Good news, everyone! Sexual misconduct is great again! It seems Al Franken’s probation is over and he’s ready to return to the general population. At least according to the New Yorker’s Jane Mayer:

Almost NOTHING His Main Accuser Said checks out: the Case of Al Franken https://t.co/zNzRMPRoa2 — Jane Mayer (@JaneMayerNYer) July 22, 2019

Oh really?

Hard not to note the irony of Jane Mayer of all ppl writing a long defense of Al Franken, arguing he was unfairly forced to resign for an act of sexual harrassment that was actually *caught on film* plus other unverified accusations. She lacks shame. https://t.co/znthkSkg6L — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

And she apparently thinks we lack memory of what she did to Brett Kavanaugh.

With Franken, it's all about 'context' and the politics of his accusers, and the opportunism of Republicans at the time, blah blah blah. This is the woman who wrote the "Brett Kavanaugh may have flashed me in my sleep, I'm not sure but let's go with it" to tank his nomination. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

The irony here is that I actually think (and have always thought) that Franken got a raw deal. But if there's any one person with absolutely no standing to write the case defending him and lamenting his unseemly political knifing, it's Jane f***in' Mayer. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Jane Mayer finally found a victim she doubts! I for one am shocked, shocked said victim is a conservative. — Sonny Bunch (@SonnyBunch) July 22, 2019

The next time my friends on the Left try to tell me "but Jane Mayer is a great reporter, you should take her work seriously!" this side-by-side comparison will stand for all time as a refutation of that, and proof of her hackery. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

One thing I love about Mayer's Franken piece are all the character references she provides for him. Loving family man! Hall monitor at SNL! Stern and morally upright! Many quotes from friends. Except there's PICTORIAL EVIDENCE. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Meanwhile, a woman whose Kavanaugh accusations were literally "I don't really remember this+it might not be true" was written up in a piece which afforded absolutely zero space to ppl speaking on his behalf. She's a partisan, she dresses up her activism in the garb of journalism. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Keep going, man. This is a great topic for you to Twitter rant about. — Elias Isquith (@elias_isquith) July 22, 2019

You know in your heart I'm right about her hackery. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

He’s totally right.

No no you don't understand: I like Franken, always have. He shouldn't have been run out the Senate, though it was the "right thing" for the Dems to do politically at the time. My problem is with Mayer, writing this v. that on Kav/Thomas. Only difference in coverage is politics. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

As I said above, Franken got a raw deal. Neither here nor there, though the fact that there was an actual piece of visual evidence (however wrongly interpreted) makes it more understandable. But Mayer has no right to write this piece after her previous work. No sense of shame. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

None whatsoever.

The “pictorial evidence” of Al Franken’s misconduct is still more evidence of impropriety than there was against Brett Kavanaugh.

Building sympathy for the affected man. "He had thought they were on friendly terms." That's pretty damn generous of her. Did she ever consider writing that about Kavanaugh? Don't think so. pic.twitter.com/NR88KpUU1m — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

Oh, @JaneMayerNYer, he says it's "just not true"? Oh wow, guess that settles that! And he doesn't remember her being upset. Hmm. Wonder if there was another guy who didn't remember something happening? Did you give it such credence back then? pic.twitter.com/I0R3KFmMz0 — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

Awwwww @JaneMayerNYer that's so nice!! He's devoted to his wife. That's so cute. I'm sure you used nice quotes about Kavanaugh's wife to defend him, right? pic.twitter.com/5PyWMKChC0 — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

And @JaneMayerNYer, you definitely used quotes from Kavanaugh's friends in a positive light about how he was goofing around. All in jest! pic.twitter.com/dbz1O2MPXx — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

"No one ever complained!" Well gee @JaneMayerNYer, that settles that! Not in Kavanaugh's case though. pic.twitter.com/I31FreL4ZE — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

And in a brilliant finishing move @JaneMayerNYer quotes the lawyer who built an entire case around the goal of ruining a man's life on unsubstantiated allegations. pic.twitter.com/3Wmc4hdT2K — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

In short, @JaneMayerNYer should be ashamed that her name is attached to this piece. But if this is her turning over a new leaf in terms of not breathlessly covering baseless allegations, I guess there's some positive aspects to it. — Anthony J. (@Jay_Conz) July 22, 2019

Let’s hear it for silver linings.

Good thread. The worst thing about this isn't the defense of Franken, it's that she uses every tactic that she and her ilk have railed against during other similar stories to defend him. When did "he's a nice guy who doesn't remember any of this" become a conclusive argument? https://t.co/M4fkrgRa0U — neontaster (@neontaster) July 22, 2019

"The victim's story just doesn't check out" is a standard I wish Jane Meyer hadn't discovered only this morning. — neontaster (@neontaster) July 22, 2019

a step up from "[she] told me that [he] told her"https://t.co/xtx1lMNK4P — Jeryl Bier (@JerylBier) July 22, 2019

Pathetic.

It would if there were any doubt that Jane Mayer is not objective.

For a nice pro-abortion Dem, she'll raise context, question motivations of accusers, opportunism of opposing party, get character references. For a pro-life Repub, she'll run completely unsubstantiated, Dem-lawyered piffle and just say "LOOK WE ESTABLISHED A PATTERN." — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

It's pretty shameful not to evaluate each any every argument on its own merits alone. At least in my perspective. And I fall short of that too, I have my own biases (many of them anti-Trump!) but I still try. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Because Jeff, unlike Jane, is not a hack.

Editor’s note: A deleted tweet has been removed from this post, and this post has been updated with additional text and tweets.

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Update:

More on this from @EsotericCD:

Some negative context Jane Mayer would've given if Franken was a GOP'er: Franken would destroy nominees that came before him in the Judiciary Committee for jokes they made in the past. Remember him attacking Don Willett for saying he'd like to marry bacon? https://t.co/HtdNvfTD8j — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Now Franken is saying his photo was just a joke, though he'd have demolished a nominee who came before him w/the same photo. You'd have thought Jane Mayer, diligent+conscientious reporter that she purportedly is, would have thought to bring up that incident. But shockingly, no! — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Listen, what I'm saying here is that Mayer is not an honest reporter: her work is not merely partisan in its slant but untrustworthy & nobody w/any self-respect should push it as anything other than the work of an explicit activist who cares less about truth than Dem Squad Goals. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

Thus endeth my Jane Mayer rant. — Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) July 22, 2019

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Related:

‘So they’re hacks’: Journo Jane Mayer spills the beans about her and Ronan Farrow’s anti-Kavanaugh crusade