{"id":622032,"date":"2026-06-20T12:21:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:21:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/?p=622032"},"modified":"2026-06-20T12:21:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:21:10","slug":"jake-tappers-bias-exposed-by-math-after-he-faults-secwar-hegseth-for-lackland-afb-flu-outbreak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/?p=622032","title":{"rendered":"Jake Tapper\u2019s bias exposed by math after he faults SecWar Hegseth for Lackland AFB flu outbreak"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/div>\n

An attempt at playing the blame game regarding a recent U.S. Air Force flu outbreak found a CNN anchor faced with a data-backed reality check over his alleged \u201cblind hatred of Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n

Largely due to the response to COVID-19, the most outspoken with claims of science supporting their position often instead have been found zealously adhering with religious fervor to The Science\"\u2122\". Thursday, Jake Tapper\u2019s viral decision to share an article about the Lackland Air Force Base flu outbreak found the report falling apart under scrutiny as the focus instead shifted to cry bias against President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

Sharing The New York Times\u2019 report by Greg Jaffe and Maggie Haberman, Tapper\u2019s post echoed the article with the caption, \u201cA major flu outbreak has sickened nearly 160 troops at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas weeks after Defense Secretary Hegseth announced that U.S. troops would no longer be required to be vaccinated for the flu, defense officials said.\u201d<\/p>\n

Countering the correlation that danced around claiming causation, the X account Cynical Publius delivered some basic data courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), responding, \u201cThe population of Lackland AFB is ~24,000. 160 is 0.16% of 24,000. The current flu rate across the entire USA as of today is approximately the same \u2026 It\u2019s so easy to disprove these liars, they never even try to check their own facts because of their blind hatred of Trump and his team. You think you hate journalists enough\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

The population of Lackland AFB is ~24,000.<\/p>\n

160 is 0.6% of 24,000.<\/p>\n

The current flu rate across the entire USA as of today is approximately the same (see below from Grok).<\/p>\n

It\u2019s so easy to disprove these liars, they never even try to check their own facts because of their blind\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/KLW8E0v9zC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/Is2BnysGft<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Cynical Publius (@CynicalPublius) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Cynical Publius\u2019 post credited xAI\u2019s chatbot Grok with summarizing the CDC data, which further indicated symptomatic cases could actually be under 0.5%.<\/p>\n

Other checks on Tapper included one from Emmy Award-winning KUTV reporter Heidi Hatch, who called out, \u201c\u2026 no one gets a flu vaccine in May or June in the Northern Hemisphere. The previously required flu vaccination would have been taken by troops last October and should cover flu cases in circulation. New vaccinations for 2026-2027 flu season would be available in October of this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can see here the effectiveness by year, the flu vaccine US citizens took 2025-2026 was not a great match at 36% effectiveness,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\n

The new policy took effect on April 21st, no one gets a flu vaccine in May or June in the Northern Hemisphere. The previously required flu vaccination would have been taken by troops last October and should cover flu cases in circulation. New vaccinations for 2026-2027 flu season\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/FfXybvYezV<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Heidi Hatch KUTV (@tvheidihatch) June 18, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

160 out of 24,000\u2026
\nMandatory flu \u201cvaccine\u201d was always stupid. It always made me sick (including fever) and caused me to miss work, thus putting more work on my platoon to cover for me.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Kat (@katyager7) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

160 cases out of 24,000 people? Big deal!<\/p>\n

Also, most of them probably received a flu shot last fall. That means the flu shot they received was not effective. Further, Hesgeth\u2019s announcement relates to future flu shots, like the one that will be introduced this autumn.<\/p>\n

\u2014 JamiethaFounder (@JamiethaFounder) June 20, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

160 cases in 3 weeks among recruits, with 2 hospitalizations.
\nThere was a higher rate in 2023\u20132024 influenza season when they had the vaccine mandate \"\ud83e\udd23\" pic.twitter.com\/TBdKqGz4kN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 democrat no more (@WalkFromDems) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Genius, why don\u2019t you report on how sick the soliders get after they get their \u201cwalk of vaccines\u201d.<\/p>\n

Propaganda always from @jaketapper<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dr Mollie James (@molsjames) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Based on the base population, they are experiencing the same rate of flu as the general population.@jaketapper<\/a> a real reporter would have checked that before simply forwarding a sensationalized story.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re not a journalist, you\u2019re a talking head<\/p>\n

\u2014 Joe Citizen \"\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf2\"\"\ud83d\udcaa\" (@joecitizenus) June 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Of course, the same corporate media that attempted to fault Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for a measles outbreak<\/a> in Texas was certain to shoehorn further tragedy in the story. As the Times indicated, about 40% of Air Force trainees opted for the shot. The report emphasized the recent death of trainee Keon McDaniel with the caveat, \u201cIt was not immediately clear whether the death of the trainee \u2026 was related to the flu outbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n

Regarding the outbreak, a U.S. Air Force spokesperson told<\/a> The Hill, \u201cMedical professionals and Public Health officials have implemented mitigation measures to isolate and treat symptomatic trainees to reduce further exposure and continue to monitor the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMedical personnel are also monitoring trainees who were in close contact with sick members in case they become symptomatic,\u201d added the spokesperson.<\/p>\n

Where it concerned flu vaccination, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said upon ending the previous mandate in April, \u201cOur new policy is simple. If you, an American warrior entrusted to defend this nation, believe that the flu vaccine is in your best interest, then you\u2019re free to take it. You should. But we will not force you. Because your body, your faith are not negotiable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Democrats weren\u2019t alone in decrying the Pentagon\u2019s decision, as Senate Armed Services Committee chair Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker (R), himself an Air Force veteran, had said of the policy, \u201cYou know, you do give up certain rights when you take the oath. It\u2019s just part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An attempt at playing the blame game regarding a recent U.S. Air Force flu outbreak found a CNN anchor faced with a data-backed reality check over his alleged \u201cblind hatred of Trump.\u201d Largely due to the response to COVID-19, the most outspoken with claims of science supporting their position often instead have been found zealously… Continue reading Jake Tapper\u2019s bias exposed by math after he faults SecWar Hegseth for Lackland AFB flu outbreak<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":622033,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[17,22,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-622032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-border-security","category-immigration","category-immigration-reform","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/622032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=622032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/622032\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/622033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=622032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=622032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=622032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}