Conservatives attack Shep Smith for his Holocaust museum shooting remarks, call for firing

On June 10, Fox News anchor Shepard Smith said the Holocaust Memorial Museum shooting validated a recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report alerting law enforcement to an increased threat from "rightwing extremists," including "white supremacists." Smith said: "[T]his is a former military guy and he's gone extremist. They were warning us for a reason -- not about something political or social or anything else. ... It was a warning to us all. And it appears now that they were right." Smith also said that he's receiving "more and more frightening" emails from viewers since President Obama's election, including conspiracy theories about Obama's birth certificate. In response to Smith's remarks about the Holocaust museum shooting, several conservative media figures have attacked Smith or called for his firing from Fox News.

During his June 11 radio program, Rush Limbaugh said of Smith's remarks: "For liberals to now claim that the atmosphere is somehow more violently anti-Obama is simply preposterous." Limbaugh also said Smith was "whining and moaning and complaining about emails." After stating that he, too, got "vile, sick emails," Limbaugh said, "Shep, you got nothing on anybody out there."

In a June 10 post headlined "Please Shepard Smith Out the Door!" on the blog Atlas Shrugs, conservative blogger Pamela Geller wrote of Smith -- who has also debunked the claim that in the DHS report, the Obama administration was targeting conservatives and others simply because they disagree with administration policies and proposals:

How amusing that Shepard feels the need to take this opportunity to scold us for doing the job the media and schmucks like him won't do. He also took the opportunity to vouch for the DHS report on right wing extremism. You know, the one that targeted vets, tea party attendees, Jewish extremists -- as the real threats to the country. The 89 year old Nazi Von Brunn served in World War II -- are those the new terror threats? WW2 vets? Scary stupidity.

FOX could do so much better than this pompous elitist. If Beck proved anything, it's that if you are halfway talented, your numbers will go through the roof. Beating the competition when you're on FOX is no biggie. The competition of CNN, MSNBC et al drives people to FOX. Leading the leftwing media asshats is not the bar to beat. FOX numbers are the bar. I am sure, for example, if FOX dropped Beck into Greta's spot, he would increase their numbers at 10pm by 30%.

But Shep sucks. And Shep has always sucked, and it's time to get rid of the deadwood. I don't know where he gets off talking down to us, but it's not his job to defend Obama and to try to tie African American racism into this Jew hating incident. Funny thing, though, he didn't discuss Jew hatred at all. Nope. An 89 year old Nazi goes into the Holocaust museum and shoots up the place, and Shep is whining about the lack of O-love. And that racism is driving that lack o'love. Earth to Shep: Americans are angry because Obama is destroying the country. And what does that have to do with an 89 year old nazi shooting up the Museum devoted to mass extermination of the Jews?

Why does Shep have his panties all in a twist? Nazis aren't new. Or special. Look at all of Europe during World War II. Systemically they killed their Jews, every country (save the Danes), with gusto.

Shep, don't preach to us about anger. This from a guy who hit a reporter with his car as she saved a parking space. He was arrested for it too. (Above photo is Smith's mugshot) Yup. And who can forget his leftist asshattery last month, when Fox anchor Shepard Smith, on a post-broadcast Webcast, lost it when discussing his opposition to waterboarding, etc -- bellowing: "We are America!" (slamming the table) "I don't give a rat's ass if it helps. We are AMERICA! We do not f---ing torture!!"

He has got to go.

Geller, who has frequently promoted conspiracy theories about Obama's birth certificate, also wrote:

I am watching Shepard's show dumbfounded. He is pointing his smug, short stubby finger at us for mistreating Obama (no mention of how Obama has treated the Constitution, Capitalism, and our allies). He is yelling at us for calling Obama a Muslim (he was born a Muslim, don't shoot the messenger, man), and for questioning the origins of his birth (vault copy, anyone?). But what does this have to do with the Nazi Von Brunn? I do not know. The Nazi Von Brunn website, wildly gross, is not a diatribe against Obama. It's a Jew hating white supremacist cesspool. This is a man who is a Hitlerite -- who wants to exterminate the Jewish people -- and yeah, he hates black people, too.

