Woke leftism is totally on the ropes.
The Democrats don&#8217;t know what to do about this, but their entire centralizing philosophy is on the ropes.
Jeff Bezos is the owner of The Washington Post. When he bought the Post, he said he would not get involved in the editorial side of the newspaper. 
Then, the newspaper decided to become the repository of the most radical woke nonsense in all of American media. By doing so, The Washington Post blew out its credibility more than any other major newspaper in the country.
It had been the paper of record. It had been the paper of Watergate. It had been the paper that broke an enormous number of serious scandals about the American government.
And then it turned into Salon.com. It was Jennifer Rubin whining about how Donald Trump was a mean, bad man. It was Eugene Robinson whining about how America was terrible. It was all the usual suspects saying the most radical, stupid things.
The number of Washington Post subscriptions began to seriously dip because they weren&#8217;t making any of the same smart business moves The New York Times was making. The New York Times also became a liberal fan paper, but they also decided to diversify into Wordle.
That did not happen with The Washington Post, who simply kept doubling down on the anti-Trump radical leftism and the suggestion that boys weren&#8217;t just girls, boys had to be girls. This had to be taught to kids — the idea that all politics could be boiled down to racial and sexual identity along with the idea that capitalism was, in and of itself, bad.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2147-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h3>
But now there is a new middle in America, and the new middle is pro free market. It&#8217;s a middle that doesn&#8217;t like the leftist idea that the American economy is rigged on behalf of white people, rigged on behalf of men.
It&#8217;s an American middle that believes in the American dream and thus believes in the idea, generally speaking, of capitalism. It&#8217;s also an American middle that, while fairly liberal about what their neighbors do, is not completely liberal about what their neighbors do — meaning if their neighbors decide to open a porn shop next door, the answer is no. If their neighbors decide the local public school is going to be teaching gender-queer, the answer is no.
That&#8217;s the new middle in America.
So, what does that mean? It means there is now a real market possibility of newspapers like The Washington Post reorienting. Bezos is not a traditional Republican. He is not someone who believes in traditional conservative social values. He&#8217;s not somebody who, as far as I am aware, is particularly hawkish on foreign policy.
But Bezos does exist in the business world and in the world of semi-rationality. So yesterday, Bezos announced he will be reorienting (and remaking) the Post’s editorial board. It is worth sharing <a href="https://x.com/JeffBezos/status/1894757287052362088" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his statement</a> in full:
<blockquote>I shared this note with the Washington Post team this morning:
I’m writing to let you know about a change coming to our opinion pages.
We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets. We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.
There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the reader’s doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views. Today, the internet does that job.
I am of America and for America, and proud to be so. Our country did not get here by being typical. And a big part of America’s success has been freedom in the economic realm and everywhere else. Freedom is ethical — it minimizes coercion — and practical — it drives creativity, invention, and prosperity.
I offered David Shipley, whom I greatly admire, the opportunity to lead this new chapter. I suggested to him that if the answer wasn’t “hell yes,” then it had to be “no.” After careful consideration, David decided to step away. This is a significant shift, it won’t be easy, and it will require 100% commitment —  I respect his decision. We’ll be searching for a new Opinion Editor to own this new direction.
I’m confident that free markets and personal liberties are right for America. I also believe these viewpoints are underserved in the current market of ideas and news opinion. I’m excited for us together to fill that void.</blockquote>
This is a sea change. It is a true recognition of the fact that The Washington Post never had a broad spectrum of opinion. The tacit recognition in Bezos’ announcement is that there might have been a time when The Washington Post was a sort of platform with a variety of opinions — Charles Krauthammer and George Mitchell used to write for The Washington Post —  but then something changed.
Once The Washington Post became the exclusive preserve of the radical Left on matters economic and social, it was no longer a platform. It became, in the most real sense, a publisher of only the content the editorial board wanted to publish.
So Bezos is now saying, “Listen, if that&#8217;s going to be the way this works, then I want the Post to publish things I want. I spent $100 million on this newspaper. I own this newspaper. I get to decide what&#8217;s in this newspaper.”
Good for him.
I think that we are exiting the era of “objective journalism” and moving toward the realization there is no such thing. The case can be made that there are journalists who do their best to remove their personal bias from situations, but the notion of there being an “objective news media” writ large was a lie and is a lie.
There&#8217;s a prism of politics through which the news is refracted at every one of these major publications. Everybody knows The Wall Street Journal editorial page tilts to the Right and The New York Times’ editorial page toward the Left.
I remember when Twitter (now X) was owned by Jack Dorsey — and when conservatives said that the standards that were being applied were unfair and that the standards Twitter professed to be applying were not actually the standards they were applying — people on the Left said, “Well, then, build your own.”
Then, Elon Musk bought it, and now the Left is whining about it.
The same is true here. When people complained about the editorial direction of The Washington Post, the Left said, “You don&#8217;t own The Washington Post. You don&#8217;t like it? Build your own.”
All of this is part and parcel of a radical sea change that is happening in American politics.
And it is driven by the Democrats, who are totally disconnected from reality.

Washington Post Shakes Up Leadership

The Washington Post Surrenders — To Reality

Ben Shapiro

Jeff Bezos

Journalism

Legacy Media

Opinion

Trump Derangement Syndrome

U.S. Politics

Washington Post

Woke Culture

Elon Musk says in an interview scheduled to air in full on Tuesday night that his first encountering someone who has so-called &#8220;Trump Derangement Syndrome&#8221; was like meeting someone on methamphetamines and who had also been infected with rabies.
The interview was conducted with Fox News host Sean Hannity, with President Donald Trump sitting beside Musk.
Hannity noted that he was surprised by how leftists have turned on Musk even though he supports initiatives like electric cars.
&#8220;I used to be adored by the Left,&#8221; Musk said. &#8220;Not anymore. Less so these days.&#8221;
&#8220;There&#8217;s this whole sort of, like, you know, they call it &#8216;Trump Derangement Syndrome,'&#8221; Musk said. &#8220;You don&#8217;t realize how real this is until you can&#8217;t reason with people.&#8221;
&#8220;I was at a friend&#8217;s birthday party in L.A., just a birthday dinner and it was a nice, quiet dinner,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;And everyone was behaving normally. And I happened to mention, this was before the election, like, a month or two before, I happened to mention the president&#8217;s name.&#8221;
&#8220;And it was like they got shot with a dart in the jugular that contained, like, methamphetamine and rabies. Okay? And they&#8217;re, like, wah!&#8221; he continued. &#8220;And I&#8217;m, like, what is wrong? Guys, like, you can&#8217;t have, like, a normal conversation? They&#8217;ve become completely irrational.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Elon Musk describes his experience engaging with people who have “Trump Derangement Syndrome”
<a href="https://t.co/K5FlY4MwTC">pic.twitter.com/K5FlY4MwTC</a>
— America (@america) <a href="https://twitter.com/america/status/1891893095194599865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2025</a></blockquote>

7th Viva Technology Conference In Paris – Day 3

Musk: Trump Derangement Syndrome Is Like ‘Methamphetamine And Rabies’

