Fox News attack machine smears Chicago as a violent city unsuitable for Olympics
Led by Fox News, the conservative media have opened a new front from which to attack President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama's support of Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics: smearing the city as unfit to host the Olympic Games, often by citing individual instances of violence. For example, Sean Hannity, after citing a recent murder and an assault, asked whether Chicago is "a city where we want the Olympics," and Glenn Beck said, "Chicago is good at ... organized Mafi -- oops, did I say that out loud?"
Conservatives attack Chicago as unworthy of Olympic bid
Beck: "Chicago is good at ... organized Mafi -- oops, did I say that out loud?" On his October 1 show, Beck listed a number of ways in which, he claimed, "corrupt politicians" have "humiliated" Chicagoans, and suggested that residents are against the Olympic bid. Beck then said: "It's a tough choice, what should we do? What should we do? Well, in the America that I grew up in, we would use logic. The way the IOC normally does it is to select the city which presents the superior plan. OK, that makes sense. All right, does the best job in organizing. Oh, Chicago is good at community organizing, and organized labor, and organized Mafi-- oops. Did I say that out loud?" [Glenn Beck, 10/1/09]
Hannity: "Is this a city where we want the Olympics taking place?" On his October 1 Fox News show, Hannity said, "[E]arly this morning a 14-year-old boy was chased down a Chicago street and beaten with a pipe. ... This event occurs on the heels of the murder of Derrion Albert, the 16-year-old honor student who was beaten to death in a gang fight, and at the same time the president is lobbying to bring the Olympics to Chicago, which begs the question: Is this a city where we want the Olympics taking place?"
S.E. Cupp: "If I'm Rio, I'm not really worried." Also discussing the potential of Chicago hosting the Olympic games, Fox News contributor S.E. Cupp said on Hannity, "Have you have you been to Rio? I have. It's awesome. If I'm Rio, I'm not really worried." Later, in response to Fox News contributor Kimberly Guilfoyle's assertion that Chicago has "pressing problems" such as "lawlessness, violence on the street, innocent bystanders being killed, children beaten and unable to go to schools," Cupp said, "Yes, yes. I mean, who wants the Olympics in their backyard? Really, nobody. It's a circus."
Drudge headline: "OLYMPIC SPIRIT: VIDEO SHOWS BRUTAL GANG MURDER IN CHICAGO." On September 29, the Drudge Report linked to an article about the teenager who was beaten and murdered in Chicago under the following headline:
Malkin on teen murder in Chicago: "Flying to Copenhagen isn't helping." On September 28, blogger Michelle Malkin posted video of the teenager being beaten to death and wrote: "Community organizing has not stopped Chicago's teen violence epidemic. The Olympics will not solve this long-festering problem, either." Malkin also wrote, regarding the "out-of-control violence" in Chicago: "Flying to Copenhagen isn't helping."
Fox News attacks Obama's efforts to promote U.S. Olympic bid
Fox News criticizes Obama's purported misplaced "priorities," spotlight-seeking, as well as carbon footprint of trip. In recent days, Fox News hosts, contributors, and guests have used Obama's promotion of the Olympics bid as an excuse to attack him, while Malkin has devoted several posts on her website to an "Olympics Crony Watch" or "the Obamas' Chicago Crony Olympics bid." Attacks on Obama's efforts include Hannity saying that "it sounds" like Obama "is more concerned about bringing the Olympics to Chicago than winning the war in Afghanistan," Brent Bozell claiming Obama's trip to Copenhagen to promote the Chicago bid "is evidence that this man just cannot stay away from the klieg lights," and Bret Baier invoking the "carbon footprint" of Obama's trip to Copenhagen to smear the president.
Transcript
From the October 1 edition of Fox News' Hannity:
HANNITY: Now, early this morning a 14-year-old boy was chased down a Chicago street and beaten with a pipe. Now, his injuries sent him to the hospital, where he remains in critical condition. Now, this event occurs on the heels of the murder of Derrion Albert, the 16-year-old honor student who was beaten to death in a gang fight, and at the same time the president is lobbying to bring the Olympics to Chicago, which begs the question: Is this a city where we want the Olympics taking place?
[...]
CUPP: There's something going on here. I don't know if there was an arrangement made with the IOC, I don't know. Michelle Malkin's piece was very illuminating, I thought. But on the other hand? Have you have you been to Rio? I have. It's awesome. If I'm Rio, I'm not really worried. I mean, I don't know -- there's conflicting stuff going on here. I'll be surprised.
HANNITY: They have a national holiday on the day of the announcement. So they're fighting back.
CUPP: Well, Rio's awesome. No offense to Chicago. I love a good Cubs game.
GUILFOYLE: Everybody loves Rio.
CUPP: But Rio is awesome.
GUILFOYLE: That's what the White House is going to say, blame it on Rio, are you shocked? You know?
[crosstalk]
HANNITY: Half of Chicago doesn't want it -- 47-45 -- Chicago does not want this. They don't.
CUPP: That's right.
