Yeah, 25 years, and how many of those G*D DAMN years have you been a Senator..oh yeah ALL OF THEM!”

HuffPost never retracted this libelous article, or published an apology, to inform its readers that it had deliberately misled them, further proving its malice, and the fraud behind its repeated public statements that it is a completely nonpartisan news site, that upholds “the highest level of journalistic integrity.”

And yet, as of September 18, 2018, HuffPost still has an abbreviated version of this libelous “news” story on its site — in this case, being visibly enabled and legitimized by advertising from CenturyLink and Boost Mobile.  See what ads show up when you visit the page:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/03/16/do-condoms-help-stop-spre_n_43623.html

(2) April 2008: HuffPost smeared Sen. McCain as a “white supremacist”

On April 28, 2008, HuffPost published the following Tweet, which began its campaign in earnest to falsely depict Sen. McCain as a racist — first, through smears that he associated with them, and later, in September & October 2008, that he himself was both a racist and an anti-Semite:

Clicking on that link led to this story page — still published at HuffPost, which is being visibly enabled and legitimized by Esurance (a division of Allstate):

(3) April 2008: HuffPost falsely claimed Sen. McCain was wrong in asserting that Iran had a history of collaborating with Al Qaeda

As documented by Huff-Watch:

On April 6, 2008, HuffPost’s top “news” story was entitled:

McCain Gets Facts Wrong On Iraq Again

The article’s author, Sam Stein (HuffPost’s Washington reporter), opened the article by claiming the following (emphasis added):

Facts can be funny things.

Over the past several weeks, Sen. John McCain has been occasionally tripping over them in his advocacy for continuing America’s presence in Iraq. Most memorably, he repeated – three times – the assertion that Iran was arming al-Qaeda despite the fact that there is no known connection between country and the group, and that the two are clearly of different religions.

It was another complete lie — or another demonstration of HuffPost’s incompetence as a “news” operation:

A simple Google search reveals this Washington Post article from January 26, 2004, citing the bipartisan 9/11 Commission report as describing in unambiguous terms that some relationship has existed between Iran — the world’s most prominent sponsor of global Islamist terror — and al Qaeda. Excerpt (emphasis added):

While it found no operational ties between al Qaeda and Iraq, the commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks has concluded that Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network had long-running contacts with Iraq’s neighbor and historic foe, Iran.

Al Qaeda, the commission determined, may even have played a “yet unknown role” in aiding Hezbollah militants in the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers complex in Saudi Arabia, an attack the United States has long blamed solely on Hezbollah and its Iranian sponsors.

The notion that bin Laden may have had a hand in the Khobar bombing would mark a rare operational alliance between Sunni and Shiite Muslim groups that have historically been at odds.

Furthermore, other credible sources have claimed proof of Iran’s relationship with, and support for al Qaeda is actually far more extensive than this article would indicate, despite the fact that they observe different strains of Islam — a fact that a few minutes on the Google reveals:

♦  May 22, 2007: Noted terrorism researcher-analyst Steven Emerson described this relationship — and the fact that despite their religious differences, Iran and al Qaeda have been collaborating on their shared mission to advance Islamism via global jihad, here.

♦  February 22, 2003: The nonpartisan Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) published an article, Top Iranian Defector On Iran’s Collaboration with Iraq, North Korea, Al-Qa’ida, and Hizbullah, here.

♦  July 24, 2004: NPR hosted a discussion, “Studying the Iran-Al Qaeda Connection,” here. The program summary: “One of the more unnerving findings in the Sept. 11 commission’s report was evidence of a connection between Iran and al Qaeda operatives. Hear NPR’s Brian Naylor, terrorism expert Jessica Stern and Iran specialist Dr. Gary Sick of Columbia University.”

♦  January 17, 2003: Regarding al Qaeda’s relationship with both Iran and Iraq, Jonathan Schanzer, a former Treasury intelligence analyst, published an article, “Ansar Al-Islam: Iraq’s Al-Qaeda Connection,” here.

Numerous links to other credible sources (and reporting) from 2004, establishing the link between al Qaeda and Iran can be found here.

Is there a question as to how deep, and how extensive the ties run between Iran and al Qaeda? Yes.

Is there even a single credible source that supports Mr. Stein’s blanket assertion that “there is no known connection between” Iran and al Qaeda? No.

