Desperation Time: Trump Aims Tweet Tsunami At One of His Biggest Fox News Fluffers

The walls are closing in around Donald Trump and he knows it. With the House of Representatives conducting an official impeachment inquiry, the President is exhibiting clear signs of a psychotic meltdown, the likes of which have never been seen in the Oval Office. He’s suffering from a severe case of Hysterical Impeachment Syndrome and taking on the tactics of the Nazis he admires.

Donald Trump, Fox News, Fake

On Sunday morning this display of desperation reached a boiling point as Trump unleashed a massive tweetstorm against one of his most reliable defenders. Ed Henry of Fox News has become a bona fide Trump-fluffer in his role as a Fox & Friends co-host. But that is apparently not enough to inoculate him from the gnawing animus of a cornered presidential rat. Following a segment of the Trump & Friends program, Henry was mobbed by angry StormTrumpers who were orgasming over what they thought was a takedown by Fox’s Trump attack dog, Mark Levin (video below).

In fact, Levin just spent a couple of minutes screaming at viewers about nonsense that never addressed the substance of Trump’s tribulations. He began by badgering Henry about why he hasn’t asked for the identity of the whistleblower. Of course the answer to that is obvious to those who aren’t infected by Levin’s cult worship of Trump. The whistleblower statute was designed to protect people from retribution and, in this case, violence and potential charges that Trump himself implied could lead to execution.

Levin bellowed that he wants to “know all about the whistleblower … What kind of dogs they’ve had, how many marriages they’ve had, if they had a DUI” Notice that he doesn’t want to know if the whistleblower is telling the truth or has corroborating evidence. He is only interested in irrelevant personal issues that are only useful for smear campaigns. Levin continued by mocking the need for the whistleblower’s anonymity merely because “his life might be in danger.”

Levin also ranted about why the whistleblower wasn’t being questioned by congress. For the record, the House Intelligence Committee Chairman, Adam Schiff (who’s resignation Trump has impotently demanded), has already announced that the whistleblower will be interviewed by the Committee. But Levin plowed forward making the absurd assertion that nobody has identified any laws that were broken by Trump’s extortion of the President of Ukraine. For starters, there’s extortion. And there’s campaign finance violations, witness intimidation, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy.

Trump was so aroused by the reactions to Levin’s high-volume tirade that he retweeted twenty (20!) comments by random Twitteristas praising him. They included such brilliant and dignified retorts as “Ed Henry just got his ASS handed to him by Mark Levin,” and “Levin just tore Ed Henry to shreds,” and “Levin sure put that lying shit head Ed Henry in his place,” and “Levin ripped Ed Henry a new one.” Who can argue with logic like that?

So now Ed Henry is among the Fox News untouchables who Trump’s cult followers are ordered to despise. He joins Shepard Smith and Chris Wallace. But what’s peculiar about this is that Henry is a devoted Trump-fluffer himself. Among his glassy-eyed defenses of Dear Leader, Henry has lied about seeing Trump’s non-existent border wall. He falsely claimed that “Hollywood has been threatening to blacklist” Trump supporters.
He celebrated a court ruling against Obamacare that could cause millions to suffer saying that it was “a little gift ahead of Christmas.”

When Trump has reached the point that he is attacking even his most faithful media shills on his favorite Fox News program, you know that he’s gone over the edge. It’s a state of fearful derangement that is only going to get worse as time goes by. And Trump isn’t doing himself any favors by maligning the Fox News protectorate that he needs to continue gaslighting his base. So buckle up, America. Trump is determined to make this a bumpy ride to impeachment.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Hillary Clinton Slamdunks Fox News as ‘a Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trump and the GOP’

It’s been two years since the election of the first Dotard President of the United States. See, children? In America anyone – ANYONE – can grow up to be president. Even if you’re an ignorant, narcissistic, rage-aholic, wannabe dictator whose only experience is bankrupting casinos and hosting unreality TV shows. It’s the land of opportunity.

Fox News, Hillary Clinton

Over the past two years Donald Trump and his State TV benefactors at Fox News have been unable cure themselves of their obsession over his 2016 opponent, Hillary Clinton. They continuously wallow in misremebrances of the campaign and the fabricated “crimes” they imagine she concocted. Part of the reason for the durability of this obsession is the fact that Clinton actually “won” the election by more than three million votes. But mainly they are just too stupid to come up with something more relevant to discuss, and they are too immersed in Hillary fetishism to let go of a subject they think is advancing their incoherent agenda.