GUILFOYLE: Well, they have a lot of other, more pressing problems that they need to deal with right now like the story you just discussed. They have lawlessness, violence on the street, innocent bystanders being killed, children beaten and unable to go to schools. You know, that's where President Obama came from, but right now he's president of the United States, not mayor of Chicago. Focus.
CUPP: Yes, yes. I mean, who wants the Olympics in their backyard? Really, nobody. It's a circus.
Obama could go on TV today and say that kittens are fuzzy and cute.
Drudge, Malkin & FNC would follow-up with "reports" of cats scratching the eyes out of Christians.
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Becasue he's good enough, he's smart enough and, dogonne it, people LIKE him!
I have high hopes for Obama, and I bet they think he's pretty capable too, or they wouldn't be going after him like this, throwing everything at him, including the kitchen sink.
Perfect example of an agenda which started with a made for Hollywood campaign and that campaign has not stopped. Lots of pie in the sky promises, no hard choices, and spending like three drunken sailors with no concern of the consequences.
GW talked with school kids (providing no agenda of "What can I do to support the President) and the Democraps held Congressional hearings. Obama pushes his agenda to kids, the Democraps yawn.
Calgary LOST ovwer $1B dollars with the Olympics, Vancouver has over $6M in off the books losses looming, Obama is spending at such a rate that his support Warren Buffet has said stop or we will become a "banana republic" and the Chinese has slowed buying our debt, yet Obamanation is still spending like there is no tomorrow (and poluting at even higher rate with the useless jet trips).
Sorry to inject facts into your great emotional attempt at a conversation....
And you think "pushing his agenda to kids", and "useless jet trips" are real problems. Please, get educated and stop listening to Glenn Beck.
I guess you didn't get the memo?
Barry has EXPANDED the Warrantless Wiretaps.
Obama EXPANDS W Wiretaps
Yeah, the crazed call for Bush's head over Warrantless Wiretaps was deafening on this forum just a mere year ago, but now? The silence is deafening.
I guess you'll be the first to step up to the plate Cannonball?
"Our country's stood beside us People have sent us aid. Katrina could not stop us, our hopes will never fade. Congress, Bush and FEMA People across our land Together have come to rebuild us and we join them hand-in-hand!"- Children at the White House about Katrina
Translation: Sounds like WHAT CAN I DO TO SUPPORT THE PRESIDENT
Useless jet trips? That's completely low. The President is required to use the jet whenever he goes somewhere.
Worthless trip? I don't think so.
BTW- another 3 American soldiers died today, that makes 45 since McCrystal submitted his report asking for more troops...with Obama delaying for "weeks"
When do we say, enough?
How would we define winning?
What are the goals?
Where will we get the troops to escalate this war?
If you really believe we need to be responsible for defeating radical religious extremism in Muslim countries, petition your elected representatives to re-institute the draft. Speak to your children and relatives and urge them to enlist. If you're of age, set an example and enlist.
If Americans want to fight this war, they have to send everyone's sons and daughters. If we want the war to end we need to let our leaders know.
I know of no one who wants to risk sending their own children. I sure as hell don't.
Start walking instead of talking.
Um, hello? it's Texas... not North Dakota. We don't have too many snow plows in the state for a reason.
Now along with a possible military action against Iran and the unraveling of the Iraqi government plus the economy maybe going into a double dip, Maybe the IOC thought Rio would be the safest place in 2016, even though it has one of the world's highest murder rates.
...and the best kind of Republican facts: Unsupported. Please cite the Congressional hearings you speak of with regards to Bush talking with school kids.
Democraps? Are you 14 years old?
How about using some relevant facts. Every Olympics from 1984 to 2000 MADE MONEY. Athens in 2004 lost money because it is an OLD CITY with OLD INFRASTRUCTURE. Beijing doesn't count because they had to spend billions to cover up the city's flaws and put on a glorious showcase.
Summer Olympics usually make money. Sydney in 2000 made almost $2 BILLION.
By his own admission, he was a drug addicted, alcoholic ass. And he wants us all to go back to those times.
And why does anyone get away with comparing the crimes rates in Rio de Janeiro vs. Chicago and claim that Rio is safer? That's the easiest lie to prove.
What this cretin Cupp says is that Chicago has "lawlessness, violence on the street, innocent bystanders being killed, children beaten and unable to go to schools,".
He's talking about one event on one day in Chicago.
In Rio de Janeiro, these things happen every day.
I do think South America deserves one if they can prove financial solvency and an adequate amount of infrastructure and security.
Is he talking about the days when he was young? When more than half a million guys were in Vietnam and in an average week one hundred young men were dying?
Is he remembering the times when civil rights workers were murdered for standing up for civil rights for everyone? Or the days when lunch counters seated whites only and if you wanted a seat on the bus you had better be in the back if you're black?
He misses the days where in any given day and city there were marches and police beatings for expressing opinion?
Does he miss the days when families, neighbors, friends and co-workers were divided, because that's what he seems to excel at, division.
I'm trying to understand the logic. I don't see anything logical about people wanting to go back to those days other than the music.
When people speak of wanting their country back, what they're really saying is they want every one to know their place.
