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Congressional Committee Weighs in on CNN Anchor’s ‘Meddling’ in 2020 House Races

Jake Tapper is in some serious trouble, it seems.

Over the weekend, an extremely disturbing story broke that sits at the crossroads of politics and entertainment, and Congress is not taking the tale lightly.

At the heart of the issue are allegations that CNN host Jake Tapper worked to persuade possible candidates for the House of Representatives to alter or abandon their plans to run for office, hoping that their abstinence could help protect the Democratic Party from taking a big loss in 2020.

Tapper has been a vocal opponent of Donald Trump from his perch as a paid entertainer on CNN, but his willingness to use this influence outside of work has congressional Republicans steaming.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) on Sunday night raised concerns that CNN anchor Jake Tapper may be “meddling” in House races beyond the 17th congressional district in Pennsylvania.

Responding to a report from Breitbart News on how Jake Tapper attempted to convince rising GOP star candidate Sean Parnell to run in a district other than the 17th, the NRCC raised questions about Tapper’s actions in this case and wondered if he has engaged in activity like this in other districts with other candidates as well.

The organization didn’t pull any punches in their assessment of the situation.

The NRCC’s tweet, which includes a link to the Breitbart News story on the matter, accuses CNN and Tapper of “meddling in House swing races.”

The original Breitbart News report quoted sources familiar with Tapper’s actions, in which he — through text messages, direct messages on Twitter to Parnell’s account, and phone calls — tried to steer Parnell towards running in less of a swing district and more a Republican-leaning district. The original cites a number of sources familiar with the matter. Since the publication of the original article, Breitbart News has additionally confirmed Tapper’s activities with at least eight more individuals aware of his behavior in Pennsylvania politics.

The reason why what Tapper did is significant: If Parnell ran somewhere other than the 17th district, it is unlikely that Democrat Rep. Conor Lamb (D-PA) would face a serious challenge in November’s congressional election. But since Parnell rebuked Tapper’s political advice, and instead chose to run against Lamb, the vulnerable Democrat is facing potential defeat in November.

Tapper was nowhere to be seen on CNN on Monday, leading many to wonder what sort of response, if any, the American people will be given for his egregious actions.

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