Suggesting Obama Has A Problem With “The White Culture”

Spreading Violent Rhetoric

Smearing Acorn

Smearing Then-Green Jobs Adviser Van Jones

Smearing OIRA Administrator Cass Sunstein

Smearing Assistant To The President For Science And Technology John Holdren

Smearing Then-White House Communications Director Anita Dunn

Smearing George Soros

Suggesting Obama Has A Problem With “The White Culture”

Beck Led ...

Beck Claimed Obama Is A “Racist.” Discussing Obama's response to the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates, Glenn Beck asserted that Obama has “exposed himself as a guy” with “a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture.” After being reminded that Obama has numerous white staffers, Beck contradicted himself, stating, “I'm not saying that he doesn't like white people. I'm saying he has a problem,” before going on to state, “This guy is, I believe, a racist.” [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 7/28/09]

Fox Followed ...

Hannity Defended Beck: “Can One Conclude That There Are Issues With The President? Black Liberation Theology?” On the March 9 edition Fox News' Hannity, after guest Penny Lee brought up that Beck “called the president of the United States, almost -- you know, referred to him as a racist,” Sean Hannity defended Beck, saying: “But wait a minute. Wait, hang on a second. When the president hangs out with Jeremiah Wright for 20 years, I'm -- can one conclude that there are issues with the president? Black liberation theology?” [Fox News, Hannity, 3/9/10]

Murdoch On Beck's Claim That Obama Is “Racist”: "[H]e Was Right." In a November 6, 2009, interview with Sky News Australia political editor David Speers, News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch said of Beck's allegation, Obama “did make a very racist comment, about, you know, blacks and whites and so on, and which he said in his campaign he would be completely above. And, you know, that was something which perhaps shouldn't have been said about the president, but if you actually assess what he was talking about, he was right.” News Corp. spokesman Gary Ginsberg subsequently stated that Murdoch “does not at all, for a minute, think the president is a racist.” [Sky News Australia, 11/6/09, via Media Matters]

Gingrich: Obama Has A “Kenyan, Anti-Colonial” Worldview. In a September 2010 interview with National Review Online, then-Fox News contributor Newt Gingrich asked: “What if [Obama] is so outside our comprehension, that only if you understand Kenyan, anti-colonial behavior, can you begin to piece together [his actions]?” He added: “That is the most accurate, predictive model for his behavior.” [NRO, 9/11/10]

Huckabee: Obama Purportedly Returning Churchill Bust “A Great Insult To The British,” Done Because Of “Kenyan Father And Grandfather.” On the February 28 edition of WOR's The Steve Malzberg Show, Fox News host Huckabee asserted:

HUCKABEE: I would love to know more. What I know is troubling enough. And one thing that I do know is his having grown up in Kenya, his view of the Brits, for example, very different than the average American. When he gave the bust back to the Brits --

MALZBERG: Of Winston Churchill.

HUCKABEE: The bust of Winston Churchill, a great insult to the British. But then if you think about it, his perspective as growing up in Kenya with a Kenyan father and grandfather, their view of the Mau Mau Revolution in Kenya is very different than ours because he probably grew up hearing that the British were a bunch of imperialists who persecuted his grandfather. [WOR's The Steve Malzberg Show, 2/28/11]

• Huckabee Later Implausibly Claimed He “Simply Misspoke” When He Asserted Obama Himself Grew Up In Kenya. [HuckPac.com, 3/1/11, via Media Matters]

Varney Claimed Obama Returned Bust Of Churchill Because His Father “Was A Native Kenyan.” Purporting to provide evidence that Obama “doesn't like the British,” Fox business analyst Stuart Varney said the “first act of President Obama when he walks into the White House -- send back to Britain a bust of Winston Churchill.” Varney claimed Obama sent the bust back “because his father -- President Obama's father disliked the colonial administration in his native Kenya.” [Fox News, America's Newsroom, 2/7/11]

• An AP Fact-Check Reported The Churchill Bust Is Actually In The White House Residence. [Associated Press, 3/1/11]

Ingraham: Obama Administration “Has Set Back Race Relations In This Country, Perhaps A Generation.” On the July 22, 2010, edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, Fox News contributor Laura Ingraham said:

INGRAHAM: This president was ushered into office with this great media concoction -- unjustified -- that he was going to be some racial healer, OK? That was created in the media. That was a fiction created by the media. Victor Davis Hanson writes a brilliant piece about this today. And he's absolutely dead on.