Donald Trump

Elon Musk

General

Politics

Sean Hannity

California kicked off its new legislative term in a special session on Monday focused on making plans to thwart President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda.
Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom convened the special session and wants the state legislature to approve a $25 million legal defense fund for the state’s justice department. The goal of the fund would be to “Trump-proof” the state against legal challenges from the Trump administration.
“The freedoms we hold dear in California are under attack — and we won’t sit idle. California has faced this challenge before, and we know how to respond. We are prepared, and we will do everything necessary to ensure Californians have the support and resources they need to thrive,” Newsom said in a <a href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2024/11/07/special-session-ca-values/#:~:text=The%20freedoms%20we%20hold%20dear,resources%20they%20need%20to%20thrive.">statement</a> last month announcing the special session.
Several of the policies that California Democrats want “Trump-proofed” include rules that block local and state authorities from working with federal immigration enforcement, as well as rules on California’s strict standards for vehicle emissions, according to the <a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/california-special-session-trump-19944927.php">San Francisco Chronicle</a>.
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California’s Democrats have banded together to promote resisting Trump. Sen. Alex Padilla appeared on CBS News on Sunday to tout Newsom’s approach to immigration. Padilla said that California would spend taxpayer funds providing legal services for illegal immigrants.
“If it’s legal assistance, legal advice, legal support, that’s just the California way. We embrace our diversity. Our diversity is what has made our communities thrive and our economy thrive. And so we will assist families against the threats of the Trump administration,” Padilla <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/ca-democrat-says-state-will-use-taxes-on-legal-assistance-for-migrants-against-threats-of-trump-admin-thats-just-the-california-way/">said</a>.
Padilla suggested that the state would fight any attempt to deport illegal aliens who were not considered to be “violent criminals.”
“If we wanted to sort of cut to the chase, you know, we’re hearing a lot of bombast from Trump and his allies about the biggest deportation operation in our country’s history, on the one hand, versus a – maybe a focus on violent criminals on the other,” he said. “Nobody – nobody disagrees with a focus on violent criminals.”
Trump tore into Newsom last month after the governor began to call for passing new laws aimed at thwarting Trump’s agenda and tying up federal action in court. The president-elect said in a post on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113448443776000306">Truth Social</a> that Newsom and other California Democrats are driving residents out of the state through “INSANE POLICY DECISIONS.”
“Governor Gavin Newscum is trying to KILL our Nation’s beautiful California. For the first time ever, more people are leaving than are coming in,” Trump said in the post. “He is using the term ‘Trump-Proof’ as a way of stopping all of the GREAT things that can be done to ‘Make California Great Again,’ but I just overwhelmingly won the Election.”

Gavin Newsom

Newsom Looks To Create Legal Fund To Fight Trump Agenda In Court

California

The editor-in-chief of Scientific American announced Thursday that she would leave the publication days after facing backlash for profanity-laced social media posts about President-elect Donald Trump&#8217;s supporters. 
Laura Helmuth, who <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/embarrassment-to-science-scientific-american-editor-blasted-for-ripping-trump-voters" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> that Generation X was “full of f***ing fascists” as Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris last week, said she would be moving on from the publication. Helmuth previously apologized for the comments, which she said did not reflect the views of Scientific American, the nation’s oldest continuously published magazine. 
“I’ve decided to leave Scientific American after an exciting 4.5 years as editor in chief,” Helmuth <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/laurahelmuth.bsky.social/post/3lawlkjh6ns23" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on the social media site Bluesky. “I’m going to take some time to think about what comes next (and go birdwatching).”
Under her post announcing her resignation, Helmuth posted links to several articles published under her leadership, including one that claimed &#8220;gender-affirming care for trans kids is good health care.&#8221;
Exit polls showed that Trump performed best with Generation X, generally considered those between the ages of 45 and 64. One exit <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-elections/exit-polls" target="_blank" rel="noopener">poll</a> from NBC showed that Trump defeated Harris 54%-44% in that age range. Polling from <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Elections/exit-polls-2024-us-presidential-election-results-analysis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABC</a> showed that Trump defeated Harris 50%-48% among those ages 40-49 and 56%-43% among those ages 50-64.
Her resignation comes after she posted on Bluesky asking for “advice for what workplaces can do to help people who are devastated by the election.”
In other posts, she said, “I apologize to younger voters that my Gen X is so full of f***ing fascists&#8221; and “Solidarity to everybody whose meanest, dumbest, most bigoted high-school classmates are celebrating early results because f*** them to the moon and back.&#8221;
“Every four years I remember why I left Indiana (where I grew up) and remember why I respect the people who stayed and are trying to make it less racist and sexist. The Moral arc of the universe isn’t going to bend itself,” she said in another post. 
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
On November 7, Helmuth posted an apology for the posts after criticism from figures like Tesla CEO Elon Musk, commentator Lex Fridman, and historian Michael Shermer.
“I made a series of offensive and inappropriate posts on my personal Bluesky account on election night, and I am sorry. I respect and value people across the political spectrum,” she posted. “These posts, which I have deleted, do not reflect my beliefs; they were a mistaken expression of shock and confusion about the election results.”
Scientific American President Kimberly Lau thanked Helmuth in a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2024/11/14/scientific-american-laura-helmuth-quits/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> to The Washington Post. 
“We thank Laura for her four years leading Scientific American during which time the magazine won major science communications awards and saw the establishment of a reimagined digital newsroom,” Lau said in a statement. “We wish her well for the future.”

Post Staff Portraits – Washington, DC

Top Scientific American Editor Out After Calling Trump Supporters ‘Fascists’

2024 Election

Media

Scientific American

On Tuesday, only two days after a gunman was arrested for allegedly targeting former President Donald Trump in the second assassination attempt on him in two months, MSNBC hosted a retired U.S. general who warned that Trump’s re-election would engender a generation of Nazi indoctrination.
Brigadier General Steven M. Anderson, who served as the Chief of Logistics Operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff – J4, Logistics Readiness Center at the Pentagon before serving as the Multi-National Forces – Iraq, Director of Sustainment and Resources during Operation Iraqi Freedom, retired on March 1, 2010.
Speaking on MSNBC, Anderson stated, “Since 6 January, things have changed. Insurrection, I’ve said, ‘Now is the time to step up.’ I mean, what are we going to do? Are we going to wait until the jackboots are marching down the street, and the brown shirts come rolling out, and our kids get enrolled in Trump youth? Is that the time to start getting involved?”
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.amiracist.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1726313279401000&amp;usg=AOvVaw115_qPFFEePDP86-Fvo-Vd">Am I Racist? Is In Theaters NOW — Get Your Tickets Here!</a>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Two days since the assassination attempt on Trump, a guest on MSNBC is calling Trump a Nazi.
&quot;Now is the time to step up—what are we going to do, wait until the Jack boots are marching down the street, the brown shirts come rolling out, and our kids get enrolled in Trump youth?&quot; <a href="https://t.co/7dKqhZVMZA">pic.twitter.com/7dKqhZVMZA</a>
&mdash; Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/1836156000534987168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
In December 2021, Anderson joined retired U.S. Army Major Paul D. Eaton and retired Army Major General Antonio M. Taguba to write in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/17/eaton-taguba-anderson-generals-military/">The Washington Post</a>:
<blockquote>
As we approach the first anniversary of the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2021/jan-6-insurrection-capitol/?itid=lk_inline_manual_4">deadly insurrection</a> at the U.S. Capitol, we — all of us former senior military officials — are increasingly concerned about the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election and the potential for lethal chaos inside our military, which would put all Americans at severe risk. In short: We are chilled to our bones at the thought of a coup succeeding next time.
</blockquote>
He <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEwF0yWvOQU">stated on CNN</a> that the government should “gather intelligence” on military members whom he said belonged to “extremist groups,” saying:
<blockquote>
One of the things that we recommend in our piece is that we gather intelligence about our workforce and make sure that the people in the military are not part of extremist groups. DOD just issued some policy prohibiting active membership but allowing membership nevertheless; we believe that that’s just not going far enough. The FBI has a list of gangs, extremist groups, and I submit to you that if you’re a soldier in the United States Army, you can’t be a member of that gang or that extremist group and also be a member of the United States military. &#8230;
We need to start thinking now about what things we can do to make sure that we’re prepared for 2024, because we know that the bad guys, the Oathkeepers and the Proud Boys, they’re out there planning right now.
</blockquote>

