The Associated Press deleted a tweet Thursday aimed at Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance after fact checkers called them out for misrepresenting his comment on school shootings.
The tweet linked to an article about Vance, implying that he’d called school shootings a “fact of life” shortly after a deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia on Wednesday. The AP replaced the story roughly 90 minutes with correct context, that Vance said he “laments that school shootings are a ‘fact of life’ and says the U.S. needs to harden security to prevent more carnage” like the attack in Georgia.
Tim Walz is a disgusting liar.
The AP retracted this story and admitted they took JD Vance out of context.
Are any “fact checkers” gonna call him out for it? https://t.co/iUxk0J5iBi pic.twitter.com/BXbpLh0RL8
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) September 6, 2024
Community Notes called out The AP’s original tweet for the “misleading headline,” including an accurate quote. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: ‘Absolutely Crushing It’ — Don Jr., Trump Campaign Thrilled With How Much Better Vance Has Been Than Walz)
Despite The AP’s retraction of the original tweet, both Vice President Kamala Harris’s and her running-mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, still have posts up that completely misrepresent Vance’s statement to their combined 22.1 million followers.
This is pathetic. We can’t quit on our kids — they deserve better. https://t.co/ozYdvpDJ4u
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) September 6, 2024
School shootings are not just a fact of life.
It doesn’t have to be this way. We can take action to protect our children—and we will. https://t.co/Oi8s9MfgvU
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 6, 2024
“Kamala wants to take security out of our schools instead of protecting our children. Instead of addressing her own failures, she lies about what I said,” Vance told his followers. “More desperation from the biggest fraud in American politics.” (RELATED: ‘Thought I Was Going To Die’: Georgia Students Recount Terrifying Close Call In School Shooting)
At least four people were killed and 30 were injured after a 14-year-old shooter entered Apalachee High School on Thursday. The suspect was identified as Colt Gray, who was arrested following the attack. Gray was a student at the school and the FBI were aware of his identity in 2023.