While a grateful nation mourned the tragic loss of one National Guardsman and prayed for the recovery of another, who were shot in the line of duty by an alleged illegal migrant, a prominent voice from the liberal media elite chose not to honor their sacrifice, but to instead launch a despicable and politically motivated attack on their service. In a shocking display of contempt for the men and women who wear the uniform, Jane Mayer, the chief Washington correspondent for the New Yorker magazine, took to social media to trivialize the profound sacrifice of Specialist Sarah Beckstrom and Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe. Her comments laid bare the true, venomous priorities of a media class that values progressive narratives over American lives and patriotism.
The heartbreaking context of this attack makes Mayer’s words all the more grotesque. The two West Virginia National Guardsmen were shot the day before Thanksgiving, allegedly by a 29-year-old Afghan national. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem provided the critical context the liberal media omits, indicating the suspect “was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, under the Biden Administration.” This is the direct, catastrophic result of the previous administration’s reckless open-border policies, a lethal failure that President Trump is now tasked with cleaning up. While 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe fights for his life, Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom succumbed to her wounds, a reality captured in her grieving father’s Facebook post: “My baby girl has passed to glory… This has been a horrible tragedy.”
Amid this solemn backdrop of loss, Jane Mayer chose to spew a vile and dismissive narrative. She wrote, “This is so tragic, so unnecessary, these poor guardsmen should never have been deployed. I live in DC and watched as they had virtually nothing to do but pick up trash. It was a political show and at what a cost.” This statement, suggesting that fallen and wounded heroes were mere glorified garbage collectors engaged in a political stunt, represents the absolute nadir of so-called “journalism.” It is a deliberate attempt to smear a successful public safety operation and to desecrate the memory of a soldier’s ultimate sacrifice for cheap political points.
The response from the Trump White House was swift, severe, and spoke for a nation sick of such elite contempt. White House communications director Steven Cheung fired back from his official account with the righteous fury of an administration that stands unequivocally with those who serve. He wrote, “Jane, respectfully, shut the f**k up for trying to politicize this tragedy. They were protecting DC and trying to make the nation’s capital safer. People like you who engage in ghoulish behavior lose all credibility. Not like you had any to begin with.” The official White House rapid response account further condemned Mayer’s remarks, stating, “You sick, disgusting ghoul. Two of these heroes were just SHOT IN BROAD DAYLIGHT. The Guard has saved countless lives — backed up by evidence (which you’re clearly too stupid to notice). They are American patriots.”
Jane, respectfully, shut the fuck up for trying to politicize this tragedy.
They were protecting DC and trying to make the nation’s capital safer.
People like you who engage in ghoulish behavior lose all credibility. Not like you had any to begin with. https://t.co/DzVX7Adg96
— Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) November 27, 2025
This forceful defense from the administration is backed by undeniable, life-saving results. In August, President Donald Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., and deployed the National Guard to “re-establish law, order, and public safety” in a city that had become a sanctuary for violent crime. The data proves the wisdom and necessity of this decisive action: a 44% decrease in violent crime in the first three weeks of the initiative, a 27% overall drop in crime, and savings of over $450 million. These are not political talking points; they are lives saved, families kept whole, and a capital city reclaimed from chaos.
Yet, when confronted with this irrefutable evidence of the Guard’s success, Mayer doubled down on her ignorance and arrogance. After being presented with the murder statistics, she dismissively replied, “I’ve covered crime in Washington since 1981- let’s skip the mansplaining. You can play with the stats but homicides were dropping before the troops got here.” This is the quintessential response of the liberal media—when facts destroy their narrative, they attack the messenger and deny reality. Thankfully, others refuted her with powerful, firsthand accounts. Reporter Wallace White noted that National Guardsmen had recently prevented a suicide, stating, “If two national guardsmen weren’t there at the time, he’d be dead. These people are heroes.” Logan Dobson, vice president of Targeted Victory, added, “Dozens of Washingtonians are alive today that wouldn’t be if not for the Guard.” This incident is a stark microcosm of the broader battle for the nation’s soul: between an America First administration that acts to protect citizens and a corrupt media class that will mock the very heroes who provide that protection.