The mainstream media blasted Twitter’s new owner, Elon Musk, for questioning their superficial account of the bizarre hammer attack on Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) husband, accusing Musk of using the platform he now controls to spread “misinformation.”
The billionaire had engaged in some unapproved speculation about the incident in a tweet suggesting there was more to the story than meets the eye.
Musk under fire for questioning Paul Pelosi attack narrative
Musk was responding to a tweet from Hillary Clinton — who helped fabricate the Russian collusion hoax — blaming the attack on “hate and deranged conspiracy theories” from the right.
“There is a tiny possibility there might be more to this story than meets the eye,” Musk wrote in a response, which has since been deleted.
The tweet included a link to an article from the Santa Monica Observer, a right-wing site, that speculated the attack was a scuffle between Pelosi, 82, and a love interest. Suspect David DePape, 42, is a former nudity activist.
Musk’s critics, already exercised about his pledge to make Twitter more democratic by prioritizing free speech, pounced on his tweet as a sign that the site will soon be overrun with “misinformation.” He tweeted a comeback to the New York Times after the newspaper accused him of spreading fake news:
This is fake – I did *not* tweet out a link to The New York Times! pic.twitter.com/d6V6m5ATW2
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2022
Speculation continues
DePape was charged Monday with attempted kidnapping and assault with intent to retaliate against a federal official by threatening or injuring a family member. A criminal complaint said that DePape intended to kidnap Nancy Pelosi and break her kneecaps.
The suspect, who has been living out of a garage in Richmond, California, allegedly entered the Pelosi home by smashing a glass door at the rear of the house early Friday morning.
Paul Pelosi reportedly called 911 from his bathroom and referred to the suspect as a “friend,” in what police say may have been a coded plea for help. He is expected to make a full recovery from the attack, which left him with a fractured skull.
Police have not yet established a motive for the strange attack, which occurred days before critical midterm elections, but Democrats and their media allies have rushed to blame it on the right.
They have specifically sought to tie the incident to January 6th, while characterizing the attacker as a right-wing QAnon follower on the basis of his alleged social media postings.