In a manner reminiscent of John Kerry's infamous waffling during the 2004 presidential contest, Hillary Clinton walked right into her own "I voted for it, before I voted against it" trap in last night's Democrat Party debate.
Coming at the end of what had been a relatively unremarkable evening, Hillary's mega- flip- flop on driver's licenses for illegal aliens was instantly challenged by Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) and ultimately captured for all to see on the Internet.
While blogs didn't waste a minute before pounding away at the supposed Democrat front- runner, talk radio hosts weren't far behind. Expect to hear a great deal about this during today's shows.
But in a sign that Hillary may not have the free ride she might have imagined from the mainstream media, her gaffe was covered today by MSNBC, CBS, the Philadelphia Inquirer and many other outlets. The Politico went as far as to say Clinton had bombed. The Chicago Sun-Times accused her of "waffling".
PHILADELPHIA - Hillary Rodham Clinton stumbled badly at last night's Democratic debate when she repeatedly refused to give a direct answer about whether she supports Gov. Spitzer's plan to give driver's licenses to illegal aliens - and got slammed by her opponents for evasive double-talk.
"I was confused on Sen. Clinton's answer," said Sen. Barack Obama, who backs the plan. "I can't tell whether she was for it or against it."
He added, "One of the things that we have to do in this country is be honest about the challenges that we face."
Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut said a driver's license was "a privilege, not a right," and that illegals shouldn't be allowed to get one.
Clinton shot back that "I did not say that it should be done," prompting Dodd to counter, "You said yes."
"No I didn't, Chris," Clinton insisted.
The Democratic front-runner said illegal immigrants are "driving on our roads. The possibility of them having an accident that harms themselves or others is just a matter of the odds."
But she did not clearly say whether or not she backs Spitzer's plan.
That prompted MSNBC moderator Tim Russert to ask, "Do you . . . support your governor's plan to give an illegal immigrant a driver's license?"
Again, Clinton wouldn't respond directly, saying, "We want people to come out of the shadows," and adding Spitzer is "making an honest effort to do it."
"Unless I'm missing something, Senator Clinton said two different things in about two minutes," said former Sen. John Edwards.
From YouTube, this clip is already spreading across the Internet like wildfire:
For talk radio, Hillary's horrible performance last night couldn't have been better- timed. With key primaries just around the corner, Clinton has played right into the worst fears of her opponents and provided top- quality ammo that hosts will be utilizing for weeks, if not months, to come.
From FOX News confrontationalist Bill O'Reilly, here's a tip for talk hosts everywhere: when a prospective guest proves reluctant to appear, simply bring the show to them!
And what better guinea pig to test the O'Reilly Factor's new booking approach than with well- known introvert Rosie O'Donnell!
The end result has proven infinitely more entertaining than anything seen during Tuesday night's Democrat Party debate. Rosie caught off- guard in this setting is scarier than all of the ghosts and goblins visible during tonight's trick- or- treating.
And for good measure, Big O's producer even managed to catch the thin- skinned former View bigmouth in a bit of a fib.
In the video, filmed this weekend at a book signing in Huntington, N.Y., producer Jesse Watters asks O'Donnell why she won't return phone calls from The O'Reilly Factor, which is trying to secure her as a guest on the program.
"We've called you 100 times," Watters says on the tape. O'Donnell's reply: "If Bill wants me, he should tell me himself. He is a big boy. He is a grown-up."
O'Reilly, 58, has loudly criticized O'Donnell, 45, for what he considers her reprehensible views about the 9/11 attacks on America. In the video, Watters tells O'Donnell: "Rosie, he wants to know if you regret saying that 9/11 was an inside job?"
O'Donnell shoots back: "I did not say that. He is quoting the wrong people."
She then repeatedly asks a colleague of Watters' to put down his camera, and the pair are eventually moved away from her.
"Sir, you're done," she calls after Watters. "Get out of the store. You made your point, you have your tape, go home. Skip home happily."
One problem: Rosie did all but call 9-11 an inside job, even if she did use verbal trickery in saying so. From YouTube (start at 4:22 into the clip):
In the new confrontation, Factor producer Jesse Watters does a great job egging on O'Donnell without overstepping his bounds. After all, he did approach her in a public place and remained civil:
What makes this booking method so ingenious is that it has forced O'Donnell back into the debate, whether she wanted to be there or not. In the world of talk television, a quiet Rosie is bad for business. So what does it take to once again bring her into the fray? Producer Watters and O'Reilly have clearly discovered the proper formula.
In what tribal leaders and local media outlets are calling their own version of the Don Imus racism flap, a Minneapolis- based shock jock team is in deep trouble over comments area Native Americans have found insulting.
Rolling over at record speed, the station has decided to apologize. While that might seem appropriate here, it demonstrates just how scared corporate owners remain after the Imus flap.
