Kevin McCarthy smacked down by hometown paper columnist for ugly attack on journalists

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was on the receiving end of a public thrashing by the opinion page editor of his hometown newspaper after he told reporters in Washington D.C. that the media is full of America haters.

In a column in the Fresno Bee, opinion editor Tad Weber sarcastically wrote that he appreciated the condescending McCarthy saying he prayed for the press -- but he has a few questions of his own for the embattled Republican leader.

Referring to a tweet with a video clip that McCarthy posted to his Twitter account two days ago, where he stated, "I worry about the constant negativity of the media. But I keep them in my prayers, and I hope one day they’ll start rooting for America to succeed!" Weber fired back in kind.

"McCarthy might be surprised to learn that I pray for him. I do — for him, President Biden, Vice President Harris, House and Senate leaders. I pray for Democrats and Republicans. I also pray for our state and local leaders," he wrote before adding, "Earlier this year McCarthy was not praying for me, quite the opposite. He got mad at me at the end of a news conference, accusing me of not reaching out to his office for his comments when I wrote editorials about him and his leadership. He was mistaken. I do reach out to get his view."

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"To me, his tweet showed he’d like reporters to be more positive. Politicians have been wishing for that ever since reporters began covering them. But journalism and marketing are two different things. Democracy depends on the accountability and transparency of its leaders. McCarthy and other powerful politicians already have staffs spinning public relations in his favor," he added.

Having said that, he called out the House speaker for trying to subvert justice in the service of twice-indicted Donald Trump.

"Why did you call the indictment against former President Trump a weaponizing of the government before you had even seen the charges? Is that fair to the prosecutors who believe they have a case?" he asked and then added, "I would tell him that when he casts such doubt on our longstanding process for justice, he enables those who seemingly want an authoritarian to be in charge, not the American people or their laws."

Pointing out that the Republican lawmaker told reporters, "I am not going to give up on you, I promise, I don’t give up on my members, I don’t give up on you,” Weber replied with a caustic, "OK, Speaker McCarthy, I will do the same. I will keep praying that you are committed to truth and justice more than politics. Can I get an Amen?"

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