Senators are seeking answers regarding the Trump administration granting press credentials to anti-Semitic and conspiracy broadcaster Rick Wiles and his outlet TruNews to cover the World Economic Forum last week in Davos, Switzerland.
In a letter on Tuesday to acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote that if Wiles and TruNews were actually granted press access to cover Davos, it “raise[s] serious questions about the White House credentialing process.”
CNN anchor Jake Tapper posted on Twitter last week that the White House Correspondents’ Association, which consists of and represents reporters covering 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, confirmed that TruNews was credentialed by the White House to cover the World Economic Forum.
The White House Correspondents' Association (@WHCA), which does *NOT* make credentialing decisions, confirms to me that the White House credentialed the anti-Semitic TruNews.
— Jake Tapper 🦅 (@jaketapper) January 22, 2020
WHCA says it is raising this issue with the WH. https://t.co/g6a09Rw8wG
The White House declined to comment on the record regarding TruNews being granted press access from the administration to cover Davos.
WHCA president and ABC News chief White House correspondent Jonathan Karl told JNS that there is “still no on-the-record response from the White House.”
In November, Wiles called the effort to impeach U.S. President Donald Trump a “Jew coup.”
The letter states that “Wiles has said that a Jewish mafia or ‘Jewish lobby’ controls the United States, he has called Jews ‘deceivers’ and ‘domestic enemies,’ and he has accused them of ‘do[ing] whatever they have to do to accomplish their political agenda’ and ‘pushing this country to civil war.’”
“Given this history of absurd and hateful statements, it is difficult to understand why the White House would have extended Mr. Wiles and TruNews press credentials,” wrote Rosen and Wyden.
The senators asked the White House about its vetting process for credentialing the press, and whether the “administration will formally condemn Rick Wiles and TruNews for their anti-Semitic statements.”
“The normalization of anti-Semitism continues to pose a grave threat to Jews in America and across the world, just as the normalization of anti-religious hatred poses a threat to other belief communities,” wrote Rosen and Wyden. “In light of this, we urge you in the strongest terms to ensure that the administration does not grant press credentials or extend any other form of approval to Rick Wiles or TruNews in the future.”
Dexter Van Zile, a media analyst for the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA), told JNS that by granting a press credential to TrueNews, the administration had become part of the problem when it comes to fighting hatred toward Jews.
“Anti-Semitism is a virus that responsible leaders work to contain,” he said. “By granting TruNews insider status at the World Economic Forum, U.S. officials have helped mainstream this virus.”