While there's no question the jocks stepped over the line, what defies easy explanation is why protests have erupted a full month after the show actually aired. Is that how long it took for word to reach these remote tribal lands?
In fact, after wading through quite a bit of news coverage on the controversy, your Radio Equalizer still has not seen this explained anywhere.
The other big question is whether dim-bulb FM morning show jocks deserve this kind of attention. More on that below.
What we do know is this: in September, Tom Barnard and the KQRS morning show made a number of insulting comments about Minnesota- based tribal members. From the Minneapolis Star- Tribune:
The uproar stems from a broadcast last month in which Barnard and Traen talked about the Red Lake and Shakopee tribes while discussing a report by the state Health Department that Beltrami County has the state's highest rate of suicide among young people.
The jocks then mentioned Bemidji and the Red Lake Indian Reservation, which are both located in Beltrami County.
"Maybe it's genetic; isn't there a lot of incest up there?" Traen said about the tribe.
"Not that I know of," Barnard replied.
"I think there is," Traen continued. "Don't quote me on that, but I'm pretty sure."
"Well, I'm glad you just threw it out there, then," Barnard said to laughter in the background.
Barnard also criticized the Shakopee Sioux, who own the Mystic Lake Casino, for "doing a hell of a job helping them out."
Traen commented, "They don't give them anything?"
"Hell, no!" Barnard replied.
Another member of the morning team refers to the casino as "Mistake Lake," and calls Bellecourt, "Clyde Bellycourt."
Yesterday, tribal leaders and other representatives protested outside KQRS-FM's studios in Minneapolis, where station management quickly agreed to a long list of their demands. From the Park Rapids Enterprise:
In a telephone interview as he was traveling home to Red Lake Monday afternoon, Red Lake Chairman Floyd “Buck” Jourdain Jr. said the Indian Affairs Council sent a formal complaint to KQRS after the September broadcast, but Red Lake Nation, the Mdewakanton Sioux and AIM members decided they needed more response from the radio station and a face-to-face meeting.
Attending the meeting were Jourdain, Red Lake Secretary Kathryn Beaulieu, Ponemah Representative Glenda Martin and Red Lake Representative Donald May, Mdewakanton Sioux Vice Chairman Glynn Crooks, AIM Co-founder Bellecourt and other community members. Barnard and Traen did not attend the meeting.
Jourdain said KQRS President and General Manager Marc Kalman said the station will take the following measures:
-- Broadcast a public apology and send a written apology to Red Lake and Mdewakanton Sioux.
-- Give equal air time to positive issues involving the American Indian community.
-- Work to hire American Indian interns.
-- Continue airing public service announcements for the Native youth suicide hot line and suicide prevention program.
-- Invite members of the Shakopee Mdewakanton and Red Lake tribes to be on the morning show.
-- Reprimand Barnard and Traen.
For full political effect, Red Lake Tribal Chairman Floyd Jourdain was quick to make the Imus comparison to the press:
(The Bemidji Pioneer) "These were irresponsible comments that are way out of bounds and intolerable," Red Lake Tribal Chairman Floyd Jourdain said before the meeting. Jourdain compared the comments to those several months ago by Don Imus about the Rutgers women's basketball team that were racial and sexual in nature. Imus lost his syndicated radio job over that incident.
"Those comments (by Imus) were about losing a basketball game, and these are about life and death," said Jourdain, "and we're not going to endure this ignorance any longer in a state that emphasizes Minnesota Nice."
Jourdain said there hasn't a suicide on his reservation in more than two years.
Bellecourt said the remarks were "ignorant."
The KQ morning show, is among the most popular morning programs in the Twin Cities. It's known for delivering weird news, ethnic jokes and political diatribes.
Minority groups have long criticized Barnard and his crew for their on-air banter.
What isn't in question is that KQRS's morning show has been getting away with murder for years. From the Star Tribune:
Minority groups have long criticized Barnard and his crew for their on-air banter.
In the late 1990s, members of the Somali community picketed over Barnard and Co.'s mocking of Somali dialects after a Somali cabdriver was slain. Before that, the Asian-American community was irate when Barnard and his co-hosts made fun of a teenage Hmong girl who was charged with killing her newborn son.
They said of her potential $10,000 fine: "That's a lot of eggrolls."
But if a gnawing sense of familiarity has been with you since the beginning of this story, it's because Red Lake itself has hardly been free of past controversy of its own. Remember the 2005 massacre that left 10 dead and seven injured? Yes, thatRed Lake.
And here's the problem with our new era of radio- based outrage and protest: it's a parasitical relationship. Without the FM shock jocks and their brain- dead banter, the eternally offended have nothing to picket. Nor do they have trembling managers ready to instantly cave into whatever demands they might make.