I believe much of what's been done in this administration, unfortunately, has set back race relations in this country, perhaps a generation. I predicted that would happen a year ago on my radio show. And I stand by that today. [Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 7/22/10]

Spreading Violent Rhetoric

Beck Led ...

Beck Talked About “Put[ting] Poison” In Pelosi's Wine. On the August 6, 2009, edition of his Fox News show, Beck stated:

BECK: So, Speaker Pelosi, I just wanted to -- you gonna drink your wine? Are you blind? Do those eyes not work? There you -- I want you to drink it now. Drink it. Drink it. Drink it.

I really just wanted to thank you for having me over here to wine country. You know, to be invited, I thought I had to be a major Democratic donor or a longtime friend of yours, which I'm not.

By the way, I put poison in your -- no, I -- I look forward to all the policy discussions that we're supposed to have -- you know, on health care, energy reform, and the economy. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 8/6/09]

Beck Portrayed Obama, Democrats As Vampires, Suggested “Driv[ing] A Stake Through The Heart Of The Bloodsuckers.” Beck aired a graphic portraying Obama and Democrats as vampires and said, “The government is full of vampires, and they are trying to suck the lifeblood out of the economy.” Beck then suggested “driv[ing] a stake through the heart of the bloodsuckers.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 3/30/09]

Beck: “To The Day I Die, I Am Going To Be A Progressive Hunter.” Telling his listeners that they “are going to learn so much on Friday,” Beck compared himself to “Israeli Nazi hunters” and commented, “I'm going to find these big progressives and, to the day I die, I'm going to be a progressive hunter.” He added:

BECK: I'm going to find these people that have done this to our -- you know, to our country, and expose them. I don't care where -- I don't care if they're in nursing homes. I'm going to expose what they have done and make sure that the people understand, because our Constitution, our republic -- if it survives -- it will only survive because the people are waking up and through the grace of God, because we are that close to losing our republic. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 1/20/10]

Fox Followed ...

Morris: “Those Crazies In Montana Who Say, 'We're Going To Kill ATF Agents Because The U.N.'s Going To Take Over' -- Well, They're Beginning To Have A Case.” During a long conspiracy theory about a “super-national authority” that will oversee U.S. financial institutions, Fox News contributor Dick Morris asserted that Obama's policies are “internationalist” and that "[t]hose crazies in Montana who say, 'We're going to kill ATF agents because the U.N.'s going to take over' -- well, they're beginning to have a case." [Fox News, Your World with Neil Cavuto, 3/31/09]

Scheuer: “The Only Chance We Have As A Country Right Now Is” For Bin Laden To “Detonate A Major Weapon” In U.S. Michael Scheuer, who has frequently appeared on Fox News as a terrorism expert, said during an appearance on Glenn Beck, “The only chance we have as a country right now is for Osama bin Laden to deploy and detonate a major weapon in the United States.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 6/30/09]

Peters Stated That If A Taliban-Held Soldier Is A Deserter, “The Taliban Can Save Us A Lot Of Legal Hassles And Legal Bills.” Fox News contributor Ralph Peters asserted of Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl, who was captured by the Taliban in June 2009 and appeared in two Taliban propaganda videos: "[W]e know this private is a liar; we're not sure if he's a deserter." Peters added that if he is a deserter, “the Taliban can save us a lot of legal hassles and legal bills.” NBC's Jim Miklaszewski subsequently reported that the Pentagon said Peters' comments “could endanger” the captured soldier. [Fox News, America's News HQ, 7/19/09; The Washington Post, 12/26/09; MSNBC, Morning Meeting, 7/21/09, via Media Matters]

Smearing ACORN

Beck Led ...

