Some Victims of Calif. Wildfires "Hate America"

http://mediamatters.org/items/200710230008?f=h_top

CNN's Glenn Beck: Some Victims of Calif. Wildfires "Hate America"

Summary:

CNN Should Distance Itself from Conservative Cable & Radio Host's Inappropriate Remarks

Washington, DC - Yesterday on his nationally syndicated radio program, CNN Headline News host Glenn Beck said: "I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today." Beck's comment came as wildfires ravaged parts of Southern California. According to CNN, the evacuation triggered by the fires is the largest evacuation forced by a natural disaster since hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

Audio/Transcript: http://mediamatters.org/items/200710220003

"As these families suffer through the worst natural disaster since Hurricane Katrina, it is wholly inappropriate for Glenn Beck to claim that they 'hate America' simply because they may disagree with his politics. Many of these families have lost everything, and Beck owes them an apology," said Karl Frisch, a spokesman for Media Matters for America. "It's time for CNN to distance itself from Beck's comments or risk being seen as endorsing them."

Beck's comment immediately followed his statement that "we're all one America" and "just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you hate America, and I love America. We all love America. We just disagree on how we should function." Beck had been distinguishing his views from those of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), who, according to the Financial Times, "has urged Republican presidential candidates to capture the political centre ground ahead of next year's election by focusing on healthcare reform and education." Beck criticized Schwarzenegger's proposed strategy as "not the way to win on any front" and offered the following clarification: "When I say on the air, and I've said it a lot lately, that we need to come together, and we need to get back into the center, we're being pushed on to the edges -- I want you to understand, that is not on policies. I don't mean that we come in the center on policies. We come to the center on principles."

From the October 22 broadcast of Premiere Radio Networks' The Glenn Beck Program:

BECK: Schwarzenegger came out over the weekend and he said the Republicans need to run to the center and they need to grab the center. And the headline -- I looked at it, and I went "OK, OK, what is this? What is this? Oh, it's Schwarzenegger. I'm probably going to disagree with it." And then I started reading it, and I absolutely disagreed with it. He said they need to start talking about health care and education. That's not the way to win.

Let's talk about health care and education? That's not the way to win. That's not the way to win on any front. I'm not even talking about -- the least I care about is winning the election. How about winning the war? How about saving our country? And, you know, it made me think. I want to make this very clear. When I say on the air, and I've said it a lot lately, that we need to come together and we need to get back into the center, we're being pushed on to the edges -- I want you to understand, that is not on policies. I don't mean that we come in the center on policies. We come to the center on principles. We come back to the center of the melting pot, that we're all one America, that just because I disagree with you doesn't mean you hate America, and I love America. We all love America. We just disagree on how we should function, what we should do, big government, small government. It doesn't mean you hate America. I think there is a handful of people who hate America. Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today.

There are a few people that hate America. But I don't think the Democrats are those. I think there are those posing as Democrats that are like that. But you don't come into the center. You have to stand up for what you believe in.

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Posted to the web on Tuesday October 23, 2007