Worse for the enraged parties is the emerging reality that they may soon become victims of their own success. As the offending hosts are gradually removed from the airwaves or at the very least neutered of offensive content, there won't be much left to protest. No offending remarks equals no way to make demands for free airtime, employment and other compensation.
That's why, in the end, the Al Sharptons of the world can't live without their Don Imuses.
FOR Boston- area talk radio updates, see our other site. New: Howie's secret weapon
After earlier appearing to stand reasonably firm in the face of heat from perpetually- offended ethnic organizations, powerhouse Cincinnati talker WLW has finally buckled under pressure and agreed to their demands.
Featuring a primarily local lineup that isn't afraid of controversy, WLW consistently ranks number one in the region.
Now, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, parent company Clear Channel Communications has formed a new Minority Advisory Board, with representatives from a number of fringe advocacy groups invited to participate:
Clear Channel radio executives here are quietly putting together the community advisory board demanded by local Hispanic groups it offended twice this year.
The League of United Latin American Citizens proposed the panel in May, when WLW-AM (700), the city's No. 1 station, put up the "Big Juan" billboards with a Mexican man and a donkey.
The league's national office repeated the demand to Clear Channel's corporate headquarters in San Antonio in August, after the station broadcast a promotion offering "helpful phrases" to speak to illegal aliens, with Spanish music in the background.
Jason Paul Riveiro, the league's Ohio deputy director, says he has been invited to be in the group.
He has received an e-mail from Clear Channel saying "15 of Cincinnati's most prominent community leaders, including the mayor ... and members of the black, Hispanic, Asian and other minority groups have agreed to sit on a panel with Clear Channel Cincinnati each month to address issues pertaining to their communities and any concerns that they have with Clear Channel."
However, Mayor Mark Mallory's spokesman says "the mayor's office has not be contacted about this."
Chuck Fredrick, Clear Channel market manager, declined to comment. He says he will talk about the panel "when completed."
WLW-AM also has aired public service announcements in October for Hispanic Heritage Month.
It's not as though WLW hadn't been pushing the envelope: for months, its hosts and marketing department have been egging on the eternally- offended through on-air taunts and mildly provocative billboards.
But overall, none of WLW's publicity- generating antics have risen (or plunged) to the level of Don Imus's now- infamous "nappy- headed hos" comment. Most notably, WLW host Bill Cunningham infuriated the Council on American- Islamic Relations (CAIR) earlier in October with this:
"The great war of this generation's time is the war against Islamic fascists," Cunningham said. "... They do not live for life, they live for death. Only through death can they believe they can be with those 72 virgins in heaven and have sex with children for eternity, which is the goal of that religion."
In May, WLW's marketing folks had Hispanic advocacy groups in a tizzy over billboards that featured a play on "The Big One", the station's longtime slogan. Changing it to "The Big Juan" and including a Mexican man, flag and a donkey, it had the extremists at LULAC boiling over in anger:
700 WLW unveiled its new ad campaign last month, first with a photo of a Mexican flag.
Jason Riveiro, the president of the Cincinnati chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens or LULAC tells 9News, "I think many of us felt that well perhaps maybe there was a new Spanish radio station coming on board."
The talk radio station's next ad showed a man dressed in a traditional Mexican costume, but instead of the radio's slogan "The Big One," it read "The Big Juan."
"We came to find out that it was coming from a radio station that has no intention of marketing to the Hispanic population and at the same time is very vocal against immigrants into this area," says Riveiro.
At the time, WLW removed the "offensive" billboards and hinted that it might go with LULAC's demands, but little was said publicly after that point. Now, we've learned the company has been pandering to these fringe "outrage" groups, perhaps all along.
Going forward, what is the significance of the new advisory committee? If Clear Channel gives in completely to their demands, it could mean outright censorship of on- air content. Should fringe special interest organizations program talk radio stations? Is this the new standard for our medium?
FOR Boston- area talk radio updates, see our other site. NEW: Another legal setback for Howie Carr
Days after it rightly should have faded from view, agenda- driven mainstream media liberals are determined to keep the flap over Glenn Beck's wildfire comments alive.
Since a number of commentators went overboard with fire- related silliness, on both the left and right, singling out Beck reveals clear partisan motivations.
On Wednesday, your Radio Equalizereven agreed with Internet lefties who took Beck to task for associating disaster victims with those who "hate America". It was a stupid comment, plain and simple.
Yet the Los Angeles Times, which has yet again revisited the Beck controversy in an editorial published today, has no interest in covering those inconvenient facts, even after we contacted the reporter who wrote the most recent article on the subject.
From the new Op-Ed piece:
Don't blame the fire victims
Now is the time to show sympathy instead of blaming Malibu liberals and risk-taking homeowners.
October 27, 2007
Conservative talk radio host Glenn Beck is the latest high-profile figure to say something idiotic in the face of tragedy, but he's got plenty of company. Disasters can bring out the best in humanity as rescuers risk their lives to save others and communities band together to rebuild, but they can also bring out the worst.