Political Activists Claimed ACORN Videos Showed Employees Supporting Underage Prostitution. Andrew Breitbart, who released and heavily promoted the ACORN videos created by James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles repeatedly asserted that the videos showed ACORN employees “help[ed] set up a prostitution ring in every single office.” [ABC, Good Morning America, 6/1/10]

Beck Brought ACORN Videos To Fox. On the September 9, 2009, edition of his Fox News program, Beck previewed an “exclusive” that would air on his program the next day, which he claimed would make “things change a lot for those in power.” Beck later aired snippets of a video from James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles filmed in a Baltimore office of ACORN. Beck suggested the video was the “exclusive stuff” that he predicted the media would be “talking about” instead of health care. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 9/9/09]

Fox Followed ...

Fox “News” Programs Followed Beck's Lead, Seized On ACORN Videos. Following Beck's “exclusive” preview on September 9, 2009, through 7 p.m. the next day, Fox News dedicated at least 17 segments to the ACORN video. Fox “news” programs covering the video included: America's Newsroom; Happening Now; Live Desk; and Special Report. [Media Matters, 9/10/09]

O'Keefe Appeared At Least Seven Times On Fox To Promote ACORN Videos. A Media Matters review found that O'Keefe appeared at least seven times on Fox News and other Fox networks to promote the videos he recorded of ACORN workers and to smear the organization. [Media Matters, 1/27/10]

For The FACTS On The ACORN Campaign, Click HERE.

Smearing Then-White House Green Jobs Adviser Van Jones

Beck Led ...

Beck Led The Charge Against Van Jones. Beck repeatedly attacked then-White House green jobs adviser Van Jones:

• Beck Falsely Called Van Jones “A Convicted Felon.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 8/11/09, via Nexis]
• Beck Misleadingly Called Van Jones A “Self-Avowed Radical Revolutionary Communist.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 9/1/09, via PolitiFact]
• Beck: Van Jones' Role In The Obama Administration “Says That The President Has An Agenda That Is Radical, Revolutionary, And In Some Cases, Marxist.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 9/3/09, via Nexis]

NYT: Beck Is “Chief Among Those Keeping The [Van Jones] Story Alive.” A September 6, 2009, New York Times article reported, “Chief among those keeping the story alive was Glenn Beck, the conservative host of a Fox News Channel program. Mr. Beck began criticizing Mr. Jones in July, first in segments on his syndicated talk radio show and then, on July 23, on his Fox News program, said Christopher Balfe, the president of Mr. Beck's production company.” [The New York Times, 9/6/09]

Fox Followed ...

Fox “News” Division Picked Up The Jones “Controversy.” On September 3, 2009, America's Newsroom, Live Desk, and Special Report ran segments on the “controversy” over Jones. Fox News dispatched at least two reporters, Molly Henneberg and James Rosen, to the Van Jones story. For instance, then-America's Newsroom co-host Megyn Kelly said Jones has a “somewhat radical and sometimes racially-charged past,” and asked Henneberg if Jones “described himself as a communist.” Kelly further wondered how Jones became a “czar.” Live Desk covered Jones' past remarks with Rosen and promoted the results of a non-scientific poll finding that 97 percent of Fox News viewers aren't “satisfied with Van Jones' apology” for past remarks. [Media Matters, 3/16/10]

Van Jones Resigned; Beck And Fox “Stories” Receive Credit. On September 6, 2009, Jones resigned, citing that he “cannot in good conscience ask my colleagues to expend precious time and energy defending or explaining my past.” The Huffington Post's Ryan Grim noted that "[b]efore Beck mentioned Jones in the last few weeks on his Fox News television show, Jones remained an obscure figure in the administration. After Beck mentioned him, protesters at town hall meetings made Jones a staple of their complaints." In an October 28, 2009, speech (retrieved from the Congressional Record) on the House floor, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) said: “Fox reports the stories that the national media ignore. For example, without Fox News, you might not have heard about the recent ACORN scandal. You might not have heard about the troubling political associations of the President's former green jobs czar, which eventually led to his resignation.” [Media Matters, 3/16/10]

