RealClearInvestigations' Picks of the Week
April 12 to April 18, 2020 White House aides tell RealClearInvestigations' Paul Sperry that they've cracked the Beltway's biggest whodunit in years -- the mystery of "Anonymous," the senior Trump official who penned an unsigned New York Times column and a bestselling book trashing the President. She's Virginia Coates, former No. 2 on the National Security Council -- an ally of Texas GOP Senator Ted Cruz. For political reasons, she hasn't been fired but instead is being reposted to Saudi Arabia, far from Trump. For the first time anywhere, Sperry unpacks the elaborate months-long sleuthing that finally unmasked Trump's betrayer. The evidence includes: - Computer textual analyses revealing strikingly similar language, turns of phrase and historical references by both Coates and Anonymous.
- Firsthand accounts by Anonymous of events witnessed only by Coates and a small number of others, the latter of whom were ruled out as suspects.
- Hawkish foreign policy views held by both Coates and Anonymous, many of which have been rejected by Trump.
- The fact that Coates and Anonymous share a high-profile Washington literary agent with an author roster of disaffected ex-Trump officials.
- Her long history of writing anonymously, and
- Personal details revealed by Anonymous that jibe with Coates' biography.
This three-story package includes sidebars: 1) on Cruz's role in getting Coates her job in the White House working for the Senator's onetime bitter foe Donald Trump (thereby advancing Cruz's policy goals); and 2) on the linguistic analysis behind her exposure. The Election Investigations: Top Articles Declassified Footnotes Cast Suspicion on Comey, Mueller, Examiner
Unredacted: Simpson Knew Trump Dirt Tied to Russian Spy, CBS
Unredacted: 'Pee Tape,' Prague Trip Russian Disinfo, FBI Was Told, Daily Caller
New Transcript Exposes Crossfire Hurricane Corruption, Federalist
Hunter Biden Still Listed on Chinese Firm's Board, Daily Caller
Brock's Pro-Biden Dem Group Got $100K in Chinese Stock, Free Beacon Coronavirus Investigations Early Remdesivir Data Show Promise vs. Virus, Stat
Virus Tied to Wuhan Lab, Chinese Medical Competition, Fox
Texas: ER Spent $500K on Unusable Virus Tests, ProPublica, Texas Tribune
Fears of 'Wild West' as COVID-19 Blood Tests Hit the Market, Associated Press
39-Million-Mask Stockpile Exposed as Fake, Los Angeles Times
How Virus Dangers at Meat Plants Imperil Supply, Reuters
Inside America's 2-Decade Failure to Prepare for Coronavirus, Politico Other Noteworthy Articles and Series Tara Reade's Sexual-Penetration Allegation vs. Biden
New York Times
The New York Times waited 19 days to report on allegations by a former Senate aide who said Joe Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993. Its article is a master class in how to report the facts while diminishing them - providing a stark contrast to the paper's coverage that played up similar but less credible accusations against Brett Kavanaugh during is Supreme Court hearings. The Times reports that the former aide, Tara Reade, worked "briefly" for Biden during the time she claims he "pinned her to a wall in a Senate building, reached under her clothing and penetrated her with his fingers." Kavanaugh denied knowing his main accuser, Christine Blasey Ford; she provided no evidence that they did. While Ford waited decades to tell anyone about the alleged attack, Reid told one friend about the assault at the time she alleges it happened. Although the Times has long reported that it is difficult for victims to discuss traumatic experiences, it immediately works to undercut Reid by reporting that "several people who worked in the Senate office with Ms. Reade said they did not recall any talk of such an incident." The article initially drew criticism for this sentence, which seemed to suggest groping was acceptable behavior: "The Times found no pattern of sexual misconduct by Mr. Biden, beyond the hugs, kisses and touching that women previously said made them uncomfortable." The paper drew even more criticism after it deleted the mention of hugs and kisses without a note informing readers that the article had been changed. The plot thickened when Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet, in an interview with the paper's media columnist, Ben Smith, said the paper made the edit because the Biden "campaign thought that the phrasing was awkward." In a further effort to protect Biden, the Times article devoted several paragraphs to allegations made against President Trump. Although Reid accuses Biden of a violent sexual assault, the paper decides it is qualified to rank the severity of such abuse as it states that Trump's accusers have described "a pattern of behavior that went far beyond the accusations against Mr. Biden." Read other critiques here and here. Sen. Burr Sold DC Townhouse to Donor at a Rich Price
ProPublica
This story confirms that the media spotlight is officially trained on North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr and he is presumed to be up to no good. The scrutiny began, properly, a few weeks ago when it was reported that Burr was among a handful of Senators who dumped stocks after receiving high-level briefings about the threat of coronavirus - even as the Republican was telling the public not to worry. This article focuses on Burr's 2017 sale of his Washington, D.C. home to a group led by a donor and powerful lobbyist who had business before Burr's committee. That may raise eyebrows but it is entirely legal; the only question is whether the sale was for well above market value. While the article declares high up that the sale price of $900,000 was "tens of thousands of dollars above some estimates of the property's value by tax assessors" much further down it reports that it was well within the normal range: "comparable properties in the immediate vicinity sold in the year preceding for between $725,000 and $989,000, with an average sale price of about $855,000." As a cynic would ask, "Is that all ya got?" Child Sex Abuse in Pakistan's Religious Schools Is Endemic
Associated Press
An investigation by the AP found dozens of police reports alleging sexual harassment, rape, and physical abuse by Islamic clerics teaching in some of the 22,000 madrassas or religious schools throughout Pakistan, where many of the country's poorest study. The AP also documented cases of abuse through interviews with law enforcement officials, abuse victims, and their parents. Police say the problem of sexual abuse of children by clerics is pervasive and the scores of police reports they have received are just the tip of the iceberg. Yet despite the dozens of reports, none have resulted in the conviction of a cleric. Religious clerics have been able to hide the widespread abuse by accusing victims of blasphemy or defamation of Islam. Stimulus Cash Sent to Dead May Be Legal
USA Today
"Dad got his stimulus check of $1,200. He died in 2018," tweeted Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky. "Does he have time to spend it online?" He is not alone. Because the payments are based on taxpayers' 2019 returns, or 2018 if they have not filed yet, people whose spouses died in those years would be eligible for a payment. Tax experts quoted in the story say spouses can probably cash the checks - but probably not plain old family members. The total will almost certainly run into the millions. But, hey, it's only taxpayer money! Peru, Indiana: Inside the 'Circus Capital of the World'
Atlas Obscura
Adventurous kids in this Indiana town don't have to run away to join the circus: It's there every day, in ongoing shows, historical remnants, and the blood of its residents. The town of 11,000 -- which calls itself "The Circus Capital of the World!" -- has a permanent circus building downtown. There, each July for the past 60 years, town youths and grownups have performed as tightrope walkers, acrobats, and clowns in shows that rival their professional counterparts. Quote: "At circus tryouts a few months ago, 10-year-old Cassandra got jitters just climbing the ladder to the high-wire platform. Today her braids bounce as she chatters with confidence despite being the team rookie. When asked if she is nervous she says, ‘Not really, I am used to it now.' " Peruvian Family Buys 8 NYC Apartments for $27M to Stash Cash Amid Virus
Wall Street Journal
New York City may be a COVID-19 hotspot, but some people still see it as a safe haven, at least for their money. This article reports that a family from Peru paid close to $27 million for eight units at Waterline Square, a new construction residential complex on Manhattan's Upper West Side. "They felt their money was safer in an apartment in New York than in a bank," according to the buyer's agent. |
