O'Reilly out at FOX!

[GrumpyGran]

Re: Huckin Flea. It's absurd for people who have been vetted for the White House to be called Neo-Nazis? So he didn't have a problem with anybody who was vetted for the White House in the last administration? And Trump may not have exhibited racist tendencies so publicly before but now he's pandering to racists openly so...he's a racist. It's sort of like claiming to be a vegan and then sneaking bacon off your friends plate, then claiming you're still vegan because it wasn't on your plate.

[AmazonGrace]

I don't always say good things about Fox but when I do I post this video: 

 

[JMarie]

49 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

I don't always say good things about Fox but when I do I post this video: 

 

How long until Trump starts referring to Fox News as fake news??

[onekidanddone]

33 minutes ago, JMarie said:

How long until Trump starts referring to Fox News as fake news??

Oh that would be Christmas,  Hanukkah and my birthday all rolled into one. We on FJ could all do a collective Snoopy line dance.

[JMarie]

Another day, another episode of Hannity....

The mainstream media is hysterical because Trump called out the alt left.  Why didn't the Democrat governor have police at the scene, or call in the National Guard?  Obama always jumped to false conclusions when dealing with racial issues, and Trump isn't doing that.  Newt Gingrich (has a new book out!) thinks both sides -- the right and the left -- are to blame.  If we let them, the leftists will destroy all kinds of stuff, similar to what the Taliban and ISIS have done in the past. Gingrich blurts out something about getting rid of sanctuary cities to make things better, even though Charlottesville isn't a sanctuary city.  

Laura Ingraham (might be getting her own show on Fox News) thinks Trump should have been clearer on Saturday, but the press will always pick apart everything he says.  The white supremacists were the instigators, and they were looking for trouble.  Hannity countered by asking (again) about the governor not getting police to the area.

Deroy Murdock (Fox News guy)  thinks all the rage should be directed towards the guy who crashed his car, instead of Trump.  CL Bryant (has a radio show) thinks Trump will restore racial justice.  Murdock argues that black people won't be any better if all the Confederate statues are removed and buildings are renamed (implying that we shouldn't even try to change things).

Hannity realizes that the hour is almost up and he hasn't yet mentioned Hillary's emails, so Jay Sekulow stops by.  He doesn't say anything exciting (he's still all bunched up over that day Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch talked on the tarmac), but the ACLJ logo is moving slowly in the background, in case you don't know who Sekulow is.  Gregg Jarrett (Fox News guy) didn't say anything interesting, either.

Question of the day:  How do you think the President did today?  Go online to vote!

Hannity never mentioned David Duke's grateful tweets to Trump. It really wasn't an exciting episode.

[Cartmann99]

@JMarie, bless you my friend, for voluntarily watching that dreck. I couldn't bring myself to ask you to watch Hannity again after last night, but I am most appreciative. 

39 minutes ago, JMarie said:

so Jay Sekulow stops by.  He doesn't say anything exciting (he's still all bunched up over that day Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch talked on the tarmac), but the ACLJ logo is moving slowly in the background, in case you don't know who Sekulow is.

Heh, that part about the ACLJ logo made the theme to Jaws start playing in my head. 

[WiseGirl]

@JMarie I always admired those that can watch and recap Duggars et al. But, you, you are in a league of your own by  for taking one for the team and watching this.  (WiseGirl exits, no flees, to watch Don Lemon and Rachel Maddow) . 

[JMarie]

2 hours ago, WiseGirl said:

@JMarie I always admired those that can watch and recap Duggars et al. But, you, you are in a league of your own by  for taking one for the team and watching this.  (WiseGirl exits, no flees, to watch Don Lemon and Rachel Maddow) . 

I can't stomach reality shows.  Either they're hanging out but doing nothing, like the Kardashians, doing something that everybody does (food shopping or laundry, for example), or doing something they wouldn't be able to do if they weren't on TV (Kate Gosselin and her many vacations over the years).

Besides, the news feels like I'm driving past a car crash.  I can't not watch.

[GreyhoundFan]

"When Trump needs a friend, that’s what ‘Fox & Friends’ is for"

Spoiler

The movement away from President Trump had become a stampede.