Wallace: It Is “Certainly The Case That Van Jones Had A History As A Radical, As A Self-Professed Communist.” In a panel discussion about Jones' resignation on the September 6, 2009, edition of Fox Broadcasting Company's Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace stated that “it certainly is the case that Van Jones had a history as a radical, as a self-professed communist, and also, the fact that is -- that he signed a 2004 petition suggesting that there be an investigation of whether or not the government had a role in 9/11.” [Fox News Sunday, 9/6/09]

Fox “News” Division Continued To Track Jones Post-Resignation For Over A Year. Fox News' Special Report has continued to discuss Van Jones despite his White House resignation. Since Jones' resignation, according to Nexis, Special Report has mentioned Van Jones on February 25, 2009, February 24, 2009, October 19, 2009, October 6, 2009, September 28, 2009, September 16, 2009, and September 10, 2009. [Media Matters, 3/16/10]

For The FACTS On Van Jones, Click HERE and HERE.

Smearing OIRA Administrator Cass Sunstein

Beck Led ...

Beck: Obama Official Cass Sunstein Is “The Most Dangerous Man In America.” On the September 22, 2010, edition of his Fox News show, Glenn Beck asserted of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Administrator Cass Sunstein:

BECK: Let me start with the most dangerous man in America: Cass Sunstein. Here he is. He seems like a nice guy. I know Republicans who love him. I know Republicans who say, “I'm crazy about” -- that's fine. That's fine. Let the evidence of his actions and his own words -- and you decide. Let me put them out, and you decide.

I say he's the most dangerous man for a couple of reasons, and for about a year and a half, you haven't understood, because you haven't seen his work, and I haven't been able to point to his work until now. But now that I can -- look out, the clock is ticking. He doesn't have to post his work online anywhere. He doesn't answer to you. He doesn't have to hold a press conference. He doesn't have to do anything except what he wants to do. And you're not gonna know anything about what he's done until long after he's gone.

Now, that's the first reason. The first reason he's dangerous is 'cause you never see him coming. But he's also dangerous because, beside the unlimited, unchecked power that he has to regulate every single industry and every single person in America, he also believes that the best solution for America to fix it, because we both agree it's unsustainable, is the redistribution of wealth and a global government run by elites. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 9/22/10]

Beck: “Sunstein Now Is Saying That Every Website Needs To Include Links To An Opposing View.” On the May 17 edition of his radio show, Beck said: “Cass Sunstein now is saying that every website needs to include links to an opposing view. On every story. You gotta be kidding me.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 5/17/10]

Beck Falsely Claimed Cass Sunstein Believes “You Should Not Be Able To Remove Rats From Your Home If It Causes Them Any Pain.” From the September 9, 2009, edition of Glenn Beck:

BECK: Now, what does that mean for you? Well, from a man who doesn't believe we should be eating meat, from a man who believes that animals should be provided attorneys in the courts of law, a man who believes that everyone must be an organ donor, a man that believes that you should not be able to remove rats from your home if it causes them any pain.

I mean, I'm fond -- you know, when I was 8 -- of the Michael Jackson song “Ben,” I mean, just as much as any 8-year-old kid was. But do you really want a police officer, you know, telling Ben, who's just shown up in your home, “Ben, you have a right to remain silent. If they try to remove you from the home, you have the right to an attorney. And if you can't afford an attorney, Ben, one will be provided for you.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 9/9/09]

Beck Falsely Claimed Sunstein “Believes That Everyone Must Be An Organ Donor.” From the September 9, 2009, edition of Fox News' Glenn Beck:

BECK: Here's what the regulatory czar does, in case you don't know. This is the most powerful man around. He is the most powerful invisible man you'll ever see. He regulates laws -- past, present, and future.

What does he do? What does that mean? It means he can take a law -- he doesn't have to pass anything, he just takes the law -- imagine all of the laws on a big board and they're just nothing but dials and knobs. He just tweaks them.

Now, what does that mean for you? Well, from a man who doesn't believe we should be eating meat, from a man who believes that animals should be provided attorneys in the courts of law, a man who believes that everyone must be an organ donor, a man that believes that you should not be able to remove rats from your home if it causes them any pain. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 9/9/09]

Fox Followed ...