Could Mr. Stein, who holds a Master’s Degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, really be unaware of the credible sources listed above — or of how to use Google? Or did he just decide to not include them in his article?

HuffPost never retracted this libelous article, or published an apology, to inform its readers that it had deliberately misled them, further proving its malice, and the fraud behind its repeated public statements that it is a completely nonpartisan news site, that upholds “the highest level of journalistic integrity.”

Further, HuffPost never published a single story about the landmark December, 2011 verdict in the long-running Havlish v. Bin Laden, et al lawsuit, by 9/11 survivors against the parties suspected of being involved in the 9/11 attacks. The court’s conclusion read, in part:

Iran provided “essential, direct, material support for the 9/11 attacks.”
– Havlish v. bin Laden, et al; Conclusions of Law #116, p.22.

“Iran provided direct support to al Qaeda specifically for the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Washington, DC (Shanksville, Pennsylvania) on September 11, 2001.”
– Havlish v. bin Laden, et al; Conclusions of Law #19, p.51.

As of 2016, Iran still owed American victims of its terrorism $53 billion in U.S. court judgments, for acts including the 9/11 attacks. HuffPost, however, never published a single item about this, either. Instead, as documented in this comprehensive report by SaveTheWest.com, HuffPost essentially acted as Iran’s volunteer PR agency to lie and bully the U.S. Senate to accept President Obama’s fraudulent Iran nuclear “deal.” Learn more at:

Iran’s involvement in the 9/11 attacks, and its long-term support for Al Qaeda

Iran has been the #1 largest state sponsor of global terrorism

“The Rhodes To HuffPost”: The Huffington Post’s use of lies, deception, bias and anti-Semitic incitement in order to help “sell” the Iran deal

Together, all these facts prove that HuffPost’s smearing of Sen. McCain in 2008, to simultaneously discredit him, based on a provable lie — while whitewashing and protecting Iran’s long, deep involvement with Al Qaeda, were not accidents.  Its libelous assault on McCain’s credibility was part of its long-standing pattern of seeking to destroy anyone who in any way clashes with, or exposes the false narratives that it is so heavily invested in propagating throughout our culture.

And yet, as of September 18, 2018, HuffPost still has this libelous “news” story published on its site — in this case, being visibly enabled and legitimized by advertising from Ebay.  See what ads show up when you visit the page:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/06/mccain-gets-facts-wrong-o_n_95297.html

(4) April 2008: HuffPost gave top coverage to a proof-less, discredited rumor that Sen. McCain called his wife, Cindy, a “c*nt”

On April 7, 2008, as Sen. John McCain was close to winning the Republican nomination for the presidency, HuffPost published this splash headline atop its front page:

Clicking on that news headline brought the reader to this page. Note the other “news” story to which HuffPost was giving top promotion, at the upper right:

“Report: McCain’s Temper Flare-Up, Called Wife A C*nt”

Clicking on that headline, in turn, brought the reader to this page:

Report: McCain’s Profane Tirade At His Wife, by Nick Juliano, Huffington Post, April 7, 2008. Excerpt:

Three reporters from Arizona, on the condition of anonymity, also let me in on another incident involving McCain’s intemperateness. In his 1992 Senate bid, McCain was joined on the campaign trail by his wife, Cindy, as well as campaign aide Doug Cole and consultant Wes Gullett. At one point, Cindy playfully twirled McCain’s hair and said, “You’re getting a little thin up there.” McCain’s face reddened, and he responded, “At least I don’t plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you cunt.”

The next day, April 9, as reported in U.S. News & World Report, Sen. McCain and his campaign vehemently denied this accusation, and claimed it was pure fiction, driven by partisan hacks:

The McCain campaign has furiously denied the reports, calling them “fabrications” and “trash.” McCain, asked during an appearance today on Fox News whether the alleged Renzi incident was true, replied, “No.” Campaign spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker told U.S. News that both stories are “untrue and driven by partisan interests and blind sources.”

In the same USN&WR article, Nico Pitney, a HuffPost “editor,” justified its publication of this completely unsubstantiated, vicious rumor:

[Pitney] told U.S. News that “we noted in our report on the book that the story was anonymously sourced; we wanted our readers to be aware of that […] As with any such reporting—whether it’s in the New York Times, a Bob Woodward book, or an account from Cliff Schecter — people have to consider the information critically and make up their own minds,” he said.

