Arizona Republican governor frontrunner Kari Lake lashed out at the legacy media for spreading “fake news” about her alleged involvement in a burglary of Democratic rival Katie Hobbs’ campaign headquarters on Oct. 25, without providing evidence.
In a 30-minute press conference the day after the break-in, Lake claimed that the only reason Hobbs accused her was that she was losing in the polls.
“Guys, we’re going to do a tutorial on how fake bogus, defamatory news is made,” Lake told a gauntlet of legacy media outlets in Phoenix.
“We know the world is watching us.”
Lake said while meeting with police officers and firefighters, “my desperate opponent, who is sinking like a lead weight in water, pulled a stunt, and you guys fell for it. She put out a defamatory statement, and you all ran with it.”
Burglary Claims
On Oct. 26, the Arizona Democratic Party, without any supporting evidence, said the burglary was a “direct result” of Lake and “Republicans spreading lies and hate.”In a statement, Hobbs’ campaign manager, Nicole DeMont, echoed those remarks without evidence of Lake’s alleged involvement in the burglary.
“Let’s be clear: for nearly two decades, Kari Lake and her allies have been spreading dangerous misinformation and inciting threats against anyone they see fit,” DeMont said.
“The threats against Arizonans attempting to exercise their constitutional rights and their attacks on elected officials are the direct result of a concerted campaign of lies and intimidation.”
Arrest Made
Police have arrested a man in connection with the break-in but would not release his identity. Nor would they say whether the crime was politically motivated.Lake, who leads Hobbs in a Fox10 news poll 54-43 percent, accused many in the legacy media of being “an arm of the Democrat Party.”
“Many of you are propagandists. And you all should be ashamed.”
“She [Hobbs] knew darned well I had nothing to do with it. So she puts out a statement, and right away, your gatekeepers here at the Democrat Party jump on it. And they put out a statement, which was the cue to you to start running with it.”
Lake said the media did not exercise due diligence in trying to corroborate Hobbs’ statement using credible sources before publishing the story.
“You gotta do better, guys. We’re 13 days out from this election, and you’re trying to influence the election.”
Lake said the same media outlets refused to cover Hunter Biden’s “criminal laptop” before the 2020 presidential election, and “this time, it’s the other way around.”
“You don’t care about the facts. You know the facts will come out later, and you’ll cover those once or twice—no big deal. But you’ll spread the lie around the globe—over and over—and that is how fake news spreads,” Lake said.
“You’re in a frenzied panic because your chosen candidate is not winning. Shame on every one of you.”
Lake said her campaign is considering possible legal action.
In the meantime, Arizona state Rep. Jake Hoffman (R) announced he would introduce a bill to hold news outlets accountable for disseminating information to interfere with an election.
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