Department of Defense Energy Security Act

2 Days After Assassination Attempt, MSNBC Guest Warns Trump’s Re-Election Will Create Nazi Society

MSNBC

Nazis

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the Democrat who led the now-defunct January 6 Committee, <a href="https://democrats-homeland.house.gov/news/legislation/ranking-member-thompson-introduces-legislation-to-ensure-no-secret-service-protection-for-convicted-felons-sentenced-to-prison#:~:text=This%20legislation%20would%20reform%20the,the%20protection%20of%20all%20inmates" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> legislation last week that could disqualify former President Donald Trump from keeping Secret Service protection.
The <a href="https://democrats-homeland.house.gov/imo/media/doc/disgraced_former_protectees_act_text.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bill</a>, which comes as Trump faces multiple criminal cases as he runs for another term in the White House, does not mention the former president by name. However, Thompson, who is the top-ranking member of the Homeland Security Committee, released a <a href="https://democrats-homeland.house.gov/imo/media/doc/disgraced_former_protectees_act_factsheet1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;fact sheet&#8221;</a> that says Trump would be affected if the proposal passes and he is convicted of a felony.
&#8220;Unfortunately, current law doesn’t anticipate how Secret Service protection would impact the felony prison sentence of a protectee — even a former President. It is regrettable that it has come to this, but this previously unthought-of scenario could become our reality,&#8221; Thompson said.
&#8220;Therefore, it is necessary for us to be prepared and update the law so the American people can be assured that protective status does not translate into special treatment — and that those who are sentenced to prison will indeed serve the time required of them,&#8221; he added.
Trump is facing dozens of felony charges in federal and state courts that stem from election matters and his handling of classified documents while out of office. He has pleaded not guilty to all counts and claims prosecutors and others are waging a &#8220;witch hunt&#8221; against him in an effort to boost his 2024 rival, President Joe Biden.
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Should Thompson&#8217;s bill get approved — a long shot considering Republicans control the House and largely back Trump — <a href="https://democrats-homeland.house.gov/imo/media/doc/disgraced_former_protectees_act_text.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">it would amend</a> a section of the U.S. Code to &#8220;terminate&#8221; Secret Service protection for &#8220;any person upon sentencing following conviction for a Federal or State offense that is punishable for a term of imprisonment of at least one year.&#8221;
The bill is called the &#8220;Denying Infinite Security and Government Resources Allocated toward Convicted and Extremely Dishonorable Former Protectees Act,&#8221; or the &#8220;DISGRACED Former Protectees Act&#8221; for short, and Thompson&#8217;s office said it several co-sponsors among fellow Democrats.
Under Thompson&#8217;s leadership, the January 6 Committee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-j6-committee-recommends-criminal-charges-against-trump-over-capitol-riot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recommended</a> the Department of Justice charge Trump over the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6, 2021. Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-trump-charges-jan-6-panel-considered-but-did-not-approve" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chastised</a> the January 6 panel as being the “Unselect Committee of political hacks.&#8221; In March, Trump said former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) and other members of the committee <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-says-liz-cheney-should-be-jailed-former-congresswoman-responds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">should be jailed</a>.

Bennie Thompson

Former January 6 Panel Chair Unveils Bill That Could Strip Trump Of Secret Service Protection

Congress

House Democrats

Secret Service

U.S. House of Representatives

Hollywood legend <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/robert-de-niro" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Robert De Niro</a> said on Friday he would &#8220;never&#8221; portray former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> as an actor as he issued a warning about the upcoming election.
The Oscar-winner talked about his red line in filming during <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AN5I9OS1VX0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">an appearance</a> on HBO&#8217;s latest episode of &#8220;Real Time&#8221; with host Bill Maher, who, like De Niro, is a vocal Trump critic.
&#8220;He’s such a mean, nasty, hateful person,&#8221; De Niro said of Trump. &#8220;I’d never play him as an actor, because I can’t see any good in him. Nothing. Nothing at all. Nothing redeemable in him.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Robert de Niro: Trump “is a total monster” and “if he wins the election, you won’t be on this show anymore, he’ll come looking for me&#8230;That’s what happens in that kind of a dictatorship.” He’s “sociopathic, psychopathic, malignant narcissist,” an “idiot” and “a clown.” <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RealTime?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RealTime</a> <a href="https://t.co/RFN2XqWQxi">pic.twitter.com/RFN2XqWQxi</a>
&mdash; Brent Baker 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@BrentHBaker) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrentHBaker/status/1766306760703225996?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 9, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
De Niro went on to make drastic predictions about what could happen to himself and Maher if Trump ends up winning a second term in the White House.
&#8220;If he wins the election, you won&#8217;t be on the show anymore,&#8221; De Niro said. &#8220;He&#8217;ll come looking for me. There&#8217;ll be things that happen that none of us can imagine. That&#8217;s what happens in that kind of a dictatorship, which is what he says.&#8221;
De Niro appeared to be referencing Trump&#8217;s pledge last year to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-rejects-threat-to-democracy-hoax-says-biden-poses-the-real-danger" target="_blank" rel="noopener">be a “dictator”</a> only on the first day of a second term in order to tackle issues such as border security and drilling for energy.
President Joe Biden has argued that U.S. democracy is at stake in the 2024 election. Both he and Trump are running for a second term, paving the way for what could be a 2020 rematch.
“Donald Trump poses many threats to the country, from the right to choose to civil rights to voting rights to America’s standing in the world. But the greatest threat Trump poses is to our democracy, because if we lose that, we lose everything,&#8221; Biden <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/12/09/remarks-by-president-biden-at-a-campaign-reception-los-angeles-ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in remarks last December.
Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-rejects-threat-to-democracy-hoax-says-biden-poses-the-real-danger" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> that Biden had it backward.
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Biden is the “real threat to democracy for two simple reasons: he’s corrupt and incompetent — grossly incompetent,” Trump said.
De Niro told Maher on Friday that he did not know why Trump is performing so well against Biden in polls, including among women and Latinos.
&#8220;I just don’t want to feel the way I did, and many of us don’t, after the election in 2016 where we couldn’t believe that it happened. The guy is a total monster,&#8221; he added.

Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro Says He Would ‘Never’ Play ‘Total Monster’ Trump

Robert De Niro Says He Would 'Never' Play 'Total Monster' Trump

Bill Maher

Celebrities

Hollywood

Robert de Niro

U.S.

Show business veteran Chris Licht took over CNN last year, vowing to bring more ideological balance to the network and reverse its <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-cant-offend-our-core-audience-cnn-ceo-chris-licht-on-why-not-a-lot-of-changes-have-been-made" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ratings slide</a>.
“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” alum canned comically biased “media reporter” Brian Stelter, among other swift moves, but the channel remains a vehicle for Left-leaning news. Commentator Van Jones’ recent CNN column suggesting the five black officers who beat Tyre Nichols so badly he later died <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/cnns-van-jones-says-tyre-nichols-death-driven-by-racism-despite-black-cops-being-charged" target="_blank" rel="noopener">were driven by racism</a> is a perfect example.
The latter part of the plan isn’t going according to schedule, either, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nobodys-watching-cnn-ratings-plunge-even-further-for-good-reason" target="_blank" rel="noopener">that’s being kind</a>.
Reports circulated that CNN wanted to bring a liberal comedian aboard to sweeten its late-night lineup, hoping the change will restore some ratings glory. Team Licht took a baby step in that direction. CNN will broadcast “Overtime,” the online-only part of HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” weekly series.
The long-running show finds Maher covering the latest headlines with a Left-leaning panel of rotating guests. Maher himself is an avowed atheist (remember his 2008 documentary “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religulous" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Religulous</a>?”) and reliably progressive. Few comedians loathe President Donald Trump quite like Maher.
Sounds like a safe, CNN-worthy selection. Not so fast.
Maher is one of the only liberal late-night hosts who routinely hits his own side. He’s started an ongoing, rhetorical war against the woke orthodoxy, slamming identity politics and extreme speech measures from his HBO bully pulpit.
The New Republic was one of several progressive outlets to clutch its pearls over Maher’s addition to the CNN lineup, no matter how modest it may be. The <a href="https://newrepublic.com/post/170277/cnn-welcomes-bill-maher-lineup" target="_blank" rel="noopener">site’s headline captures the sentiment</a> – “CNN Welcomes Bill Maher, Who Once Used a Racial Slur on Air, to Its Lineup”
Why single out a singular episode from Maher’s past? His ability to mock both sides has drawn considerable fire from the hard Left. In a way, they have a point.
It’s one thing to watch Greg Gutfeld, an openly libertarian comic, scorch woke platitudes from his Fox News perch. It’s what viewers expect, which doesn’t diminish Gutfeld’s approach to the material.
Seeing an avowed progressive do the same, however, packs a punch. 
It’s like turning on today’s biased “Saturday Night Live” and spotting a sketch skewering President Joe Biden or Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
That’s a “man bites dog story,” no doubt, worthy of attention. (It’s also something we’ll never, ever see, alas).
That approach is what Maher can bring to CNN, and it’s sorely needed. CNN viewers may get a glimpse of news narratives kept away from them by the channel’s gatekeepers. Not everyone is on board with the woke revolution, for starters.
Maher also routinely debunks progressive talking points on the pandemic, crime, and more.
Here’s just one recent example: Maher called out climate change advocates like John Kerry and Taylor Swift who, in between environmental lectures, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63KXfwC9BdU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fly private planes</a>. That’s a huge no-no given their massive carbon footprints.
No other liberal late-night comic would go near that kind of banter.
Licht suggests CNN isn’t interested in “<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/cnn-bill-maher-chris-licht-primetime-comedians/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">partisan hackery</a>,” and choosing a comedian as a brand enhancement makes sense.
“There is nothing wrong with opinion or perspective, especially in prime time, but it has to be authentic. We are completely uninterested in partisan hackery and ideological talking points,” he said.
That’s true, depending on the comedian in question. Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert, for example, epitomize comics who spout “ideological talking points.”
Not Maher.
There’s another aspect to Maher circa 2023 that’s worth noting. The comedian throws sharp elbows from his HBO perch, but he does just the opposite with “Club Random.” His weekly podcast, which allows him to drink and smoke weed along with famous guests, takes a lighter look at the culture, and Maher is keenly interested in speaking to voices on the ideological Right.
The goal isn’t another screaming match session but to see where people on both sides of the aisle can agree to disagree.
In short, Maher wants to unite Americans … even if it means agreeing to disagree with folks like Kid Rock and Dave Rubin, both Right-leaning stars.
Does CNN, which loves dousing gasoline on raging cultural fires, want a performer who reminds us we’re all American citizens despite our differences? That’s another reason the Maher addition may come back to haunt CNN. Tribalism sells, sadly, and sometimes Maher doesn’t want to push that anger.
The move is also suspect based on what Licht must do, and fast — reverse the ratings free fall. “Real Time” isn’t a ratings disaster, but it’s hardly the kind of content that guarantees a larger audience. The show routinely lags behind other late-night fare, from Fox News’ “Gutfeld!” to “The Tonight Show” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” although those shows air on free, broadcast TV.
“Real Time” does regularly trounce “Last Week Tonight,” the HBO showcase featuring a more consistently liberal viewpoint.
Adding Maher to the mix could be jarring to CNN’s dwindling base, the folks who think Don Lemon is the ultimate truth-teller. They want Trump Derangement 101, not examples where the Left has overreached in the culture wars.
That kind of content may come as a shock to longtime CNN viewers, and the modern Left doesn’t take kindly to alternative points of view.
Chances are, CNN’s Maher infusion could yield a microscopically better product while chasing away the channel’s small but hardcore fans. That means the current, sorry ratings could get even smaller before too long.
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="http://www.hollywoodintoto.com/">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News&#8217; Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://twitter.com/HollywoodInToto?lang=en">@HollywoodInToto</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

2022 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Radhika Jones – Arrivals