Clinton has been a mixed bag since the campaign. but it hardly matters because she isn’t a major factor in politics going forward. She has ruled out running for office again, so her opinions are just those of a former statesperson with considerable experience who is exercising her rights like any other citizen. And in that role Clinton was interviewed by The Guardian and she unleashed some of her views about Trump and Fox News. Here are some of the highlights:

“The Republican party has collapsed in the face of Trump.”

“I believe that where we are now in the political cycle is that the press does not know how to cover these candidates who are setting themselves on fire every day, who are masters of diversion and distraction.”

[Trump] is someone who craves dominance over any situation he finds himself in. He craves adulation, flattery, all of which fit the profile of leaders we can remember from the past.

“Now [Trump] doesn’t attack Fox News, because they’re like a wholly owned subsidiary of Trump and the Republican party now. So he attacks the press and the broadcast media that raise questions about him, that don’t give him fidelity and loyalty.”

“You watch Fox News, it’s always, ‘Something terrible is about to happen’, ‘Something terrible did happen’, ‘These people are doing all these awful things’. It is totally divorced from reality, but it is superb propaganda. I don’t know the best way to puncture that. You have to hope that reality catches up with politics and entertainment at some point.”

These are not necessarily revelations. Many people have noted the psychological aberrations of Trump and the sycophantic nature of his coverage by Fox News. But it isn’t often that these views are openly expressed by former First Ladies, Secretaries of State, or Senators. and that makes them welcome and constructive. After all, with Fox’s Hillary fetish, you can be sure that they will notice these remarks. Already Fox News host Mark Levin was so rattled that he tweeted what has now been immortalized as Dumb Question #4,782:

Levin is delusional. While Clinton’s criticisms are sharp, at no time time does she say anything that can be remotely regarded as a threat. As opposed to Trump who calls the media “the enemy of the people,” revokes their White House passes, issues decrees mandating their behavior, incites violence by the cult followers at his rallies, and advocates new laws to make it easier to sue them. Trump even castigated the press as enemies just hours after some of them had received mail bombs.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

This is typical of the way that Fox News tries to muddy the waters of political discourse. They deliberately misrepresent facts and purposefully distort reality. Consequently, we need all the help we can get to enlighten the nation as to the nefarious intentions of Trump and Fox News. So even a flawed former public servant like Clinton is doing a significant service by providing an honest characterization of the anti-American agitprop of the Trump administration and their media comrades.

Fox News Sinks Even Lower: Hires Crackpot Racist Birther Mark Levin For Weekend Program

As evidence that Fox News is descending ever further down the rabid hole, they just hired radio talker Mark Levin. Anyone who thought that Rupert Murdoch’s sons were going to moderate the networks extremist right-wing blather can put those fantasies aside. Levin is the worst of the worst who has embraced the most ludicrous conspiracy theories and engaged in the most heinous hate speech.

Fox News Mark Levin

Levin is an OT (Original Trumpster) who has been fawning over Donald Trump from the start of his presidency. Although during the campaign he was a Ted Cruz supporter and lashed out at Fox News saying “it’s not the Fox News Channel — it’s the Fox Channel, and the Donald Trump super PAC.” He should have stuck with that assessment. Instead, he now works for them. He is also a close friend of Sean Hannity, who has been featuring Levin on his show for several weeks. For a primer on Levin’s ultra-conservatism, check out these rhetorical departures from reality that he has propagated over the years (courtesy of Media Matters):

