At the Republican National Convention this week, Rep. Peter King from Long Island, chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, attacked The Associated Press for its award-winning investigation into the NYPD’s illegal surveillance operations.

King had nothing but contempt for the respected journalists responsible for the AP’s reports, Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman, telling Salon reporter Michael Tracey that the two had “no moral integrity.” And ProPublica, another award-winning operation that debunked widely cited claims that the NYPD had foiled 14 terrorist plots since 9/11 — a claim King repeated at the convention — is a “left-wing publication” equally deserving of disregard.

“It’s the best police department in the world,” King said of the NYPD, and went on to slather praise on Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. “We should thank god every night for the NYPD, and we should pray for the souls of the AP,” he said.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.