Conservatives ripped into disgraced former newsman and open liberal Dan Rather for claiming that Gov. Ron DeSantis’ "playbook on race and education" is an "updated edition" of what the one-time journalist saw in the Jim Crow era south.
Critics swiftly slammed the former CBS anchor, calling him a "liar" and insisting that his opinions have made him into a "caricature" of what he once was.
Rather blasted DeSantis on Wednesday, after news dropped that the College Board removed all woke content from an AP African American studies course it had proposed for Florida high schools. The organization made the cuts in order to abide by educational standards set by the state's department of education.
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Dan Rather arrives on the red carpet for the film "Truth" during the 40th Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, September 12, 2015. REUTERS/Mark Blinch (Reuters )
The Florida DOE had rejected an earlier version of the course which it claimed was "filled with Critical Race Theory" and "woke indoctrination masquerading as education." DeSantis shared similar criticisms of the pre-revised course.
Echoing other liberals’ claims that DeSantis was thus whitewashing education and erasing Black history, Rather tweeted, "The DeSantis playbook on race and education is just an updated edition of what I saw in the South in the 1960s."
Though Twitter users called out Rather on the comparison.
Conservative YouTubers, The Hodge Twins, admonished Rather, tweeting, "No way u think this."
Fox News contributor David Webb added, "You’re a liar and a proven one at that."
Seattle radio host Jason Rantz blasted the former anchor, tweeting, "You’re a shameful, partisan hack. And I’m so glad you’ll be remembered as such."
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The College Board decided to purge the woke content in its proposed AP African studies course after Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., criticized it. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Local Chicago radio AM 1539 WCKG chairman Matt Dubiel stated that Rather is "now a full blown caricature."
Independent journalist Patrick Henningsen tweeted, "Says the outdated establishment MSM propagandist."
Former GOP candidate for Texas Lt. Governor, Aaron Sorells, scorched Rather, asking, "Are the Democrats running out of Old White People to scream Racism? Bringing ole disgraced liar Dan Rather out on Twitter."
Rather’s openly liberal and factually dubious tweets have generated similar reaction from Twitter users over the years, especially in light of the fact that Rather is a proven purveyor of "fake news" himself.
Spreading false information resulted in Rather leaving his "CBS Evening News" gig in disgrace in 2004.
Just ahead of former President George W. Bush’s re-election, the anchor ran a "60 Minutes" special citing letters disparaging Bush’s behavior while he served in the National Guard in the 1970s allegedly written by his commanding officer at the time.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 05: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) Dan Rather at SiriusXM Studios on November 05, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Santiago Felipe/Getty Images)
Critics charged that these letters were forged as part of a naked attempt to make Bush look bad, a claim bolstered by the fact that the authenticity of the letters was never verified.
Later, Rather apologized for the scandal ahead of a CBS investigation into the allegations of journalistic malpractice. He stepped down from his role as anchor of "CBS Evening News" months after the scandal.
"Black Eye: Dan Rather and The Birth of Fake News," a Fox Nation original documentary, delves into the scandal that was one of America’s most high-profile and shocking incidents in the history of mainstream media spreading misinformation. It can be streamed from the Fox Nation app now.
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