Janeane Garofalo vs the "Tea Baggers" Round II - This Time It's Personal!

[Vyan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU_mMwCNl0M

In yet another example of Ambush Journalism Fox News sent one of their "Producers" Boston AM Radio guy Ken Pittman challenged Janeane Garofalo over her "Racist Redneck Tea Bagger" comments, and almost manage to make me think she might have had a point.

Now when she made her original comments on Countdown, there were a lot of Democrats - myself included - who thought she'd gone WAY over the top.

This time she gets repeatedly asked if she'd apologize for her comments that "all the tea baggers were redneck racists" - and she just WON'T do it.

I don't agree with the blanket nature of her original statement, but she does manage to turn the interview they're trying to have with her, into an interview of them - and they kinda FAIL.

This is what happens when you try and ambush a person whose a faster thinker and better at media than YOU are.

Her main point, "Where was all this outrage while Bush was running record deficits?" Also I'd like to point out again, that the Bailout was Bush's plan, and the AIG bonuses were his mistake. Most of the massive up-tick in Obama's budget comes from not hiding the cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars anymore. Most of the complaint is about his stimulus plan, which so far, seems to be working. So where were the Bush=Hitler posters when he started robbing the poor to give to the rich 8 years ago? In fact, where are they now?

These are some of signs she's talking about.











It would be ridiculous to argue that this represents everyone involved, but the problem the Fox guys have is that these aren't a figment of Janeane's imagination, and when you stand next to the guy with the Obama-Hitler sign and refuse - REFUSE - to call him out for it, your silence indicates that you accept the premise - it means you essentially ENDORSE it.

I'm certain there are and were many people who have legitimate tax concerns who are willing to speak out against this stuff, but all I've heard them say is "I didn't do it!" Yeah, well, that's Not. Good. Enough.

You can't whine about Obama bowing to the Saudi King while you're bowing to the guy with the URKEL poster, by failing to call them out.

Earlier in the program Van Susteren talked to Karl Rove and he spent the one portion of the interview talking about how "Civil and polite" the Republican are and how Mean and Vicious the Democrats are. Yes, Really!

Video of Karl Rove on Greta
http://www.youtube.com/v/ey7St8cy54k

They have an example of a CBS guy saying U.S. soldiers would shoot Nancy Pelosi and strangle Harry reid before taking out Osama Bin Laden. So much for the "Liberal" Media.

Look, again I don't agree with Sykes Kidney comments, but frankly I didn't see many fans of Limbaugh calling HIM out for his vicious LIE that Michael J. Fox was exaggerating his Parkinson's symptoms just to generate sympathy and greater support for Clair McCaskill. Fox had also support Arlen Specter while he was still a Republican so his endorsement was purely based on what he said it was - her support for Parkinson's research - period!

I didn't see many Republicans calling out George Allen for his Racial "Maccaca" slur.
I don't see people except for Colin Powell objecting when Limbaugh says he wants Obama to fail, ignoring the fact that if he fails - America FAILS. And Powell seems to be being repaid be being excommunicated from the Party via Cheney.

Nice.

That's a real big PUP tent the GOPasauras are pitching these days.

During the Garofalo ambush they accuse her of being "Bigoted Ideologically" of being "Biased Against Conservatives" - a charge which Janeane counters with the fact that the current Republican party bares no resemblance to what Barry Goldwater the "father of Modern Conservatism" actually stood for. A point which is emphasized in more detail by John Dean's Book 'Conservatives without Conscience".

But I think the more interesting assertion is the idea of Conservatives as a Protected Class. This view explains why Conservatives feel they should have their own form of Affirmative Action and have a nominal representative everywhere in the media. They certainly act like they're in a perpetual state of victimhood, but consider this - if someone can be bigoted ideologically against conservatives then someone can be an anti-Liberal BIGOT too.

If that's true, then they pretty much just proved Janeane's point - because the reason so many people were willing to passively stand-by in solidarity with the element of racists who were there and lend them additional credibility is because they are IDEOLOICAL BIGOTS themselves.

And that's something I completely agree with in the case of pretty much everyone involved in this Tea Party Effort, ideological intolerance isn't really all that much different from being racist itself. Either way it's still bigotry.

After this I feel that Garafalo should apologize when Anyone from the Tea Partier movement apologizes for those signs or failing that when Limbaugh, Coulter, O'Reilly or Michael Savage apologies for just a fraction of the anti-Liberal Hate Speech they've spewed over the years.

I would prefer that people generally calmed down and acted in a CIVIL manner with each other but yeah, I know...we're all going to be waiting a long, long time for that to happen.

Vyan

Update: Here's Janeane's side of the story without Fox editing. More on this from Here.

