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In light of what was reported yesterday about what House Intel Committee Chair Adam Schiff knew and when he knew it regarding the whistleblower complaint, a whole lot of apologists are predictably weighing in essentially saying his deception was/is no big deal.

CNBC’s John Harwood was one such person, and he specifically took issue with comments veteran journalist Brit Hume made about the New York Times’ report on Schiff’s early knowledge of the complaint. Here’s what Hume wrote:

This puts the whole impeachment inquiry in a new light. There’s no getting around the appearance that collusion-truther and Trump antagonist Schiff was a partner in this from the start. https://t.co/x9JvHg9yL4 — Brit Hume (@brithume) October 2, 2019

Hume is, of course, right, but Harwood responded with what he probably thought was a brilliant takedown. Hume wasn’t having it:

My, John. Such a powerful argument you make. — Brit Hume (@brithume) October 2, 2019

Later in the day, Hume pinpointed some of the biggest flaws in the arguments Schiff’s defenders were making:

Schiff defenders are claiming there’s nothing to see here in the revelation that the whistleblower conferred with Schiff staff before filing the complaint. If that’s so, why didn’t Schiff acknowledge the contact when asked about it? 1/2 — Brit Hume (@brithume) October 2, 2019

2/2 I think the answer is obvious. He knew how it would look. So he gave this answer, “We have not spoken directly with the whistleblower.” If by “we” he meant only himself, he’s being slippery. If by “we” he meant himself and his staff, he lied. — Brit Hume (@brithume) October 2, 2019

Schiff and company point to his use of the word “directly” when he was asked about what he knew in a recent interview:

Schiff lied:

“We have not spoken directly with the whistleblower.” pic.twitter.com/A4XwpDAaDg — Mike (@Doranimated) October 2, 2019

… as if that puts him in the free and clear on the issue colluding with the whistleblower well in advance.

It doesn’t.

Reps. Liz Cheney and Doug Collins were right. This looks like a political set-up a la the Russia collusion hoax.

I’d say Schiff and his minions should be ashamed but that would mean assuming they had any shame. They don’t.

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— Based in North Carolina, Sister Toldjah is a former liberal and a 15+ year veteran of blogging with an emphasis on media bias, social issues, and the culture wars. Read her Red State archives here. Connect with her on Twitter. –