  • Trump Gave Levin One Of His First Interviews As A 2016 Presidential Candidate.
  • Trump’s Claim That Obama Ordered A Wiretap Of Trump Tower Came From Talk Radio Host Mark Levin
  • Obama Is A “Low-Life” And A “Racist”
  • Part Of Obama’s “Agenda” Was To “Change The Racial Makeup” Of America With The “Importation Of Millions And Millions From The Third World.”
  • “There’s Been More Genocide, More Rape, More Enslavement Under This President [Obama] Than Any President In Modern History.”
  • Jewish Obama Donors Are “Self-Haters” Who “Despise Their Own Country.”
  • Obamacare Supporters Are “Brown Shirts.”
  • GOP Should “Stop Chasing Genitalia” To Win Elections.
  • Levin Compared Marriage Equality To Incest, Polygamy, And Drug Use.
  • Levin Claimed That Greenhouse Gases Were A Nonissue Because “Carbon Dioxide Is Necessary For Plants.”
  • Attorney General Eric Holder Committed “Hate Crimes” By Conducting Civil Rights Investigation In Ferguson After Shooting.
  • “There’s Nothing Controversial” About A Tweet Comparing Muslims To Nazis.

From all appearances, Sean Hannity has taken over Fox News. Levin is one of his goto guests who reliably bashes President Obama, Hillary Clinton, and all things liberal. Hannity also recently got Fox News to hire former Glenn Beck protege Tomi Lahren. And now the Hannity show is so consumed by conspiracy delusions that it is challenging Alex Jones for the Conspiracy Crackpot Crown. Among Hannity’s obsessions is Hillary Clinton, who has become such a regular feature of the show that CNN’s media correspondent, Brian Stelter, suggested renaming it The Clinton Scandal Hour.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Unfortunately for Fox News, Hannity’s programming philosophy is a proven catastrophe. That style of unhinged wingnut outrage is wearing thin and losing viewers. His program, which recently moved to a time period opposite MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, is frequently getting beat in the ratings race. That’s something that was unheard of a couple of years ago. And the addition of screaming screwball Levin isn’t likely to turn anything aroung for Fox. So let’s all welcome Mark Levin to the Titanic of cable news.

Now Can We Declare Trump Insane And Remove Him From Office? (Tweetstorm On Wiretaps)

The reasons to impeach Donald Trump, or otherwise remove him from office, continue to mount. His conflicts of interest, financial corruption, sexual predatory behavior, associations with mobsters, and on and on. And this is the guy that the media swoons over for his allegedly newfound “presidential” demeanor? The most troubling of his growing collection of scandals is the unsavory relationship he and his administration have with Russia and Vladimir Putin.

Donald Trump

However, on Saturday morning Trump revealed another reason to remove him from the presidency. He is STRAIGHT UP BONKERS! Note this latest torrent of deranged tweets:

As usual, Trump provided no evidence that these paranoid accusations have any truth to them. They appear to be a wild excursion into a hallucinatory nightmare that only he can experience. His determination to find villains plotting his demise is taking over his already hampered mental state. Professionals in the psychiatric field have warned of his “malignant narcissism” and other dangerous lapses of cognitive ability. Since his election, legislators from both sides of the aisle have drafted bills to mandate a White House psychiatrist.

Trump’s descent into ever deeper madness seems to be reaching a pinnacle. These tweets cover a lot of maniacal territory. For instance, he is accusing Obama of something that a president has no power to do. Only a law enforcement entity such as the FBI can request surveillance warrants. And in these circumstances even they would need permission from the FISA court to proceed. This isn’t new information either, as Trump insinuated.

His reference to McCarthyism demonstrates that he has no idea what that is. Obama did not make any baseless allegations of treasonous affiliations. Trump didn’t even assert that. To him McCarthyism is just an epithet to toss around recklessly to malign his perceived enemies. The Watergate reference is a bit more on track, except that in that affair Nixon tapped his own phones.

While Trump offered no support for his bizarre claims, the Guardian speculates that he got his info from ultra-rightist radio host, Mark Levin. On his Thursday night show Levin talked about the alleged steps Obama took to undermine Trump’s campaign. That unsubstantiated lunacy was later picked up by Breitbart News, the wingnut hack factory formerly run by Trump’s chief White House strategist, Stephen Bannon.

This is reminiscent of Trump’s frequent use of unverified lunacies from right-wing media that show up on his Twitter feed within minutes of them airing on Fox News. The President resides in a hermetically sealed bubble of far-right conspiracy theories and fake news. He regurgitates what he see and reads from dubious sources as fact and doesn’t even bother to cite those sources. Bloomberg News recently documented the extent to which Trump relies on Fox News, and vice versa.

