Beck is clearly doing this to cause controversy and piss off those on the left and generate as much publicity for his show as possible to make sure all the already pissed of right-wingers will watch his show. He doesn't believe half of the crap he is speaking, but he knows the more radical he speaks the more will watch and propel him to o'reilly status/wages. It would be genius if it wasn't so dangerous. At a time when economic woes affect all, wars are still raging and a new, young presidency is only in it's 3rd month the last thing america needs are people (beck/rush/o'reilly) who want to fan the flames of pessimism, fear and doom to fatten their own wallets. And before any one comes with the 'liberals were always bashing Bush' arguement, not this vemomiously at the start of his presidency they weren't, and not when such great challenges as the aftermath of 9/11 arose, people got behind Bush because it was in the national interest.
Obama didn't cause the economic crisis, and he hasn't started any unneccessary wars, and he hasn't done 0.01% of the other stupid things Bush did. If he does then by all means mock him, castrate the man, whatever…but this whole hysteria of trying to destroy him before he has even started, or wishing everything he does fails is stupid; if he fails, we all get hurt, fours years is a long time.

@dan1984:
i agree totally, he knows exactly the game he's playing.

what you said above is exactly what i was trying to get across in an earlier post. because times are so desperate for so many right now, it is dangerous fan the flames of 'us against them' — and beck is the ring leader in this stupid theater.

i cannot fathom how the far right can be so 'sensitive' to every little thing, when they blissfully had their eyes closed tightly over the past years when the real sh*t was hitting the fan. where was the rage then?

I am just amazed that people praise a show like this and consider it "news". Give me a break.

@weezy: @Jen: I'm sure you guys remember when it was unpatriotic and all but terrorism to criticize the President of the US on any matter whatsoever? Those days are not so long ago, but damned if the mood hasn't changed a LOT, no? Apparently it was a threat to the foundations of democracy only when G.W.Bush was at the helm.

@weezy: that's what is so perplexing about all of this, they didn't say anything back then because they agreed with it all or were to enamoured with Rove/Cheney's the 'more you agree with us the more you love your country' crap to think for themselves and dispute it… in a way Beck (who i actually think is trying to be Colbert but without the irony; a kinda humorous comical O'reilly i guess) and the rest of the Fox news brigade are just continuing the idea that the more you lean to the right the more you, obviously,love america. As stupid as it sounds they really think that opposing everything the president supports is patriotism because of who this president is. I mean how many times did Bush do something that put america in harms way and how many times did he turn his back on the basic principles of his conservatism? But did you hear a squeak of denouncement from the righties…No.
If it was Bush doing everything Obama has done in the last 3 months (i know it's hard to imagine, bush speaking eloquently and representing America to the world in a dignified and enlightened manner), these fools would be fawning not the foaming at the mouth they are doing instead.

@bam-a-lam: exactly, it's no longer 'un-american' to criticise because, um, you know, the president's not really 'america', so it's OK. Beck says what he says because he (teary eyed)'loves his country'…obviously more than Obama and liberals.

when beck first moved to fox, my dad acually asked me to 'do him a favor' and watch his show because he is such a nice christian man, and really loves this country. he was actually TOUCHED that beck cried for his country!

that about sums up what his audience believes. it would be funny if it weren't so pathetic.

remember how people actually had bonfires of dixie chick CDs because they said they were 'ashamed bush was from texas'? can you imagine what the right would do if a liberal pulled a stunt like above? TREASON!!!!

@weezy: Nice Christian man who is a fear monger and mock fire-lighter. It is sad, he is soooo nice.

@dan1984: Even though this president, unlike the previous one, actually won both electoral votes AND popular vote (by a pretty healthy margin), with no shady Florida recounts and "hanging chads" nonsense involved, this president is somehow barely legitimate. The hypocrisy is astounding.

@weezy: Oh, yeah. Radio stations pulled their music, Toby Keith ramped up the patriotic releases and totally capitalized on the moment (even tho I enjoy his music, that still irked me), and "patriots" everywhere were ready to burn the Dixie Chicks at the stake. Witch hunts are alive and well after all.

@bam:

exactly. i just do not get it. where have these moral people been all these years?

@dan1984: Beck loves his job and paycheck, Period. The news anymore is like Superbowl coverage - tons of so-called commentary and advertisements for comparatively brief content.

@bam-a-lam: the hypocrisy is astounding indeed. The rights defence of Bush was that he was elected by the people, so everything he did was legitimate, but now that the tables are turned you get Beck and his like trying the 'we the people' arguement AGAINST Obama.
You couldn't make this stuff up. Beck telling Obama the type of change people voted for and that Obama's actions are going against this. I'm sorry, did i miss something? did Beck vote for Obama and his change? oh, that's why he must be so upset/lunatic-pretend-angry because he's not getting the change he wanted!! Puh-lease Beck and the right(ons) were on the wrong side of the majority, Obama has a mandate and everything he stands for (that they vehemently hate) is what the majority opted for. Deal with it.

