CNN analyst admits to making up a story about two Republican Senators

CNN political analyst and former Clinton White House official Joe Lockhart admitted on Wednesday that he made up a conversation between two Republican senators that he claimed were stunned about what they were learning during President Donald Trump’s Senate trial.

Lockhart tweeted: “Overheard convo between two Republican Senators who only watch Fox News. ‘is this stuff real? I haven’t heard any of this before. I thought it was all about a server. If half the stuff Schiff is saying is true, we’re up shit’s creek. Hope the White House has exculpatory evidence.[‘]”

After some time passed, Lockhart added a second tweet to his first tweet, writing, “Ok maybe I made up the convo, but you know that’s exactly what they’re thinking.”

Ok maybe I made up the convo, but you know that's exactly what they're thinking.

— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) January 22, 2020

Republican National Committee (RNC) Rapid Response Director Steve Guest also noted that self-described Washington Post “conservative blogger” Jennifer Rubin, who is really a leftist, promoted Lockhart’s fabricated quote on her Twitter account.

Is anyone surprised that @JRubinBlogger would push Joe Lockhart's FAKE NEWS tweet to her followers? pic.twitter.com/YBuQaWp5e1

— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) January 22, 2020

Lockhart’s follow-up tweet racked up only 330 retweets, leaving many to criticize the former White House official for making the story up. Several people also ripped CNN because Lockhart provides political analysis for the network.

After several people blasted him for making up the story, Lockhart returned to tell everyone to “relax,” tweeting, “Everyone relax. This is satire. Satire to make the point that Senators that are deciding the President’s fate who only watch Fox News have never heard this stuff before. Because Fox is part of the coverup.”