The most puzzling part of this is trying to come up with a motivation for making these accusations now. Generally Trump’s intentions are easily discerned as distractions from some other abhorrent activity on his part. However, all this does is to remind people of his nefarious connections to Russia. Congressman Ted Lieu noted this in a candid and colorful tweet on the subject:

All of this points to a deteriorating mental state on the part of our President. This is the man who controls the nuclear codes. Yet he is easily influenced by the likes of Mark Levin, Alex Jones, and his own top aide, Bannon. The circumstances developing in the White House are exactly why the nation ratified the 25th Amendment to the Constitution. Section four of the Amendment provides guidance in the event that “the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.”

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

If there were ever a situation in which that argument could be made, it is now. And it isn’t just because of these recent tweets. Trump’s entire history in public life is symptomatic of psychological disorder. His pathological lying, his relentless egotism, his multiple marriages and public affairs, his faulty, and often imaginary, recollections, and his childish outbursts and insults, all suggest deep emotional abnormality. It’s long past time that he be evaluated and directed to somewhere that he get the help he obviously needs. And in the process, protect the country from further harm.

WTF? Republicans Are Already Clamoring To Impeach Hillary Clinton

The Republican Party has just affirmed that they have given up on electing Donald Trump. There is no better sign of this than what they are now concentrating on as their next political priority. With election day still a couple of weeks away, Republicans are setting their sights on impeaching President Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton

Never mind that there are no grounds for impeachment, or that Clinton has never been found guilty of any wrongdoing. And set aside the fact that the legal standard for impeachment may require that any “crimes” be committed while in office. The crackpot pundits and politicians on the right are determined to satisfy their fetish for removing Clintons from office. NBC News recently reported that:

“In the last few weeks alone, dozens of House Republicans have demanded that a special prosecutor investigate the Clinton Foundation for possible conflicts of interest. Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz has called for a ‘serious criminal investigation’ into a Democratic operative featured in a sting video by conservative activist James O’Keefe. And Speaker Paul Ryan has promised ‘aggressive oversight work in the House’ of an alleged ‘quid pro quo’ deal between the FBI and the State Department over reclassifying an email on Clinton’s private server.

“Utah Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who would likely serve as the chief antagonist of a second Clinton White House as chair the House Oversight Committee, told Fox News last week the ‘quid pro quo’ claim alone was worth at least ‘four new hearings,’ claiming it was a ‘flashing red light of potential criminality.'”

Clearly this Republican Praetorian Guard is establishing the battle lines for a prolonged war on American progress. They are reinforcing their reputation as obstructionists who couldn’t care less about doing their jobs for the American people. Their intention is to tie up the Congress and the White House with sham inquisitions. But their ultimate goal is even more absurd.

At least two GOP congressman have called explicitly for Clinton’s impeachment. Bradley Byrne (R-AL), asserts that “If all the things we’ve seen are true and they come out the way I think they will, then we should impeach her.” Mo Brooks (R-AL), agrees saying “With respect to Hillary Clinton, she will be a unique president if she is elected by the public next November, because the day she’s sworn in is the day that she’s subject to impeachment because she has committed high crimes and misdemeanors.”

Along with these confused congressmen, many of the right’s top pundits are lobbying hard for Hillary’s ouster. Rush Limbaugh rants that “Hillary Clinton is the most prepared to be impeached in advance of any presidential candidate this country has ever had. Hillary Clinton will be elected to be impeached,” Fellow radio yakker Mark Levin whines that Clinton “has attempted to cover-up and obstruct her Espionage Act violations … she must be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors in what is and will be continuing revelations about her criminality.” Judicial Watch President, and longtime Clinton basher, Tom Fitton says that there should be a “serious criminal investigation of Mrs. Clinton’s conduct” and that “impeachment is something that’s relevant.”

For her part, Clinton responded to some of this nonsense way back in October of 2015 (yes, they were doing it then too), when she was asked about it by Rachel Maddow. Clinton laughed and said “Isn’t that pathetic? It’s just laughable, it’s so totally ridiculous.”

Indeed. It’s so ridiculous that News Corpse wrote a satirical article in 2013 predicting that Republicans would attempt to pre-impeach Hillary. But with today’s Republican Party, satire cannot compete with their twisted reality. And while it is obviously ridiculous, it may not be all that laughable.