"I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today," Beck told the audience of his nationally syndicated show on Monday, as parts of Malibu were in flames. That actually ranks pretty low on the mindless insensitivity scale compared to some of the sludge uttered in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, when New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin said his city was devastated because "God is mad at America"; in this, he was in full agreement with a host of Islamist bloggers who claimed that the hurricane represented Allah's judgment on America's sins, including a Kuwaiti minister who wrote that the storm was "a wind of torment and evil that Allah has sent to this American empire."
Blaming the victims has been a highly popular sport in California over the last week, as blogs and other public forums have been swamped by comments about the recklessness and irresponsibility of those who choose to live in wild areas. Some of the criticism is justified. As noted above, all taxpayers subsidize the firefighting services needed by a few who live in the state's tinder-dry hillsides, and government has been far too permissive in allowing development there. But canyon dwellers aren't breaking any laws, and most take seriously their responsibilities to clear brush, insure their homes and otherwise reduce fire risks. Like most of us in this gorgeous but dangerous state, they just want to live somewhere beautiful.
In the midst of tragedy, it's comforting to think that the victims somehow deserved what they got: I'm not as dumb as those people who live in the San Diego County wilderness, so it'll never happen to me. The same instinct is doubtless behind the urge to blame disasters on divine retribution: Nothing like this will happen to me, because God's on my side and hates my enemies. Or, as in Beck's case, the criticism may be simple schadenfreude: The Hollywood liberals in Malibu who disagree with my opinions, and therefore hate America, sure are in a world of hurt now.
[...]
Sure, they do point the finger at Nagin as well, but that's old news. What about those on the left who have used the latest tragedy to further an extremist anti- Bush agenda?
At this point, how can we arrive at any conclusion other than that the LA Times is in full agreement with the libtalk crowd? Pounding away at a conservative talker while ignoring equally disturbing transgressions from the Air America gang exposes the paper's inherent ideological dishonesty.
Meanwhile, the Times isn't the only publication singling out Beck for scorn: here's a Tennessee paper slamming him today, as well as more whining at the Huffington Post and the anti- FOX cabal.
Why can't any of you on the left admit Rhodes and Malloy are just as guilty? Are you afraid of inciting the wrath of the left- wing fringe?
Liberals Threaten Canada Move, Rudy Guiliani, Ed Schultz
NOT AGAIN!
If Rudy Wins, Libs Say They're Ready To Bolt For Canada
Whether lefties realize it or not, their threats to flee to Canada if Republicans win elections drive conservatives nuts. If only they would follow through and actually go!
In fact, we've heard this one so many times over the last decade that it's amazing liberals are still recycling this tired, empty rhetoric. If you don't like it here, please be our guest and depart now! Somehow, they never seem to take the plunge.
This time, it's libtalker Ed Schultz making the dubious threat. From yesterday's show, here's a portion of the transcript:
SCHULTZ: I tell you what, if Rudy Giuliani is president of the United States, I am looking for real estate in Manitoba, we're close to the border, I couldn't stand it for a moment.
And in thisRadio Equalizer- created YouTube clip, Robert Greenwald of Brave New Films joins Schultz for a hate- filled blame- Rudy- for- 9-11 fest:
Especially interesting here is how Greenwald's anti- Rudy hate video provides many clues as to how Democrats will likely run against him next year, should Guiliani secure the GOP nomination.
Expect to hear the word "radios" thrown about quite a bit in 2008. Though relatively few Americans see Rudy as an angel free of personal faults (some quite significant), this is clearly a smear film that attempts to blame Guiliani directly for the deaths of firefighters on 9-11.
At the firm's website is a disgusting photoshop image of President Bush eating a baby's head! Why do future Democrat - Canadians (if only they would leave!) such as Schultz continue to associate themselves with this level of extremism?
Media On Talk Radio And Wildfires, Glenn Beck, Randi Rhodes, Mike Malloy
SELECTIVE OUTRAGE
MSM Makes Stink Over Beck, Ignores Rhodes, Malloy
In the latest example of selective outrage from the left and their mainstream media allies, one- sided coverage of wildfire- related talk radio content is in full view today.
Sure, that's what we should expect from lefty blogs, but what about major newspapers? From the Los Angeles Times, here's but one example:
Talk radio host links fire victims to those who 'hate America'
Glenn Beck's comments draw a rebuke from one media watchdog group, whose spokesman calls them 'heartless.'
By Andrew Blankstein, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer 11:07 AM PDT, October 24, 2007
With more than 1,100 homes destroyed, two deaths reported and more than a quarter-million people ordered to evacuate, the wildfires ravaging Southern California have been as indiscriminate as they have been devastating.