Bill Maher’s New ‘Overtime’ Segment On CNN May Come Back To Haunt The Network

Entertainment

Readers Pass

CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter excoriated Fox News for broadcasting an allegedly “incendiary” phrase that he said CNN would “never” repeat on the air. Unfortunately, Anderson Cooper had used that exact terminology last Thursday, and a review of network transcripts shows that CNN hosts have repeated it at least half a dozen times in precisely the way Stelter called unacceptable.
Stelter dedicated <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/rs/date/2022-01-23/segment/01">part</a> of the January 23 episode of “Reliable Sources” to reading banners Fox News had posted on the screen during the past week, including one that <a href="https://twitter.com/ReliableSources/status/1485326898498617350">read</a>, “The Biden administration is a clown car driving off a cliff.” An outraged Stelter said, “That&#8217;s the great example of the incendiary rhetoric that you would have never seen, let’s say from another channel during the Trump years or now during the Biden years.” Such language illustrates “the imagined drama that Fox presents every day” in the “Fox-uverse,” he added.
But his colleagues at CNN have used that exact phrase — and many worse ones — about former President Donald Trump, Trump administration officials, and Republican congressional leaders as recently as three days earlier:
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CNN senior media reporter <a href="https://twitter.com/oliverdarcy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@oliverdarcy</a> compares the way Fox reports crime in the US to an Instagram filter, saying the final product is distorted and &quot;no longer reflects reality.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/S9QcwZvLD2">pic.twitter.com/S9QcwZvLD2</a>
&mdash; Reliable Sources (@ReliableSources) <a href="https://twitter.com/ReliableSources/status/1485326898498617350?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 23, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Anderson Cooper (“Anderson Cooper 360” on January 20, 2022): Anderson Cooper, who replaced Chris Cuomo as CNN’s top-rated host, likened a report about the 2020 Trump campaign to a clown car last Thursday. “It&#8217;s like a clown car on fire,” Cooper <a href="https://twitter.com/kikimelendez/status/1484547274931847172">said</a> in exasperation. ‘Yeah,” agreed a giggly Pamela Brown, CNN’s senior Washington correspondent, who then <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/acd/date/2022-01-20/segment/01">apologized</a> for being unable to respond to Cooper’s next question. “Sorry, I was thinking about the clown car on fire analogy,” she explained.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
I bet the DOJ, the FBI and the CIA are still investigating DID TRUMP KNOW? 😂😂😂 Like a clown car on fire&#39;: Cooper reacts to Giuliani&#39;s fake electors plot <a href="https://t.co/AC7hPwu0qD">https://t.co/AC7hPwu0qD</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/YouTube?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@YouTube</a>
&mdash; Kiki Melendez (@kikimelendez) <a href="https://twitter.com/kikimelendez/status/1484547274931847172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
John King (“Inside Politics” on December 16, 2021): John King used the analogy to make the first year of the Trump administration seem worse than Joe Biden’s first year in office. King noted that Republicans faltered on their “central promise” to “repeal and replace Obamacare” in 2017, while Biden failed to pass the  <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/whats-in-joe-bidens-build-back-better-act">“Build Back Better” act</a> in 2021. But at least last year, “we have not had the clown car routine that that was that debate” over Obamacare, King <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/ip/date/2021-12-16/segment/01">said</a>. Still, he considered Biden’s inability to pass his signature social spending legislation as “a major failure.”
Don Lemon (“Don Lemon Tonight” on November 29, 2021): “The GOP is just a circus right now. That&#8217;s just the honest truth. It&#8217;s a clown show,” Lemon <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/cnnt/date/2021-11-29/segment/01">declared</a> last November. “The GOP is just loading up the clown car of their never-ending circus.”
Anderson Cooper (“Anderson Cooper 360” on September 16, 2021): Last fall, Anderson Cooper cited anti-Trump biographies such as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dem-congressman-blows-a-hole-in-bob-woodwards-new-book-peril">“Peril” by Bob Woodward</a> as evidence the former president became mentally unhinged in his last days in office. “I mean, we knew it was, you know, a clown car going on and possibly going off the cliff,” Cooper <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/acd/date/2021-09-16/segment/01">said</a>. “But I mean, it&#8217;s extraordinary to see this reporting &#8230; Woodward and Costa also report on the former President&#8217;s mental faculties.” Cooper use the exact analogy which Stelter condemned Fox News for making. Stelter did not condemn Anderson Cooper for “exaggerating” or “inventing” concerns about President Trump’s mental health, a frequent topic of CNN speculation since 2015.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (“Don Lemon Tonight” on July 19, 2021): Not every use of this “incendiary” phrase came from one of CNN’s anchors, but it sometimes came with their approval. During an interview with Don Lemon about the congressional committee investigating the January 6 riot, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1417540387552563203">said</a>, “I think Kevin McCarthy has decided his role as the minority leader in the House of Representative is to essentially be chauffeur of the clown car.” Not only did Lemon <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/cnnt/date/2021-07-19/segment/01">not push back</a>, but Brianna Keilar decided to <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/nday/date/2021-07-20/segment/02">reair</a> that soundbite on CNN’s “New Day” the next morning.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/RepAOC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepAOC</a> on GOP Jan. 6 committee picks: &quot;Kevin McCarthy has decided that his role as a minority leader in the House of Representatives is to essentially be chauffeur of the clown car.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/FD0xnPT6xS">https://t.co/FD0xnPT6xS</a> <a href="https://t.co/z9XcHb5G4g">pic.twitter.com/z9XcHb5G4g</a>
&mdash; The Hill (@thehill) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehill/status/1417540387552563203?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Van Jones (“The Van Jones Show” on November 10, 2018): Former Obama administration <a href="https://therightswriter.com/2010/12/more-stealth-reparations-obama-enacts-van-jones-indian-energy-plan/">Green Jobs</a> Czar <a href="https://therightswriter.com/2009/09/conspiracy-czar/">Van Jones</a> opened <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/vjs/date/2018-11-10/segment/01">a 2018 episode</a> of his eponymous CNN show by applying the “incendiary” phrase to Donald Trump. “We had an insane clown car of a presidential press conference, after which Trump just up and fired Jeff Sessions,” Jones told CNN’s viewers. “Now, that&#8217;s a decision that could derail Bob Mueller&#8217;s Russia investigation, which could lead to a full-blown constitutional crisis.” In reality, the Mueller report would <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/adam-schiff-biggest-problem-with-mueller-report-was-it-wasnt-brought-to-life-through-public-hearings">conclude</a> that its “investigation did not establish that members of the Trump Campaign conspired or coordinated with the Russian government.”
Brianna Keilar (“Wolf” on July 19, 2017): While guest-hosting Wolf Blitzer’s afternoon show in the early days of the Trump presidency, Brianna Keilar used a familiar phrase while discussing the Trump campaign’s alleged ties to Russia with CNN chief political correspondent Dana Bash. “Dana, when you look at Republicans on Capitol Hill, how are they reacting to what – it&#8217;s almost like a clown car, right?” Keilar <a href="https://transcripts.cnn.com/show/wolf/date/2017-07-19/segment/02">asked</a> Bash, who did not rebuke her colleague’s choice of words.
Of course, “clown car” is far from the most offensive or polarizing phrase uttered on CNN. The Lincoln Project’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/08/us/politics/lincoln-project-weaver.html">co-founder</a> Rick Wilson called then-candidate Donald Trump a “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb9noJXJXdE">douche canoe</a>” who lacks “gravitas” in 2015, while anchor Jim Acosta has earned CNN a reputation as a home of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/can-partisanship-and-profanity-save-cnn-from-its-ratings-collapse">rampant profanity</a> for <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/jim-acosta-i-hate-to-use-the-word-bullst-here-are-8-times-hes-used-it-since-may">repeatedly using the phrase “bulls**t”</a> on the air.
Stelter’s comments came during a segment in which Washington Post columnist Catherine Rampell <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/cnn-guest-fox-news-invented-scary-stories-about-a-senile-president-and-crt-brainwashing-kids">insisted</a> that stories about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trafficked-how-joe-bidens-open-border-policies-have-fueled-americas-fentanyl-epidemic">illegal immigration</a>, Joe <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-looks-like-hes-always-waking-up-from-heavy-anesthesia-foreign-media-sounds-off-on-presidents-cognitive-decline">Biden’s mental fitness</a>, and public schools <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-are-5-ways-the-media-is-trying-to-mislead-you-on-critical-race-theory">teaching</a> ideologically polarizing concepts like <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/what-is-critical-race-theory-breaking-down-the-ideology-thats-hitting-schools-across-the-country">Critical Race Theory</a> had been “exaggerated” or “invented out of whole cloth” by Fox News and others.
This is not the first time Brian Stelter has condemned other media outlets for sins committed by his own network. Last September, Stelter bashed other news outlets for spreading a “faulty media narrative” about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/hype-and-spin-counting-down-the-top-5-non-stories-of-2021">Border Patrol agents allegedly whipping Haitians</a> attempting to enter the United States illegally in Del Rio, Texas — an error CNN network had repeatedly reported for much of <a href="//AEA918A0-AD6A-4846-9325-7DC9929314A1/about%20the%20congressional%20committee%20investigating%20the%20January%206%20riot">the previous week</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