What Republicans are doing is ensuring that the nation will remain mired in gridlock for the indefinite future. With innumerable urgent matters requiring attention, the GOP would rather play political games and conduct smear campaigns. They would rather act out their petty political vengeance than lift up the economy. Or, for that matter, improve health care, mitigate climate change, enhance education, or even defeat ISIS. And make no mistake, the investigations that Republicans are threatening would severely hamper every other critical function of governing.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

For that reason alone it is more important than ever to rid Washington of the Republican obstructionists. If Democrats can secure majorities in the Senate and the House, the chairmanship of every committee would be held by a Democrat. The Republicans would be unable to carry out the vendetta against America that they are promising. So be sure to vote (early, if possible) and get every Democrat you know to do so as well. It really does matter.

Mark Levin Goes Off (His Meds) To Promote A Racist Police State

Trying to listen to radio screecher Mark Levin is a worse form of torture than anything Dick Cheney has yet devised. If you can manage to tolerate his soprano yowling, you will be nauseated by his hate-filled rhetoric. And his latest adventure in public embarrassment lives down to his reputation.

Fox Nation

The radio broadcast that was featured on the Fox News community website, Fox Nation, set out to prove that Obama, and his legion of dark-skinned anti-Americans, were engaged in a full scale “War on Cops” as a response to the tragic and needless deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.

Levin ignored entirely the suffering families of the citizens who died at the hands of over-zealous officers, while he advanced his mission to justify any and all brutality by the police. At the same time he rudely insulted those who fight for reforms that can improve community relations with law enforcement. His acid-tongue was dripping with animosity as he blasted his targets, who all just happen to be black. Here is just a taste of the tirade:

“My blood has been boiling, I’ve been grinding my teeth, listening to all this. […] the president of the United States and the attorney general of the United States, that piece of crap Sharpton […] Obama and Holder and their surrogates were throwing fuel on the fire. […] It’s a war on the cops. They want to nationalize local police departments. Nationalize them to ruin them! […] All of a sudden, all the police departments who are overly militarized, why? Has somebody been shot with a tank?

Levin is clearly in need of in-patient anger management counseling and an immediate infusion of intravenous Xanax. President Obama has been profoundly vocal in his support for the majority of decent police officers, and in his grief over the recent murders in New York. The same is true of Eric Holder and Al Sharpton. They have all called for peaceful demonstrations and expressed their sympathy for those whose lives were lost.

However, the worst part of Levin’s raving is not his dishonest assertions regarding a war on cops or his unfounded allegations of a nationalized police force. The most revolting things he said revealed his longing for an unrestricted police state where officers patrol neighborhoods in tanks and riot gear. He actually defends the notion of militarized policing. So in his haste to condemn an imaginary war on cops, he confesses that he is cool with a war on private citizens.

This advocacy of turning the nation’s populace into a contingent of enemy combatants is not only a vulgar denunciation of our constitutional democracy, it is brazenly hypocritical. Not so long ago Levin was extolling the virtues of battling officers of the law when they tried to bring Tea Party tax cheat Cliven Bundy to justice. Levin was supportive of their armed resistance which eventually led to the murder of two police officers in Las Vegas by Bundy associates. Where was Levin’s outrage and empathy for those officers?

Apparently, for Mark Levin and Fox News, killing cops is no longer considered a travesty if the killers are a white couple from the Indiana chapter of the Tea Party.

Get the ALL NEW 2nd volume of
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Fox Nation Outrage: Obama Vacations With White People – And Other Lies And Delusions

The Fox News community website, Fox Nation, is a non-stop parade of deliberate misinformation, biased reporting, and promotion of notoriously disreputable purveyors of propaganda and conspiracy theories like Alex Jones and Breitbart News. [For more documented proof of Fox Nation’s lies, read Fox Nation vs. Reality] This morning that penchant for bullpucky was in full display with a trio of stories that perfectly illustrate the Fox Nation mission.

Fox Nation

Let’s begin with a little item that alleges that “Obama Suggests Conservatives Are Greatest Threat To Nation.” This story was filched from the ultra-rightist Daily Caller (which is run by Fox News host Tucker Carlson) and referenced an interview of President Obama in the New York Times. Obama discussed gridlock in Washington and told the Times that “Our politics are dysfunctional.” That is an indisputable fact that is evidenced by this congress being the least productive in history. The article also said that…

“The president mused, the biggest threat to America — the only force that can really weaken us — is us.”

