Nation’s most powerful Democrats took Jussie Smollett’s hate crime hoax as gospel before story crumbled

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'Fearless' host reacts to former 'Empire' star's sentencing on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight.'

Disgraced actor Jussie Smollett was sentenced on Thursday after being convicted last year of faking a hate crime against himself and lying about it to Chicago police, capping the swift fall from grace for the "Empire" star who had everyone from Joe Biden to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeting their support prior to his story falling apart. 

Smollett was sentenced to 30 months felony probation, restitution to the city of Chicago in the amount of $120,106, a fine of $25,000, and 150 days in the Cook County Jail. 

Jussie Smollett was found guilty late last year of lying to police about a hate crime after he reported to police that two masked men physically attacked him, yelling racist and anti-gay remarks near his Chicago home in 2019. (Photo by Brian Cassella-Pool/Getty Images) (Brian Cassella-Pool/Getty Images)

Smollett, who is Black and gay, claimed in Jan. 2019 that he was attacked by two men at 2 a.m. on a frigid Chicago night who yelled he was in "MAGA country," a reference to then-President Trump’s campaign slogan. He said the men also used racist and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck and poured an "unknown substance" on him. 

JUSSIE SMOLLETT SENTENCING: LEGAL EXPERTS WEIGH IN AFTER ACTOR LEARNS FATE

Smollett, who claimed this attack occurred when he left his hotel room during a polar vortex to get a Subway sandwich, was was found guilty by a jury on five of six counts of disorderly conduct stemming from the 2019 falsely reported hate crime. Instead of waiting for the truth to emerge at the time, high-powered Democrats and liberal media members alike took Smollett’s claim as gospel and ran to Twitter to offer support – often politicizing the ordeal in the process. 

"What happened today to @JussieSmollett must never be tolerated in this country. We must stand up and demand that we no longer give this hate safe harbor; that homophobia and racism have no place on our streets or in our heats. We are with you, Jussie," then-presidential candidate Biden tweeted. 

Biden’s tweet remained online as of Friday morning, more than three years after it was sent. However, the current president was hardly alone in buying Smollett’s initial claim. His eventual running mate even declared the event a "modern day lynching."

".@JussieSmollett is one of the kindest, most gentle human beings I know. I am praying for his quick recovery. This was an attempted modern day lynching. No one should have to fear for their life because of their sexuality or color of their skin," then-California Sen. Kamala Harris wrote. "We must confront this hate." 

As of Friday morning, Harris hadn’t deleted her tweet, either. 

JUSSIE SMOLLETT SENTENCED IN 2019 HATE CRIME HOAX

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., got in on the action, too, claiming the actor’s since-discredited tale was an example of "surging hostility toward minorities" in America. 

"The racist and homophobic attack on Jussie Smollett is a horrific instance of the surging hostility toward minorities around the country. We must come together to eradicate all forms of bigotry and violence," Sanders wrote in a tweet that was still online as of Friday. 

Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., had a similar message, writing the attack was "a racist and homophobic attack," while urging Americans to work to change what is "happening to our country." Unlike her Democratic colleagues, Ocasio-Cortez deleted her pro-Smollett tweet when he was convicted of staging the crime. 

JUSSIE SMOLLETT REPORTED ATTACK: TIMELINE OF EVENTS

Fellow "Squad" member, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., didn’t delete hers, though. 

"The dangerous lies spewing from the right wing is killing & hurting our people. Thinking of you @JussieSmollett, and my LGBTQ neighbors," Tlaib wrote in a tweet that was still online Friday morning. 

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., tweeted in 2019, "What happened to Jussie Smollett is vile and tragic; thankfully, he will recover. But hate crimes like this are happening more frequently, egged on by careless hate-filled rhetoric. We start reducing these crimes by rejecting the speech - neither can ever be accepted as normal."

While Swalwell didn’t delete the tweet, he did respond in December when Smollett was found guilty. 

JUSSIE SMOLLETT CONVICTED OF STAGING HATE CRIME, LYING TO COPS

"Like many, I issued this statement in 2019 after taking Jussie Smollett at his word. He clearly wasn’t worthy of that. Smollett’s stunt was an affront to legitimate hate crime victims. Thankfully, a jury convicted him & justice was served. Let’s work to reduce real hate crimes," Swalwell wrote last year. 

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., also used the "modern-day lynching" narrative when chiming in. 

"The vicious attack on actor Jussie Smollett was an attempted modern-day lynching. I'm glad he's safe," Booker wrote. "To those in Congress who don't feel the urgency to pass our Anti-Lynching bill designating lynching as a federal hate crime– I urge you to pay attention."

Booker’s tweet was still online as of Friday morning, too, as was a message sent by Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot. 

"My thoughts and prayers are with #JussieSmollett. Everyone deserves to live safely as their true authentic self in this city. As mayor, I will make sure that, regardless of the victim's stature, hate crime incidents and complaints are fully investigated," Lightfoot wrote. 

Twitter did not immediately respond when asked if any of the tweets calling Smollett’s staged attack a hate crime, modern-day lynching or any of the other rhetoric used by Democratic leaders is now considered misinformation or a violation of Twitter policy. 

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Smollett was found guilty of telling a police officer he was a hate crime victim, telling an officer he was a battery victim, telling a detective he was a hate crime victim, telling a detective he was a battery victim and then telling a detective again he was battery victim. Two brothers, Abel and Ola Osundairo, testified that Smollett paid them to carry out the attack, gave them money for the ski masks and rope, and instructed them to fashion the rope into a noose. 

Fox News’ Julius Young and Matt Finn contributed to this report.