Republican lawmakers from Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell to lowly backbenchers dissociated themselves from the president for saying there were “very fine people” marching among the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville.

Trump disbanded his corporate advisory panels after eight members quit in protest of his moral parallels between white supremacists and those who opposed them.

The two living former Republican presidents, military leaders and even the vice president issued statements making plain their differences with Trump. Condemnations poured in from the conservative prime minister of Britain and from Germany, where they know what comes of coddling Nazis.

Trump was in need of a friend. And that’s what “Fox & Friends” is for.

On Wednesday morning, I entered the echo chamber, watching all three hours of “Fox & Friends” — Trump’s favorite show, to judge from his tweets — to see if the hosts would defend Trump even after he aligned himself with white supremacists. It was a delicate task — some parts of Fox News Channel had already gone wobbly, with Kat Timpf calling Trump’s remarks “disgusting” — but Trump’s “Fox & Friends” friends gave it a try.

Host Steve Doocy began the 6 a.m. hour by saying Trump’s real “mistake” was to take questions from reporters. He figured the president “was just trying to be very careful” in his remarks, and Doocy read out White House talking points (“The president was entirely correct . . . ”)

Host Todd Piro allowed that Trump’s comments “may not have been the smartest,” but said, “He could cure cancer tomorrow and other people in the media are going to attack him.”

Another host, Abby Huntsman, joined in to say that although this was a “missed opportunity” for Trump to “stand up a little stronger” against hate groups, some people “are going to hate on this president” anyway.

The hosts tried mightily to change the subject from Trump’s unconscionable defense of neo-Nazis to his claim that those taking down statues of “Confederate heroes” (Doocy’s phrase) would soon attack George Washington.

“Hmm, interesting point there,” said Huntsman, introducing her “panel” to “debate” this phony issue.

First came Johns Hopkins professor Wendy Osefo. She replied that the issue was “beyond monuments” and more about Nazis killing and beating people. “This is not talking points,” she said. “This is human life.”

Huntsman turned to Gianno Caldwell, a black Republican and reliable Trump defender. “I mean, there are good people on both sides of this debate,” she coaxed.

Caldwell wasn’t having it: “President Trump, our president, has literally betrayed the conscience of our country, the very moral fabric in which we’ve made progress when it comes to race relations in America. He’s failed us. . . . Mr. President, good people don’t pal around with Nazis and white supremacists.”

By the end, both Caldwell and Osefo were dabbing tears.

Huntsman, after trying one more time to talk about statues, gave up: “You know, it’s a tough debate.”

It’s not a tough debate. It’s not a debate at all. There are Nazis, and there are the rest of us.

It was obscene and unthinkable that the president of the United States let white supremacists know it’s okay to hold and act on their hateful views. In defending Trump, Fox is further encouraging these racists to crawl out from under their rocks and preach in the open.

A Huffington Post/YouGov poll shows the effect. Only 22 percent think Trump is opposed to white nationalism. And when the president winks at racism, more racists are emboldened. Among Trump supporters, 48 percent think the white nationalists in Charlottesville were mostly right (11 percent) or went too far but have a point (37 percent). Half of Trump supporters, thus given the green light by the president, express sympathy for white nationalists. That is, to coin a phrase, deplorable.

But it’s happening. In the 7 a.m. hour, Trump’s Fox friends continued their Trump defense.

“Not everyone there was out to hurt someone or was evil,” Huntsman said, adding that, even so, it’s “incredibly important” to call out bigotry and hatred.

“Which he did,” Doocy interjected.

“Which he did,” Huntsman agreed.

Piro read aloud emails from listeners: “Trump was right. . . . No matter what he says, he will be condemned. . . . It wasn’t eloquent, but it was pure Trump and common sense.”

To their credit, the hosts interviewed, near the end of the show, conservative pundit Rich Lowry, with a dissent. When Doocy again raised the prospect of Washington becoming the next victim after Robert E. Lee, Lowry explained that “there’s a huge historical and moral difference” between the first president and the Confederate commander. Lowry said Lee probably would have wanted his statue taken down, because “he wanted to put the Civil War behind us and focus on national unity.”