That’s quite a different statement than what was asserted in the headline. To be sure, it is Republicans that have boasted of their obstructionism. GOP House Speaker John Boehener even said that the congress under his “leadership” “should not be judged on how many new laws we create. We ought to be judged on how many laws we repeal.” By that measure they still suck because they have repealed precisely zero laws. But the point is made that they are proud of being an obstacle to progress. Nevertheless, Obama placed the blame more broadly on “us,” not conservatives as the liars at Fox Nation and the Daily Caller said.

Next up is an article that was picked up from right-wing media distorters, NewsBusters. They in turn were citing England’s version of the National Enquirer, the Daily Mail, who reported speculation that the former Director of Communications for George W. Bush, Nicolle Wallace, had been chosen to replace Jenny McCarthy on “The View.” Fox Nation turned that item into “Liberal Nicolle Wallace Is the New ‘Conservative’ Host on The View?”

“Liberal?” Wallace, as noted above, was a long-time political operative for the Bush regime. She was also a deputy campaign manager for his reelection in 2004, and headed up Sarah Palin’s communications staff for the McCain/Palin campaign in 2008. Wallace created a stir when she spoke candidly about Palin’s shortcomings after the election. But that doesn’t make her a liberal. It makes her intelligent and honest. On second thought, maybe it does make her a liberal, because those are qualities that liberals respect and conservatives disdain. However, for Fox Nation and NewsBusters to characterize Wallace as liberal after a career of conservative politicking is just plain delusional. Apparently the only replacement they would find suitable would be someone like Ann Coulter or Michele Bachmann.

Finally, the Fox Nationalists went to their resident screeching hyena, Mark Levin, for a taste of his undisguised racism. The headline on Fox Nation said “Mark Levin Blasts Obama for Vacationing at ‘Whitest Place on Earth’” Indeed, Levin seems to have found something objectionable about our African-American president and his family hobnobbing with his Caucasian superiors, rather than serving them drinks and cleaning their rooms as God intended. Levin continued saying to Obama that “We know how you hate whites,” and that Obama would be better off vacationing in the U.S. Virgin Islands. [Remember what happened to Glenn Beck when he said that Obama hates white people?]

But what makes this truly despicable is that Levin is not only racist, he is stupid – or is that redundant? As noted by Mediaite’s Matt Wilstein, Martha’s Vineyard has a richly diverse history:

“While Martha’s Vineyard is no doubt a ritzy island with more than its fair share of white people, Levin is clearly unaware of its rich history as a summer destination for wealthy black families. This is particularly true of Oak Bluffs, where African-American families began summering as early as the 1890s.”

Levin does make a valid point in one respect. Perhaps Obama should stay away from “the whitest place on Earth.” But it isn’t Martha’s Vineyard. It’s Fox News, where vile bigots roam free to disparage the nation, insult its citizens, and preach a brand of faith that exalts the wealthy, white, ruling class.

Be Sure To “LIKE” News Corpse On Facebook

As usual, Fox News is rampant with racism, delusion, and bald-faced lies. The articles above are only a small sample of the repulsiveness that is published there every day. It’s astonishing that they get away with this and even attract devoted fans. Obviously, there is still a lot of work to be done in this country to stamp out bigotry and the ignorance from which it stems.

How The Media Got EVERYTHING Wrong About Cantor’s Primary Defeat

Last week a tsunami of shock washed over the Washington press corps as the second highest Republican in congress was swept overboard in a primary race against an unknown Tea Party opponent. Eric Cantor’s embarrassing loss has sparked debate as to how such a powerful GOP leader could have been caught looking. Unfortunately, the media contribution to the debate is rife with speculation and error.

Koch-Cycle Dave Brat

AT&T and Verizon users: Stop funding the Tea Party.
Switch to CREDO Mobile, the progressive cell phone company, today!

