‘Maliciously Deceiving’: DeSantis Spox Blasts MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell for ‘Shameful’ Slavery Question to Kamala Harris
Screenshot via MSNBC
MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell earned the condemnation of the office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) as his press secretary accused the anchor of purposefully pushing fake news to smear the governor during an interview this week with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris sat down with Mitchell in Munich, Germany for an exclusive interview on a variety of topics, which at one point included DeSantis.
“Let me ask you, what does Governor Ron DeSantis not know about Black history and the Black experience when he says that slavery and the aftermath of slavery should not be taught to Florida schoolchildren?” Mitchell asked Harris.
DeSantis has been under fire from critics for actively working to keep Critical Race Theory and content deemed explicit out of schools. Critics of the governor, particularly in the media, claim that he is effectively banning education on LGBTQ topics and Black history in total — a criticism also previously tied to what Democrats and the press erroneously referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
In the MSNBC interview, Mitchell held out as fact that DeSantis flat-out said the teaching of slavery and its aftermath in schools should be forbidden.
“Shameful,” DeSantis press secretary Bryan Griffin tweeted of the claim. “This question from @mitchellreports exemplifies everything wrong with corporate media. They’re not accidentally terrible at their jobs–they’re maliciously intent on deceiving people. @GovRonDeSantis never said this, and FL has extensive black history requirements.”
Shameful. This question from @mitchellreports exemplifies everything wrong with corporate media.
They’re not accidentally terrible at their jobs–they’re maliciously intent on deceiving people.@GovRonDeSantis never said this, and FL has extensive black history requirements. https://t.co/XZMRoBFuZG
— Bryan Griffin (@BryanDGriffin) February 17, 2023
Griffin brought the receipts with a link to the teaching requirements on the very subject in question directly from the Florida Department of Education.
— Bryan Griffin (@BryanDGriffin) February 17, 2023
Griffin’s tweet was in response to Newsbusters writer Alex Christy accusing Mitchell of spreading fake news with the framing of her question. Other conservative pundits also blasted Mitchell over the clip.
During the Mitchell interview, Harris rolled with the premise of the question and accused DeSantis and others of trying to censor teachers.
“I don’t know what he knows and what he doesn’t know, but I know this,” she said. “Any push to censor America’s teachers and tell them what they should be teaching in the best interest of our children … is wrongheaded.”
UPDATE: DeSantis deputy press secretary Jeremy Redfern responded to a tweet that included Mediaite’s story and called for legal action and a retraction from Mitchell. Redfern said Mitchell has been contacted the DeSantis remark.
“Well, I did tell Andrea Mitchell’s executive producer that she not only lied to the American people, but she lied directly to the Vice President of the United States,” the press secretary tweeted.
