Ingraham's Criticism of Liberal Elite Upsets ABC's The View Crew (Transcript)

MRC ^ | Monday November 10, 2003 | BrentBaker

[fight_truth_decay]

MRC analyst Jessica Anderson took down Ingraham's session on the November 4 The View.

Star Jones: "Now, first of all, the title of the book is 'Shut Up and Sing.' Now, it's an explanation of how the 'elites' -- which I can't stand that word -- from Hollywood, Washington and the United Nations are subverting America. What exactly do you mean, Laura?"

Ingraham: "We're supposed to have government of the people, by the people and for the people, and there are elites in this country who are Republicans and Democrats -- Hollywood just comprises one small section of that. The point is, on issues from illegal immigration to gun rights–"

Jones: "You got a governor into the governor's mansion."

Ingraham: "Let me finish. Illegal immigration to gun rights to patriotism to support for the military. A lot of people in the Heartland feel like the elites and groups from Hollywood and politics and the UN and universities aren't really listening to their concerns, and most of them don't much really care about them."

Joy Behar: "Wait a second. Does the Heartland encompass Staten Island?"

Ingraham: "No, no."

Behar: "Just checking."

Ingraham: "The point is, the country really is comprised of people who generally think we have good intentions. Our country tries to do the best. We're fallible, we make mistakes, but there's an increasing group in this country, I think, that's sort of tired of the voters. The voters are pesky."

Jones: "You've been interviewing people in the Heartland?"

Ingraham: "Oh, I actually have a show every night where I talk to, you know, hundreds of thousands of people across the country."

Jones: "Alright, but I'm curious."

Ingraham: "And they are saying time and time again that when, for instance, Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders says we deserved to get 'blanking' bombed, I hope the Muslims win, and when someone like Madonna says–"

Behar: "Wait a second. Just call her an idiot."

Rachel Campos: "Star, I live there and she's absolutely right."

Ingraham: "They don't feel like, and let's go to the Democratic Party–"

Behar: "Laura, why can't you just say that she's an idiot? Why do you have to make these generalizations about liberals?"

Ingraham: "Because it's not just coming from me. People like Zell Miller, who's about to retire as a proud Democrat in the U.S. Senate, says – and very convincingly – that the Democratic Party is not connecting with the people who are its logical constituents, from the South and from the Heartland."

Walters: "Excuse me, neither is the Republican Party, at this point, necessarily connecting."

Ingraham: "I'm not sure that's right. George Bush is still pretty popular, Barbara."

Behar: "He's not the whole Republican Party."

Walters: "Yes, he is, but there are questions also about how they're handling things, but you talk about Hollywood. You criticize Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins -- as a matter of fact, who live in New York, they don't live in Hollywood."

Ingraham: "Right."

Walters: "And Sean Penn, giving their views on the war in Iraq. We have presidential candidates who are giving their views on the war in Iraq and you don't criticize Republican movie stars for giving their views, so why can't–"

Behar: "She agrees with them."

Walters: "Because you agree. Free speech! That's part of the American dream."

[Audience cheers and applauds]

Ingraham: "We're all citizens. Everyone has the right to speak out, of course, but the point of the matter, as it would be ridiculous for me to lecture Bruce Springsteen on the chord progression in 'The Rising' or lecture Susan Sarandon about her terrific acting -- I'm a huge fan of hers -- it's similarly silly for them to talk about international policy, foreign policy."

Behar: "Why?"

Meredith Vieira: "As an American citizen, they have a right to do that."

Ingraham: "No, of course they have a right to speak out, but the point is it goes to a question of credibility. When Sean Penn is given an hour on Larry King Live to talk about his fact-finding mission in Iraq, that might be interesting TV, but the people are sitting out there going 'huh?'"

Walters: "But Larry King also talks to Hollywood people who he gives time to talk about that they're against gun control. Not everybody–"

Ingraham: "But the point is most Americans, I think, would rather watch a continuous loop of Yentl than hear Barbra Streisand talk about politics. I think that's true."

[Audience applauds]

Campos, applauding: "I do, too."

Behar: "Why are you against Barbra Streisand? She's a very, very patriotic American."

Ingraham, pointing at the audience: "A lot of Yentl fans out here."

Behar: "Wait a second. Barbra Streisand is a very patriotic American."

