Tag: Fox News

Trump Lashes Out at Fox News Poll as Barr Meets With Murdoch

New York Times logoAttorney General William P. Barr met privately Wednesday evening with Rupert Murdoch, the media mogul who is one of President Trump’s frequent confidants but whose Fox News is viewed by the president as more hostile toward him than it used to be.

The meeting was held at Mr. Murdoch’s home in New York, according to someone familiar with it. It was unclear if anyone else attended or what was discussed. Aides to both Mr. Murdoch and Mr. Barr declined requests for comment on the meeting.

The visit took place as the impeachment inquiry into Mr. Trump by House Democrats has gathered momentum. Mr. Barr has emerged as a key defender of the president’s concerns about the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Mr. Barr was criticized in the spring for his handling of the report by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, before it was released publicly.

View the complete October 10 article by Maggie Haberman and Katie Benner on The New York Times website here.

A disease claims another victim: How I lost my dad to FOX News

NOTE:  The holiday season starts this month. With that come family gatherings and the chance of political conversations over the dining room table. Sometimes those don’t go well. This commentary documents one son’s loss of the dad he knew to conservative media.

AlterNet logoMy dad’s been my hero for a long time.

I don’t think that’s out of the ordinary for someone that was fortunate enough to grow up with loving parents. But, still- it’s something I cherished. A relationship I knew plenty of others weren’t lucky enough to have. He taught me how to always listen to what folks have to say, and never be afraid to ask for advice, because everyone has something they can teach you. He was always positive, and even when we didn’t agree on things, we always got along.

My dad has led an interesting life. He’s a Vietnam veteran, and in the 1960s, he was a staunch Democrat. Vociferously anti-war after he was discharged, he became an activist- even ending up on one of J. Edgar Hoover’s COINTELPRO lists. He was also a mover and shaker of some note in the Iowa Democratic Party, a staunch Eugene McCarthy and Bobby Kennedy supporter who never got over the “backdoor, smoke and cigar filled room” way that Humphrey badgered his way to the nomination in ‘68.

View the complete October 4 commentary from the Daily Kos on the AlterNet website here.

On Fox News, Giuliani Talked Of ’Tapes’ And Soros Conspiracies

Not content with making the rounds of the Sunday shows, Rudy Giuliani decided to spend Monday night on Fox with Sean Hannity. One might think that in the far friendlier confines of Hannity’s show, Giuliani might have managed to come across as slightly less erratic and unhinged, but you’d be wrong.

To Giuliani’s credit, he has found new conspiracy theories to allege, and they’re even weirder than his previous attempts. He told Hannity that he has “overwhelming” proof that Hillary Clinton and the Democrats cooperated with Ukrainians, with the order to do so coming directly from Obama. However, he’s talking about January 2017, when Donald Trump had already won the election, so it’s unclear what all this alleged spycraft would have accomplished.

When asked if he would respond to the subpoenas issued by the House Intelligence, Foreign Affairs, and Oversight and Reform Committees, Giuliani mused that he would go if he could bring “videotapes” and “tape recordings.”

View the complete October 1 article by Lisa Needham on the National Memo website here.

Chris Wallace Shoots Down Stephen Miller’s Claim Whistleblower Is Part of ‘Deep State’

“This individual is a saboteur trying to undermine a democratically elected government,” White House policy adviser said

“This is a deep state operative, pure and simple,” White House senior policy adviser Stephen Miller told Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace in an attempt to characterize as partisan the whistleblower who came forward following President Donald Trump’s phone call with Ukraine’s president asking him to dig up dirt on his political rival.

“I think it’s unfortunate that the media continues to describe this individual as a whistleblower, an honorific that this individual most certainly does not deserve. A partisan hit job does not make you a whistleblower just because you go through the Whistleblower Protection Act,” Miller said.

Then Wallace cut to video of the Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire testifying before Congress that the whistleblower and the Inspector General have “acted in good faith throughout” and have done everything “by the book and followed the law.”

View the complete September 29 article by Peter Wade on The Rolling Stone website here.

‘Unbelievable!’: Fox News show bursts into chaos when Juan Williams accuses co-hosts of using Trump talking points

AlterNet logoFox News show “The Five” devolved into outrage and shouting on Wednesday afternoon when host Juan Williams — the token liberal on the panel — not-so-subtly accused his co-hosts of spouting talking points from the White House.

Those talking points, meant to defend the president from the deluge of criticism he is facing amidst the ongoing Ukraine scandal, were revealed when they were inadvertently sent to Democrats in Washington D.C.

“Just listening here, I think, boy, those talking points, they’ve made the rounds! Because the reality is —” Williams said.

View the complete September 25 article by Cody Fenwick on the AlterNet website here.

How Fox News Is Distorting Key Facts In Whistleblower Complaint

Fox News is lying about the Trump whistleblower, suggesting the controversy is just about a policy disagreement. The facts make clear that we are well beyond that point.