Then, a blogger looked into the “journalist” who is cited in HuffPost’s “report” as the source of this “story,” and exposed him as a partisan hack and conspiracy theorist, with no credibility.

HuffPost never published Sen. McCain’s denials — or any indication as to the credibility of its “source.” As a result, anyone who got their news only from HuffPost would be left with no alternative but to assume that:

  • The McCain campaign had never responded to the vicious allegations that it published against him
  • The allegation against Sen. McCain is true

And yet, as of September 18, 2018, HuffPost still has this libelous “news” story published on its site — in this case, being visibly enabled and legitimized by advertising from Allianz and CenturyLink.  See what ads show up when you visit the page:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/07/report-mccains-profane-ti_n_95429.html

(5) August 2008: HuffPost called Cindy McCain “a dick,” trashed her looks, and mocked her addiction to painkillers

On November 9, 2007, Arianna Huffington announced the debut of a new HuffPost feature, “Dickipedia,” which she said “looks just like Wikipedia, but it’s about the world’s biggest dicks” (screencap). In reality, this was part of HuffPost’s ongoing effort to dedicated to mocking, smearing and humiliating anyone with whom this allegedly “nonpartisan news” organization disagreed. “Dickipedia” was later taken down, after AOL purchased HuffPost and wanted to clean up the site (to some degree).

On August 10, 2008, HuffPost published this “news” story on its front page:

Cindy McCain Is A Dick, Huffington Post, August 10, 2008. Excerpt:

Cindy Lou Hensley McCain (born Cindy Lou Hensley on May 20, 1954) is the wife of U.S. Senator, ill-fated presidential candidate, elderly curmudgeon, and dick John McCain. She, herself, is a multi-millionaire, pill-popper—a combination sometimes referred to as a “pillionaire”—and an excellent example of why people should stop after one facelift, two max. She is also a dick.

As a potential though seriously long shot First Lady, anything and everything about Cindy McCain was seized upon and exaggerated by the media. Like her hideously plastic appearance. And the period of her life she spent zonked out on Percocet. And that she obviously has a fetish for old balls.

McCain is chair of Hensley & Co., one of the largest Anheuser-Busch beer distributors in the nation. Essentially, this makes her a legalized drug kingpin. Of course, better that than ketchup czar, but still.

Cindy McCain wishes she were Michelle Obama so bad, it gives her sweater bullets just thinking about it.

Although HuffPost later removed this “news” item, it is still retrievable through the Internet Archive, here (see bottom of page for attribution to HuffPost) — and, momentarily (apparently due to a technical quirk), on HuffPost itself, here.

See bottom of page: “Dickipedia” was owned and operated by HuffPost:

(6) September 2008: HuffPost asked, “Is John McCain Mentally Fit To Be President?,” and speculated whether he had Alzheimer’s Disease, as a pretext for repeatedly demanding his medical records — which is the exact opposite of what it did in 2016 regarding Sec. Clinton’s obvious health problems

On September 30, 2008, HuffPost published this editorial on its front page — questioning Sen. McCain’s sanity — five weeks before election day:

Is John McCain Mentally Fit To Be President?, by Erik Ose, Huffington Post, September 30, 2008. Excerpt:

In a breathtakingly puzzling move, John McCain showed terrible judgment by selecting first term Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his running mate. Despite the spin that desperate Republicans immediately parroted, it wasn’t a brilliant pick, or a game-changer. It was an amazingly bad choice. […]

It all raises the uncomfortable question of whether McCain might be exhibiting signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

I don’t take the subject of Alzheimer’s lightly. My grandfather died of complications from the disease, and I watched his mind waste away over a period of several painful years. But it’s a question that must be asked in view of John McCain’s age. If elected, he would be the nation’s oldest president in history.

This was part of a continuous stream of articles HuffPost published in 2008 that questioned Sen. McCain’s physical and mental health, and demanded his medical records.  See a partial archive of these articles here.  Examples:

New Urgency Over McCain Medical Questions As Election Nears, by Sam Stein, Huffington Post, October 31, 2008.

Doctors Call On McCain To Release Medical Records (VIDEO), Huffington Post, October 15, 2008.