Asman: Sunstein Wants To Create “Truth Commission For The Internet.” On the May 18, 2010, edition of Fox Business' America's Nightly Scoreboard, host David Asman played video clips -- taken from a Naked Emperor Network video and promoted by guest Andrew Breitbart -- of President Obama saying that people should seek out opinions that oppose their own and of a 2001 radio interview in which Sunstein discussed the idea of websites providing links to opposing views and adding that if such a thing was not done voluntarily, “maybe Congress should hold hearings about mandates.” Asman then commented:

ASMAN: Mandates. All right, Scoreboard thinks this is scary stuff. Government mandating editorial content on the Internet. Government deciding what is fair and what is not fair, and what is balanced and what is not balanced. Now, it sounds a lot like the creation of a Ministry of Truth. The man proposing this is Cass Sunstein, he is head of the White House office of information -- obviously, he has the ear of the president, who as we just heard is now sounding the same tone about getting the government directly involved in a kind of truth commission for the Internet. Are we taking all of this too seriously?

[...]

This guy is not just suggesting a nice, pleasant, voluntary suggestion, but he's saying if it's not done voluntarily, the government has to mandate it. [Fox News, America's Nightly Scoreboard, 5/18/10]

Rosen: “Rats Could Attack Us In The Sewers And Court Systems If All Of Cass Sunstein's Writings Became Law.” Fox News reporter James Rosen also referred to Sunstein's writing on rats. From Special Report:

ROSEN: Rats could attack us in the sewer and court systems if all of Cass Sunstein's writings became law. The Harvard Law professor and Obama choice to lead the OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs argued in 2004 that animals, represented by human beings, should be able to sue human beings, and has even questioned whether humans can legally expel rats from our homes if doing so causes the rats distress. [Fox News, Special Report, 9/9/09]

Rosen Also Misrepresented Sunstein's Position On Organ Donation. From the September 9 edition of Special Report:

ROSEN: [T]he professor said it was, quote, “not impossible to defend” the routine removal of organs even from living patients with “certain hopeless conditions” on the basis that the state “own the organs. But Sunstein was willing to settle for ”presumed consent," which would force citizens to opt out of organ donation. [Fox News, Special Report, 9/9/09]

For The Facts On Cass Sunstein, Click HERE.

Smearing Assistant To The President For Science And Technology John Holdren

Beck Led ...

Politifact.Com Gave “Pants On Fire” Status To Beck's Claim That Holdren “Proposed Forced Abortions.” On the July 22, 2009, edition of his Fox News show, Beck claimed that White House advisor John Holdren “proposed forced abortions and putting sterilants in the drinking water to control population.” In response to that claim, PolitiFact.com concluded that the smear was rooted in a book Holdren co-authored and that “the text of the book clearly does not support” Beck's allegation. PolitiFact continued: “We think a thorough reading shows that these were ideas presented as approaches that had been discussed. They were not posed as suggestions or proposals. In fact, the authors make clear that they did not support coercive means of population control. Certainly, nowhere in the book do the authors advocate for forced abortions.” [PolitFact.com, 7/29/09]

Despite Debunking, Beck Repeated Holdren Smear Throughout 2009 And 2010. Beck continued to push the claim long after it had been discredited:

• Beck: Holdren “Believes In The Sterilization Of Man.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 11/30/10]
• Beck: Holdren Wants To Put Sterilants In Drinking Water. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 8/3/10]
• Beck: Holdren Supports “Forced Abortions” And Sterilants. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 5/13/10]
• Beck: Holdren Supported Forced Sterilizations. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 12/11/09]

Fox Followed ...

Hannity Also Repeatedly Claimed Holdren Supported “Forced Sterilization.” On the September 18, 2009, edition of his Fox News program, Hannity asserted that Holdren has “written about population control and has come close to advancing some very unusual theories, including the idea that sterilization capsules could be implanted in people when they reach puberty or by spiking drinking water with chemicals to prevent pregnancy. Now, doesn't it kind of sound like forced sterilization? It does to me.” And on September 2, 2009, Hannity said Holdren has “spoke out in defense of compulsory abortion.” Likewise, on September 8, 2009, Hannity claimed that Holdren “spoke out in defense of compulsory abortion and sterilization.” [Fox News, Hannity, 9/2/09, 9/8/09, 9/18/09, via Media Matters]

Smearing Then-White House Communications Director Anita Dunn

Beck Led ...