Would that Trump and his “friends” could do the same.

 

[Cartmann99]

6 hours ago, JMarie said:

I can't stomach reality shows.

Me too.

I can kinda understand watching them to make fun of them like an MST3K kinda thing, but other than that, I don't get it.

I look forward to the day that when someone suggests locking ten people in an abandoned nightclub with only a giant tub of Jello pudding to eat, three forks, one working toilet, a dog with serious flatulence issues, and a sound system that blares Achy Breaky Heart 24/7, no one is interested.

 

[Cartmann99]

1 hour ago, GreyhoundFan said:

"When Trump needs a friend, that’s what ‘Fox & Friends’ is for"

  Reveal hidden contents

The movement away from President Trump had become a stampede.

Republican lawmakers from Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell to lowly backbenchers dissociated themselves from the president for saying there were “very fine people” marching among the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville.

Trump disbanded his corporate advisory panels after eight members quit in protest of his moral parallels between white supremacists and those who opposed them.

The two living former Republican presidents, military leaders and even the vice president issued statements making plain their differences with Trump. Condemnations poured in from the conservative prime minister of Britain and from Germany, where they know what comes of coddling Nazis.

Trump was in need of a friend. And that’s what “Fox & Friends” is for.

On Wednesday morning, I entered the echo chamber, watching all three hours of “Fox & Friends” — Trump’s favorite show, to judge from his tweets — to see if the hosts would defend Trump even after he aligned himself with white supremacists. It was a delicate task — some parts of Fox News Channel had already gone wobbly, with Kat Timpf calling Trump’s remarks “disgusting” — but Trump’s “Fox & Friends” friends gave it a try.

Host Steve Doocy began the 6 a.m. hour by saying Trump’s real “mistake” was to take questions from reporters. He figured the president “was just trying to be very careful” in his remarks, and Doocy read out White House talking points (“The president was entirely correct . . . ”)

Host Todd Piro allowed that Trump’s comments “may not have been the smartest,” but said, “He could cure cancer tomorrow and other people in the media are going to attack him.”

Another host, Abby Huntsman, joined in to say that although this was a “missed opportunity” for Trump to “stand up a little stronger” against hate groups, some people “are going to hate on this president” anyway.

The hosts tried mightily to change the subject from Trump’s unconscionable defense of neo-Nazis to his claim that those taking down statues of “Confederate heroes” (Doocy’s phrase) would soon attack George Washington.

“Hmm, interesting point there,” said Huntsman, introducing her “panel” to “debate” this phony issue.

First came Johns Hopkins professor Wendy Osefo. She replied that the issue was “beyond monuments” and more about Nazis killing and beating people. “This is not talking points,” she said. “This is human life.”

Huntsman turned to Gianno Caldwell, a black Republican and reliable Trump defender. “I mean, there are good people on both sides of this debate,” she coaxed.

Caldwell wasn’t having it: “President Trump, our president, has literally betrayed the conscience of our country, the very moral fabric in which we’ve made progress when it comes to race relations in America. He’s failed us. . . . Mr. President, good people don’t pal around with Nazis and white supremacists.”

By the end, both Caldwell and Osefo were dabbing tears.

Huntsman, after trying one more time to talk about statues, gave up: “You know, it’s a tough debate.”

It’s not a tough debate. It’s not a debate at all. There are Nazis, and there are the rest of us.

It was obscene and unthinkable that the president of the United States let white supremacists know it’s okay to hold and act on their hateful views. In defending Trump, Fox is further encouraging these racists to crawl out from under their rocks and preach in the open.

A Huffington Post/YouGov poll shows the effect. Only 22 percent think Trump is opposed to white nationalism. And when the president winks at racism, more racists are emboldened. Among Trump supporters, 48 percent think the white nationalists in Charlottesville were mostly right (11 percent) or went too far but have a point (37 percent). Half of Trump supporters, thus given the green light by the president, express sympathy for white nationalists. That is, to coin a phrase, deplorable.

But it’s happening. In the 7 a.m. hour, Trump’s Fox friends continued their Trump defense.

“Not everyone there was out to hurt someone or was evil,” Huntsman said, adding that, even so, it’s “incredibly important” to call out bigotry and hatred.

