Controversial Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes has begun his own media outlet. “The California Republican” is a news site dedicated to delivering “the best of U.S., California and Central Valley news, sports, and analysis.”
Nunes has been the target of much scrutiny over the last several months for the way in which he is handling the investigation into the Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. He’s received criticism from fellow lawmakers, as well as members of the FBI and Department of Justice, for his writing and releasing of, a controversial memo detailing alleged abuses by the FBI in obtaining FISA warrants.
Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi called on House Speaker Paul Ryan to remove Nunes from his post as Intelligence Committee chairman. And last month, the editorial board of one of Nunes’ hometown California papers, The Fresno Bee, published a harsh editorial calling the congressman, “Trump’s stooge.”
“What, pray tell, does Rep. Devin Nunes think he’s doing by waving around a secret memo attacking the FBI, the nation’s premier law enforcement agency?” the paper’s editorial board wrote. “He certainly isn’t representing his Central Valley constituents or Californians, who care much more about health care, jobs and, yes, protecting Dreamers than about the latest conspiracy theory. Instead, he’s doing dirty work for House Republican leaders trying to protect President Donald Trump in the Russia investigation.”
In response, Nunes has described the media as being dishonest and reluctant to cover him or his actions fairly. “Almost every story is fake news. … Almost every story that runs about me is fake. I mean, it’s unbelievable the stuff that is out there,” Nunes said in appearance on The Rush Limbaugh Show last week. “Democracy does die in darkness. The problem is, is the darkness is emanating from the mainstream media themselves. I mean, they refuse, they absolutely refuse to cover the truth. They don’t want to cover it,” he added.
Stories on Carerepublican.com cover more than politics, with stores about sports, especially Fresno State’s turnaround season in football last year. But the majority of coverage seems to be about state and national legislative issues, with a focus on combating what Nunes believes to be a liberal-leaning bias in the mainstream media.
Recent headlines include, “Understanding the process behind #ReleaseTheMemo,” and “Sacramento mandates push CA Dairies to pack up milk cartons and shutdown plant.” The site’s Facebook page boasts just under 4,000 “likes” and just over 4,000 followers.
Nunes was elected to Congress from California in 2003. President Trump won his district by 10 points in 2016 and he currently holds a 50-45% lead in polls over his Democratic challenger for reelection in 2018.