For reporting that is an embarrassment to the profession
of journalism, and for being beholden to corporate paymasters rather than
the citizens of America.
The beauty of being on right-wing talk radio is that you don't have to be
right, you just have to be loud. One of the more uninformed of this class
is Glenn Beck.
But on his December 9 radio program, Beck outdid even himself, but what
makes this fun is how Beck got intellectually beaten up -- by Joe the Plumber.
Beck and Mr. Plumber were discussing the finer parts of Hillary Clinton
and the Constitutional issues as to whether she could become Secretary of
State.
Here's the intellectual
portion of the conversation -- from Joe the Plumber:
Hillary Clinton, the whole deal with her as far as becoming Secretary of
State. You know, it's kind of against -- well, it's not kind of. It's against
the Constitution right now where it stands. But they're talking about getting
around it.
Good points. Joe the Plumber even goes on to express concern that getting
around the rules isn't the way to go. But the fun kicks in when Beck
replies to Joe's rant.
Well, I think you are right on the money. I will tell you this in talking
to one of my guys who's deep in the Constitution, he's saying that she can't
have two offices. That's the problem. She can't occupy the two offices and
then two different branches, but it's kind of iffy on that. It's not really
clear. And if she gets rid of her office, then it should be fine. But she
couldn't be a senator and Secretary of State. That's the real problem there.
Hey, Glenn: "one of my guys" doesn't know what he is talking about.
And neither do you. Nobody, and we mean nobody, thinks Clinton, or anyone
else would do both jobs at the same time. Being a U.S. Senator is a lot of
work, and being Secretary of State is a huge amount of work.
And the whole idea that "it's kind of iffy on that." Are you now
saying Clinton might legally occupy both posts as you are saying that she
couldn't be both? And what does this have to do with the subject being talked
about in the United States on the planet Earth?
As Keith Olbermann
succinctly put it, "You are less well-informed than
Joe the Plumber."
Usually, when the rabid right-winger rants, an argument is presented with
lies and misleading statements. Here we have an argument that is a lie, a
fiction no one ever thought to create. And Beck doesn't even have the guts
to say this from his own heart: he hides behind referring to "one of
my guys who's deep in the Constitution."
To be fair, this is probably why right-wing talk shows such as Beck do get
the Republican talking points. Because when they come up with their own talking
points, they screw them up. If someone else does not write them down for
Beck, there is this chance Beck will go off and come up with tangents
such as this.
Beck's only current outlet for his madness is his radio show. After he announced
he would jump to FOX "News" Channel in the spring, CNN dumped him
unceremoniously. And he gave up a prime-time slot on CNN Headline News for
a less-than-ideal 5 p.m. Eastern slot, guaranteeing him less visibility for
his ignorant, right-wing hate rambling.
So perhaps his judgment is slipping, a bad sign since his judgment is measured
on statements such as when
he said in 2005 on his radio program that he wanted
to kill Michael Moore.
But in the true spirit of right-wing radio, Beck is getting very rich. In
the extension of his radio contract about a year ago, it was reported that
Premiere Radio Networks was paying Beck $50 million over a five-year contract.
You would think for $50 million that Beck could buy a newspaper subscription
or two.
And to receive that money, Beck doesn't have to be right or logical or even
make sense. Glenn Beck, it's been far too long so we have to reward you with
the honor you deserve, Media PUTZ of the Week.
Glenn Beck previously won the Media PUTZ of the week on October 25, 2007.
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