But the images of charred residences, grieving homeowners and valiant firefighters apparently were not enough to move conservative talk radio host Glenn Beck, who told his listeners on his nationally syndicated show Monday that those suffering losses "hate America."
"I think there is a handful of people who hate America," Beck said. "Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today."
Beck then tried to backtrack, saying he didn't think those who hated the country were Democrats. "I think there are those posing as Democrats that are like that," he said.
On Tuesday, Beck said his comments were misinterpreted by "a few liberal bloggers."
"The wildfires in California are a tragedy," he said during his radio program. "I don't want anyone to lose their home. I don't care what their political stripes are. I don't want a soul to lose their home, and anyone who doesn't want to make me into an evil supervillain would understand that."
"Those who don't listen to the show … , let me give you a little piece of advice," Beck added. "You have to engage what I would like to call your brain. You actually have to think: I might be making a joke; I might be serious."
Beck's original remark came as he criticized Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for urging GOP presidential candidates to capture the political center in the 2008 election by focusing on healthcare reform and education.
Just before Beck's comments on the fire, he said, "We're all one America" and "just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you hate America, and I love America."
In response, your Radio Equalizer sent the LAT's Blankstein this note:
Andrew:
While it is true that Glenn Beck's comments on the wildfires are disturbing, he's hardly the only talk host tripping up over this issue.
In addition, Randi Rhodes and Mike Malloy, both heard on KLSD in San Diego and across the country in syndication, have attempted to blame both Blackwater (Rhodes) and the Bush family (Malloy) for actually starting the fires.
That's right, even though we have audio of Malloy and Rhodes uttering comments there were equally, if not more inflammatory than Beck's, the mainstream media has no interest. There was no response from Blankstein.
Even more telling, Google News searches reveal a near- total lack of coverage of the Rhodes and Malloy incidents, while Beck's unfortunate comment receives a great deal of attention.
Radio industry trade publications have taken the same route, acting as though only Beck put his foot in his mouth. From Radio & Records:
Glenn Beck is drawing criticism for comments on his Premiere-syndicated radio show on Monday (Oct. 22) about victims of the fires in California. Media watchdog group Media Matters is asking Beck to apologize and also wants CNN to distance itself from the comments; Beck hosts a daily show on CNN.
On his Monday radio show Beck said, "I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today."
The release from Media Matters goes on to point out the irony of Beck saying this immediately after he said, "We're all one America" and "Just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you hate America and I love America. We all love America. We just disagree on how we should function."
We weren't afraid to take Beck to task along with Rhodes and Malloy. Why can't the left exhibit the same honesty?
Libtalkers On Wildfire Causes, Randi Rhodes, Harry Reid, Mike Malloy
ORAL CONFLAGRATIONS
In Wildfire Blame Game, Lefties Kick It Up Ten Notches
In their desperate effort to lay political blame for Southern California's wildfires, liberals are resorting to extreme rhetoric, kicked up at least 10 notches from yesterday alone.
The latest oral conflagrations began with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), who tried to pin the fires on global warming:
“One reason why we have the fires in California is global warming,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters Tuesday, stressing the need to pass the Democrats’ comprehensive energy package.
Moments later, when asked by a reporter if he really believed global warming caused the fires, he appeared to back away from his comments, saying there are many factors that contributed to the disaster.
Next, it was libtalker Randi Rhodes' turn to up the ante and she came through with flying colors. According to Ian Schwartz (who provides a clip here), Rhodes says Blackwater employees may have had a role in the fires themselves:
RHODES: I started just doing Google searches to try and figure out. You know, arson, arson, it was like crazy trying to figure out why is that being downplayed? Why is that, you know, just a small part of the story? And you know, every time I look for it what comes up, believe it or not, is that Blackwater wants to move to San Diego and build this giant complex in San Diego right where most of the evacuations are taking place and you know.
You just know wherever there is fire, this administration will be out there doing what it does best and that is fanning the flames, you know. It just spooks me, I can’t explain to you how creepy this whole thing is that you know, you’ve got these fires. Some of them are thought to be the work of arsonists and in the same breath you’ve got a community that’s on fire that just recently protested Blackwater West.
Just recently said no to Blackwater and apparently you don’t do that. I mean, I don’t even know what to think. You know, nobody is saying Blackwater set the fires, that is nobody that doesn’t want their house burned down. Nobody is saying that, but it is all so bizarre that this is America and you have to sort of sit there and wonder … arson, same place Blackwater West wants to be, people protesting. And then you find out that some of the guys that used to work for Blackwater are now in Schwarzenegger’s administration. It’s all so creepy.