“Which he did,” Doocy interjected.

“Which he did,” Huntsman agreed.

Piro read aloud emails from listeners: “Trump was right. . . . No matter what he says, he will be condemned. . . . It wasn’t eloquent, but it was pure Trump and common sense.”

To their credit, the hosts interviewed, near the end of the show, conservative pundit Rich Lowry, with a dissent. When Doocy again raised the prospect of Washington becoming the next victim after Robert E. Lee, Lowry explained that “there’s a huge historical and moral difference” between the first president and the Confederate commander. Lowry said Lee probably would have wanted his statue taken down, because “he wanted to put the Civil War behind us and focus on national unity.”

Would that Trump and his “friends” could do the same.

 

Isn't Abby Huntsman's dad working for the Trump administration? Is she afraid that Trump will fire her dad if she doesn't suck up to him?

[JMarie]

23 minutes ago, Cartmann99 said:

Isn't Abby Huntsman's dad working for the Trump administration? Is she afraid that Trump will fire her dad if she doesn't suck up to him?

Nominee for Ambassador to Russia (Russia!)

[Audrey2]

17 minutes ago, Cartmann99 said:

Me too.

I can kinda understand watching them to make fun of them like an MST3K kinda thing, but other than that, I don't get it.

I look forward to the day that when someone suggests locking ten people in an abandoned nightclub with only a giant tub of Jello pudding to eat, three forks, one working toilet, a dog with serious flatulence issues, and a sound system that blares Achy Breaky Heart 24/7, no one is interested.

 

There are a few reality shows I don't mind- Top Chef (the food is interesting), Hell's Kitchen (less real, but again, I enjoy learning about the food and how a kitchen should be run), MasterChef (see a pattern here?), and The Amazing Race (enjoy seeing the different countries). If I had a television, I might watch So You Think You Can Dance, which I thought was a good way to raise awareness about different styles of dance and a good way to bring dance to the masses, myself included, who never took dance. The shows that follow people around annoy the snot out of me. I also can't stand Survivor, Big Brother, and other shows that involve seeing how mean one can be to another and how many ways can you stab a "friend" in the back. 

[AmazonGrace]

So the death eaters are threatening Eboni KW for saying Trump shouldn't have defended Nazis.

http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/eboni-k-williams-death-threats-trump-fox-news-1202530309/

[infooverload]

Did anyone ever watch Rocket City Rednecks when it was on? The premise was a southern NASA scientist, his buddy and a nephew would build different items in his dad's workshop to test out ideas. I watched it on Netflix and was bummed they still weren't making episodes. I would much rather watch them than the Duck Dynasty people.

[Childless]

I HATE reality TV.  With a passion.  I find it either boring beyond belief or so dumb I loose IQ points watching it.  I have better things to do than watch the Kardashians sit around talking to each other or a Duggar girl do her 117th load of laundry.

[GrumpyGran]

16 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

"When Trump needs a friend, that’s what ‘Fox & Friends’ is for"

  Hide contents

The movement away from President Trump had become a stampede.

Republican lawmakers from Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell to lowly backbenchers dissociated themselves from the president for saying there were “very fine people” marching among the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville.

Trump disbanded his corporate advisory panels after eight members quit in protest of his moral parallels between white supremacists and those who opposed them.

The two living former Republican presidents, military leaders and even the vice president issued statements making plain their differences with Trump. Condemnations poured in from the conservative prime minister of Britain and from Germany, where they know what comes of coddling Nazis.

Trump was in need of a friend. And that’s what “Fox & Friends” is for.

On Wednesday morning, I entered the echo chamber, watching all three hours of “Fox & Friends” — Trump’s favorite show, to judge from his tweets — to see if the hosts would defend Trump even after he aligned himself with white supremacists. It was a delicate task — some parts of Fox News Channel had already gone wobbly, with Kat Timpf calling Trump’s remarks “disgusting” — but Trump’s “Fox & Friends” friends gave it a try.