Beck Pushed Concocted Story That Dunn “Worships” And “Revere[s]” Mao Zedong. Throughout his October 15, 2009, program, Beck claimed that then-White House communications director Anita Dunn “worships” and “idolizes” “her hero,” Mao Zedong. As evidence, Beck aired a video in which Dunn cited two of her “favorite political philosophers,” Mao Zedong and Mother Teresa during a speech to high school graduates. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 10/15/09]

Beck Continued Attacking Dunn For Mao Comments. Beck continued his campaign against Dunn after the October 15, 2009, program, claiming that she has “admiration” for Mao and that President Obama has “surrounded himself with Mao supporters.” Similarly, on the February 19, 2010, edition of his radio show Beck called Dunn a “Mao-lover,” and a “lizard lady.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 11/19/09; Premiere Radio Networks, The Glenn Beck Program, 2/19/10]

Fox Followed ...

Special Report Followed Beck's Lead In Highlighting Dunn's “Mao” Comments. On October 19, 2009, Fox News' Special Report aired a truncated clip of Dunn's quote, and Fox News contributor Brit Hume responded: “Well, she also said that this is the two people she turns to most. This doesn't sound like it was a one-off attempt to make a joke and imitate the Republican strategist Lee Atwater.” [Fox News, Special Report, 10/19/09]

For the FACTS On Dunn, Click HERE.

Smearing George Soros

Beck Led ...

Beck: George Soros “Is The Head Of The Snake.” From the October 15, 2010, edition of Glenn Beck:

BECK: And that's what they found out in the first progressive movement. If we don't have God, if we don't have him, if we don't -- if we can't control these churches. Wilson, his father was a preacher. Most everybody in the early progressive movement, their father or somebody involved was a preacher. And they hated it. Right? It was a twisted version. And they hated it.

DAVID BARTON : I mean, the ACLU was headed by a preacher in the progressive movement. Americans for Democratic Action, headed by a preacher in the progressive movement. It is amazing how many of those progressive organizations were headed by preachers.

BECK: Well, Jim Wallis. And Jim Wallis today. He's an amazing individual.

CALVIN BEISNER: Who also takes money from George Soros.

BECK: No! It's almost like George Soros is the head of the snake. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 10/15/10]

Beck: The Obama Administration Loaned Money To Brazil In A Plot To Enrich George Soros. In June 2010, Glenn Beck falsely claimed that the Obama administration was lending $2 billion to Brazil to benefit foreign oil interests at the expense of the U.S. economy in order to enrich George Soros:

BECK: I'm not sure if [Soros] knew that the administration would be making a $2 billion preliminary commitment for Petrobras, for Petrobras, for exploration, just days after he strengthened his investment. Isn't that weird? You see, he's got some connections here, but I'm sure he had no idea what was coming on the other side of the circle? No. It's probably just another one of those bad luck situations for Obama, because this doesn't seem to pass the smell test at all. No. Billionaire investor dumps money into a state-controlled Brazilian oil company; days later the American administration dumps $2 billion into the exact same company. What are the odds, Gilligan?

Let's go here. George Soros starts the Center for American Progress with John Podesta. John Podesta, Center for American Progress, selects the Obama transition team. Soros buys $900 million in gasoline powered bras. Then, in a completely unrelated story, BP has their oil spill. But wait a minute, who's this guy? John Podesta. John Podesta is the guy who does all the lobbying for BP? Certainly -- I'm sorry, Tony Podesta -- certainly no relation to John Podesta, other than they're brothers. We'll have to come back to that one later in the show. So then Center for American Progress starts to make Obama policy. This one, we'll show you, laid out by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal. One of the policies: cap and trade, which goes right to Crime Inc. and all of the Obama friends with the Climate Exchange in Chicago. That's weird.