Finally, not to be outdone, our old pal Mike Malloy took his own rhetoric miles above the previous day's, now blaming the "Bush Crime Family" for actually starting the fires (!!) as a way to divert attention away from other matters:
MALLOY (23 October 2007): It's being manipulated, we're all being manipulated, we are being shifted, refocused, not to minimize what's going on in California at all. But you know, the thought hit me today, God help me for this, or somebody help me, but the thought hit me today, um, all those fires, I had a thought, what the hell is causing the fires? They're all over the place, they're 40, 50, 60, 100, 150 fires, boom boom boom boom, what's causing that?!
They're not having electrical storms out there, they're not having any storms at all. What's causing it? But then the answer popped into my head, as easily as the answer about torture. The fires are being set, the fires are being set by elements of the Bush crime family. It's a great distraction, it's a wonderful distraction. And then I thought to myself, Jesus God! Did you really have that thought?! And the answer came back - yeah, loud and 'effing clear."
As conservatives, feeling compelled to agree with the likes of Media Matters and other left- wing smear sites is a miserable, yet occasionally unavoidable position. And if not for a few loose cannons on our own side of the aisle, this rare alignment might not ever occur.
In fact, subtract one Glenn Beck from the equation and we might never be on the same side as our Soros- funded enemies.
Just yesterday, we highlighted how "progressive" talk hosts are busy looking to blame Bush and the Iraq conflict for the wildfires now raging in Southern California. At the same time, Beck's latest asinine comments force us to examine our own side.
Beck's on-air meltdown over fire victims is so outrageous it has conservatives wondering what we did to get stuck with this albatross. Your Radio Equalizer has been hearing from concerned folks on the right.
In addition, Hot Air and other conservative sites have already taken the syndicated talker and CNN-HN host to task.
And quite unlike previousMedia Matters- fueled smears, this flap seems accurately recorded and transcribed. Take a look:
BECK (22 October): Let's talk about health care and education? That's not the way to win. That's not the way to win on any front. I'm not even talking about -- the least I care about is winning the election. How about winning the war? How about saving our country? And, you know, it made me think. I want to make this very clear. When I say on the air, and I've said it a lot lately, that we need to come together and we need to get back into the center, we're being pushed on to the edges -- I want you to understand, that is not on policies. I don't mean that we come in the center on policies.
We come to the center on principles. We come back to the center of the melting pot, that we're all one America, that just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you hate America, and I love America. We all love America. We just disagree on how we should function, what we should do, big government, small government. It doesn't mean you hate America. I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today.
There are a few people that hate America. But I don't think the Democrats are those. I think there are those posing as Democrats that are like that. But you don't come into the center. You have to stand up for what you believe in.
First, Beck is factually way off base: the hills of rural and suburban San Diego County couldn't be more conservative if they tried. Those are solid areas for Republicans, not America- bashing leftists. And even if he was referring to the earlier Malibu- area fires, there's no evidence they hit liberals harder than anyone else.
Second, how could Beck be stupid enough to make such an idiotic statement while hundreds of thousands of people were being evacuated? At a time like this, politics should be irrelevant. Normal human beings don't want to see people losing their homes.
What conservatives want to know is whether the movement is stuck with Beck, a talker most had never heard of until quite recently. The answer is simple: it's up to you to fight back.
After all, isn't keeping our own side free of counterproductive elements just as important as taking on the opposition?
As if on cue, libtalkers lined up to be the first to find a way to blame the president and Iraq for Southern California's raging wildfires. Always up to the task of 24-7 Bush- bashing, host Mike Malloy quickly got to work during last night's show.
Here he is during Monday's opening segment:
The situation in Southern California is horrific and it's getting worse, I understand, by the hour. Jessie in that area writes, 'San Diego County is in deep trouble. We have no National Guard to help. We'll keep you posted.'
Only she didn't use that word 'trouble,' she used a different word. No National Guard to help ... um, I've heard some report today, I don't know if it's true, it was picked up by several of the cable news agencies, it was a spokesman for one of the fire departments, a firefighting organization, I don't know, I heard it in passing, but I heard it two or three times, and they said they have more fires have developed than they have firefighting units to fight these fires.
And this is a perfect example of where the National Guard is vital, but the National Guard in, I don't know what the, how many units have been called up out of the California, maybe none, you know, but I do know this - there are enough National Guard units in Iraq fighting Bush's filthy war and occupation to put different areas of the country in serious peopardy over when issues like this or natural disasters like this develop. Another part of the Bush legacy."
And, via a Radio Equalizer - YouTube production, here's the audio in question:
Too bad the evidence so far points to a well- planned effort to coordinate emergency efforts. From CNN:
(CNN) -- Stinging from the painful lessons learned from wildfires that claimed 15 lives four years ago, authorities in San Diego County were quick to warn and evacuate residents this time.
The county's new, Internet-based emergency notification system issued a multitiered alert -- by phone, by e-mail and by text message.
The result: Some 300,000 people evacuated ahead of the flames.
"We do know that we have placed now over 270,000 calls ... evacuated over 300,000 people, which is a very significant number," County Supervisor Ron Roberts told reporters on Tuesday morning.