Host Steve Doocy began the 6 a.m. hour by saying Trump’s real “mistake” was to take questions from reporters. He figured the president “was just trying to be very careful” in his remarks, and Doocy read out White House talking points (“The president was entirely correct . . . ”)

Host Todd Piro allowed that Trump’s comments “may not have been the smartest,” but said, “He could cure cancer tomorrow and other people in the media are going to attack him.”

Another host, Abby Huntsman, joined in to say that although this was a “missed opportunity” for Trump to “stand up a little stronger” against hate groups, some people “are going to hate on this president” anyway.

The hosts tried mightily to change the subject from Trump’s unconscionable defense of neo-Nazis to his claim that those taking down statues of “Confederate heroes” (Doocy’s phrase) would soon attack George Washington.

“Hmm, interesting point there,” said Huntsman, introducing her “panel” to “debate” this phony issue.

First came Johns Hopkins professor Wendy Osefo. She replied that the issue was “beyond monuments” and more about Nazis killing and beating people. “This is not talking points,” she said. “This is human life.”

Huntsman turned to Gianno Caldwell, a black Republican and reliable Trump defender. “I mean, there are good people on both sides of this debate,” she coaxed.

Caldwell wasn’t having it: “President Trump, our president, has literally betrayed the conscience of our country, the very moral fabric in which we’ve made progress when it comes to race relations in America. He’s failed us. . . . Mr. President, good people don’t pal around with Nazis and white supremacists.”

By the end, both Caldwell and Osefo were dabbing tears.

Huntsman, after trying one more time to talk about statues, gave up: “You know, it’s a tough debate.”

It’s not a tough debate. It’s not a debate at all. There are Nazis, and there are the rest of us.

It was obscene and unthinkable that the president of the United States let white supremacists know it’s okay to hold and act on their hateful views. In defending Trump, Fox is further encouraging these racists to crawl out from under their rocks and preach in the open.

A Huffington Post/YouGov poll shows the effect. Only 22 percent think Trump is opposed to white nationalism. And when the president winks at racism, more racists are emboldened. Among Trump supporters, 48 percent think the white nationalists in Charlottesville were mostly right (11 percent) or went too far but have a point (37 percent). Half of Trump supporters, thus given the green light by the president, express sympathy for white nationalists. That is, to coin a phrase, deplorable.

But it’s happening. In the 7 a.m. hour, Trump’s Fox friends continued their Trump defense.

“Not everyone there was out to hurt someone or was evil,” Huntsman said, adding that, even so, it’s “incredibly important” to call out bigotry and hatred.

“Which he did,” Doocy interjected.

“Which he did,” Huntsman agreed.

Piro read aloud emails from listeners: “Trump was right. . . . No matter what he says, he will be condemned. . . . It wasn’t eloquent, but it was pure Trump and common sense.”

To their credit, the hosts interviewed, near the end of the show, conservative pundit Rich Lowry, with a dissent. When Doocy again raised the prospect of Washington becoming the next victim after Robert E. Lee, Lowry explained that “there’s a huge historical and moral difference” between the first president and the Confederate commander. Lowry said Lee probably would have wanted his statue taken down, because “he wanted to put the Civil War behind us and focus on national unity.”

Would that Trump and his “friends” could do the same.

 

Oh my, it probably didn't sit well that his Fox friends didn't back him up as much as he would like. Maybe he overslept or Melania told him the TV was broken. Or actually broke it before he got back from NY.

@Cartmann99, I love MST3K! I need to watch it again.

[Cartmann99]

3 hours ago, GrumpyGran said:

@Cartmann99, I love MST3K! I need to watch it again.

If you have Netflix, check out their reboot of it.

[GreyhoundFan]

Jennifer Rubin is on a tear again today: "To curtail hate, James Murdoch must clean house at Fox News"

Spoiler

James Murdoch, chief executive of 21st Century Fox, has pledged to donate $1 million to the Anti-Defamation League, according to an email he sent to friends. He told them, “What we watched this last week in Charlottesville and the reaction to it by the President of the United States concern all of us as Americans and free people.” He continued: “These events remind us all why vigilance against hate and bigotry is an eternal obligation — a necessary discipline for the preservation of our way of life and our ideals. The presence of hate in our society was appallingly laid bare as we watched swastikas brandished on the streets of Charlottesville and acts of brutal terrorism and violence perpetrated by a racist mob.” In pointed criticism of President Trump, he went on: “I can’t even believe I have to write this: standing up to Nazis is essential; there are no good Nazis. Or Klansmen, or terrorists. Democrats, Republicans, and others must all agree on this, and it compromises nothing for them to do so.”

