JAMES SIMPSON: The Associated Press headline screams: Lawmaker Won’t Press Charges in Spitting Incident,” and the headline is being reprinted everywhere on the Leftist blogosphere as well as in the mass media. But read past the headline. The very first sentence of the story says: “A congressman who was spat on by a protestor on Capitol Hill says he is declining to press charges, but turns out the Capitol Police say they made no arrests.” (Emphasis added.)

The Capitol Police “made no arrests.” The article goes on to quote the Police spokesman: “Sgt. Kimberly Schneider of the U.S. Capitol Police said in an e-mail later: ‘We did not make any arrests today.’” So did the incident even occur?

From the very beginning, this story has stunk. Anyone who has ever attended Tea Party rallies knows that this is a decent bunch of folks – ordinary, decent, hardworking Americans taking time away from work and families to come to Washington in the firm belief that we are being betrayed by our lawmakers. Just compare pictures of the aftermath of the 9-12 march with the aftermath of any other large Mall gathering. 9-12 protesters left the place spotless. These people would condemn on the spot anyone spitting or engaging in any other untoward behavior.

But nevermind, despite no evidence provided that the spitting incident even happened, the article repeats without question this same Congressman’s claim that racial epithets were shouted at him as he made his way to the Capitol: Read more…