Quick fact: On Dobbs, Politico's Gordon falsely claimed Dunn said she looked to Mao's "words for guidance"
Politico's Craig Gordon falsely claimed that Anita Dunn said she looked to Mao's "words for guidance."
From the November 10 edition of Lou Dobbs Tonight:
GORDON: Obviously, probably, [Mao Zedong is] the most famous Communist leader ever and here's a person inside the Obama Administration saying that she looked to his words for guidance. Again, I suspect that's one Anita Dunn wouldn't mind having back and the administration wouldn't mind having back either.
Fact: Dunn said she used Mao and Mother Theresa to "basically deliver a simple point, which is, you're going to make choices"
In the video of a speech to high school graduates earlier this year, Dunn cited "two of my favorite political philosophers, Mao Zedong and Mother Teresa -- not often coupled with each together, but the two people that I turn to most to basically deliver a simple point, which is, you're going to make choices." She went on to cite Mao's response to skeptics who pointed out that their party was facing steep disadvantages while fighting the Nationalist Chinese: "You fight your war, and I'll fight mine." After asking the audience to "think about that for a second," she said, "You know, you don't have to accept the definition of how to do things, and you don't have to follow other people's choices and paths, OK? It is about your choices and your path." Likewise, Dunn cited Mother Teresa's response to a young person who wanted to work at her orphanage in Calcutta: "Go find your own Calcutta." Dunn then reiterated: "Go find your own Calcutta. Fight your own path. Go find the thing that is unique to you, the challenge that is actually yours, not somebody else's challenge."
It doesn't matter what Anita Dunn may have said, thought, or done.
What's important is what the Reich-Wingers think she MIGHT have said, thought, or done.
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Let's face facts. You don't actually believe that she was expressing a blanket endorsement of Mao or even admiration for him (unless you're EXTREMELY stupid). You, like so many others, simply saw that as a tool for vindictive partisan attack.
The rather sparse nervous laughter was her saying "two people not ofter coupled with each other", then went on to say "but the two people I TURN TO MOST". After the coupling statement there was nothing but rapt attention to her going on to praise Mao and his use of guerrilla warfare.
You say, "you don't actually believe that she was expressing a blanket endorsement", well when she says he's one of the people SHE TURNS TO MOST, then I have to take that at face value.
I love the lefts pretzel logic! Please, keep defending these marxists!
The laughter was clear and not the least bit nervous. Her audience understood the irony in the juxtaposition and appreciated it, even though her delivery was kind of flat. She's not an especially talented speaker.
Here is what Dunn said:
It's very plain, clear English. She turns to those people most TO DELIVER THAT POINT. It's a very conditional statement. As I stated, it's not a blanket statement. It applies ONLY TO THAT POINT.
You are being extremely ignorant or dishonest. Now, you may try to unweave your own "pretzel logic." It's gotta be pretty badly twisted for you to think that Dunn "praise(d) Mao and his use of guerrilla warfare." You simply won't find words from her to support that claim.
hese are people who have no concept of irony, satire, metaphor or any linguistic device that requires thinking. As Liberty & Regents alumni or supporters they were not required to take such courses. So talking them about anything that harks back to an Aristotle or Plato is a waste of time.
Like MMFA said, she said that the Mao and Mother Teresa were the two people she turned to when she was trying to make a single point. When you crop off that qualifier at the end, that she turns to the two of them, in conjunction, to make one point, it means something totally different than the meaning your cropped comment gives it!
What a dishonest hack.
This has been explained countless times. How can you be so ignorant that the message still hasn't gotten through to you?
"the two people that I turn to most to basically deliver a simple point"
When she wants to deliver a simple point about following one's own path, she uses an anecdote from the lives of each of these two people to make that simple point.
Mother Teresa said a similar thing - that someone else could choose a different path if they wanted to, but Mother Teresa was going to choose her own path also, rather than being untrue to her dreams and aspirations just because someone else didn't think it would be the best path.
There was no praise of either path that either one of those people chose to take.
There was only praise of their determination to follow their own paths!