The 15th Annual CNN Heroes: All-Star Tribute

Brian Stelter Claims CNN Would ‘Never’ Air An ‘Incendiary’ Phrase That Anderson Cooper Used Thursday

Brian Stelter

Media Bias

Reliable Sources

Trump derangement is a crippling mental disorder. It turns otherwise capable minds into Munchausen fabulators, so detached from reality that it’s hard to know what world they think they’re in. It leads to accusations like this: “[Trump was] AWOL during the country’s greatest health crisis in a century.” 
You can say many things about Donald Trump, and many negative things if you wish, but to call a man AWOL who declared a national health emergency the day after the World Health Organization did the same, banned travel from China, which was the viral source, immediately thereafter, withstood Democrat attacks calling him a racist, a xenophobe and hysteric for this life-saving move; to call a man who supplied record numbers of ventilators, masks and other health paraphernalia that the Obama-Biden White House had depleted and never replaced, who held daily public briefings on the virus with the heads of the CDC, and who performed a political miracle in getting vaccines approved and distributed in record time — to call this man AWOL during the pandemic is tantamount to calling the earth flat and the sky purple.
Yet ignoring Trump’s alleged absence during the pandemic, while joining his “cult,” is exactly the accusation leveled at me in a New Republic cover story by Ron Radosh and Sol Stern, who have called their attack, “Our Friend the Trump Propagandist.” 
In their article, I am accused of writing three mindless books about Trump as I marched into the MAGA cult. Actually, I wrote two books — both of which were NY Times best sellers and neither of which the authors seem to have read. If they had, they would certainly have engaged a specific argument or two in order to make their accusation credible. How exactly is what I have written propaganda and not analysis? Instead, they are appalled by my failure to embrace the Democrat lie that Trump was AWOL during the coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, they are oblivious as to their own hypocrisy in giving the anti-Trump president, Joe Biden, a pass for blowing up the border in his first week in office, and allowing an estimated 100,000 coronavirus carriers to flood the country this year and infect his fellow Americans. Pompous self-righteousness based on non-existent “facts” is unfortunately what one has come to expect from the left. 
The third and newest book of mine referred to is <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Enemy-Within-Totalitarian-Movement-Destroying/dp/1684510546">The Enemy Within: How A Totalitarian Movement Is Destroying America</a>, which is not really about Trump. It’s about the Democrat Party and the totalitarian movement that has swallowed it and made it a threat to our country. Trump is a figure in only three of the twelve chapters: as a voice for law and order during the Black Lives Matter insurrections, and as a target of the Democrat hate attempting to blame him for every death resulting from the virus. He also appears in a brief “Coda” to the book that deals with the 2020 election and the January 6 attempt to stiffen the spines of what Trump called “weak Republicans” so they would challenge the result. Democrat fantasists have condemned this protest as an act of treason, of which anyone who questions the election result is also guilty. 
And that is my crime, according to Radosh and Stern: “We were once political comrades. But by lying about the election, our old friend has become a danger to American democracy.” In fact, if either of them had read The Enemy Within, they would have seen that my book and political agenda are quite the opposite: a systematic defense of America’s constitutional framework against the attacks on its principles and institutions by their political friends.
The accusation that dissent is dangerous and must be suppressed mimics the fascist voice of the Democrat Party in its campaign to criminalize anyone who questions the 2020 election. Calling the break-in to the Capitol “an armed insurrection,” when there were no arms and no insurrections, ordering 25,000 troops to the Capitol to deal with a non-existent threat, calling Republicans “enemies of the state” (Pelosi), authorizing witch-hunts of (right wing) “extremists” in the military, the Capitol police and the Department of Homeland Security, seeking the expulsion of Senators Hawley and Cruz and the impeachment of the president for questioning the legitimacy of the electors are of a piece with Radosh and Stern’s malicious charge against me. The aim is to criminalize dissent and make it a high crime in the process.
The reality of course is that Democrats themselves have challenged the legitimacy of every Republican presidential victory this century, including the election of Trump, which they have never accepted. Their “resistance” has caused great damage to the republic, which they prefer not to notice.
Buoyed by their accusation that — along with 75 million other Americans — I am a Trump sycophant supporting a man whom no one in his right mind, and certainly no one who cared about American democracy could stomach, Radosh and Stern proceed to create a caricature of me as a right-wing bully and ideological bigot.  According to them, I used to invite people who disagreed with me to my events but in my Trump-inspired “drift away from heterodoxy toward party-line orthodoxy,” I stopped the practice. As it happens at the last event I hosted before the pandemic, my keynote banquet speaker was Alan Dershowitz, a lifelong Democrat who voted for Hillary Clinton and against Trump. During the question period, one of my board members attacked him passionately from the audience for his pro-choice position on abortion. I immediately, went to Dershowitz’s side, put my arm around him and scolded my board member reminding her that Alan was a guest. I did this, even though I disagree with him on the abortion issue.
Typical of leftists who have no self-awareness, Radosh and Stern accuse me of being belligerent and aggressive, as though Trump and I invented this political style; as though it is conservatives like us who have declared war on Democrats and not the other way around. This requires a political amnesia that is truly impressive. The left was calling the mild George Bush “Hitler” when Trump was still a resort builder, and accusing him of treason. They accused him of lying America into war in Iraq, which is treason, when it was impossible for him to do so since the Democrats — who authorized the war — sat on the Intel committees and had the same access to intelligence about weapons of mass destruction as the White House did.
I am further held guilty of taking the “Mike Tyson approach to American politics” with the implication that I and like-minded conservatives are responsible for the nastiness that has infected political discourse. “In his 2017 book, Big Agenda, he proposed that Republicans take lessons in electoral strategy from the ex-heavyweight champ, who had famously observed that ‘everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.’ In order to win the struggle for America’s future, Horowitz declared, conservatives ‘must begin every confrontation by punching progressives in the mouth.’”
Here’s the crucial part of the equation their account leaves out: Like Trump’s political style, mine is reactive. We are counter-punchers. When we go on offense, it is virtually without exception a counter-attack. I have written three books on political strategy, the first published in 1999, long before Trump. There are many facets to a successful political strategy. One of my chapters is called “Compassion is a Virtue,” another: “Go for the Heart.” Radosh and Stern ignore these complications. The point of my Tyson quote was that Democrats have many punches in the mouth for Republicans, and they use them all the time, while Republicans have virtually none with which to respond. 
