Thread by @DrewHolden360

🧵Thread🧵

We were promised @realDonaldTrump was lying when he said there would be a coronavirus vaccine by the time the year was over.

Yesterday’s news makes me think it’s time for a trip down memory lane.👇

First we had the fact checks.

Back when Trump first floated (and then promised) a vaccine before the end of the year, there were many across the media.

The most well known was probably @NBCNews, who also doubled down on this one.

A lot of people picked up and repeated @NBCNews’s fact check, including @GeoffRBennett and @kylegriffin1.

They weren’t alone though. My personal favorite came from @NPR.

At some point I hope outlets realize that sometimes the leader of the free world - whoever that is - may have information they don’t.

And of course @NPR’s most well-known reporter, @Yamiche, got involved, too, adding her “context” that always proves to just be commentary masquerading as reporting.

We also had a fact check from @ABC.

I’m...beginning to think that perhaps we’ve lost our way with what does or doesn’t deserve a “fact check” here guys.

And more of the same from @MSNBC. They are, as ever, all over this one.

They also brought in some online doctors, like @IrwinRedlenerMD and @DrRichBesser.

The word “fact check” really took a beating here.

It also wasn’t just fact checks. We had other articles about why this wouldn’t be possible, including this one from @NYMag.

And I’m just confused by this one from @CNN.

Of course @Acosta found a way to get involved here as well.

Special shout out to @NYGovCuomo.

I suppose it could be an open question whether a dozen or so weeks constitutes “a few weeks away” but in the grand scheme of things it seems about right, @SenatorDurbin.

But the real stars on this one were the blue checks.

No one delivers on a four-boxer the way that @SethAbramson does. Just an all-star. My muse. I had to cut his down.

Now part of the difficulty in this is sussing out what constitutes having a vaccine. I went easy on those who couched their claims appropriately based on availability, access, or otherwise.

But lots of folks, like @donwinslow - noted crazy person on the internet - simply didn’t.

Where wrong goes, the NeverTrumpers are sure to follow.

Perhaps my favorite take of this whole saga comes from the incomparable @SteveSchmidtSES, a human goldmine for badness on this website.

And he was joined by other NeverTrumpers, because God forbid we root for Trump to do something good, like help end a global pandemic.

Here’s @OliviaTroye, also promoted by @RVAT2020.

There were also a lot of takes like this one from @keithboykin suggesting that Trump would rush the vaccine for political gain, which obviously didn’t come to pass.

So many takes in fact that I made a whole thread about it back in November.

https://twitter.com/drewholden360/status/1325953672304611330

Congrats to whichever of the Brothers Krassenstein runs @HKrassenstein for their continued bad posting.

@funder continues to be one of the most egregious bad faith actors on this website. This episode was like nearly other news cycle with this guy.

And we had the Twitter doctors, as always, weigh in. Here are @PeterHotez and @DrEricDing.

“Trust the experts” or something.

Obviously this is good news - and may rightly be called a “miracle” - but it’s important to remember the idea that a vaccine was far off was a part of Biden’s campaign.

Would Americans have voted differently if they thought @realDonaldTrump was going to deliver on this promise?

I don’t know the answer to that. But it’s worth reflecting on the ways that the American press described this process and, by extension, Trump.

And the role the media and the left played in sowing doubt at a critical moment.

At the end of the day, what we should be is grateful. Grateful for the researchers who worked tirelessly. Grateful for the American innovation that made it possible. Grateful for those who sacrificed to find the vaccine & keep us running as best as possible in the meantime.

But in our appreciation, we need to remember that these narratives have downstream consequences, and a lot of people who very much didn’t want @realDonaldTrump to win the election created a narrative that undermined what would’ve been a HUGE campaign accomplishment.

Okay, bonuses, because I couldn’t fit all of them.

Here’s noted liar to children @BillNye (h/t @tomselliott for this find)

This one aged poorly from @AsapSCIENCE, which, if I understand right, is just Bill Nye as a Twitter account.

This is the “we made that up” gif from @cmclymer.

And @PolitiFact has long ceased to be an organization that checks facts but it is still pretty jarring to see it in action.

Sometimes I wonder if people just say things on TV because they think they’ll disappear?

If so, let this be a PSA for @11thHour and @IrwinRedlenerMD (repeat appearance!) that isn’t so.

Also, for those who always accuse me of being a lackey, let’s be clear: Trump didn’t do himself any favors here. He said there would be a vaccine before Election Day and all kinds of other BS that didn’t materialize.

That doesn’t excuse “fact checking” that isn’t from the media.