The Independent deletes hit piece on Ron DeSantis and Clarence Thomas after story debunked

Once a story is out there in the public it's rare that those who read it will also read the retraction when the story is proven false. This is likely the case with The Independent.

The mainstream outlet had to delete an article Friday that falsely claimed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R, of course) met with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas (Conservative, of course) the day prior to SCOTUS overturning Roe v. Wade.

The article by leftist Eric Garcia read:

“A series of emails show Mr Thomas’s assistant corresponding with Diane Moulton on Mr DeSantis’s staff about setting up a lunch with Mr Thomas and four of his clerks. Ultimately, they decided to dine at the Supreme Court in the the Natalie Rehnquist Dining Room. On 24 June, the day after the luncheon, the court handed down its decision for Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the 1973 decision which enshrined the right to seek an abortion.”

However, Garcia did not bother to check the dates on the emails, which showed the back-and-forth exchanges occurred in 2021, not this year. 

Checking relevant dates and facts is a process known as journalism.

DeSantis Deputy Press Secretary Jeremy Redfern called Garcia out on Twitter: 

Hey @EricMGarcia from the @Independent,

Is June 23th, 2021 a day before June 24th, 2022? pic.twitter.com/VuvwsljSSD

— Jeremy Redfern (@JeremyRedfernFL)

Garcia, with his tail between his legs responded.

“I am legitimately so sorry. I was not trying to mislead. I am legitimately embarrassed and humiliated. I never wanted to do anything malicious. I am so apologetic. I should have double-checked the dates.”

He went on: “We are taking the article down. I cannot apologize enough. I should have double-checked triple-checked dates. I am mortified and legitimately embarrassed. I want to thank @JeremyRedfernFL for flagging. And apologize to Governor DeSantis and Justice Thomas. This is a horrible error on my part.”

“The story is in the process of being retracted. I am just embarrassed as hell,” he concluded. “Words cannot describe how mortified I am. I try to be honest in my work. I don’t try to do gotcha journalism. I always hated that. I can never apologize enough.”

DeSantis campaign Rapid Response Director Christina Pushaw responded to Garcia’s report by writing: “And the implication is that Governor DeSantis, of all people, would try to pressure Clarence Thomas to change the outcome of a SCOTUS decision.”

“Which is patently absurd to anyone who has followed Governor DeSantis or Clarence Thomas for any amount of time,” she added.

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Anyone can make a mistake, but Garcia needs to write a full retraction for the Independent because who knows if his readers saw his groveling? Otherwise, Garcia is a fraud.

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