Then Obama suspends the deepwater drilling at 1,500 meters. He says “Hey, hey, that's dangerous! Fifteen hundred meters, that's crazy.” Petrobras is drilling at 2,777 meters. Obama knows it and loans $2 billion to Petrobras. Last stop, Petrobras shareholders get rich. Oh my gosh, we're back at the beginning: shareholder, Petrobras. Getting rich. You getting screwed. You see how this works? [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 6/21/10]

Beck: Soros “Waged A War Against Capitalism” By Saying “It Poses Some Serious Threats.” On the November 10, 2010, edition of his Fox News show, Beck claimed:

BECK: He's waged a war against capitalism.

SOROS: Capitalism is not directly opposed to open society. Nevertheless, it poses some serious threats. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 11/10/10, via Media Matters]

Beck: Soros “Collapses Regimes,” And America Is “His Target Now.” On the November 9, 2010, edition of his Fox News show, Beck claimed:

BECK: Along with currencies, Soros also collapses regimes. With his Open Society Fund, which was founded in 1979, Soros has helped fund the Velvet Revolution in the Czech Republic, the Orange Revolution in the Ukraine, the Rose Revolution in Georgia. He also helped to engineer coups in Slovakia, Croatia, and Yugoslavia. So what is his target now? Us. America. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 11/9/10, via Media Matters]

Beck: Soros Is “One Of The Guys Looking To Replace The Capitalist System Once It's Been Destroyed.” On the June 21, 2010, edition of Glenn Beck, Beck said, “I don't know if [Soros] is a radical that's been trying to implement the Cloward and Piven strategy on collapsing the system.” Beck went on to claim that Soros is “one of the guys looking to replace the capitalist system once it has been destroyed.” This accusation is based on a distortion of a Soros quote. Soros said that the international currency system -- not the capitalist system -- is “broken and needs to be reconstituted.” [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 6/21/10]

Fox Followed ...

Bolling: The Obama Administration “Made $2 Billion Available To Petrobras.” During a guest appearance on Fox & Friends, Eric Bolling, host of Fox Business' Follow The Money said:

BOLLING: You know, Brazil -- you guys ran a sound clip yesterday of Obama saying, “By the way, Brazil, go ahead. Go drill oil, we want you to drill. Here's a, you know.” They made $2 billion available to Petrobras, the Brazilian oil giant.

[Crosstalk]

BOLLING: We did, the Obama administration. Basically saying, “Go ahead. You guys drill. We want to be your biggest and best customer.” Well, he's basically saying, “We want to be more dependent on foreign oil. Not less dependent.”

We're going in the absolute wrong direction. They should make drilling here more available rather than there. Can I just say, real quickly, I know you guys want to jump in, but here's an article out of New Orleans saying the one brand-new permit, the single only brand-new permit since the BP disaster 11 months ago, is a milestone. Why is it a milestone for us to drill? For one -- one well.

Meanwhile, we make $2 billion available to the Brazilian government -- not even the Brazilian government, to a private company.

[...]

CARLSON: Let's go back to Brazil for a minute because there is a connection with George Soros.

BOLLING: Yeah.

CARLSON: What is it?

BOLLING: Okay. Let's do this. We're going to get blasted for this, but George Soros owned, at one point owned, 22 million shares of Petrobras, the company that has available to it those $2 billion in drilling loans. They haven't tapped it. It's available through the Import-Export Bank, which is in the U.S. It allows them to tap $2 billion.

Now, the question is, did he know? Does he know? Who knows? But I will tell you one thing, it's been a great trade for him. It's been very profitable and as everyone knows, George Soros is one of the big contributors to MoveOn.org, big contributor to the Obama--

KILMEADE: And did he know the president was going to say this $2 billion deal? That's what you're saying.

BOLLING: You know what, George Soros has the best information money can buy. I can't make that leap, but maybe he did.

DOOCY: So he stands to make some dough on this?

BOLLING: Oh, he made a ton of money. He made a boatload of money. He sold 22 million shares of common stock, making a ton of money, but then bought preferred shares, which means he still has an investment in Petrobras.

