Sullivan denies having made comparison between Obama and Hitler
On the February 14 broadcast of Fox News Radio's Tom Sullivan Show, host Tom Sullivan addressed the controversy over his February 11 airing of what he called at the time "a little side-by-side comparison" of speeches by Adolf Hitler and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL). On his February 14 show, Sullivan said: "I wasn't trying to make a comparison. There isn't any comparison. There was none yesterday, there was none Monday, there will not be any in the future. It's nonsense." Sullivan also said that "[s]ome people picked up on what we said on the show on Monday and suggested that I was in some way equating Barack Obama and Adolf Hitler, and there was nothing of the sort that came up. Nothing like that happened."
From the February 14 edition of Fox News Radio's Tom Sullivan Show:
SULLIVAN: Before we get started on this big program today, there's a issue which has come up which I want to address. And that issue is before we start the program today -- listen, this is crazy. But I want to clarify something that happened on Monday's show. We were talking about Barack Obama and his ability to excite crowds through his speaking ability, his rhetoric, his -- I mean, he's an orator that is unbelievable. I mean, I was talking about the fact that he had this big speech after winning over the weekend all these primaries, and I thought, "Wow, this guy can really knock it right out of the ballpark when it comes to his speech." So we're talking about how he can -- and I was playing clips about how Barack Obama was getting cheers and the crowd was going wild and he was talking about winning. And a caller called and said -- suggested that -- the caller suggested that he thought that Hitler had the same ability.
Well, once you enter the word "Hitler" into a conversation, everything changes. So, I said, "Really?" So we played clips of both to let you decide. Well, guess what happened? Sometimes people pick up on things, and they pick up on them in a way that they really misinterpret what really was going on. Some people picked up on what we said on the show on Monday and suggested that I was in some way equating Barack Obama and Adolf Hitler, and there was nothing of the sort that came up. Nothing like that happened. In fact, you know, I know, everyone knows, Hitler was one of the most despicable, evil people -- mass murderer, who, without question, one of the worst people to ever walk the face of the earth. No humanity. Absolutely, there is no comparison. I wasn't trying to make a comparison. There isn't any comparison. There was none yesterday, there was none Monday, there will not be any in the future. It's nonsense. Absolutely pure nonsense that anyone would think otherwise, but it has come up with some people picking up -- and, you know, it's one of those things where they hear only part or they hear what they want to hear. But in any case, I wanted to clarify it before I took off for the day and went out and did some Valentine's stuff.
And Spencer Hughes is going to pick up the program today and tomorrow and also on Monday because I also have a big love for Presidents Day too, so. So, just, I wanted to come in here before we got too far in the program before this thing started getting out of control and put a stop to the nonsense that's going out on the air out there, around on different places. So have yourself a wonderful Valentine's Day.
And then the caller went through the station archives for audio of a Hitler speech and forced Sullivan to play it. Then the caller used some sort of mind control device to make Sullivan play act at begging for permission to play it again.
That's one amazing caller.
If Sullivan didn't want people to follow him into some sort of bizarre Obama=Hitler theory why didn't he simply hang up on the guy and tell him how ridiculous the idea was?
Do these people not realize that what they say on their shows is preserved in a permanent record?
All DJs keep recordings of Hitler speeches handy, at all times. Nothing suspicious there.
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TELL,
That may be but what then was the point of Sullivan doing the comparison at all?
I realize that Obama can be quite inspiring with his words and that scares the crap out of the right-wing corporate owned media but his plea that he wasn't implying a comparison is extremely weak, especially at the moment when he played it a second time!
Sullivan wants us to believe him? The next time this occurs he needs to hang up on the caller and distance himself from it right then and there or its just another right-wing blowhard doing what he'll do for ratings, decency be damned!
A "caller" who is 65 "remembers" hearing Hitler's speeches over the radio? He would have been born at the end of 1942 or the start of 1943. I don't remember what I heard when I was three years old or younger.
I'm 55, and the earliest I can remember is a few months before I turned four, so that would be sometime in the Summer of 1956. I don't remember hearing any politicians talk back then - this was the year Ike was re-elected, and I don't recall ever hearing Ike OR Stevenson back them. But I DO remember Crusader Rabbit, Andy's Gang, and Howdy Doody....
Hmmm, a set up caller? Coming from fox, wouldn't be surprised...
I guess denial really is a river in egypt!
Sullivan couldn't find the audio of JFK speeches so he had to make do with Hitler.
Are you saying Bush = Hitler is a plausible comparison?
Good for you. No need to change the subject before you address this one to get those nasty libs, it kinda shows your hand. And the "they do it too!!!11!!" excuse is so ridiculously overdone.
Incidentally, I agree that Hitler comparisons are absurd.
Are you saying Bush = Hitler is a plausible comparison?
I am. And I'm not the only one....
The 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism
Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.
6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed
to the government's policies or actions.
9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.
12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
Source: http://www.rense.com/general37/fascism.htm
Sort of reminds one of some of the liberal websites comparing GW and Hitler, like counterpunch.com and moveon . . .
Except comparisons between Bush and Hitler are valid, while those between Obama and Hitler are not.
In your opinion, if you have time to share, what are the valid comparisons between GWB and Hitler?
See my comment a little further up on the list, the one containing the 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism. I'm sure that even you will admit that the parallels between the Third Reich and the Bush Misadministration are quite stunning...
Nonetheless, assuming you live in the states, do you think America presently controlled by a fascist regime?
I live in Texas, and I believe the Bush Misadministration is fascist. And we can't be rid of Bush, Cheney, and the rest of their accomplices soon enough for my liking.
You are correct that the 14 signs were MUCH stronger during the fascist regimes of the early 1900s, and I do think that a primary factor in why we're not seeing a more harsh pull towards that brand of government is because propaganda and government manipulation have been so incredibly fine-tuned. There's little need for a police state when you have the populace so tamed that they'd never consider revolt for fear of losing a job or a house. Fraudulent elections on a massive scale aren't necessary when you ensure that the only "feasible" candidates available agree with you, anyhow - then you distract the populace with little BS "urgent issues" like cleavage showing, where a kid went to pre-school, or whether or not a candidate is religious enough.
We are fortunate that there are genuinely good people in many parts of the upper echelons of our government. Not all of them, mind you, and not even a majority of them, but they keep us from falling into the abyss.
then you distract the populace with little BS "urgent issues" like cleavage showing, where a kid went to pre-school, or whether or not a candidate is religious enough. - BLR
I would add to that the idea that the citizens need to start CONSUMING again. I recall shortly after 9/11 the administration said that the American public would help the cause of combatting terrorism if they went shopping!
"Wow, this guy can really knock it right out of the ballpark when it comes to his speech."
"Yeah, that's what I really meant. And the context in which I intended my begging for the speech to run in a loop all afternoon was just nostaligia for Uncle Adolph. Now, there was a man who could stir the masses with fear and an overloaded sense of national pride, kill civilians in horrendous numbers, burn and pillage entire countries, threaten the stability of the world and...hey, A.H. does sound like Dubya!"