First off all, the characterization of Cantor’s opponent, Dave Brat, as an outsider who sprung from the grassroots to slay Goliath is a reflection of the shallowness of the research conducted by the mainstream media. Thom Hartmann went deeper and discovered that Brat was on the radar of the billionaire Koch brothers long before he launched his allegedly underdog campaign. Koch-affiliated financiers endowed Randolph-Macon College with half a million dollars to seat the Ayn Rand disciple as a trickle-down economics professor. Then, when the campaign commenced, radio talk show hosts like Laura Ingraham and Mark Levin took the baton and fervently promoted Brat’s candidacy. Ingraham and Levin are just a couple of the radio talkers who are sponsored by Koch front groups like Americans for Prosperity.

This brings us to the second point. The media repeatedly cast a spotlight on the campaign spending differential between Cantor and Brat. Cantor raised more than $5,000,000 compared to Brat’s $200,000. Many reporters latched onto the amusing anecdote that Cantor spent more on steak dinners than Brat spent in total. However, what they failed to take into consideration was the value of the airtime contributed by the likes of Ingraham, Levin, Beck, Limbaugh, Fox News, et al. It could cost a couple of hundred dollars for a thirty second spot on a high performing radio program. Extrapolate that to twenty or thirty minutes of direct advocacy by the the program’s host every day for a month or two and you could easily have exceeded Cantor’s budget for broadcast advertising.

Adding in the value of the donated airtime rips apart the third fallacy peddled in the press – that Brat’s low cost campaign disproves the contention that money makes the difference in elections. This is a target that has been in the sights of conservatives since the Citizen’s United debacle in the Supreme Court. The rush to exonerate wealthy donors of having any untoward impact on electoral outcomes was head-spinning. Every right-wing pundit with a microphone hailed the demise of the theory that cash-laden campaigns had an unfair advantage. In truth, Brat’s campaign was far richer than acknowledged due to the media support detailed above. But even if there were no other factors, a win by a single candidate in one race surely doesn’t negate the fact that in 99.99% of other races the better financed candidate prevails. If the right is so convinced that Brat’s showing proves that money doesn’t matter, I dare any of them to announce that they are halting their fundraising and capping their spending at $200,000.

Fourth: Tea Party supporters were quick to jump on Brat’s win as evidence of a Tea Party resurgence. In just about every other race this cycle, the Tea Party challenger lost to an establishment incumbent. With Brat’s resounding victory, they claim to have regained their mojo. But the only way they can make that argument is if they forget that they lost just about every other race this cycle.

Finally, the Washington set is dead certain that Brat’s triumph was due to his stance against immigration. After all, he did feature it in his campaign ads and it was a point of departure between him and Cantor. Unfortunately for those who seem to have a desperate yearning for that to be true, polling on the day of the election proved otherwise. Public Policy Polling released the survey showing that “72 percent of registered voters in Cantor’s district polled on Tuesday said they either ‘strongly’ or ‘somewhat’ support immigration reform.” And the anti-immigration forces conveniently ignore the fact that on the same day Sen. Lindsey Graham, an establishment, pro-immigration candidate, from an even more conservative state, handily dispatched a slew of Tea Partiers. More likely, the problem for Cantor was that he mustered only a 43% job performance approval, just a couple points off of his losing election results.

So Dave Brat won a peculiar contest in Virginia where he had hidden support from billionaires and an opponent who was widely disliked. Then he disappears and refuses to speak to the voters he hopes will be his constituents. It’s been three days and he hasn’t held a post election press conference. And yet the press continues to misrepresent the realities that produced the results of this election. It’s a state of affairs that proves that Cantor wasn’t the only loser last week. The voters and others who rely on the media to provide useful information and analysis also lost. But they should be used to that by now.

Tea Party Pundit Proposes Unconstitutional Resolution Against Unconstitutional Resolutions

In case anyone has forgotten that last year Louisiana’s GOP governor Bobby Jindal called Republicans the “Stupid Party,” Tea Party radio screamer Mark Levin has generously volunteered to remind us.

Mark Levin

Read Fox Nation vs. Reality for more documented stupidity.

In his response to President Obama’s State of the Union speech, Levin went berserk over what he perceived as a tyrannical usurpation of power by the President. In Obama’s speech he castigated our do-nothing congress for its relentless obstructionism and gave them this rather diplomatic warning:

“I’m eager to work with all of you. But America does not stand still – and neither will I. So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do.”