McCain VP Meeting: A Distraction From Medical Records, Huffington Post, May 30, 2008.

Contrast HuffPost’s actions regarding Sen. McCain, to its refusal to publish any information about Sec. Clinton’s obviously serious medical problems, eight years later — and even reportedly putting one of its journalist’s lives in danger because he broke through its wall of silence

Throughout the 2016 presidential race, HuffPost consistently ignored all the videos and medical accounts of Sec. Clinton’s fainting spells and apparent epileptic seizures (which Sen. McCain never demonstrated).  Examples:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0dkexzJbRY

Yet throughout the 2016 race, HuffPost established a firewall against publishing any items about her fainting while walking, and her coughing spasms — symptoms that Sen. McCain never displayed.

In August 2016, long-term HuffPost contributor David Seaman was somehow able to sneak an article onto its front page, containing videos of these incidents and physicians’ speculation as to what caused them.  In an act akin to Stalinist whitewashing, HuffPost not only fired Seaman and removed the article, it expunged his entire archive of unrelated articles.  Combined, HuffPost’s actions created such public hatred against him that he claimed he began to fear for his life.

“I feel I have to document this. It’s chilling. I still haven’t really absorbed it because The Huffington Post, where I was a contributor, they have revoked my publishing access and they have deleted both of my articles that were published earlier over the weekend. Both of my articles have been pulled without notice of any kind, just completely deleted from the internet. Both of those articles mentioned Hillary’s health.”

“It’s frankly chilling. I’m a little scared. I’m doing this video also to say I am not suicidal right now, I’m not a particularly clumsy person. I don’t own a car, at the moment, I Uber everywhere, so if I am to slip in the shower over the next couple of days or something silly like that, we have to really, kind of, employ probability and statistics here, because I’m not a clumsy person, right? And I’m also not a depressed person, right now. I’m a person who’s spooked out, though. This is spooky. To me, this is extremely spooky. I don’t like it.”

Read more:

Suspended HuffPost Writer Fears For His Life: ‘I’m Not Suicidal’, by Robert Kraychik, Daily Wire, August 29, 2016.

VIDEO: Huffington Post Contributor Says He Was Fired For Posting Article About Hillary’s Health, by Tim Hains, RealClearPolitics, August 29, 2016.

VIDEO: HuffPost Fires Contributor, Deletes Articles Questioning Hillary’s Health, by Christian Datoc, Daily Caller, August 29, 2016.

Contrast what was done to Mr. Seaman to the specific verbiage that AOL used in 2016 to sell HuffPost ads to major corporations:

“The Huffington Post covers the world’s stories from every viewpoint.”

(7) September-October 2008: HuffPost repeatedly smeared Sen. McCain as a “racist” and “anti-Semite,” and claimed his supporters were, as well

The following is but a sampling of Tweets posted on official HuffPost accounts, explicitly calling Sen. McCain a racist (and anti-Semite), and claiming his supporters are, as well, between September 19 and October 10, 2008:

(8) October 2008: HuffPost claimed Hitler, Satan and cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer were supporting Sen. McCain’s candidacy for president

HuffPost published the following Tweet on October 8, 2008:

(9) November 2012: HuffPost again smeared Sen. McCain as a “racist” and “misogynist,” and claimed he was “unhinged”

On November 19, 2012, HuffPost published the following editorial on its front page:

The Unhinging of John McCain, by Geoffrey Dunn, Huffington Post, November 19, 2012. Excerpt:

In case anyone hasn’t noticed, Arizona Senator John McCain has been making a fool of himself lately, on a weekly if not daily basis, his rants seeming to be fueled by an unhealthy mix of anger and envy, with not insignificant hints of racism and misogyny thrown in for good measure. The direct, and at times indirect, object of his rage has been President Barack Obama, who beat McCain substantially in the 2008 presidential election and who had the gall to be reelected by a significant electoral margin again this month—much, apparently, to McCain’s chagrin.