In a June 10 WorldNetDaily article about Smith's remarks, executive news editor Joe Kovacs suggested hypocrisy by Smith, writing:

Smith made numerous references to a Department of Homeland Security report warning of potential violence from "right-wing extremists," and said he's been personally disturbed by an increase in e-mail to him from people "who are way out there on a limb ... out there in a scary place."

He read what he called a representative message that asked, "How dare you tell us to get over the birth certificate ... ?"

Ironically, Smith himself allegedly engaged in activity some might deem questionable.

As WND previously reported, during the presidential election fiasco in November 2000, Smith was arrested at the Florida Capitol for allegedly driving his Mazda Millenia into another reporter who was standing in a parking space she attempted to save for a friend. The victim, freelance journalist Maureen Walsh of Tallahassee, was hospitalized and released later the same day with bruises on her knees and legs.

Kovacs then went on to summarize WorldNetDaily's articles on Obama's birth certificate. On his blog, ConWebBlog, Media Matters for America senior editor Terry Krepel noted of Kovacs' reporting:

At no point, however, does Kovacs mention the reason that Smith brought up the subject: The accused shooter, James von Brunn, is a white supremacist who also believes in the WND-promoted conspiracy that Obama is hiding evidence that he's not a "natural-born citizen" and, thus, ineligible to be president. As we've noted, von Brunn's name is on an Internet posting of a list of Obama-related documents that have supposedly not been released to the public; the day before the Holocaust Museum shooting, WND published an article that appears to have been inspired by von Brunn's list.

In a June 10 post on HotAir.com, which was founded by Fox News contributor Michelle Malkin, blogger Allahpundit wrote that Smith made a "hamfisted attempt to draw a straight line between dopey 'Hussein' invective and the sort of decades-long dementia displayed by the Jew-loathing nut who pulled a shotgun in the Holocaust Museum today. (And who, by the way, hated neoconservatives generally and the GOP's last two nominees for president in particular.) I don't know how else to read this clip except as Shep warning America that his own viewership is teeming with would-be presidential assassins. If he truly believes that, why doesn't he quit? How can his conscience stand it?" From the post:

Take a group of people who are politically conscious, add Internet access and anonymity, and elect the other party's guy president and voila: You've got a perfect petri dish in which to grow your very own nutroots culture. And no, before people start whining, of course I'm not saying that everyone who fits those criteria is nutroots. Just that we're seeing a strain of paranoia in some righty blog comments since The One took office that was formerly relegated to lefty assertions about how the Bushitler would cancel the elections and declare himself king or whatever. If that were Shep's point, it'd be fair enough; as it is, this is his hamfisted attempt to draw a straight line between dopey "Hussein" invective and the sort of decades-long dementia displayed by the Jew-loathing nut who pulled a shotgun in the Holocaust Museum today. (And who, by the way, hated neoconservatives generally and the GOP's last two nominees for president in particular.) I don't know how else to read this clip except as Shep warning America that his own viewership is teeming with would-be presidential assassins. If he truly believes that, why doesn't he quit? How can his conscience stand it?

The bonus nuance here is that this vid was cut by TPM, which is suddenly shocked, shocked to find incendiary rhetoric online notwithstanding the notoriety their fellow travelers have for trafficking in it. Doubtless the point is to prove how unhinged Fox viewers are, but surf around on CNN or MSNBC or any other news website and compare the comments there. Jake Tapper's mentioned more than once on Twitter how even his scrupulously balanced posts at ABC attract nutjobs by the dozen from both sides. Trolls are an Internet fact of life, alas. It's time to stop being surprised.

On her Twitter account, Fox News political contributor and radio host Tammy Bruce re-tweeted a June 10 tweet that said of Smith: "Can't see TV from here. Did Shepherd Smith get mascara in his eyes again?" Bruce added of the remarks: "LOL!!" From the original tweet by user "darthdilbert":

Bruce's re-tweeting of the remarks: