Washington Post Fact Checker defends column after Ocasio-Cortez callout: “She’s wrong”

Someone’s nose is growing …

Leading with her chin …
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– News covered by Quincy Quarry News with commentary added.

The Washington Post Fact Checker defends column after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez callout: “She’s wrong.”

A Washington Post fact checker gave rookie Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a rating of “three Pinocchio’s” in response to her comments earlier this week about the minimum wage and living wage.

Three outta four!
A Fact Checker/Washington Post image

Needless to say, Fox News had a field day with this Tweet fight.

The Washington Post fact checker defended his “three-Pinocchio” rating of comments made by rookie Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. 

Tweet fight, street fight – whatever
A Twitter graphic image

The New York Democrat had tweeted Washington Post columnist Glenn Kessler relied on a “Walmart-funded” study when he analyzed her statements from earlier this week that the vast majority of the country doesn’t earn the minimum wage.

In his response, Kessler tweeted a screenshot of an addition to his story that said Jason Furman – the author of the study – previously served as the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under former President Barack Obama, before telling his followers “don’t always believe what you see on Twitter.”

“Ocasio-Cortez would have been fine if she had said “more than a third” or even “almost half.  Instead, she said ‘a vast majority,'” Kessler wrote. 

Added Kessler, “Ocasio-Cortez deserves credit for using her high profile to bring attention to income inequality.  However, she undermines her message when she plays fast and loose with statistics.”

He also said the congresswoman’s assertion that companies like Walmart and Amazon “essentially experience a wealth transfer from the public, for paying people less than a minimum wage” was not true.  He cited Amazon’s support of raising the minimum wage and that entry-level workers at Walmart are paid the higher of $11 per hour or the state minimum wage, not including benefits.  Additionally, Amazon pays its employees at least $15 an hour.

So far, Quincy Quarry has yet to hear word of Ms. Ocasio-Cortez offering an apology or at least a walk back.  Then again, the Quarry newsroom is full of battle-scared males and none of them are expecting her to be offering up a well-warranted apology anytime soon.

Additionally, while Quincy Quarry must give Representative Ocasio-Cortez props for her social media skills which resulted in her upsetting a ten-term incumbent in the Democratic Primary and then coasting to election in the general election in a deep blue congressional district as well as her rhetoric on the stump during and since, she founders badly in other areas. 

For example, both the Quarry’s political affairs and economics desks conversely give the international relations and economics major in college failing marks given her various misstatements about the nature and structure of our federal government system as well as clear weaknesses in her professed understandings of economics in general and government finance in particular. 

That and at least “occasional’ displays of bombast.

Then again, Quincy Quarry is not alone in these sentiments.

Source: Washington Post Fact Checker defends column after Ocasio-Cortez callout: ‘She’s wrong’

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