The sentiment is lovely, and the money is certainly appreciated by those fighting anti-Semitism and bigotry, but the email reeks of hypocrisy, to be blunt. Murdoch seems blissfully unaware of — or in denial about — his family’s role in creating the Trump phenomenon, fueling the rise of a xenophobic, racist demagogue and continuing to fan the flames of his noxious populism, which has brought us to where we are.

In April, I suggested that Murdoch, his brother and father might do the country a great service by revamping Fox’s news operation:

Fox News could cease being the unofficial mouthpiece of the Trump administration, offering the president softball interviews and an echo chamber for his worldview (e.g., illegal immigrants are all criminals, America is out to get Christians). When President Trump makes 180-degree turns on a slew of issues, the Fox News hosts shouldn’t be darting and dashing to catch up or denying that the president has reversed himself. Fox News should treat the president’s invented conspiracy theories as, well, invented conspiracy theories. In short, it need not be a right-wing, populist echo chamber in service of the administration, regurgitating the same themes and vilifying the same figures night after night.

James Murdoch, whose father might be the most successful American immigrant ever, can lay off the hysteria about illegal immigration and massive voter fraud (another Trump fictional story line). It’s irresponsible, racist and false to portray native-born Americans as victims of a tidal wave of immigration.

In tone, Fox News can drop the ideological bully-boy routine. (The Los Angeles Times editorial board writes: “Fox announced that it was filling the vacuum left by [Bill] O’Reilly’s departure with Tucker Carlson, another combative host whose specialty appears to be making guests he disagrees with squirm. This conversation-as-blood-sport approach goes back at least to ‘The McLaughlin Group’ and ‘Crossfire,’ two political talk shows that spiced up substantive discussions with contentiousness, but it became a prime-time staple in the O’Reilly era.”)

As I said then, Fox does not need to be a “a cheesy propaganda outfit that exploits women and sows xenophobia and white resentment.” Unfortunately, Fox News hosts seem to have doubled down on exactly that formula, peddling the  Seth Rich conspiracy, taking Trump’s characterization of Charlottesville seriously and continuing to attack legitimate news organizations with the same terms (e.g. liars, “fake news,” enemies of the country) that the president and Stephen K. Bannon utter. Fox News remains obsessed with illegal immigration and white grievance. Its anti-anti-Trump invective fills the nighttime lineup.

Instead of giving the ADL what amounts to pocket change for James Murdoch, why doesn’t he clean up his own news operation? Fox News has, more than any other outlet, popularized birtherism, Trumpism and white grievance-mongering, creating an alternative universe for white, older, working-class voters whom Trump whipped into a frenzy. That might cost more than $1 million, but at least Murdoch could sleep well at night, look at himself in the mirror and tell his family that he is a patriot, not a guy who’s making a mint tearing apart the country.

Yeah, Murdoch isn't listening.

[fraurosena]

4 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Jennifer Rubin is on a tear again today: "To curtail hate, James Murdoch must clean house at Fox News"

  Hide contents

James Murdoch, chief executive of 21st Century Fox, has pledged to donate $1 million to the Anti-Defamation League, according to an email he sent to friends. He told them, “What we watched this last week in Charlottesville and the reaction to it by the President of the United States concern all of us as Americans and free people.” He continued: “These events remind us all why vigilance against hate and bigotry is an eternal obligation — a necessary discipline for the preservation of our way of life and our ideals. The presence of hate in our society was appallingly laid bare as we watched swastikas brandished on the streets of Charlottesville and acts of brutal terrorism and violence perpetrated by a racist mob.” In pointed criticism of President Trump, he went on: “I can’t even believe I have to write this: standing up to Nazis is essential; there are no good Nazis. Or Klansmen, or terrorists. Democrats, Republicans, and others must all agree on this, and it compromises nothing for them to do so.”