I gotta tell you, I don't hear the $2 billion going to U.S. companies looking to drill. Small drillers would love to have access to that money to borrow and go ahead and drill. But even if they could get the money, they still can't get the permit to drill. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/24/11]

Cavuto Promoted Smear That Obama Is Giving $2 Billion To Brazil At Expense Of U.S. Economy, Asked If Soros Is Involved. From Neil Cavuto's Fox Business interview of Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates:

CAVUTO: Welcome everybody, I'm Neil Cavuto. And now we know what the president and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff really talked about when they pow-wowed this past weekend: oil. Just not in this country, in Rousseff's country. Apparently we are paying for the honor. The U.S. set to lend Brazil $2 billion to produce energy offshore Brazil. What's more that this commitment letter to Brazil's Petrobras offers the possibility of increasing that amount.

Again, for oil off Brazil's shores. Not our shores. Which has a bunch of folks, well, off of our shores sure fired up. To one of them in a second. To what this means right now. We're more interested in finding oil off another country than pursuing the ample supplies readily available in this country. Now eager nations are no doubt lining up to get a piece of the action. Our money for their oil and in the gulf, a growing rage over the president's seemingly growing more out of touch as the “Wall Street Journal” succinctly put it today, “underwriting in Brazil what we won't allow at home.”

[...]

CAVUTO: I'm sorry to interrupt. This is a $2 billion permit we essentially granted Brazil. In fact, we'll help them do it. So what do you make of that, and competitively, what does it do?

HORNBECK: Well, I think it is ridiculous that Petrobras is publicly- traded company. Why isn't he giving money to Chevron and Shell and Exxon and companies here in the United States and putting our people to work in our country. Why are we worried about putting everyone else to work? We have the natural resources. We need to protect ourselves. The world is a very unstable place. You see it in the Middle East.

Just 10 years ago, most of our oil came from Venezuela and Chavez and look what happened there. So we need to protect ourselves and develop our own resources. President Obama by giving money to Brazil, just validated that we need oil and we need it and it is the best alternative that we have and by validating that position, we need to develop our own resources.

CAVUTO: Well, he validated it there, but I'm wondering, and I know you don't get into the political intrigue here, but it is interesting that Petrobras, one of major investors being one George Soros. Do you think that had anything to do with this White House move? [Fox Business, Cavuto, 3/22/11, via Nexis]

O'Reilly: The “Far Left” Wants “A Re-Cast Of The Entire American Economic System, And The Only Way That Can Possibly Happen Is If The System Crashes.” From the April 11 edition of The O'Reilly Factor:

BILL O'REILLY: The far left wants the government to control the economy, not private industry. That's what behind The New York Times, Soros, and other big left operations. Very simply, they want a re-cast of the entire American economic system, and the only way that can possibly happen is if the system crashes like it did in 1929. In theory, an economic collapse could allow a new system to rise: a quasi-socialistic system whereby Washington would dole out the jobs and money.

So this budget issue, while boring on paper, becomes the primary issue of our time -- eclipsing even terrorism. [Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 4/11/11, via Media Matters]

O'Reilly: “People Like The New York Times And Soros Want The System To Crash.” Also from the April 11 edition of The O'Reilly Factor:

BILL O'REILLY: Now, it took me a long time to get here, but I am here. And I believe people like the New York Times and Soros want the system to crash. Because there is no other way on Earth that they could continue to bang the spending drum, as Soros and the New York Times are doing -- keep spending, keep spending, keep spending -- when every economist says the same thing: if you do that going over a cliff economically, all Americans are going to be harmed. So I think they want the system to crash so they can build it back up in the quasi-European image. Your thoughts?

BRIT HUME: My thought would be this, Bill. I don't think that's true. I don't think these people want the system to crash. I think what they think is, because they believe that the government is such a prime mover in the economy, they want to see a continuation of increased spending in the near term because in their view that's how you stimulate the economy.

O'REILLY: Okay, but it hasn't worked, Brit. It hasn't worked in two years. [Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 4/11/11, via Media Matters]

For The FACTS On The Petrobas Smear, Click HERE.