They are getting pretty desperate over there in wingnut land.
"Don't support your local athletes, citizens. That's socialism."
This is not just about Chicago, it is about America! As Chicago happens to be America's lone hope for the Olympics.
mk3872
I truly believe that this attack upon Chicago is beyond even simply opposing president Obama's every move... these people HATE America!
Okay, they only hate the parts of America who are Democrats, liberals, progressives, or independent thinkers! They may even hate a certain percentage of Republicans who are not brainwashed into believing their garbage (and yes, I do believe there are many of these kinds of people).
Whatever these bugs can't control they automatically see as dangerous and lash out in hateful words and vile reactions
I wouldn't have thought as a kid that the Republican Party could end up here, could let themselves end up here, behaving in such a disrespectful, dishonest way to further their political goals.
Out of curiosity, are you going to accompany Mr. Demint down to Honduras to try to convince the military junta to continuing resisting the United States government?
I don't know about you... but I figure to be long since dead and gone by the year 20116...
;o)
I watched Glenn Beck yesterday because I was trying to figure out what he was talking about. His tirade on the "social justice" approach made no sense, and then he rambled on about imaginary connections between Obama and the Olympics and Chicago corruption. When are people going to realize that he is an idiot with a microphone?
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The Midnight Review
Mum Is The Word
Bill Maher was right when he say the country is stupid... if we were smart, people like Beck would be off the air, or relegated to some far flung UHF station, much like the programming one would have seen in the movie UHF, with his stunts taken in only as entertainment, and not seriously...
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The Midnight Review
Mum Is The Word
Just a quick googling of the number of Rio's homicide's show they are running 10 times of what Chicago has.
Homicides in Rio 2007. 1560
Do the math you FOX idiots.
Yeah. "RIO is awesome!" Their crime rates are increasing faster than Chicago's by a factor of 2.
According to Neighborhood Scout, Orlando is safer than 1% of the nation's cities, with almost quadruple the national median of violent crimes per 1000 residents...
Knowing this, would you still take you family to Disney? Most people still come to Orlando, despite the statistics... Fox needs to get a grip on reality...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chicago/
And I'd be willing to bet that you are happy about it as well, huh?
Had Chicago been picked... you and the rest of the right-wing knuckleheads would have gone ape-poop over Obama wasting his time while America lays withering and dying, that the Olympics is a waste of time, or that Chicago winning would make Obama more arrogant than ever before.
As it is, Chicago lost and I have no doubt that over the next 24 hours, the right-wing corporate owned media and several of their followers will now claim that Obama is weak and can't get anything done. That he can no longer be trusted to be the spokesman for this country, or some such variation!
There is no pleasing some people!
I think it's good for Obama, in the long run, that Chicago isn't getting the Olympics. They would have harped on Chicago-style politics arguments and failed government intervention in things that should be privatized.
And South America has never had the Olympics - I think they should get it, although the fact that they're in the Southern Hemisphere sorta messes up the seasons, doesn't it? But I don't get a vote.
Good point on the southern-hemi thing...I thought it was fair for a SA country to get a strong look, but the seasons ARE different. Anybody know anything about Rio climate? Maybe it's relatively benign.
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Too bad I didn't think to draw in Hannity.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rD_-kfqwKBY
Everyone should see what pongo considers support and patriotism.
More lies from the lying, liar who spews them. Where did I ever indicate a wish for this administration to fail? Yes, I've criticized that New Jersey teacher for injecting her political preferences into classrooms for toddlers, and have criticized others on the looney left, but never have I desired Obama to fail. YOU lie, you cowardly, partisan hack.
Still trying to run away from your comrades. Why do you and they sound familiar...
Are you telling more lies . . .?
Years ago, I came up with this:
some people have a Brain
some people have a Central Nervous System.
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Moron
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Just Sayin'...
if you're against chicago getting the games, that's one thing, but this is a case of conservatives piling on when there are already plenty of valid criticisms on the table with regard to the president...
but if you supported pursuing the games, then how about directing the ire toward daley and whoever else was in charge of chicago's proposal... i live in houston, but jeez, even i know you don't send the obamas and oprah to make your pitch, you send dick butkus and michael jordan!...
reporting from murderland ranch,
i'm mookie von zipper
massmurdermedia
Do you know how foolish you sound or do you relish your ignorance?
Do you these douchebags even realize the number of jobs an Olympics would have created from thin air over the next 7 years?
The fall begins here...
And that's all there is to it.
~
(Rio) has more than tripled. In 1994, over 8,000 murders were recorded and that's not the mention the rising non-violent crimes throughout the city and much of Brazil. Much of the violence seen in the favelas or shanty towns in Rio de Janeiro where much of the populace suffers from severe poverty problems. Because wealthy towns are located in close proximity to the favelas, kidnappings, rape, robbery and murder are common place. And when you span 8,000 murders out over 365 days, you get somewhere around 21 murders a day- making Rio de Janeiro one of the most dangerous places on earth to call home"
Guess the right wingers never leave US, so do not know facts, but since they are easy to get, I think Fox should drop news from their title since they give a bad name to news.