All law enforcement agencies in the county are on tactical alert and about 600 officers are patrolling the areas affected by the fire, authorities said.
They are working 12-hour shifts with no days off, and will be helped by the California National Guard.
There were reports of scattered looting and at least two arrests.
Whatever the truth, in the next few days, expect many, many other lefties to join the Blame Bush Bandwagon. Already, it's well underway at the DailyKos.
Dan Savage Interview, Gay Political Agenda, Talk Radio
LIMITS OF TOLERANCE
With Obscene Rhetoric, Lefties Undermine Cause
*** Explicit Content Warning ***
Just in case there is any question as to why Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid's congressional "leadership" has generated an 11% national approval rating, a new interview with syndicated sex columnist, author and Seattle newspaper editor Dan Savage offers fresh insight.
Savage, long a darling of the left, represents exactly the kind of MoveOn.org- style liberal that Democrats have been forced to pander to since taking power. Under threat of being labeled "homophobic", must the other 89% of America really tolerate these extremists?
QUEERTY: Who are the top three scariest politicians?
DAN SAVAGE: Jenna Bush, Jeb Bush Jr., and all future Bushes lurking in the scrota and ovum of every last member of that dense, selfish, clueless plague masquerading as a political dynasty.
QT: You’re stuck in a desert island with Dennis Hastert, Rush Limbaugh and Fred Phelps. You’ll be freed if you f--k one of them. Who are you going to do and why are they the best choice?
DS: Good God. Must I answer this question? I guess… uh… Fred Phelps, because he’s the most revolting of the three –way out in front of Hastert, and edging Limbaugh by a hair.
Why Fred? Well, I figure I might have an easier time working up a hate-f--k boner for Phelps than the other two. Plus he’s the skinniest and I likes ‘em skinny. But, man, just thinking about it makes me worry that I’ll never get a boner again. Out, out, damn mental image!
The interview only degenerates from there, but it's all that could reasonably be excerpted for this website.
If this is what the "progressive" left and its gay fellow- travellers stand for, then perhaps it is time for millions of Americans to proudly wear the "homophobic" label. And to liberals who somehow don't find this kind of talk disgusting, here's some advice: get help, now.
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Talk Hosts, Campus Activists Team Up For Free Speech
For the Ahmadinejad- loving collegiate crowd, here's a chance to test how much they truly support free speech on campus. When the tables turn, will university "progressives" show tolerance for other viewpoints, or erupt in a state of rage?
In a partnership with college Republican organizations, hundreds of schools will participate.
Don't think the left and its mainstream media fellow- travellers aren't paying attention. Even before today's kickoff at the University of Washington, the pro- jihadist Seattle Times reported that local Muslim groups were pre- certified as offended. That's despite the fact that UW College Republicans had toned down their version of events.
There, syndicated talk host Michael Medved is expected to address students, according to the Times:
Local Muslims upset by UW campus event
By Janet I. Tu
Seattle Times religion reporter
A controversial week of events, billed as Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week, launches at the University of Washington and some 100 other colleges next week — drawing condemnations from Muslim groups here and across the country.
The UW College Republicans, organizer of the local events, say the week is intended to foster awareness of the terrorist threat posed by a small number of extremists within Islam.
But some local Muslims say the week fosters Islamophobia and racism and attempts to paint all Muslims as terrorists.
Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week, launched this year by a recent graduate of Duke University and sponsored by the Los Angeles-based David Horowitz Freedom Center, is intended to "confront the two Big Lies of the political left: that George Bush created the war on terror and that Global Warming is a greater danger to Americans than the terrorist threat," according to its Web site.
The Web site includes suggested campus activities such as holding sit-ins outside women's studies departments to protest "the silence of feminists over the oppression of women in Islam" and holding a memorial service for the "victims of Islamo-Fascist violence around the world."
The UW week won't include all those elements.
"What we're going to be focusing more on specifically is the terrorist threat," said Auggie Eck, vice president of UW College Republicans.
[...]
And it's hosting two events open to the public: a showing of "Suicide Killers," a documentary about suicide bombers, at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Smith Hall, and a talk by conservative author and talk-show host Michael Medved at 7 p.m. Thursday in Kane Hall.
Tom Walker, president of UW College Republicans, says they're not saying that all of Islam is dangerous.
"Our main point is raising awareness of what we feel is an extreme brand of Islam that is spreading rapidly around the world and posing a threat to America and the Western world," he said.
Meanwhile, in an editorial disguised as news reporting, the student- run UW Daily called it a "gimmick":
Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week sure to bring response
The UW College Republicans this week are taking part in the national event, “Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week.” The gimmick will be put on to expose what supporters call “the two Big Lies of the political left: that George Bush created the War on Terror and that global warming is a greater danger to Americans than the terrorist threat.”