Ingraham: "I'm sure she is."

Behar: "All she does is speak from her heart about American values. Why do you have to go after Barbra Streisand?"

Ingraham: "It's not about Barbra Streisand. During impeachment and all the Clinton scandals–"

Jones: "That nasty comment was about Barbra Streisand, okay? It was about Barbra."

Ingraham: "Did you hear Mel Gibson or Kelsey Grammer or Kevin Costner go on cable television and slam Bill Clinton time and time again during 1998, 1999?"

Campos: "No."

Behar: "But every comedian did! Oh, please! I have boxes of jokes about Clinton -- please!"

Ingraham: "No, but they weren't going on giving their political views."

Behar: "Oh, please!"

Walters: "Laura, is it just that anybody who has a liberal point of view?"

Ingraham: "No."

Walters: "Wait a second, let me finish. Whether it is someone in the United Nations or any actor or anyone who has a strong, liberal point of view is, therefore, to you elite and unpatriotic?"

Ingraham: "No."

Campos: "Can I come to her defense?"

Walters: "She does okay."

Campos: "Well, I live in the Heartland that she's talking about and I think she's actually right. I have said this the last time I came on here. People in the middle of the country do not think, act or vote like people on the coasts, especially New York and specifically L.A. and San Francisco. And this is what she's talking about, this flyover zone."

Behar: "Then how did Bill Clinton win twice?"

Campos: "Because he appeals only to people in Manhattan. People in Arkansas don't vote for him."

Behar: "Oh, well, Manhattan is not the country -- excuse me!"

Jones: "Excuse me?"

Ingraham: "Bill Clinton was actually very smart. Bill Clinton also did Sister Souljah. Bill Clinton campaigned as a real moderate, he carried the Bible in and out of church -- people liked that about him."

Jones: "Wait, we got a lot of people in Manhattan, but they can't elect a President, okay? So what are you talking about? That don't make sense!"

Ingraham: "Barbara, let me answer your question about the liberals because that's wrong."

Walters: "I'm from the Heartland, too, and I agree with you that, you know, that you may hear -- but there are people in the Heartland who don't get upset if someone doesn't speak their point of view."

Ingraham: "Sure, but Barbara–"

Behar: "Whose children, wait a minute, there are people in the Heartland whose boys are going to this war who disagree with it."

Ingraham: "In the book, in 'Shut Up and Sing' I point out that George Bush has elitist tendencies, a lot of them, and one of them is on illegal immigration. Seventy percent of the country wants our borders enforced. Why aren't the politicians doing anything about it? Why aren't more Enron people put in jail? Those are two elite tendencies of the Republican Party."

[Audience applauds.]

Behar: "Now you're talking sense!"

Campos: "Because the Heartland is about common sense. Because the Heartland cares about common sense."

Behar: "And people in New York don't?"

Ingraham: "This is an elite echo chamber, this is an elite echo chamber. People in this audience make this country great – not celebrity elites, not UN elites, not European elites and not business elites. They don't make the country great. The people who work every day do."...

[weegee]

Tag team hen pecking. The Shrew has nothing that the old Politically (in)Correct didn't have...

Walters: "And Sean Penn, giving their views on the war in Iraq. We have presidential candidates who are giving their views on the war in Iraq and you don't criticize Republican movie stars for giving their views, so why can't–"

Behar: "She agrees with them."

Walters: "Because you agree. Free speech! That's part of the American dream."

There have been far more Hollywood libs vocal about politics than conservatives. Scratch deeper on some of these Hollywood "conservatives" and you'll find that many of them are financially conservative and socially liberal.

[weegee]

Ingraham: "Did you hear Mel Gibson or Kelsey Grammer or Kevin Costner go on cable television and slam Bill Clinton time and time again during 1998, 1999?"

Campos: "No."

Behar: "But every comedian did! Oh, please! I have boxes of jokes about Clinton -- please!"

And to counter this charge I present the statement from Alec Baldwin telling the crowd that they should go and stone Henry Hyde and his family to death for their role in the impeachment hearings. These rabel rousers will get the Civil War 2 that they have been beating the drums for. How will they atone for the bloody battles here in America? They preach sedition and overthrow of the government. Lock up the lot of them.

