A former White House Press Secretary for the Clinton White House put out a false tweet Wednesday, suggesting that Republican senators were actually impressed by Rep. Adam Schiff’s (D-CA) two-hour long opening statement in the Senate impeachment trial and were worried they were up “shit’s creek.”
Joe Lockhart, now a political analyst for CNN, tweeted that he overheard a conversation between GOP senators “who only watch Fox News” and suggested that they were in a panic after hearing Schiffs’ powerful case.
“Overheard convo between two Republican Senators who only watch Fox News,” Lockhart wrote. “‘is this stuff real? I haven’t heard any of this before. I thought it was all about a server. If half the stuff Schiff is saying is true, we’re up shit’s creek. Hope the White House has exculpatory evidence.'”
Overheard convo between two Republican Senators who only watch Fox News. "is this stuff real? I haven't heard any of this before. I thought it was all about a server. If half the stuff Schiff is saying is true, we're up shit's creek. Hope the White House has exculpatory evidence
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 22, 2020
Nearly ten minutes later, after his tweet went viral, the former White House spokesman admitted that he made the whole thing up.
Matt Wolking, Deputy Director of Communications for the Trump Campaign, tweeted that Lockhart had accomplished what he had set out to do with his bogus Tweet.
“This is what CNN pays him to do. 4,600 retweets for the lie, only 389 retweets for the admission that he made it up,” Wolking said.
CNN employee @joelockhart is knowingly spreading lies and disinformation online just for the fun of it. This is what CNN pays him to do.
4,600 retweets for the lie, only 389 retweets for the admission that he made it up. pic.twitter.com/bAxi3I7kVr
— Matt Wolking (Text TRUMP to 88022) (@MattWolking) January 22, 2020
Lockhart backpeddled further in a subsequent tweet claiming that his original tweet was only “satire” to make the “point” that Republican Senators only watch Fox News and therefore don’t know what’s going on.
Everyone relax. This is satire. Satire to make the point that Senators that are deciding the President's fate who only watch Fox News have never heard this stuff before. Because Fox is part of the coverup. https://t.co/ktCxCg1Irt
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 22, 2020
Conservative news satire website Babylon Bee counseled Lockhart to leave the “satire” to the experts. “We’ll leave the fake news to you,” they added.
Leave the satire to us; we'll leave the fake news to you.
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) January 22, 2020
The charmer went on to label the conservatives who were calling him out on Twitter “right-wing nuts” who “can muster no strong feelings about @potus selling out our national security for personal gain.”
It’s remarkable that the right wing nuts in the country can be so outraged by a comment on the Senate Floor, a tweet, or any commentary critical of the President but can muster no strong feelings about @potus selling out our national security for personal gain. On the level?
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 22, 2020
He continued to lash out at his critics, calling them “purveyors of Pizzagate and the Seth Rich conspiracy” and “a destructive joke that is killing our democracy.”
Seems like I poked the bear today. The purveyors of Pizzagate and the Seth Rich conspiracy are lecturing me on honesty. I told a joke, you guys are a destructive joke that is killing our democracy. Other than that, hope you’re enjoying the trial and have a nice evening
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 22, 2020
Lockhart made a fool of himself on Twitter earlier this week as well, when he went after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for tweeting during the Senate impeachment trial.
As the impeachment deliberations were underway, Cruz shared a video of himself knocking Democrats for suggesting that Trump invoking executive privilege is “obstruction of Congress.”
“If it were, nearly every president would have committed impeachable conduct,” Cruz added.
Lockhart threw a fit in response because senators are forbidden to bring their cellphones to the impeachment trial. He suggested that Cruz could go to prison for the grand offense and snitched to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey.
“Senators on the floor are sworn to silence and have no electronic devices. So how is this Senator tweeting? Did he sneak a phone in[?] Is he willing to go to prison? Or is the tweet from someone other than Cruz. @jack you should investigate,” Lockhart wrote.
Senators on the floor are sworn to silence and have no electronic devices. So how is this Senator tweeting? Did he sneak a phone in. Is he willing to go to prison? Or is the tweet from someone other than Cruz. @jack you should investigate
— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 21, 2020
That tweet was quickly ratioed by conservatives poking fun at the “boomer” for not knowing how scheduled tweets work or how Senate staffers sometimes control their bosses’ Twitter accounts.
Cruz, in turn, piled on, daring Lockhart to “come and take” his cellphone.
https://t.co/FNTogu1IUt pic.twitter.com/cuO8Sz5Vls
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 21, 2020
As the Clinton White House Press Secretary from August 1998 to September 2000, Lockhart handled the press during the Clinton impeachment. He went on to join the John Kerry presidential campaign as a senior adviser in September 2004 and almost immediately became embroiled in a disgraceful scandal.
In an attempt to smear then-candidate George W. Bush’s military record, CBS News aired a “bombshell” report accusing Bush of failing to fulfill his Texas Air National Guard obligations. It was quickly discovered that Lockhart had made a phone call to an unscrupulous former Texas National Guard officer named Bill Burkett in an attempt to obtain the phony National Guard documents that were used in the report.
CBS producer Mary Mapes allegedly facilitated the phone call between Burkett and Lockhart, a clear breach of ethics that eventually cost Mapes her job.
Lockhart, of course, went on to join CNN as a political analyst.