Democrats call Republicans “racists,” “sexists,” “homophobes,” “enemies of the state,” “insurrectionists,” “white supremacists,” “terrorists” and “extremists.” What do Republicans call Democrats? “Liberals”(!), and more recently, “Radical Liberals.” This is obviously a losing battle for Republicans. So, for more than twenty years, I have advised Republicans to call Democrats what they are: “racists” “oppressors of blacks and other inner-city minorities,” and — more recently — “fascists.” This is not advice I gave because of Donald Trump. It is the reason I am a supporter of Donald Trump. Because he fights back.
One would think that two writers who have admired my work in the past would want to read the books I have written specifically about Trump, and assess my responses to the accusations that have been made against him and his achievements. Instead Radosh and Stern ignore — and probably haven’t read — any of the arguments I have made in Trump’s defense. Worse, they have constructed a caricature of my present views and activities and — far worse — have advised federal authorities to de-platform me and suppress the very ideas they failed to examine. 
Before addressing this assault, let me interject something about “old friends.” I met Ron Radosh at a Communist youth club meeting when he was 14 and I was 12. We were friends for 67 years, and went through the political wars, which he and Stern now disparage, together. We remained friends and political allies through our transition from the anti-American left to the conservative right, until our differences over Trump’s election created a wedge between us as Radosh returned to the left. We struggled over the next years to salvage our friendship which we did not want to sacrifice to our political differences. This is a struggle shared by family members and friends across the country who have been put at odds by the political schisms of these difficult times. Some months ago, I thought Ron and I had finally reached a point of agreement and resolve — to avoid personal attacks, emotional language and attempts to persuade the other to change his views. I now see I was wrong.
I’m on Ron’s Facebook and Twitter lists so I usually get his posts; but a couple of months ago his feeds went silent. I began to worry that something might have happened to him. Ron is 84 years old, two years ahead of me. I began to worry whether he was ill. So I emailed him: “Haven’t seen a post by you in a while. Are you ok?” He emailed me back the same day, March 18: “No time for Facebook or Twitter right now. I&#8217;m fine.”
In fact, he had no time to post because he was busy slipping a knife between my ribs, attacking my character and even my income, misrepresenting who I am, and calling for a campaign to pressure the I.R.S. into investigating my Freedom Center with the goal of stopping me from expressing my political opinions. It was important to silence me because I am an alleged threat to American democracy. 
“One of the laugh lines in The Enemy Within is the outrage Horowitz directs against what he calls the liberal ‘tax-exempt advocacy culture,’ in which he includes the Southern Poverty Law Center … Talk about the pot calling the kettle black.” Some laugh line. The Southern Poverty Law Center is a notorious blacklist site that conflates neo-Nazis with conservatives like Dr. Ben Carson. It posts lists of “The Ten Most Dangerous Hate Mongers” and is so dishonest and corrupt that its scams have been exposed by liberal sites like Tablet Magazine and even far left ones like The Nation. Its mistreatment of black and female staff members became so scandalous recently that its founder Morris Dees had to leave in disgrace. I am on their hate list and was actually defended in 2018 by Radosh himself, when I was slandered by a group of leftists using SPLC misinformation. The creator of the SPLC lists, Mark Potok, is on record admitting that his goal is to “destroy” conservatives. I have written over a million easily available words that refute every slander Potok has made against me, yet the leftist media continues to cite them as “facts.”
This hypocritical assault on my “laugh line,” however revealing, is a sideshow. The real agenda of Radosh and Stern is to mobilize the IRS to investigate me and deprive me of the resources to criticize and oppose the tyranny descending on us from Washington. Like a pair of commissar wannabes they issue a call to war: “Our old friend must be defeated on every political front on which he operates, a counter-offensive that should begin by investigating and exposing the Horowitz Center’s fundraising scams and the potential abuse of its tax-exempt status.”
Blacklists and appeals to law enforcement to cripple and suppress a political opponent are the characteristics of a totalitarian mentality. So is erasing lifetime personal friendships over political differences. 
In democracies we resolve our disputes by arguments and elections. As it happens, like every effective conservative I am familiar with the harassments of the IRS, which was turned into a political weapon by the Obama administration. To defend ourselves against its attacks, my Freedom Center has assembled a team of top-tier tax lawyers, whom we consult often and listen to carefully. This keeps us honest, and protected. As it happens, we are not scammers, and have not abused our tax-exempt status. As it happens (and should be obvious) Radosh and Stern are not my friends, and I am left wondering if they ever were.
A version of this opinion piece appeared in <a href="https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2021/05/my-former-friends-have-joined-fascists-david-horowitz/">Frontline Mag</a>.
David Horowitz is founder of the <a href="https://www.horowitzfreedomcenter.org/">David Horowitz Freedom Center</a> (formerly the Center for the Study of Popular Culture) and author of many books and pamphlets published over the last twenty years. You can purchase his newest book, The Enemy Within: How A Totalitarian Movement Is Destroying America, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Enemy-Within-Totalitarian-Movement-Destroying/dp/1684510546">here.</a> His other works include: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hating-Whitey-Other-Progressive-Causes/dp/1441767150">Hating Whitey</a>; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Unholy-Alliance-Radical-Islam-American/dp/B0073MJRS4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&amp;keywords=david+horowitz+unholy+alliance&amp;qid=1620167751&amp;s=books&amp;sr=1-1">Unholy Alliance: Radical Islam and the American Left</a>; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Professors-Most-Dangerous-Academics-America/dp/1596985259/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&amp;keywords=david+horowitz+The+Professors%3A+The+101+Most+Dangerous+Academics+in+America%3B&amp;qid=1620167769&amp;s=audible&amp;sr=1-1">The Professors: The 101 Most Dangerous Academics in America;</a> and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/End-Time-David-Horowitz/dp/1594030804/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&amp;keywords=david+horowitz+The+End+of+Time&amp;qid=1620167785&amp;s=audible&amp;sr=1-1-catcorr">The End of Time</a>.
The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Sens. Sanders, Murray, And Reps. Ellison And Scott Introduce Minimum Wage Legislation