Note that as shown in the following screencap, taken on August 29, 2018, Fidelity and Volvo were visibly enabling and legitimizing HuffPost’s venomous attack on Sen. McCain:

On September 18, 2018 another screencap showed that ads from Sprint and IsraelBonds.com were visibly enabling and legitimizing HuffPost’s smears against Sen. McCain — the latter of which is notable because he was such a staunch supporter of the Jewish state.  Try this link yourself and see which organization’s ads show up:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/geoffrey-dunn/the-unhinging-of-john-mcc_b_2160005.html

(10) November 2017: A HuffPost “senior reporter” congratulated Sen. McCain’s family on the financial inheritance they’ll receive — after he dies

Background: On November 30, 2017, Sen. McCain indicated he would vote for the tax reform bill that was being considered in the Senate. As part of the bill, which would significantly lower middle-class taxes, and remove millions of the poor from the tax rolls, the government would double the estate amount that is exempt from taxation, from $5.5 million to $11 million.

In regards to Sen. McCain’s personal situation, as Fox News reported:

[Sen. McCain] is undergoing treatment for brain cancer. McCain, a 2008 presidential nominee, revealed in July he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a particularly aggressive type of tumor. More than 12,000 people are diagnosed with glioblastoma, the American Brain Tumor Association reported.

“The prognosis is very, very serious,” McCain said on CBS’ “60 Minutes” in late September.

This incident: In response to news that Sen. McCain decided to support the tax reform bill, one of HuffPost’s “senior reporters,” Ashley Feinberg, posted this Tweet:

“Congratulations to John McCain’s wife and children on their upcoming tax-free inheritance”

After significant push-back on conservative sites (most of whose writers were fierce critics of Sen. McCain), Feinberg issued a half-hearted apology and removed the Tweet.

Sen. McCain’s daughter, Meghan, however, called Feinberg (and HuffPost) out for it:

HuffPost Reporter ‘Sorry’ for Trolling Ailing John McCain’s Family on ‘Upcoming Tax-Free Inheritance’, by Jon Levine, The Wrap, December 4, 2017. Excerpt:

The tweet, which Feinberg deleted, was screencapped by the senator’s daughter and co-host of “The View,” Meghan McCain.

“There is no deleting a tweet like this,” she wrote. “I hope no one ever treats your family this way during a time of great pain.”

McCain also pulled the classic Twitter move of tagging Feinberg’s employer.

There is no deleting a tweet like this @ashleyfeinberg – I hope no one ever treats your family this way during a time of great pain and i hope @HuffPost is aware of what their journalists are tweeting pic.twitter.com/8C9BnJsUG5

— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) December 1, 2017

The Feinberg apology wasn’t enough for the younger McCain, however, who demanded more contrition in the form of a personal apology to Meghan’s mother, Cindy McCain:

“Apologize to my mother @cindymccain directly,” she wrote. “I believe she is owed a hell of a lot better than whatever kind of apology you think this is”

Yet as of August 29, 2018, Feinberg was still employed as a “senior reporter” for HuffPost:

Which is extra ironic, given that on August 27, 2018 Feinberg stated on Twitter that she “won’t apologize” for what she described as her “unbiased journalism”:

It should also be noted that this “senior reporter” regularly engages in foul-mouthed partisan diatribes on Twitter.

(II) Examples of how President Obama richly rewarded HuffPost for all it did for him

From its debut in 2005 until early 2009, HuffPost was run almost entirely out of Arianna Huffington’s California mansion.

Within days of Obama winning the 2008 election, however, HuffPost began its mercurial ascent into one of the world’s most-read online “news” sites — in large part, apparently, due at least in part to its incessant shilling for him — and smear campaign against Sen. McCain:

November 19-21, 2008: Huffington finally admits how close she is to Obama — and receives $15 million in venture capital

  • November 19, 2008: After repeatedly denying that she or HuffPost were biased for or against any candidate, Huffington finally admitted the reality:

“I only text three people – my two teenage children and Barack Obama.”

  • November 21, 2008: HuffPost secured $15 million in much-needed venture capital.
The Obamas with Arianna Huffington, whose supposedly “nonpartisan” news site provided vital assistance to his ascent to the presidency.

December 2008 – January 2009: HuffPost rapidly established a “bureau” in Washington, DC, and was soon rewarded in a way that the entire world could see.