Video of Janeane with MarcMaron
http://www.youtube.com/v/Bo4Y8wYq-0Y

Now if she could just explain why the hell she's on "24" - watching her get bullied by Jack and into violating FISA against her better judgment, then embarrassed by Chloe and turned into a yipping petty harpy when she finally figures out something Chloe can't is not Zesty.

[Buzz Clik]

1. "He's really unintelligent. He strikes me as a real limited guy." Explains why Hannity likes him.

[bbernardini]

2. Whatever happened to that protest that was supposed to take place outside of one of her shows?

I'm thinking it was supposed to happen in Boston, or near it. Has that show not happened yet?

[rvablue]

8. It was last Friday. And while the freepers claimed many would show up

not a single one of them did. Typical delusional cowards who represent a tiny minority and can't follow through on their wack-a-doodle "plans."

There is another thread about this in GD, I think with a link to the Boston Herald.

[Echo In Light]

3. Janeane is spot on re the redneck/white power angle

[xchrom]

4. janeane remains spot on.

why is there any crying over this?

they know they're racist and we know they're racist.

they know they have nothing relevant to say about the economy -- except for shit they make up -- and we know they have nothing relevant to say about the economy -- except for shit they make up.

so lets just all agree they're liars and racists -- and then join hands and sing kumbahya.

[stewert]

5. Garofalo Was Mostly Right

A lot of the people at the tea party protests were racists, but not all of them. I think she made a mistake by saying they were ALL racists. But she was mostly right, there were a lot of racists there who just hate Obama because he is black. Hell half the Republican party is racist, her only mistake was saying ALL of them were racists. Other than that, she was exactly right, and if she did say she was sorry for anything, it would only be to say ALL of them were not racists, just a lot of them.

[xchrom]

6. if you could magically lift republicans who are members of

the republican party because of either overt or subconscious racism -- you wouldn't have a party.

[riverdeep]

10. I agree with you.

That IS the mistake she made. Because, truth be told, not ALL the people that were there 'teabagging' were racists. As you say, there were a tremendous number, but not all. There were also people who were manipulated by the media machine into going out there that had outrage built up over the giveaways (which started under Bush, but I didn't see any Bush signs). They were chumps, who got used.

I like that she got in her digs and stood her ground, but a quick apology for saying 'all' and then onto a tearing down of the movement like she did might have been better, but I also understand the state of mind you're in when confronted- it's a fight or flight response and any sign of weakness can be fatal.

[LiberalLovinLug]

12. No mistake

If you want to march with people holding up racist signage, and yelling racist slogans, then YOU are also a racist, no matter how quietly you hide behind them and silently snicker.

If there is anything liberals have to learn is that we have to fight fire with fire. AM radio shmucks like this guy and his asshole heroes on the big networks, have relentlessly portrayed ALL progressives as gay(ie. effeminate), communist, anti-defense, terrorist loving, latte sipping (well that one may be true), God hating, America hating, snooty liberal elites.

So much so that many people who actually are for the most part liberal underneath, will never admit to it or perhaps even vote Democratic, for fear of being associated with these stigmas. Its time we highlighted the ugliness in the extreme rightwing viewpoints in order to challenge those moderates into choosing to be associated with those extremists who seem to be taking over the Republican party.

[Seldona]

14. If you are standing in crowd with people holding signs

saying the PRESIDENT is the anti-christ, or holding little monkey toys with Obama shirts on, than you are of the same grade of asshole once removed.

I agree with her wholeheartedly. And I went to the local teabagger anti-protest. Those people made me sick.

[LaPera]

7. It seems to me you see yourself as a "moderarate" not a liberal?

Correct?

"myself included - who thought she'd gone WAY over the top".

No aware democratic LIBERAL though any such thing, as we as quite aware of the fucking republican party and their slimy tactics of lies, hate & greed!!

A Moderate, UGH!!!

[Vyan]

11. I'm a Centrist, not a Moderate

I don't automatically assume the proper path is the look to the left, then look to the right and split the difference - I think they're both kinda Fracked UP, but the left is much less so - than the right these days.

Predetermining that you know that answer before someone even presents the question - is a psychopathalogical disorder, I prefer to make decisions based on the facts and the merits regardless who who happens to be advancing that idea at the moment.

In other words, I'm not on the Blue Team most of the time because I like them, it's because their ideas have earned my support while the right has repeatedly, utterly FAILED!

Vyan

[riverdeep]

9. Oh dear God, I love Janeane.

You have to watch that video of Janeane and Sam reflecting on their incident! Ken Pitmann and 'his male companion'. She has this way of tearing them down with honesty. Oh, and I love the return to brunettedness.

[Anakin Skywalker]

13. Janeane Was Too Nice!

She should have punched out that Faux News ambusher.

I got a laugh of out the photos of those TEABAGGERS. They all seem to be in fear of Obama! :)