The Twittersphere is blowing up with outrage over Wednesday’s Hannity show, where–if you believe the hype–host Sean Hannity told witnesses in Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s investigation to destroy evidence before being forced to turn over materials to Mueller’s team. Hannity mentioned various methods of doing so, including wiping hard drives and physically damaging devices [see the video above beginning around the 3:00 mark].
Media outlets and attorneys are having a field day with this.
Sean Hannity tells Mueller witnesses: Bash your phones up with a hammer https://t.co/k7cyj1jaRQ pic.twitter.com/LB5kYaHWWB
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) June 7, 2018
Hannity to Mueller probe witnesses: Destroy your phones before you hand them over https://t.co/5GnqpjUhlx pic.twitter.com/Jn46VU2Imi
— The Hill (@thehill) June 7, 2018
Hannity just encouraged people to commit a crime https://t.co/pugAE9JCmm
— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) June 7, 2018
Sean Hannity Breaks The Law On TV, Telling Mueller Probe Witnesses to Destroy Evidence. https://t.co/Z7Ceg0CVz4
— JerseyLawyer (@TodayAgain1) June 7, 2018
So, could the popular Fox News host get in trouble with the law for recommending such things?
Of course not, because it didn’t happen. As President Donald Trump might say, it’s Fake News.
Here’s what Hannity really said:
If I advised them to follow Hillary Clinton’s lead, delete all your emails, and then acid wash the emails and hard drives on the phones, then take your phones and bash them with a hammer to little, itsy-bitsy pieces, use Bleach Bit, removes the sim cards, and then take the pieces and hand it over to Robert Mueller and say, “Hillary Rodham Clinton, this is equal justice under the law.”
Clearly, Hannity was referring to what Clinton’s team has been accused of doing to allegedly hide or destroy evidence related to her email investigation. His preface, “If I advised them to follow Hillary Clinton’s lead,” clearly makes the “advice” that follows purely hypothetical, as well as sarcastic. His point, whether one agrees with it or not, is that if Clinton and her team can escape an investigation by allegedly destroying evidence, Mueller shouldn’t have a problem if Trump’s team does the same thing. He wasn’t seriously saying anyone should do this, he was basically saying, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.”
Later in the show, when Hannity referenced this again, he even said he was kidding and not really advising people to do this, but critics are conveniently leaving that part out.
For those eager to accuse Hannity of encouraging crimes or event being guilty of one himself, sarcasm isn’t against the law.
[Image via Fox News screengrab]