(1) February 9, 2009: President Obama passed over actual news organizations in his first press conference, to allow a HuffPost “journalist” to ask a question — which was completely off-topic

(2) June 6, 2009: Huffington was invited to “testify” before the Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate on “the future of journalism” — before a committee comprising many Democratic Senators who were also HuffPost bloggers

(3) June 24, 2009: President Obama engaged in “a pre-coordinated stunt” with a HuffPost “journalist”

(4) May 20, 2010: President Obama urged conservative college students to read HuffPost

(1) February 9, 2009: President Obama passed over actual news organizations in his first press conference, to allow a HuffPost “journalist” to ask a question — which was completely off-topic

This was Obama’s chose to reward HuffPost in general, before a world stage, via, Sam Stein, its “journalist” who (a) smeared Sen. McCain by falsely claiming he was incorrect and incompetent in claiming a working relationship between Iran and Al Qaeda, and (b) later, penning articles justifying its demands for his medical records.  As documented at Huff-Watch:

February 9, 2009 was the watershed moment in HuffPost’s political “legitimization.” For it was on that date that President Obama, after taking a few questions from (legitimate) news organizations at the end of his first prime-time press conference, decided to pass over the remaining assembled domestic and international journalists — and instead, picked HuffPost’s Sam Stein to ask a question.

It’s worthwhile to note that the topic of this press conference was America’s economic crisis. So what did Stein ask Obama? If he’s going to consider prosecuting President Bush for, among other things, “war crimes.”

“Today, Senator Patrick Leahy announced that he wants to set up a truth and reconciliation committee to investigate the misdeeds of the Bush administration. He said that before you turn the page, you have to read the page first. Do you agree with such a proposal, and are you willing to rule out right here and now any prosecution of Bush administration officials?”

[Watch video of the exchange here]

Even Time magazine pointed out at the time, that HuffPost is “unapologetically unobjective” in its “journalism”:

Change in Washington comes in increments, and a door was cracked open on Feb. 9 when, in the first official press conference of the Obama Administration, the President took a question from a reporter who writes only for a Web outlet. Admittedly, said outlet was the Huffington Post (or, as it is called for short, the HuffPo), so the reporter was unlikely to throw a curveball. Nevertheless, the President, and with him the whole White House media shop, has crossed a Rubicon of sorts, acknowledging the equivalent legitimacy of an unapologetically unobjective media outlet, which lives nowhere but the Internet and which didn’t even exist four years ago.

What we find particularly amusing is how, while HuffPost’s Comment Policy prohibits “off-topic” comments — yet routinely allows its comment threads to be engulfed with comments discussing everything but the topic at hand (more) — it similarly allowed its Washington, DC reporter to ask an off-topic question in his first opportunity with the President of the United States.

March 19, 2009: Huffington rebuffs criticism of HuffPost, claimed she sees herself as “the future of journalism, not the end of it.” Time magazine claimed that after interviewing Huffington, particularly regarding a growing chorus of quiet criticism from (actual) news organizations about her “news” site’s bias, and how it is being rewarded by the Obama administration:

“[Arianna Huffington] is offended and bewildered by the suggestion that other news outlets think she’s getting a free ride. She sees herself as the future of journalism, not the end of it.”

May 22, 2009: In an interview with Politico, Huffington once again claimed that under her leadership, HuffPost is a completely nonpartisan “news” site:

“[W]e are increasingly seen … as an Internet newspaper, not positioned ideologically in terms of how we cover the news.”

(2) June 6, 2009: Huffington was invited to “testify” before the Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate on “the future of journalism” — before a committee comprising many Democratic Senators who were also HuffPost bloggers

From Huff-Watch:

Some interesting notes:

♦  Sen. John Kerry, who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation, which conducted this “hearing,” is also an official HuffPost blogger.

♦  Four of the other fourteen Democratic “committee members” are also official HuffPost bloggers, including Sen. Byron Dorgan, Sen. Barbara Boxer, Sen. Frank Lautenberg and Sen. Mark Begich.

(3) June 24, 2009: President Obama engaged in “a pre-coordinated stunt” with a HuffPost “journalist”

This was how Obama chose to reward HuffPost via Nico Pitney, the “editor” who defended its publication of the proof-less, discredited allegation that Sen. McCain called his wife Cindy “a c*nt.”  As described by the Washington Post:

In his first daytime news conference yesterday, President Obama preempted “All My Children,” “Days of Our Lives” and “The Young and the Restless.” But the soap viewers shouldn’t have been disappointed: The president had arranged some prepackaged entertainment for them.