@weezy: They've been busy buying up every flag pin and stupid flag ribbon thing that can be plastered on their cars, because you know you have to display the fact that you're patriotic or else you're just a terrorist in waiting. Until now, that is. Now, it's unpatriotic to support the president.

My parents turned Republican in the 80's, and every time we'd come home for Christmas or whatever, we had to be seen traveling in the mom car with her Reagan or Bush bumper stickers. We were raised in a rabidly Democratic household, and as Methodists. Then we come home and lo and behold, our folks were Republicans and Baptists. It was jarring, to say the least, to see such a complete turnaround. They pretended to not know where in hell we came up with our liberal views!? Very odd.

@dan1984: I have to laugh when I recall my parents' change, but it's really typical of the whole right wing mindset and how they present their views, in a way.

'Whatever WE want is good and right, whatever YOU want is deranged and dangerous. What ABOUT the Constitution? It needs to be rewritten anyway, until we, the right, agree with it. That's why we are the RIGHT.'

@bam-a-lam: Bam, do you happen to be from the South? As a former Southerner I know that it used to be majority Democrats and then switched to majority Republican in the 80s.

@bam-a-lam: that's a pretty fascinating and actually quite scary story, if my pretty liberal parents suddenly converted to the other side, i'd be shattered, because it would really reinforce that old saying of being young and conservative is to have no heart but to be old and socialist is to have no brain….i want to fight against that cliche.

You're right about the 'RIGHT' thing. Why the hell did liberals ever let them collar that word to describe their political stance, given what else it means. I blame the french and their refusal to accept the english language, and so not comprehending the future righteousness of the righteous Right?

@Jen: Oh, yeah, I am. I lived in Illinois during the 80's however, in a very liberal college town. Helloooo, Carbondale! Awesome town. I'm not quite sure what happened, but in my little section of this very Red state, we still vote overwhelmingly Democrat. Or we did, until our newly elected Governor started raising the hell out of taxes. I suspect the next election will be different.

what a f—ing joke.

@bam-a-lam: I have lived in a Red State (TN), Red/Blue (OH) and now a Blue (MA) and I must say that it gives you an interesting perspective on politics.

@dan1984: They definitely showed a less tolerant and meaner attitude in general. We kind of figured it was because as they stockpiled more money, their political stance turned to whatever would protect their financial interests, which I do understand, actually. We live in a town where probably 70% of the population is on government welfare and we have generational poverty that goes back to god knows when. Constant exposure to people who have absolutely zero interest or motivation to improve themselves or their kids' lives does get to you after a while. I recently rented the old family home out to a family of 2 adults and 4 kids, on HUD, but terminated the lease 6 months early. They had filled the house with relatives that hailed from every corner of the nation and each one came with a check from the gov. Every square inch was occupied by people who did absolutely nothing but trash the house and wait for a check. It was depressing.

@bam-a-lam: I agree with you, it does in the end become about securing ones finances and providing for later years that leads to a more conservative disposition. And that is perfectly understandable. And it even annoys my bleeding-liberal-heart-strings when i see perfectly capable, able-bodied of age people taking advantage of the ideas of equality. Hate them as much as the thieving bankers.

@Jen: I lived in Tennessee myself, during the second Bush election. Loved the state in all its beauty. I still miss it. Lived in Dallas, then Jacksonville, FL, where we were a US Navy family. You do get different perspectives and a decent understanding of why people vote the way they do. Much more than you get from watching these crazy news shows.

When Obama was campaigning, he made a stopover in Mississippi, about 40 miles from where I live. This area is so full of the type of ignorance you only read about that his people were instructed that if ANY advance notice of his drop-in was given and a crowd was waiting, he would fly right on by and not stop. He damned sure didn't want the kind of crowd on hand that would turn away potential voters who would see it on TV, and trust me, they would have done just that.

Pretty funny stuff and of course a "wink & nod" put-on.

@dan1984: We have adults here who have their kids deemed mentally challenged for the sole purpose of collecting another check. I know some of these people personally, and their families. There's nothing wrong with most of these kids, in fact one young boy in particular that I know is a helluva smart kid. He's 7, and his little brain works overtime figuring things out. God, he has so much potential it kills me to see his mother, who does nothing, yell at him for trying to "be smart" as she calls it. It never occurs to her that he could actually amount to something and pull himself and his future family out of poverty. No check for mama in that scenario, is there?

@bam-a-lam: there are some insufferable human beings that will defraud the system for their own pathetic end, be they benefit cheats who are stealing from those actually in great need of government aide or be they wall street thieves who steal from the tax-payer….it's all greed; doing as little as possible for as much as possible, screw everybody else. And in the mean time true poverty kills infants and the disabled and the elderly are ignored.

I regret that Bill Schultz subjected himself to this moronic skit. The only show on Fox I watch with any regularity is Red-Eye, and the main reason for this is Bill Schultz (i.e., the guy getting doused with water). Schultz is a liberal on a convervative show, and he is as quick-witted as they come. I used to dismiss Red-Eye until my sister insisted it was funny. Then I watched a few episodes and I was hooked. If you're a hard-core left-wing ideologue you might not like the fact that the show's over-all sensibility is right of center, but give it a shot anyway.