I used to subscribe to as well as trust the journalistic integrity of The NYT. Not any more. In general, I interpret it as a narrative setter for the left-y elites, and sometimes the bipartisan status quo. In this case, this misdirection hopes to let The Ruling Class off the hook.

To your point, I'm sure we'll see this narrative parroted in the coming months. At that point it will be nearly impossible to correct. Propaganda - subtle or not - is a powerful force.