After the obligatory first question from the Associated Press, Obama treated the overflowing White House briefing room to a surprise. “I know Nico Pitney is here from the Huffington Post,” he announced.

Obama knew this because White House aides had called Pitney the day before to invite him, and they had escorted him into the room. They told him the president was likely to call on him, with the understanding that he would ask a question about Iran that had been submitted online by an Iranian. “I know that there may actually be questions from people in Iran who are communicating through the Internet,” Obama went on. “Do you have a question?”

Pitney recognized his prompt. “That’s right,” he said, standing in the aisle and wearing a temporary White House press pass. “I wanted to use this opportunity to ask you a question directly from an Iranian.” […]

The use of planted questioners is a no-no at presidential news conferences, because it sends a message to the world — Iran included — that the American press isn’t as free as advertised. But yesterday wasn’t so much a news conference as it was a taping of a new daytime drama, “The Obama Show.”

Later, as reported by Politico:

Reporters typically don’t coordinate their questions for the president before press conferences, so it seemed odd that Obama might have an idea what the question would be. Also, it was a departure from White House protocol by calling on The Huffington Post second, in between the AP and Reuters.

CBS Radio’s Mark Knoller, a veteran White House correspondent, said over Twitter it was “very unusual that Obama called on Huffington Post second, appearing to know the issue the reporter would ask about.”

According to POLITICO’s Carol Lee, The Huffington Post reporter was brought out of lower press by deputy press secretary Josh Earnest and placed just inside the barricade for reporters a few minutes before the start of the press conference.

April 2010: After being admitted to the White House Correspondents Association, Huffington was reportedly furious that HuffPost was only given one table, instead of the three it requested.

From the Washington Examiner:

Arianna huffs about overbooked celebs at WHCD, by Tara Palmeri, Washington Examiner, April 14, 2010. Excerpt:

Like a Real Housewife of New Jersey, Arianna Huffington was flipping tables, well, at least metaphorically.

Because like most media organizations that placed a bid for White House Correspondents dinner tables, the Huffington Post founder didn’t get her way. “She was not happy,” an insider told Yeas & Nays.

Being a new member to the White House Correspondents Association, this is the first year the Internet news site will have presence at the dinner.

Huffington asked for three tables, and on the assumption that her wish would be granted, invited 14 celebrity guests in advance, but only got one table.

“Many organizations ignored our blanket warning to all — to not invite guests until they know their seating capacity,” Edwin Chen, president of the White House Correspondents Association told Yeas & Nays. “Now some must disinvite people. This is a regrettable situation, but it’s not one of our making.”

Although HuffPo didn’t heed the warnings, the association was forgiving and provided them with additional seats.

May 1, 2010: HuffPost rewrote AP story headline to provide glowing praise for Obama’s White House Correspondents Dinner speech

On May 1, 2010, the San Diego Union-Tribune published this AP story, as it was provided:

Obama takes digs at birthers, GOP, his advisers, by Christine Simmons, AP, San Diego Union-Tribune, May 1, 2010:

President Barack Obama shared some words of wisdom on Saturday, saying there a few things in life harder to find and more important to keep than love.

“Well, love and a birth certificate,” Obama quipped at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, poking fun at those who question his place of birth. “I happen to know that my approval ratings are still very high in the country of my birth.” Obama was born in Hawaii, but birthers question whether he was born overseas.

Obama also jabbed Jay Leno, the comedian headlining the dinner. Obama dinged Leno as “the only person whose ratings fell more than mine.”

HuffPost, however, turned that source story into this:

Obama Kills At White House Correspondents Dinner, by AP/Huffington Post, May 1, 2010.

(4) May 20, 2010: President Obama urged conservative college students to read HuffPost

On May 20, 2010, President Obama gave the commencement speech at the University of Michigan, before an audience of 90,000 students, faculty and guests.  Within his speech, apparently knowing that his audience was overwhelmingly left-of-center, he explicitly urged the minority of conservatives/Republicans to read HuffPost:

“If you’re a fan of Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh, try reading a few columns on the Huffington Post website. It may make your blood boil; your mind may not often be changed. But the practice of listening to opposing views is essential for effective citizenship.”

