As RedState reported, President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social Sunday that former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino had been appointed as the deputy director of the FBI, news that had conservatives cheering and the Very Online Left erupting into mini-meltdowns.
Bongino was "a member of the New York Police Department (New York’s Finest!), a highly respected Special Agent with the United States Secret Service, and is now one of the most successful Podcasters in the Country, something he is willing and prepared to give up in order to serve," Trump also noted.
In a statement issued after news broke of his appointment, Bongino said, “My career has always been about service. I’m here to work. I’m here to lead. And I’m here to ensure that America’s law enforcement institutions uphold the values and integrity they were built upon."
SEE ALSO: Dan Bongino Is Leaving Talk Radio - What Does It Mean for the Industry?
One thing in particular that I noticed Monday in some of the various mainstream media reporting on Bongino's appointment was something that. while predictable, was nevertheless pretty infuriating.
Many news outlets, like the New York Times, NPR, BBC, the Washington Post, and Politico all made sure to leave out of their headlines the fact that Bongino was a former Secret Service agent and police officer, important information that would give non-political junkies an idea as to why he was selected for the role.
Here are some of them (subject to change, as the MSM often does):
While Bongino is indeed all of those things and there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of them, the purpose behind the headlines was to - as they did with Kash Patel - diminish Bongino's qualifications to be the second in charge at the FBI. Though most people reading this know he has extensive Secret Service and law enforcement experience, not everyone out there is familiar with Bongino's background.
Because oftentimes people only read social media headlines instead of the full piece (which the press counts on), the idea was to get them to question the wisdom of Bongino being appointed to such an important position with his "only" qualifications (as they tried to portray them) being that he was a popular conservative commentator and was fiercely loyal to Trump.
As I said above, though it's predictable, it's annoying all the same.
Relatedly, I found this bit in the Times piece laughable for reasons that should be obvious to pretty much everyone (bolded emphasis added):
The role of deputy director does not require Senate confirmation, meaning two steadfast Trump loyalists will effectively be at the uppermost reaches of an agency known for its tradition of independence.
[...]
It is also all but certain to prompt concerns about how the men [Patel and Bongino], who have freely peddled misinformation and embraced partisan politics, will run an agency typically insulated from White House interference.
One of the nation's leading sources of misinformation wildly peddling misinformation of its own. You can't make it up. You truly can't.