The sentiment is lovely, and the money is certainly appreciated by those fighting anti-Semitism and bigotry, but the email reeks of hypocrisy, to be blunt. Murdoch seems blissfully unaware of — or in denial about — his family’s role in creating the Trump phenomenon, fueling the rise of a xenophobic, racist demagogue and continuing to fan the flames of his noxious populism, which has brought us to where we are.

In April, I suggested that Murdoch, his brother and father might do the country a great service by revamping Fox’s news operation:

Fox News could cease being the unofficial mouthpiece of the Trump administration, offering the president softball interviews and an echo chamber for his worldview (e.g., illegal immigrants are all criminals, America is out to get Christians). When President Trump makes 180-degree turns on a slew of issues, the Fox News hosts shouldn’t be darting and dashing to catch up or denying that the president has reversed himself. Fox News should treat the president’s invented conspiracy theories as, well, invented conspiracy theories. In short, it need not be a right-wing, populist echo chamber in service of the administration, regurgitating the same themes and vilifying the same figures night after night.

James Murdoch, whose father might be the most successful American immigrant ever, can lay off the hysteria about illegal immigration and massive voter fraud (another Trump fictional story line). It’s irresponsible, racist and false to portray native-born Americans as victims of a tidal wave of immigration.

In tone, Fox News can drop the ideological bully-boy routine. (The Los Angeles Times editorial board writes: “Fox announced that it was filling the vacuum left by [Bill] O’Reilly’s departure with Tucker Carlson, another combative host whose specialty appears to be making guests he disagrees with squirm. This conversation-as-blood-sport approach goes back at least to ‘The McLaughlin Group’ and ‘Crossfire,’ two political talk shows that spiced up substantive discussions with contentiousness, but it became a prime-time staple in the O’Reilly era.”)

As I said then, Fox does not need to be a “a cheesy propaganda outfit that exploits women and sows xenophobia and white resentment.” Unfortunately, Fox News hosts seem to have doubled down on exactly that formula, peddling the  Seth Rich conspiracy, taking Trump’s characterization of Charlottesville seriously and continuing to attack legitimate news organizations with the same terms (e.g. liars, “fake news,” enemies of the country) that the president and Stephen K. Bannon utter. Fox News remains obsessed with illegal immigration and white grievance. Its anti-anti-Trump invective fills the nighttime lineup.

Instead of giving the ADL what amounts to pocket change for James Murdoch, why doesn’t he clean up his own news operation? Fox News has, more than any other outlet, popularized birtherism, Trumpism and white grievance-mongering, creating an alternative universe for white, older, working-class voters whom Trump whipped into a frenzy. That might cost more than $1 million, but at least Murdoch could sleep well at night, look at himself in the mirror and tell his family that he is a patriot, not a guy who’s making a mint tearing apart the country.

Yeah, Murdoch isn't listening.

Welllll... I'm not so sure. This could very well be token outrage. On the other hand, he didn't have to do this. Apparently, he has never been this outspoken on other subjects before. In that sense it's noteworthy, I think. Plus, I'd like to have a teenie-tiny bit of hope. I am an optimist, after all. 

[JMarie]

Sean Hannity took the night off!  BOO!  Kimberly Guilfoyle (some rumblings that she's dating Scaramucci) is filling in.

Mike Huckabee said that everyone who works at the White House works "at the pleasure of the President" -- makes the Cabinet sound like a harem.  The Evangelical community are the only people who have stuck by Trump, he said, and the mainstream media will always pick apart everything Trump says.

David Bossie (Deputy Campaign Manager) said that Kelly needs to "stay true to the Trump agenda."  Bannon was dedicated to Trump, and will remain dedicated .  Bannon won't use Breitbart to attack Trump, Bossie said.

Sara Carter (Circa News) called Bannon this morning and he said he never wanted to be a long-term employee, and that he actually resigned two weeks ago.  Guilfoyle asked if that letter of resignation will be made public, but Carter didn't know if it would be.

Charlie Hurt (Fox News) said that Bannon is completely committed to Trump, and even though Bannon is out, he won't do anything to harm the administration.

