Bernie’s Q&A: Hannity, Rich, Smith, Maher, and more! (11/27) — Premium Interactive ($4 members)
Bernie’s Q&A: Hannity, Rich, Smith, Maher, and more! (11/27) — Premium Interactive ($4 members)
Welcome to this week’s Premium Q&A session for Premium Interactive members. I appreciate you all signing up and joining me. Thank you.
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Now, let’s get to your questions (and my answers):
I voted for Trump's re-election but in all honestly I'm glad he lost. I just can't take any more! The scandals. The twitter outbursts. The conspiracy theories. It almost makes me long for the days of Obama's presidency. At least the worst scandal we had to worry about was Fast and Furious! At what point do you see the Republican party taking a stand against Trump and the damage he's doing to the party and country? -- JT
Some Republicans have taken a stand. Some! But others are afraid to stand up to Trump because his most passionate supporters are unforgiving. If they stand up to Trump's craziness, that part of his base will seek revenge at election time. He has a hold on these people. And that frightens a lot of Republicans who don't want to be "primaries" next time around.
Hi Bernie: I continue to recommend you to anyone and everyone who laments the availability of "balanced" reporting. On that subject, you mentioned you like Bret Baier on Fox, as do I. Based on a very small sample size at this point, I am pleasantly surprised by Shepard Smith on CNBC. I think they are doing a decent to good job. Your take? -- Paul M.
I can't bring myself to tune in -- yet -- Paul. I remember his from Fox and I can't get over his BS -- that he's objective and fair when he gave his opinions every 10 seconds. I don't care that he was tough on Trump. That's fine with me. But his sanctimony was too much. I may give him a second look, though. And thanks very much for the kind words. They are appreciated, my friend.
I hope your Thanksgiving day was happy and healthy (and filling). There must have been a blue moon out recently because I found out that not only had I made a mistake and was thus wrong about something during a discussion with my wife, but I also found myself agreeing with Bill Maher! Here’s the link.
The notion that liberals and Democrats need to stop embracing the progressive weirdos and perpetually aggrieved, and instead start using common sense is nothing new to right wingers. In fact, I recall a book I read years ago written by a brilliant man who I believe you’re familiar with—-it was called “Crazies To The Left of Me, Wimps To The Right” and it was very enjoyable. So explain something to me please—- that book is several years old, and Bill Maher is just NOW getting around to realizing and embracing the ideas discussed in that book? Worse yet, Bill Maher is trying to shake some sense into the left wing Democrats that many of us were griping about for decades. It was obvious to so many of the right wingers, but apparently a lot of liberal Democrats couldn’t see the hole that they were digging for themselves and simply labeled those of us they disagree with as “rubes and racists and homophobes and Islamophobes and fools and deplorables,” and this was BEFORE the advent of social media! In your opinion, why is it taking so long for them to see the obvious, and do you think that they’ll actually take heed now that people like Bill Maher and Conor Lamb are warning them? -- “Black Friday Wake-Up Call” Regards From The Emperor
First, Emperor, let's state the obvious: When conservatives say some "woke" progressives are borderline lunatics, the left by and large ignores us. But when Bill Maher says it, maybe they'll listen. As for Maher himself ... from time to time he has called out the Crazies to the Left ... but this was an 8 minute monologue that says everything we've been saying for years. Better late than never. Now all we need is a funny guy on the right to call out the lunatics on our side of the line. Hope you also had a happy Thanksgiving, Your Royal Highness.
At least, in this crazy crazy year, most can at least be thankful we are still here corresponding. But what are we going to correspond mostly about in 2021? Do you predict we will still see more of Donald Trump than of Joe Biden on the “News”? Remember how annoying it was that Hillary just wouldn’t go away? I fear the worst here. --ScottyG
News organizations -- especially cable news -- literally can't afford to move on from Donald Trump. He's too good for the bottom line. Joe is kind of bland. Bland doesn't sell on TV. So, Scotty, I'm looking into the brand new crystal ball I just got from Amazon and in it I see lots and lots of "news" about Donald J. Trump. Sorry.