[BibChr]

1. Ingraham was ganged up on; but still...

2. Ingraham performed weakly.

Dan

[CaptainK]

You left out the part where Joy Bray-har asked Laura why all the conservative spokeswomen are blondes and maybe all that peroxide was effecting their thinking.

I guess Barbara Walters is a natural blonde.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

Last week, FOX let Barbara Walters come on every show she asked to be on to propagandize her Martha Stewart interview.

A fellow elitist whom she is defending and talking up like she did with Hitlery. All she does is designed to kiss elitist liberal asses. She is the head of the NYC ass kissing brigade.

And people like Hannity showed her way too much respect and let her get away with way too much BS.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

Jones: " I am one of those elites and I hate your F'in guts."

[weegee]

Behar: "Wait a second. Barbra Streisand is a very patriotic American."

Care to defend that statement with some examples of her "patriotism"? It's one thing to say that claims that she is antiAmerican are false but how does this then translate into her being a "super patriot"?

[Paul Atreides]

The View is one of the most insipid pieces of trash in the vast landfill that is daytime television. It is as overrated as Bill Maher.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

Behar was a failed radio talk show host in NY, who floundered for 10 years from job to job.

Her politics got her the job. And the elites thought it cute to have a struggling New York Jew with attitude on for comedic flavor. I really think this is the way they think.

[agrace]

Right, she was on Real World SF, she was a member of the Young Republicans, the other roommates were appalled, and she ended up marrying the lumberjack Sean Duffy from RW Boston. They have 2 kids, live in Wisconsin, he's the local DA in Ashland County and is running for his district's house seat in 2004 against the incumbent David Obey.

Sorry I missed it. Although I never watch the View, I would have made an exception for those two.

[Paul Atreides]

I don't recall hearing of The Schnoz doing anything for the troops.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

If a leftist was on, the tone would have been congenial, the compliments would be profuse, and they would asking questions like "How does it feel to be such a success and resprcted by so many Americans."

[weegee]

Campos: "Well, I live in the Heartland that she's talking about and I think she's actually right. I have said this the last time I came on here. People in the middle of the country do not think, act or vote like people on the coasts, especially New York and specifically L.A. and San Francisco. And this is what she's talking about, this flyover zone."

Behar: "Then how did Bil Clinton win twice?"

A pile of lies, a complicant media, and a major third party candidate (Ross Perot) he drew a significant share of conservative votes. There are some who say that Bill Clinton would have won if Ross Perot wasn't in those 2 races but we will never know if those voters would have all gone to the polls. Some people just wouldn't vote for Bill Clinton.

Whatever the case, more people (total numbers and percentage) voted for George W. Bush than ever voted for William Jefferson Blythe Clinton. And even though Bush Country covered the map of the United States, there were some who insisted that the Electoral College should be done away with so that the major metropolitan areas can dictate who our leaders are. Might as well do away with giving each state 2 senators too. Rhode Island gets the same number of senators as Texas or California? That's not "fair".

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

"Bill Clinton also did Sister Souljah."

There's a joke in there somewhere. (Don't ask me why I pinged you guys.)

[fight_truth_decay]

One of the other finalists took on Michael Moore during his last guest appearance. Could the View producers be going for 'fair and balanced'? Of course they would have to admit they were leaning toward a Liberal View.

[weegee]

The way these busy bodies keep changing the subject it is clear that they don't expect an actual answer to their questions (let alone a challenge to their lies and absurd statements).

[TommyDale]

This transcript doesn't reflect the rude treatment that Laura Ingraham received from those witches on that show. They were all talking over her, interrupting her and wouldn't let her complete a sentence. This show is nothing but a bunch of morons.

[Chad Fairbanks]

I don't know why you pinged me, either. No one ever pings me to the good stuff ;0)

[Endeavor]

Laura Ingraham, one of the biggest social climbers out there, speaking on elitism? Ha! She's full of it.

Has she renounced her Dartmouth degree? Wake me when that happens - that should be about the 12th of Never.

[fight_truth_decay]

The Finalists

Former Real World: San Francisco participant Rachel Campos, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, host The Look for Less, and actress Erin Hershey Presley, formally of ABC Daytime's Port Charles, are the final three contenders. Nov. 24th is the choice of the fifth co-host.