My Former Friends Have Joined the Fascists

Fascism

On Friday, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2021-02-05/trumpite-neighbor-unity-capitol-attack">noted</a> that her Trump-loving neighbors had done her a favor and “plowed our driveway without being asked and did a great job,” but then compared them to Nazi supporters and Hezbollah terrorists, snapping, “My neighbors supported a man who showed near-murderous contempt for the majority of Americans. They kept him in business with their support,” before pontificating, “I also can’t give my neighbors absolution; it’s not mine to give.”
Former Fox News anchor and current podcast host Megyn Kelly fired back with some advice for the kindly neighbors: “This woman compares her Trump-supporting neighbors, who plowed her driveway, to Nazi sympathizers &amp; Hezbollah &amp; wrestles w/whether to show them any kindness since she ‘can’t give them absolution.’ Note to Virginia Heffernen’s neighbors: don’t plow again.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This woman compares her Trump-supporting neighbors, who plowed her driveway, to Nazi sympathizers &amp; Hezbollah &amp; wrestles w/whether to show them any kindness since she “can’t give them absolution.” Note to Virginia Heffernen’s neighbors: don’t plow again. <a href="https://t.co/ZZCnPfI46S">https://t.co/ZZCnPfI46S</a>
&mdash; Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) <a href="https://twitter.com/megynkelly/status/1358506645974835205?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Heffernan began her diatribe by explaining, “Oh, heck no. The Trumpites next door to our pandemic getaway, who seem as devoted to the ex-president as you can get without being Q fans, just plowed our driveway without being asked and did a great job. How am I going to resist demands for unity in the face of this act of aggressive niceness?”
She even acknowledged this was no ordinary snow-shoveling: “Of course, on some level, I realize I owe them thanks — and, man, it really looks like the guy back-dragged the driveway like a pro — but how much thanks?”
After quoting actor Eddie Murphy from an old “Saturday Night Live” saying, “Slowly I began to realize that when white people are alone, they give things to each other. For free,” Heffernan segued to likening the neighbors to the terrorist group Hezbollah: “Hezbollah, the Shiite Islamist political party in Lebanon, also gives things away for free.  … like other mafias, Hezbollah tends to its own — the Shiite sick, elderly and hungry. They offer protection and hospitality and win loyalty that way. And they also demand devotion to their brutal, us-versus-them anti-Sunni cause. Some of us are family, the favors say; the rest are infidels.”
Another comparison, this time to the racist, anti-Semitic preacher Louis Farrakhan: “While the Southern Poverty Law Center classifies him as a dangerous anti-Semite, much of his flock says he’s just a little screwy and unfailingly magnanimous. To them.”
Positing, “When someone helps you when you’re down, or snowed in, it’s almost impossible to regard them as a blight on the world. In fact, you’re more likely to be overwhelmed with gratitude and convinced of the person’s inherent goodness,” Heffernan recounted staying with a French family that said approvingly of World War II Nazis during the occupation of France, “We were happy because the Nazis were very polis (polite).”
Heffernan continued, “What do we do about the Trumpites around us?  … Americans are expected to forgive and forget before we’ve even stitched up our wounds.”
She concluded, “I also can’t give my neighbors absolution; it’s not mine to give. Free driveway work, as nice as it is, is just not the same currency as justice and truth. To pretend it is would be to lie, and they probably aren’t looking for absolution anyway. But I can offer a standing invitation to make amends. Not with a snowplow but by recognizing the truth about the Trump administration and, more important, by working for justice for all those whom the administration harmed. Only when we work shoulder to shoulder to repair the damage of the last four years will we even begin to dig out of this storm.”

Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit 2018 – Day 2

Trump Supporters Plow Neighbor’s Driveway For Her. She Likens Them To Nazis, Terrorists. Megyn Kelly Tells Neighbors What To Do.

Megyn Kelly

Snow

Prompted by a tweet from someone positing that President Trump has used the controversy over utilizing hydroxychloroquine to fight the coronavirus in order to cover something else up, one author who is a frequent MSNBC contributor and committed Trump-hater took the vitriol to a new nadir, tweeting that the “Trump crime cult wanted people to die, and they want many more people to die.”
Author and MSNBC contributor Sarah Kendzior, who frequently appears on MSNBC’s AM Joy, as <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/msnbc-guest-republicans-want-one-party-state-that-trump-will-rule-as-an-autocrat/">Mediaite</a> has noted, added, “They usually have two goals: 1) short term scam profits 2) longer term disaster capitalist destruction. Basically they&#8217;ll make a little money on the side while committing mass murder.&#8221;
Kenzior was prompted by a tweet arguing, “I wonder if the whole hydroxychloroquine dust-up isn&#8217;t another red herring. Trump is a master at manipulating the direction of the conversation. Every time he wants to cover something up, he draws attention to something else. He is pulling a LOT of attention to a generic drug.”
She responded:
<blockquote>Trump&#8217;s trying to convince people that he wants it cured and that, should a cure appear, it would be accessible to all. So the media focus on the proposed drug instead of the cold reality &#8212; which is that the Trump crime cult wanted people to die, and they want many more to die … They usually have two goals: 1) short term scam profits 2) longer term disaster capitalist destruction. Basically they&#8217;ll make a little money on the side while committing mass murder.</blockquote>
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Trump&#39;s trying to convince people that he wants it cured and that, should a cure appear, it would be accessible to all. So the media focus on the proposed drug instead of the cold reality &#8212; which is that the Trump crime cult wanted people to die, and they want many more to die.
&mdash; Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) <a href="https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior/status/1247260550830137344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2020</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
They usually have two goals: 1) short term scam profits 2) longer term disaster capitalist destruction. Basically they&#39;ll make a little money on the side while committing mass murder.
&mdash; Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) <a href="https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior/status/1247271815765950466?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2020</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/msnbc-guest-loses-it-over-massive-national-security-risk-in-wh-indict-jared-kushner-indict-ivanka-trump/">Mediaite</a> reported, in March 2019, Kendzior frenziedly stated on “AM Joy” that Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump should be indicted, ranting,
<blockquote>Basically, Trump has been grooming those two for a dynastic kleptocracy. This is very common. This is something you see in autocracies, this is something you see in mafia states, where the leader will put his children or relatives into office in order to keep the corruption going, keep the money flowing, not get caught, override prosecution …
This is like the 12th time I’ve been on your show talking about Jared Kushner, and the fact that he lied on his clearance forms, that he’s done illicit dealings, that he’s giving away state secrets and that he’s a massive national security risk. And so is Ivanka Trump. The only way that we would be able to finally stop having this conversation on national TV is if he is indicted! That is is what needs to be done. Because this problem is enormous. It’s going to persevere.
Even if he is gone, he is carrying around this information, other people are carrying around classified information. They do not have loyalty to the country. They have debt. They have financial interests. They have personal interests … This problem needs to be handled now. Just indict Jared Kushner! Indict Ivanka Trump and get this crime family out of the White House!</blockquote>
In May 2019, Kendzior <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/tv/msnbc-guest-republicans-want-one-party-state-that-trump-will-rule-as-an-autocrat/">stated</a> on “AM Joy,” “What we have seen on the GOP end is total obstructionism that is aimed at making American citizens weaker, making them less likely to fight back.. They want a one-party state, that is what the GOP seeks, and Trump wants to be an autocrat with that state behind him … They are just not interested in the actual process of governing. They are interested in ruling.”
<a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/142977/new-paranoia-trump-election-turns-democrats-conspiracy-theorists">The New Republic</a> stated of Kendzior in an article titled, &#8220;The New Paranoia&#8221; in 2017:
<blockquote>For Kendzior, virtually every action taken by the Trump administration is evidence that we’re in the early throes of an authoritarian takeover. She has compared Trump to Saparmurat Niyazov, the deceased dictator of Turkmenistan, who renamed months of the year after himself and his family members, instituted a new alphabet, banished dogs from the capital, and outlawed lip-synching. She has suggested that Trump hopes to team up with Vladimir Putin to launch a nuclear war against “as-yet unknown shared enemies.&#8221;</blockquote>

Late Night with Seth Meyers – Season 5

Trump Derangement Syndrome On Steroids: MSNBC Contributor: ‘Trump Crime Cult Wanted People to Die’

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