On his Fox Business program last night, Andrew Napolitano hosted Jesse Ventura to discuss the history of “government deception.” Ventura and Napolitano share the view that the government is hiding the truth behind the 9-11 attacks.
The topic of 9-11 conspiracy theories appeared to briefly surface when it was mentioned during an aside by Ventura. Ventura said that a New York City fireman recently thanked him for “standing up for us firemen and telling the truth of 9-11.” Napolitano replied that “it's very interesting that people are worried about losing their benefits if they speak the truth. The truth used to be a premium in this country. Now you get punished for it.”
From Fox Business:
VENTURA: You know what I had happen to me the other night? I had a New York City fireman come up to me and say, 'Governor, thank you. You're talking for us on 9-11.' I said, 'Why don't you firemen that were there speak out?' 'We can't, they'll take our retirements. They'll fire us. You're the one that's standing up for us firemen and telling the truth of 9-11.'
NAPOLITANO: It's very interesting that people are worried about losing their benefits if they speak the truth. The truth used to be a premium in this country. Now you get punished for it.
This isn't the first time Ventura and Napolitano have discussed the “truth” about 9-11. Freedom Watch used to air on FoxNews.com and in March 2010, Napolitano and Ventura spent several minutes discussing Ventura's belief that the government either “participate[d]” in 9-11 or “knew it was going to happen and didn't do very much to stop it.” At no point did Napolitano dispute or challenge Ventura's 9-11 conspiracy theories. To the contrary, Napolitano wondered if “someday we will look on 9-11 the way we look on the JFK assassination today, that is, where people who question the government's involvement will be mainstreamed, rather than looked upon as an extremist fringe.”
From March 2010:
Napolitano also hosted Ventura in October on Fox Business; during the interview, Ventura said he was investigating the “alleged Pentagon plane” attack, to which Napolitano replied, “We'll be watching.”
Both conservatives and liberals have criticized Napolitano's 9-11 Truther views. When given a chance to comment about Napolitano's beliefs, both Media Matters and CNN received no comment from Fox News.
Minutes after the Ventura interview, Glenn Beck appeared on the show and endorsed Napolitano as his successor at 5pm. In other words, Glenn Beck, who has spent a significant airtime condemning 9-11 Truthers, has endorsed a 9-11 Truther to take his timeslot.