Now, we are sure there is a difference here between Alvin Bragg and Clarence Thomas – we are certain of it!

While I was certain this was going to play out (I could not wait for it, in truth) I am a touch surprised it happened this quickly. The media is dependable for many things, and one of the growing characteristics is the practice of not thinking things through to a conclusion. The press is developing this tendency to rush in with declarations without regard to how it will play out or affect them down the road. Now, toss in their knee-jerk desire to leap with the accusation that something could be racist, and you have an inevitable fiasco in the works.

The latest example of this is taking place with the disastrous Donald Trump indictment. In looking over the motivations behind this, a number of right-of-center news outlets have been willing to point out how billionaire George Soros backed the campaign of District Attorney Alvin Bragg. In their default defense of the man who is going after Trump, the press has fallen back on their tired practice of charging racism – and somehow managed to fall on their faces.

Of course, any criticism of Bragg will be deemed racist, but then there is the other aspect, the accusation that critics (that is, those noting proven facts) of Soros are acting antisemitic. How showing the actions of one man is a bigoted slight on an entire class of people is never explained. This is a two-pronged defense maneuver being used, but the press has set itself up for failure.

It is revealing that for years it has been perfectly acceptable for the Democrats, the press, and leftists to derisively point out the Koch Brothers funding any number of conservative causes, but if you are to note Soros doing so as the largest individual donor to liberals and their causes, that is hateful. It was just on Wednesday in my daily media column that I pointed out Andrea Mitchell trotting out this racist/bigoted accusation, and I said this will be a touchstone to refer to whenever Justice Clarence Thomas receives his regular character attacks. Someday, we can charge journalists as being racist for criticizing Thomas.

It took all of one day for it to happen, and it concerns exactly the same aspects.

ProPublica has just released a report that ties Justice Thomas to a billionaire, Harlan Crow. The two men have known each other for decades, and many have said the two are genuine friends. Crow has supported the Thomases over the years in various ways, with trips and other benefactor acts. There is no proof of purchasing of influence, but the appearance of impropriety is woven throughout the piece, and Thomas is criticized for not reporting the various trips he has taken with Crow.

Not to rule if this is a serious accusation or not, but it does strike as a rampant contradiction that just as we are being lectured by the press not to address the connection of a billionaire with Alvin Bragg, we are then told to be deeply concerned about Clarence Thomas and his billionaire. There is a severe disconnect between these two instances.       

If we are being told today that it is improper and invalid to look into a billionaire helping to fund a campaign that installed a man into a position, then why are we supposed to care about Thomas being gifted vacation jaunts, when there is no direct evidence of this leading to influence? That is not to say there is no influence involved, but none has been shown by Pro Publica. In truth, looking at the two cases it appears the influence seems to be far more prevalent in the case of Bragg.

Soros has worked for years to get his chosen DAs elected into offices across the country. As it stands, 70 DAs are in office with the aid of Soros. Last summer, he wrote in the Wall Street Journal about why he seeks out reform DAs. And yes, Alvin Bragg is part of this wave. The Color of Change PAC pledged to give Bragg’s campaign $1 million, and immediately Soros cut the group a check for $1 million. The lame attempts at distancing Soros from Bragg rest on the parsing of words; He gave money for Bragg’s campaign, but he did not give it TO his campaign. Additionally, Soros family members gave tens of thousands directly to Bragg.

But we are not supposed to care about any of that, and if you do care you are acting in a racist fashion. Also in an antisemitic fashion. Yet, while we are told to ignore a man placed in a powerful office to enact banana republic legal overreach, we are at the same time told to care how Clarence Thomas was given vacation access by a friend. Look, this is not about excusing away ethical problems, it is about remaining consistent.

If you are telling me that looking at the backing of a prominent black legal authority is wrong and racist, then I will have to say that looking into the backing of another prominent black legal authority is also wrong and racist. Unless…you are telling me there are two standards at play based on the political affiliations of those involved. If that is the case, I am about to tell you the manner in which you should vacate the premises.