Cruz slams Dan Rather over Biden vaccine mandate take: 'fired for chronic lying'

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Sen. Ted Cruz ripped Dan Rather over the former news anchor’s tweet lamenting a federal appeals court halting President Biden’s vaccine mandate, highlighting that Rather was "fired for chronic lying" in journalism. 

"Hey. Let me fix that headline for you," Cruz said to Rather Saturday on Twitter. "‘Federal appeals court upholds the rule of law. Leftist news anchor who was fired for chronic lying laments that the Constitution remains in force.’"

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday reaffirmed its decision to enact a stay on Biden’s federal vaccine mandate for companies with 100 or more employees. 

APPEALS COURT RE-AFFIRMS STAY ON BIDEN WORKPLACE VACCINE MANDATE, CITES 'SEVERE' RISKS

Rather had initially tweeted a link to a Washington Post story on the ruling, headlined, "Federal appeals court halts Biden administration’s vaccine requirement, delivering policy a major blow."

THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON -- Episode 1381A -- Pictured in this screengrab: Journalist Dan Rather during an interview on January 6, 2021 7:34 WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 03: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) departs from the Senate Chamber following a vote on Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

"Hey. Let me fix that headline for you," Rather tweeted, accompanied by his proposed headline, "Federal appeals court halts important public health measure delivering the safety and welfare of the nation a major blow."

Rather, 90, was fired from CBS News after he questioned President George W. Bush’s military service in 2004, claiming the former president went AWOL during his time in the Texas Air National Guard. The Bush administration at the time hit back that the report was based on inauthentic documents. An investigation was launched and concluded the CBS report disregarded "fundamental journalistic principles," leading to Rather and multiple CBS executives getting fired. 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) addresses a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., October 6, 2021. Picture taken October 6, 2021. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo (Reuters)

TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL SUES BIDEN ADMINISTRATION, SLAMS 'FLATLY UNCONSTITUTIONAL' FEDERAL VACCINE MANDATE

Rather defended the segment in 2015, saying, "We reported a true story."

"We didn’t do it perfectly," he told The Hollywood Reporter at the time. "We made some mistakes of getting to the truth. But that didn’t change the truth of what we reported."

FILE - In this Nov. 30, 2015 file photo, Journalist Dan Rather attends The Independent Filmmaker Project's 25th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards in New York. Rather will host an hour-long television special in two weeks on five musicians who have died within the past 13 months, featuring his own interview with the late Merle Haggard. The special also focuses on Prince, David Bowie, Natalie Cole and B.B. King and is scheduled for June 7 on AXS-TV. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

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The appeals court upholding its decision comes as a victory for conservatives, who have called Biden’s mandate "unconstitutional" since Biden first announced the requirement in September.