Allen West (former one-term Congressman from Florida) said that, for the mainstream media, everyone who doesn't agree with the agenda gets labeled a white supremacist, and that Margaret Sanger (?) was a white supremacist.  We should just wait for the next 30 to 60 days to see what Bannon does "on the outside," to see if he'll be for or against the White House.

James T. Harris (radio show guy) thinks Confederate statues should remain, so they can be used as teachable moments.

Doug Schoen (former Clinton pollster) thinks that states should make decisions about the statues, and the federal government should focus on bigger issues.

Charlie Kirk (Turning Point USA) says we can't have a "war on everything Southern," because 40% of our military is from the South.  He also thinks we should be focusing on bigger issues.  

Gregg Jarrett (Fox News) thinks there's a better than 50% chance that Trump will pardon Joe Arpaio.  If the case had had a jury, he would have been acquitted.  Even though Trump only won Arizona (where Arpaio is from) by 3.5%, Arizona really likes Trump.  Obama pardoned Chelsea Manning, and what she did was way worse, so Trump should totally pardon Arpaio.

It really wasn't an interesting hour.  None of Hannity's friends were on (maybe they were vacationing with him?), and the guests who were on were pretty bland.

 

 

 

[Zola]

Just a question, a bit off topic. If all of Trump's employees (read: flunkies, lackeys, sycophants, etc) are "serving at the pleasure of the president," are they also aware the that president is serving at the pleasure of We the People? 

Are they also public servants as the president is?

[Cartmann99]

16 hours ago, JMarie said:

Charlie Kirk (Turning Point USA) says we can't have a "war on everything Southern," because 40% of our military is from the South.

Dammit! Charlie has discovered our devious plan to shut down all of the Waffle House restaurants and make the consumption of cheese grits a felony! 

[GreyhoundFan]

I don't know what drugs Tucker must be on, but they are powerful: "Trump looking at the eclipse without glasses is ‘perhaps the most impressive thing any president has ever done,’ says Tucker Carlson"

Spoiler

President Trump did something on Monday that you’re not supposed to do during a solar eclipse. He looked up without special glasses.

Trump had a pair of glasses, mind you. But he sauntered onto a White House balcony and glanced squinty-eyed at the sky, ignoring the warnings of doctors and scientists, before pulling his protective eyewear out of a pocket.

Was the president being reckless with his retinas? Setting a bad example for others? Hardly, according to Tucker Carlson.

“In a move that is not a complete surprise, he looked directly at the sun without any glasses,” Carlson marveled on his Fox News show, “perhaps the most impressive thing any president has ever done.”

Carlson delivered the line with a straight face, perhaps the most impressive thing any TV host has ever done.

Carlson was surely joking, but there is a lot of truth in his remark. He is absolutely right that Trump’s disregard of expert advice is unsurprising. We are talking about the man who once said, “I know more about ISIS than the generals do. Believe me.”

Claiming to know better than people who actually know better is part of Trump’s shtick.

Plus, he’s a contrarian. His former communications director, Anthony Scaramucci, explained last week that “it’s almost like a counterintuitive thing with him, as it relates to the media. The media’s expecting him to do something; he sometimes does the exact opposite.”

Like look at an eclipse without special glasses, when the media is expecting him to don shades.

Carlson’s appraisal of Trump’s move (“impressive”) reflects an appreciation of the president’s unconventional style. Trump doesn’t do what’s predictable — what he should, in some cases — and his supporters love him for it. Some voters seem to find Trump so refreshing that they overlook the moments when the standard course of action really would have been the best course of action.

A recent situation involving white supremacists comes to mind.

Trump’s naked-eyed gaze on Monday provided one tiny litmus test for broader views of Trump. If your take mirrors Carlson’s, then you are probably a fan of the president. If your reaction can be read on the cover of the New York Daily News, then you probably are not.

...

Never mind his nose, Tucker's whole face should be brown from the a$$-kissing.

[Cartmann99]

12 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Never mind his nose, Tucker's whole face should be brown from the a$$-kissing.

When I first heard about this, I thought it had to be a parody of the sort of nonsense Fox News regularly spews to their viewers. I guess for a follow-up, Tucker can tell welders that they don't need eye protection if they chant MAGA while they are working.