Pelosi attack: Stefanik’s office scolds reporter who claimed she ‘makes political violence more likely’

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Blame game in attack on Pelosi's husband

Washington Times national politics correspondent Susan Ferrechio and Fox News contributor Mara Liasson discuss the press' blame game in the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., slammed a freelance reporter regularly used by NPR-affiliated North Country Public Radio (NCPR) who insisted the Republican lawmaker’s rhetoric "makes political violence more likely" in the wake of the attack on Paul Pelosi. 

"Taxpayer funded NCPR -- without a shred of evidence -- disgracefully claims that Congresswoman Stefanik is responsible for the attack on Paul Pelosi just because she opposes Pelosi’s policies," Team Elise executive director Alex DeGrasse told Fox News Digital. Stefanik is chair of the House Republican Conference.

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The office of Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.,  scolded a reporter who insisted the Republican lawmaker’s rhetoric "makes political violence more likely" in the wake of the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi.  (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Pelosi allegedly was attacked Friday inside his home by David DePape, who faces charges of attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary and other felonies following the incident. Stefanik tweeted support for Pelosi, the husband of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., following the attack, writing "Wishing a full recovery for Paul from this absolutely horrific violent attack. This criminal should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Grateful to law enforcement for their important work."

Zach Hirsch, a freelance reporter who frequently covers Stefanik for NCPR, believed some "context" was needed and quoted Stefanik’s message with a lengthy Twitter thread. 

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"Stefanik regularly blasts Nancy Pelosi with increasingly harsh and personal attacks. ‘There is a reason Nancy Pelosi is the most disliked elected official in America,’ Stefanik said last year, before accusing Pelosi of a false, widely debunked conspiracy theory… that the Jan. 6 Capitol attack was somehow Pelosi’s fault," Hirsch wrote, linking to a Washington Post article.

Zach Hirsch, a freelance reporter who covers politics for NCPR, believed some "context" had to be added to a message of support for Paul Pelosi. 

Hirsch wrote "there is no evidence that Stefanik directly inspired this or any other act of violence," but the point of his thread is that "political rhetoric has real-world consequences."

Hirsch also tied past Stefanik rhetoric to the mass shooting that occurred earlier this year in a Buffalo supermarket. 

"All of this is to say that when Stefanik issues statements denouncing violence as she did today, there's a huge disconnect between her statement and her own history of contributing to an atmosphere that, according to lots of research, makes political violence more likely," Hirsch wrote. 

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Hirsch did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

North Country Public Radio distanced itself from Hirsch when reached for comment. 

"Zach Hirsch is not an employee of NCPR. He’s a freelancer who we pay on a per-story (or per-project) basis, and so his views are not those of the station. As a public radio station, we don’t promote any specific ideology, agenda, or candidates for office," NCPR station manager Mitch Teich told Fox News Digital. 

Paul Pelosi was allegedly attacked by a man looking for his wife, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.  (Photo by Samuel Corum/AFP via Getty Images))

David Sommerstein, who is NCPR’s news director, called the thread "important" when he retweeted it. 

Teich declined comment when asked about NCPR’s news director sharing Hirsch’s thread.

DeGrasse called Hirsch’s thread "deranged and dangerous," and believes using the attack on Paul Pelosi to shame Republicans has no business anywhere near an NPR-affiliated outlet. 

"They should and will be defunded," DeGrasse said. 

A GOP strategist, who said liberal reporters didn’t blame rhetoric from Democrats when New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin was attacked in July, believes people like Hirsch continue to hurt media credibility. 

"People like Zack Hirsch are the problem with the mainstream media, and it’s why no one trusts them. Hirsch is only interested in flacking for the left and pushing conspiracy theories, instead of reporting facts," the strategist told Fox News Digital. 

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