That’s all it took for the the right-wing outrage machine to get fired up and begin a frantic crusade against what they believe to be an unprecedented overreach. Of course, the truth is that every president has and uses his executive authority to proceed with initiatives that Congress fails to act upon. It is consistent with the constitutional jurisdiction of the executive branch of government, but that hasn’t stopped Republicans from bellowing about dictatorship.

Mark Levin’s post-speech rant took the form of advice to the Republicans in congress. He concluded that they were toO weak to do what he really wanted – which is to impeach Obama for some reasons he didn’t bother to specify. So he proposed an alternative in the form of a congressional resolution:

“Whereas the President of the United States has exerted executive powers not granted to him under the United States Constitution, the House of Representatives hereby asserts, as an equal governing institution, that all such acts by the President of the United States are null and void. The House of Representatives further asserts that no federal department, federal official, or federal employee is authorized to appropriate any sum of taxpayer dollars in furtherance of any unconstitutional act by the President of the United States.”

The Stupid Party (aka the Tea Party, aka the Republican Party) strikes again. First of all, no act by the President, or the Congress for that matter, is unconstitutional until the Supreme Courts says it is. The House of Representatives has no authority to unilaterally designate something the president does as unconstitutional. Secondly, any acts declared unconstitutional by the court are already null and void and don’t require a congressional resolution to be recognized as such. Nor is a prohibition of funding necessary for an act ruled unconstitutional. Since it cannot be carried out, no funds would be allocated to it.

What is laughably pathetic about Levin’s resolution is that it would probably fail the test of constitutionality itself were it ever enacted and challenged in the court. As noted above, the legislative branch cannot rule on the constitutionality of executive actions. And even more idiotic is the fact that Levin doesn’t seem to comprehend that his proposed law could not be enacted without the President’s signature. Does Levin think that Obama would sign this asinine bill?

So what does Fox News do with this utterly delusional rant by a crackpot who clearly doesn’t understand constitutional law? Well, they feature on their Fox Nation website along with all the other blatant lies and disinformation. And thus, the cycle of stupidity continues to flow from wingnut pundits to dishonest news outlets to an audience of willful dimwits.

Fox Nation Posts Radio Rant Against MSNBC That Also Attacks Fox News

One of the most notoriously hyperactive conservative radio shoutcasters is Mark Levin. Some of his on-air convulsions boil over into such bombastic rage that he seems close to having a cerebral aneurysm. He is filled to the brim with contempt for those with whom he disagrees, and that’s a long list.

Fox Nation

This morning his target was MSNBC (again) and the roster of hosts whom he regards as vile character assassins. But while lashing out in what was pure projection, Levin also snared Fox News in his net of wild invective. The subject of his attack was what he considered to be an affront to his Wingnut Queen, Sarah Palin. So he let loose…

“We’re getting way too comfortable with these character assassination efforts by the media, by the left, by the sycophants and their operatives against certain individuals in this country. Did the Republican National Committee speak up for Sarah Palin? No. Did Karl Rove go on Fox to defend one of his colleague? No. Did all of those folks on Fox, with a few exceptions, stand up for her? No.”

In defending Palin’s alleged honor, Levin orchestrated something short of a surgical strike that left his pals at Fox News bleeding in the rubble. This isn’t the first time either. Levin has frequently attacked Fox News and its so-called personalities. He has blasted Rove as “sleazy” and a “liar.” He has called Dana Perino a “jerk.” He hammered Bill O’Reilly as a “fraud.” And, remember, Levin is a frequent guest on the network he is lambasting.

However, what’s notable in today’s news is that the Fox News community website (and Fib Factory), Fox Nation, posted an audio clip of Levin that included his condemnation of Fox. Apparently Fox is so consumed with disseminating anything negative about their enemies that they were either unaware or indifferent to the negativity aimed at themselves. You could probably go on Fox and call the network a festering boil on the ass of television, so long as you also said something nasty about President Obama in the same sentence.

Just for fun, Levin also took a swing at Jon Stewart saying that “Stewart is quoted all over like he’s some kind of a news guy, some kind of an analyst. He’s a comedian, and he’s vile and repulsive and dimwitted. Nobody writes my stuff.” Like anyone would dare to take credit for the asinine swill that Levin pukes.