The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's coverage of the Senate runoff elections in Georgia has included numerous attempts to "fact check" the candidates, nearly all of which are extremely deferential to the Democratic candidates.
Last week, for example, the AJC analyzed Raphael Warnock's (unequivocally false) claim that his opponent, Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R., Ga.), had "voted to defund the police" and failed to render a verdict either way. The paper also defended Warnock against Loeffler's charge that he supports court packing, citing his repeated refusal to oppose court packing in response to direct questions.
A few days later, the paper tackled allegations that Warnock is "anti-Israel" and didn't find much evidence to support them—apart from the time he signed a letter describing Israel as an "apartheid state," or the time he defended a radical pastor who accused Israel of "ethnic cleansing" and denounced the influence of "them Jews" over former president Barack Obama, or the time he attended a campaign event with a former congressman who compared Israeli Jews to "termites."
On Tuesday, the AJC published an item challenging "Loeffler's view that she's not racist," citing Warnock's counterargument ("Yes, she is.") as evidence. The publication has yet to perform a "truth check" on some of Loeffler's most prominent accusations, so the Washington Free Beacon decided to do it for them.
The statement:
"Radical liberal Raphael Warnock." —Sen. Kelly Loeffler
What we found:
Loeffler described Warnock as a "radical liberal" 13 times during a debate earlier this month. Warnock has refused to deny the accusation. Instead, he has suggested that the radical liberal statements he made in the past may have been taken "out of context."
Loeffler's use of the term "radical liberal" amounted to "vile fearmongering" against the black community, said Rev. Al Sharpton, who knows a thing or two about vile fearmongering and should never be taken seriously by anyone.
Warnock seems like a radical lib.
Conclusion:
Where there's smoke, there's fire.
The statement:
"Raphael Warnock's ex-wife Ouleye's allegations are deeply troubling." —Sen. Kelly Loeffler
What we found:
Recently released police bodycam footage shed more light on a March 2020 domestic dispute between Warnock and his ex-wife, Ouleye Ndoye, who accused him of running over her foot with his car.
Ndoye told police that for the sake of Warnock's "reputation," she had "tried to keep the way that he acts under wraps for a long time," adding that Warnock is a "great actor" who is "phenomenal at putting on a really good show."
Warnock told police he didn't "think" he ran over his ex-wife's foot with his car and later told the AJC that it "didn't happen." His campaign accused Loeffler of "attacking his family" by expressing concern over the allegations of domestic abuse.
Conclusion:
Allegations of domestic abuse are deeply troubling. Unlike Rev. Warnock, we think women deserve to be heard, and to be believed. Proponents of domestic abuse already have a champion in the form of Sen. Tom Carper (D., Del.). They don't need another.