To describe Republicans who had questions and concerns about the 2020 presidential election, the mainstream media has relentlessly thrown around the term “election denier” so often that, like their routine accusations of “racism,” the word has been diluted of its actual meaning.

Case in point, an exchange on Sunday between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and CBS News “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan.

At one point during the interview, Brennan tried to play “gotcha” games with McCarthy on the make-up of the GOP caucus, referring to “70%” of them as people who “denied the results of the 2020 election” and then asking him why he put some of them on various Congressional committees when they were allegedly guilty of “denying reality.”

Though he could have expanded on it a bit in my opinion, McCarthy’s response hit the nail on the head when it comes to members of the press who don’t hold Democrats who objected to prior election results to the same standard they do Republicans. And reading between the lines, he also made another good point – that maybe sometimes questioning election results does not always mean “denying” them:

MARGARET BRENNAN: According to CBS records, 70% of the House GOP members denied the results of the 2020 election. You’ve put many of them on very key committees, intelligence, homeland security, oversight. Why are you elevating people who are denying reality like that?

SPEAKER MCCARTHY: Well, if you look to the Democrats, their ranking member, Raskin, had the same thing, denied Trump or Bush was in there. Bennie Thompson, who was–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Did you see those numbers we just put up there? 70%.

SPEAKER MCCARTHY: Did you also be fair and equal and where you looked at- Raskin did the same thing. Bennie Thompson, who’s a ranking member and was the chair. These individuals were chair in the Democratic Party.

MARGARET BRENNAN: I’m asking you as leader, Kevin McCarthy’s house, why you made these choices? These were your choices.

SPEAKER MCCARTHY: Yeah they’re my choices, but they’re the conference choices. But I’m also asking you, when you look to see just Republicans, Democrats have done the same thing. So maybe it’s not denying. Maybe it’s the only opportunity they have to have a question about what went on during the election. So if you want to hold Republicans to that equation, why don’t you also hold Democrats? Why don’t you hold Jamie Raskin? Why don’t you hold Bennie Thompson, when Democrats had appointed them to be chair?

Watch:

On @FaceTheNation, @kevinomccarthy schools @margbrennan: “If you want to hold Republicans to that equation, why don’t you also hold Democrats? Why don't you hold Jamie Raskin, why don’t you hold Bennie Thompson?” #FTN pic.twitter.com/iM186Y8Ozt

— Brent Baker 🇺🇦 (@BrentHBaker) January 29, 2023

The only thing I would add to what he said was to question Brennan on the 70% number. Because if he had demanded proof, Brennan would have to confess exactly how CBS News defines “election denier.” And as others observed when CBS News did their supposed “analysis” back in November, the network noted what their criteria was – which was, not surprisingly, pretty broad:

Holy bleeping bleep. CBS and @macfarlane assert without reason or sense here that if you want election audits, or use your right to object to a state's electors, or even if you oppose *unconstitutional* changes to election laws, that makes you an "election denier." INSANE. https://t.co/NtVHQYCpx3 pic.twitter.com/oV5KqbgQBZ

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) November 3, 2022

My RS colleague Nick Arama called them out for it at the time:

Are they kidding? So supporting an audit — something many have done since time in memorium during elections — is “denial”? And utilizing your constitutional right to object to the count — yes, it’s built into the constitutional process — is now “denial” as well. Of course only for 2020. If you objected over the last two decades, as the Democrats have done, that’s completely fine.

The receipts don’t lie:

Here is ten straight minutes of Democrats denying election results.pic.twitter.com/bJRbzEcIO2

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 4, 2022

I mean then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi named Rep. Jamie Raskin as a lead impeachment manager against former President Donald Trump in January 2021 despite the fact that Raskin formally objected on the floor of the House to the certification of Trump’s election in January 2017.

And Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who was a legit election denier when it came to Donald Trump’s presidency? House Dems elected him as their Minority Leader in November after he received Pelosi’s blessing.

Stacey Abrams, who to this day still refuses to concede she lost the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial race, and Hillary Clinton, who for four years proclaimed that she really won the 2016 presidential election, are revered and coveted guests on all the same talking head programs that rip into Republicans over supposed “election denialism.”

You cannot make this stuff up if you tried.

The fact is that Democrats will never ever be held to the same standard Republicans are as far as the media is concerned when it comes to questioning and objecting to election results, because as per the norm, when Democrats do it it’s because “democracy is at stake” and when Republicans do it, it’s because they want to “undermine our sacred institutions” or something.

I’m so damned sick of the idiotic game-playing on this, and apparently so is McCarthy. Good on him for pushing back on the nonsense.

Related: Adam Schiff Slithers Onto CNN Set, Immediately Proves Kevin McCarthy Right