Media 'Fact Checks' are just an excuse to write briefs for Democrats--Fact checking opinions is ridiculous

Mollie Hemingway:

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As soon as the speech ended, White House press corps mascot Jim Acosta recited his rather groan-inducing rehearsed line that Trump’s address “should have come with a Surgeon General’s warning that it was hazardous to the truth.”

But when it came time to back up this talking point about factual inaccuracies, the media whiffed. Most of the alleged “fact” “checks” were instead critiques of opinions. Many critiqued things not included in Trump’s speech. And sometimes the “fact” “checks” dinged Trump for saying completely true things....

The fact checkers at the Washington Post characterized this Trump claim, which they admitted was factual, as “misleading” because, and I quote, “this figure includes all types of crimes.” You can’t make it up.

Here are several other examples of the media botching their alleged fact checks.
Politico’s Fact Check Is So Bad It’s Almost Funny

Politico’s Ted Hesson did such a bad “fact” “check” that it’s almost impressive. Among the things he checked as “not true” was Trump’s contention that there’s a crisis on the border. I’m not joking.

To quote Michael Tracey, “Stop fact-checking normative claims and subjective, value-based assertions! It degrades the entire enterprise of fact-checking! Fact-checking is obviously needed, but not the bizarre new version invented by oblivious, self-satisfied journos!”

Even worse for Hesson, however, was his reasoning. He said it’s “not true” that there’s a crisis because the number of people caught crossing is below what it was during Obama. It’s as if he hasn’t heard a single administration official in recent weeks explaining that the reason why the Department of Homeland Security is burdened is not because illegal crossings are up in general, but because of the type of crossings, such as unaccompanied minors and family units from Central America that, due to our laws, can not be returned to their homes.

Hesson is apparently unaware that resources needed for dealing with the illegal crossings by single adult males from Mexico that may have dominated earlier years are completely different than those needed for family units who claim asylum status after being caught in the country illegally.

He also said it was wrong to say that “Our southern border is a pipeline for vast quantities of illegal drugs” because most of the drugs come through legal points of entry. Well, Ted, that’s probably why President Trump said that part of his request from Democrats was for drug-detection technology.

Finally, Hesson said it was wrong to say that Schumer “has repeatedly supported a physical barrier in the past” even though that’s absolutely true. Hesson’s reasoning makes no sense. He admits Schumer voted, for example, for the construction of nearly 700 miles of a physical barrier in 2006 but says Trump said that wasn’t enough. Therefore, Trump’s accurate claim that is not misleading is judged to be “misleading.” Again, I’m not joking.
NYT Fact Checks a Speech No One Gave

A New York Times article originally headlined “Trump Cites Misleading Statistics of Crisis And Crime Along Border” failed to explain what the misleading statistics were. Perhaps that explains why they changed the headline to “Trump Escalates Border Wall Fight in National Address.”

In a rather shrill opinion piece billed as straight news, Peter Baker claimed, without evidence, that describing the situation as a crisis “raised credibility questions.” Then he went on to slay strawmen and other items the president didn’t even mention.
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Fact checks have become an excuse for liberals in the media to write opinion pieces disguised as "facts."  Their goal is to write a brief for the liberal point of view in response to what a nonliberal says.  All of these so-called fact checks were in service to a Democrat talking point which showed a determination to challenge the credibility of whatever Trump said before the speech was even given.

The media was all too happy to follow the Democrats' script.