As we move ever closer to a Biden presidency, I notice that usage of the term "white supremacy" seems to be accelerating rather than diminishing. Growing up, that term had a pretty clear meaning and was applied to groups like the KKK. Today the term has become somewhat ubiquitous although it never seems to be defined nor do those who throw the term around ever explain how it is actually manifest in everyday life. Are the mayors and city counsels of our bluest cities white supremacists and if so, why do they remain in power given the progressive voting tendencies of the blue city voters? If not then does that mean that these large blue cities are not bastions of white supremacy and thus the problems existing in such cities have nothing to do with white supremacy? Can you have it both ways ( in the real world not the world of doublespeak where we seem to be heading quickly)? I am also trying to understand what those who incessantly and wantonly use the phrase actually want, and if their objectives are as radical as they appear to be,whether we will get any pushback from those on the left who vote blue but are not looking for the destruction of America and traditional American values like free speech and the ability to have thoughts and hold views that are not held by the majority of people in their cities, towns, universities etc? If those voices are not heard from soon will the bluest cities be ones where mob rule (or the threat of mob rule which arguably is even more pernicious because of the chilling effect it creates) will become part of the social fabric of such cities so that those in the minority are unprotected and unwelcome and will be hounded ( see DC cafes as an illustration) until they submit (conform), leave town or express their minority views in hidden spaces ( harkening back to Spain in circa 1492)? Or am I just an alarmist because we will soon be returning to the Halcyon years of 2009-2017 when tolerance reigned (except on college campuses of course)? -- Michael F.
You ask, Michael, what those who use the term "white supremacy" actually want. Good question. They want to shut down any conversation that doesn't portray black Americans as victims. By blaming everything on "white supremacy" they can portray the problems involving race as "systemic" -- based on a system where white people, simply because they're white, are responsible for all the things that contribute to racial inequality. But be careful before you condemn this kind of thinking. I'm sure you're familiar with the term "cancel culture."
It was reported Wednesday that Seth Rich's family won a seven-figure lawsuit settlement against Fox News over Sean Hannity, Newt Gingrich, and others using Rich's memory (he was murdered) to spread a baseless, Trump-helpful conspiracy theory about his death on Fox News programming. The move apparently spared Hannity and Gingrich from having to testify under oath. One would think FNC would learn something from this, but I doubt they will. What are your thoughts? -- Ben G.
In any normal business world, Hannity would at absolute least be told to go on vacation -- for a few months -- a gesture by Fox to sort of clear the air. That is, if he wasn't flat out fired along with everyone else at Fox who used the story to boost ratings. But Hannity is too good for business to do anything sane like that. Will Fox learning anything from this? They'll tell Hannity and his producer to be more careful but when something else juicy comes along that his audience will latch on to ... it may very well happen again. And if it does, Hannity will get another pass.
Concerning your Off the Cuff this week - I found nothing to disagree with. However, as I listened to your narrative on President's Trump's post election behavior being a threat to democracy I thought of two questions for you. The premise of the questions are ugly from any direction. If you had a pick one choice for an outgoing administration to behave would it be as Trump and his people are behaving now - very publicly, or behave as the outgoing Obama administration did - meeting in private on how to disrupt the incoming administration? Which is the greater threat to democracy? -- Rocco S.
Fair question, Rocco. Trying to disrupt the legitimacy of an incoming president would be the greater threat to democracy, in my opinion, because the chaos lasted for years into the Trump presidency. Trump's nonsense would come in second. Neither, to state the obvious, looks good.
Bernie, Are you worried that your criticisms of our president, along with your legendary computer expertise, will result in Trump's legal team adding your name to their list of conspirators who stole millions of votes for Trump, and gave them to Joe Biden? And if you were called to testify in court about your alleged collusion, and grilled by Rudy Giuliani on the stand, would you offer him your handkerchief if black hair dye began running down both sides of his face? -- John D.
First the Rudy question: I would, of course, offer him my handkerchief -- unless I just used it to blow my nose. But if he really needed it, yes, I would EVEN IF I just used it to blow my nose. As for the Donald question: You know the saying, about how a picture is worth a thousand words? Look at this picture and tell me if Donald would ever accuse me of stealing votes from him:
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