Among the highlights touted by the event’s Web site include teach-ins on the plight of Muslim women and a lecture by conservative talk-show host Michael Medved.
Others on campus have promised a response, claiming that the concept is inherently racist and plays upon the stereotype that all Muslims support terrorist ideology.
ASUW senator Hala Dillsi is organizing protests to multiple goings-on associated with the event, including a movie showing at Smith Hall Wednesday evening and the Medved lecture, which is Thursday at 7 p.m. at Kane Hall.
THEN THERE’S the collection of bigots and crackpots that Horowitz has recruited to speak for Islamophobia week.
Ann Coulter is one. After September 11, she was fired from her job at the highly conservative National Review for her comment that the U.S. “should invade [Muslim] countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity.”
In 2004, on Fox’s Hannity and Colmes, Coulter reiterated her stance. When asked if she would still “like to convert these people all to Christianity,” Coulter replied, “The ones that we haven’t killed, yes.” “So no one should be Muslim?” Alan Colmes asked. “They should all be Christian?” Coulter replied, “That would be a good start, yes.”
So much for the lines in the Freedom Center’s petition about the “right to have no religion at all” and the “right of all people to live free from violence, intimidation and coercion.”
Another featured speaker on the tour is Rick Santorum. As a former senator from Pennsylvania, Santorum never hesitated to push right-wing Christian views, including sponsoring amendments to promote the teaching of so-called “intelligent design” theory in competition with evolution.
As for Horowitz’s solemn talk about the “equality of dignity of women and men,” Santorum was one of the staunchest opponents of abortion rights in the Senate, opposing the right to choose in virtually every case--including rape, incest and when the health of the woman was at stake.
Second-rate talk radio host and movie critic Michael Medved will also speak at several Islamophobia week events, apparently to repeat his tired complaint that a “liberal Hollywood elite...ignores--and assaults--the values of ordinary American families.”
In 2002, Medved helped make the case for a war on Iraq, claiming that “all humanity--especially the 200 million Arabs who suffer under the fanatical oppression of their own regimes--will benefit from a sweeping U.S. victory and an increase in American influence” in the Middle East. Thus far, Medved hasn’t explained how the estimated 1 million Iraqis killed in the U.S. invasion and occupation have benefited from a “U.S. victory.”
Fox News blowhard Sean Hannity will also turn up at several tour events. According to Hannity, if so-called “Islamo-fascists” are the main enemy, liberals are a close second--as is obvious from the title of his book Deliver Us From Evil: Defeating Terrorism, Despotism and Liberalism.
At Columbia University, site of the recent Ahmadinejad visit, the Spectator student newspaper is now running this poll:
Is it fair to have supported the invitation of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but not that of David Horowitz, CC '59?
No. Horowitz's views and deeds are more defensible than those of Ahmadinejad, so he's equally if not more deserving of a podium. 41% (24 votes)
No. Ahmadinejad and Horowitz both have extreme views, so support or none, they must be treated equally. 22% (13 votes)
Yes. Promoting Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week is worse than hosting a head of state, however offensive, in a neutral forum. 25% (15 votes)
Don't care. I've lost all interest in controversial speakers. 10% (6 votes)
No opinion. 2% (1 vote)
Total votes: 59
Amazingly, the most balanced coverage yet seen on this week's events comes from UCLA's Daily Bruin:
As college students, we’re used to encountering various awareness events. But this week’s “Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week” isn’t your everyday Bruin Plaza bake sale.
Put on by Bruin Republicans, with similar events being held at universities around the country, the week aims to link some of the most significant political problems of today – terrorism and human rights abuses – with a specific source: Islamic extremism.
At the center of the debate seems to be the question of whether enlightening students about such important issues is worth running the risk of spreading intolerance toward religions.
“Radical Islam is a major problem of our generation,” said fifth-year economics student and Bruin Republicans chairman and former Daily Bruin Viewpoint columnist David Lazar. “It’s an attempt by people in Western Europe and even America to impose Sharia, or Islamic law, on all of us.”
However, Muslim students feel as though the event will misrepresent their faith.
“The agenda being pushed is not one I’d like to see my country being pushed toward,” said Mohammad Tajsar, fourth-year English and comparative literature student and external affairs director for the Muslim Student Association at UCLA. “It targets students and people in no way related to political context overseas.”
IMAO has the latest news (take THAT Michelle Malkin) and is the first to report the RENAMING of the week to better appease liberal dogma.
We agree with the new name. The word fascism should be used in its proper context: When referring to anything regarding the Bush Administration.
Now to the big question: is this a stunt? On Horowitz knows for sure, but even if so, given its focus on educational events, Islamofascist Awareness Week will certainly remain head- and- shoulders above the typical antics of campus radicals.
And for talk radio, this provides a great opportunity to establish a campus beachhead in an environment not normally friendly to the medium.