Fox News figures are pushing the Trump administration’s line against an intelligence official’s whistleblower report about a troubling phone call between President Donald Trump and a foreign leader, claiming the report is probably about a “policy.”

The Washington Post reported Thursday night that the complaint involves Ukraine, saying that “two and a half weeks before the complaint was filed, Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.” As he confirmed on CNN, Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani has pressured the Ukrainian government to investigate Trump’s political opponents.

View the complete September 21 article by Eric Kleefeld from Media Matters on the National Memo website here.

Fox News Personalities Enriched Trump By Appearances At Hotels

At least 17 Fox News personalities have helped enrich Donald Trump by speaking at events at his properties since he announced his presidential run in 2015. They have headlined pro-Trump gatherings; have held book parties; and have keynoted industry events. Additionally, numerous Fox News figures have visited Trump properties for social occasions, including golf and dinner outings with the president.

>During his presidency, Trump has frequently merged his presidential and business interests, creating unprecedented conflicts of interest and constitutional issues. As The New York Times recently reported, “Since Mr. Trump became president, there have been thousands of visits to his properties, not only by Mr. Trump himself, but by foreign leaders, lobbyists, Republican candidates, members of Congress, cabinet members and others with ties to the president. At least 90 members of Congress, 250 Trump administration officials and more than 110 foreign officials have been spotted at Trump properties since 2017, according to social media posts and counts by various watchdog groups.” Continue reading “Fox News Personalities Enriched Trump By Appearances At Hotels”

On Fox, Michelle Malkin Pushes Anti-Semitic Conspiracy Theory

On September 9, a Fox & Friends guest pushed the same anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that motivated the Tree of Life shooter to kill 11 people at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.

On Monday morning, the Fox & Friends co-hosts welcomed right-wing writer Michelle Malkin, who argued that “global financiers” are “colluding to undermine American sovereignty” by “sabotaging our will when it comes to enforcing strictly immigration law.” Malkin posited that tax-exempt, nonprofit charities funded by the likes of Democratic donor George Soros, along with institutions like the United Nations, are funneling “hard-earned, tax-paying American citizens’ money to fund these illegal alien groups.” Malkin called for congressional investigations into “left-wing groups” that “have been lobbying for illegal alien amnesty” to “secure a permanent ruling majority” for the Democratic Party.

Malkin pushed a dangerous, anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that various right-wing media figures have previously peddled on Fox News. Before carrying out the attack, the Tree of Life synagogue shooter wrote an online post blaming Jewish people in the U.S. “for bringing in an invasion of nonwhite immigrants.” Like Malkin, the shooter worried about George Soros’ influence — a common anti-Semitic trope — on undocumented immigration at the U.S. southern border, and he expressed paranoia that the United Nations was seeking to undermine the United States.

View the complete September 9 article by Courtney Hagle from Media Matters on the National Memo website here.

Fox News and conservative media are now warning of bloodshed if Democrats win in 2020

AlterNet logoThat’s one way to try halt public debate in this country: by threatening mass violence and a bloody people’s revolt in the streets. That’s what conservative media voices, including those on Fox News, have done in recent days. Specifically, the reckless rhetoric has revolved around proposed new gun laws in the wake of America’s latest string of mass shootings. Those are laws that would likely only be enacted if Democrats won the Senate and the White House in 2020.

If you take “people’s guns away from them, there’s going to be a lot of violence,” The View’s Meghan McCain announced. “What you are calling for is civil war,” warned Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. “What you are calling for is an incitement to violence.” And that was just a sampling of the right-wing media hysteria last week.

These kinds of alerts about looming political violence if the opposition party wins power and passes laws in a democratic fashion represent the worst type of far-right insurrectionism. It’s an ominous and long-held belief among conservatives and conservative media outlets that citizens need to be fully armed in order to one day wage war on the American government, as a kind of second American civil war. In other words, the reason the Second Amendment exists is not for self-defense, or to protect the rights of hunters and gun enthusiasts, but to enable citizens to go to war with the U.S. government, and to fend off a “tyrannical” turn at home.

View the complete September 9 article by Eric Boehlert from Daily Kos on the AlterNet website here.

Trump’s Fox & Friends pals finally concede Mexico ain’t paying for that wall

“The president never should have said Mexico was gonna pay for the wall.”

President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign was centered on one grand campaign promise: he would build a massive wall along the entire southern border of the nation, and its construction would be completely paid for by Mexico. Three years later, almost no construction has happened and Mexico has repeatedly made it clear that it will not be paying a cent.

On Thursday, Trump’s dear friends on Fox & Friends finally admitted what has been obvious for years: this was an empty claim, a broken promise, and a huge failure on the part of Trump.

The show’s famously pro-Trump hosts made the admission that Mexico is never paying for the wall in a segment highlighting the administration’s plan to unilaterally divert $3.6 billion in funds from 127 defense programs to begin major construction.

View the complete September 5 article by Josh Israel on the ThinkProgress website here.