HuffPost reveled in Obama’s latest efforts to raise its stature, and legitimacy as a “news” organization, before a mass audience. Here was the top of HuffPost’s front page, from later the same day (May 20):

NewsBusters exposed the hypocrisy demonstrated by Obama for making such a statement, after his long history of boycotting Fox News — which HuffPost completely left out of its coverage of this event:

Obama: Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck Fans – Check Out Huffington Post, by Noel Sheppard, NewsBusters, May 1, 2010.

(III) Examples of how HuffPost praised Sen. McCain after he passed, presumably because of his virulent opposition to President Trump

Since 2015, HuffPost took the smear model that it employed to help destroy Sen. McCain’s run for the presidency, and put it on steroids in its war against Donald Trump, Republicans and conservatives.  Further, as documented at the 2:09 mark of this short video, produced by SaveTheWest.com, HuffPost even explicitly incited and legitimized the left’s offensive use of physical violence against anyone with whom they disagree, politically:

See the documentation behind this video here.

Given all the above, it is reasonable to assume that as Sen. McCain was an early, escalating, vehement opponent of Trump as a presidential candidate, and certainly after he was elected president, is at least a significant part of the reason why HuffPost did such an about-face on him, and showered such positive coverage on him, after his death. We can also reasonably assume that the fact that he invited President Obama to speak at his funeral — but not President Trump — compelled HuffPost’s editors to be on their best behavior, for this brief period of time.

The following items all appeared on HuffPost’s front page, and are presented in chronological order.

August 25

Cindy And Meghan McCain Mourn John McCain With Heartbreaking Tribute; “His love and his care … took me from a girl to a woman. And he showed me what it is to be a man,” the senator’s daughter tweeted, by Carla Herreria, August 25, 2018.

August 26

The Best Stories About John McCain; Capitol Hill staffers and reporters are among those sharing their favorite memories of the senator, by Igor Bobic, Huffington Post, August 26, 2018.

Politicians Grieve John McCain’s Death With Touching Tributes; The senator earned respect from both sides of the aisle, and tributes from the likes of Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders and Paul Ryan are proof, by Carla Herreria and Hayley Miller, Huffington Post,August 26, 2018.

Republicans Can Honor John McCain By Putting America Before Trump, by Robert Kuttner, Huffington Post, August 26, 2018.

August 27

MCCAIN’S FAREWELL MESSAGE; John McCain Aide Reads Senator’s Final Message To America, by Antonia Blumberg, Huffington Post, August 27, 2018.

John McCain Had A Tremendous Sense Of Humor, Especially About Himself; The Arizona senator’s appearances on “Saturday Night Live” show he could take — and make — a joke, by Andy McDonald, Huffington Post, August 27, 2018.

VIDEO: Trump Finally Praises McCain After Facing Criticism, by Huffington Post, August 28, 2018.

McCain Was Such A Climate Change Maverick That He Undermined His Own Good Work; When climate legislation might actually have had a chance, Sen. John McCain went missing, by Kate Sheppard, Huffington Post, August 27, 2018.

August 28

Secret Service Uses John McCain’s Old Code Name 1 Last Time In Touching Tribute; The late senator was honored by the agency that protected him during his 2008 presidential bid, by Ed Mazza, Huffington Post, August 28, 2018.

August 29

Here’s Who Will Serve As Pallbearers At John McCain’s Washington Memorial; These 15 individuals will carry the Vietnam War veteran’s coffin at Washington National Cathedral, by Nina Golgowski, Huffington Post, August 29, 2018.

August 30

7 Of The Most Heartbreaking Moments From Joe Biden’s Eulogy For John McCain; The former vice president gave an emotional speech about the late senator during Thursday’s memorial in Phoenix, by Doha Madani, Huffington Post, August 30, 2018.

Moving Moments From John McCain’s Capitol Hill Tribute; The senator from Arizona is the 31st person to lie in state in the Capitol rotunda, according to the Architect of the Capitol website, by Saba Hamedy, Huffington Post, August 31, 2018.

September 1

Obama Asks Americans To Rise Above ‘Petty Politics’ During John McCain Eulogy; “There are some things worth risking everything for,” the former president said, by Sebastian Murdock, Huffington Post, September 1, 2018.

MEGHAN SHADE: MCCAIN’S AMERICA ‘WAS ALWAYS GREAT’; John McCain’s daughter delivered a heartfelt and emotional tribute to the senator at the National Cathedral, by Nina Golgowski, Huffington Post, September 1, 2018.