Sean Hannity baselessly blamed Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters for a shooting in the newsroom of the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland today. Yet Hannity and his beloved Donald Trump, not Waters, have a long history of inflammatory rhetoric attacking the press.
To be clear, we don’t know yet who the shooter is nor the motive but Hannity doesn’t need no stinking facts to use tragedy for political gain. Hannity even smeared the media while he was at it.
Media Matters caught Hannity's remarks on his radio show today (my emphases added):
HANNITY: It's so sad that there are so many sick, demented, and evil people in this world. It really is sad. You know, imagine you go to work and this is what you're dealing with today, some crazy person comes in -- and I'm not turning this into a gun debate, I know that's where the media will be in 30 seconds from now. That's not it. You know, as I've always said, I mean honestly -- I've been saying now for days that something horrible was going to happen because of the rhetoric. Really [Rep.] Maxine [Waters]? You want people to create -- "call your friends, get in their faces," and Obama said that, too. "Get in their faces, call them out, call your friends, get protesters, follow them into restaurants and shopping malls," and wherever else she said.
But it is Hannity’s bedtime BFF, Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called the press “the enemy of the American people.” Two weeks ago, just after returning from his meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, Trump suggested CNN and NBC are “Our Country’s biggest enemy.”
So funny to watch the Fake News, especially NBC and CNN. They are fighting hard to downplay the deal with North Korea. 500 days ago they would have “begged” for this deal-looked like war would break out. Our Country’s biggest enemy is the Fake News so easily promulgated by fools!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2018
Hannity has been an eager helpmate in Trump’s demonization.
When Trump tweeted a mock video of himself beating up someone labeled “CNN,” Hannity cheered:
Hilarious tweet. The fact that the destroy Trump media is melting down just makes it better! #VeryFakeNews https://t.co/KyuaiUddC5
— Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) July 2, 2017
This is a typical example of how Hannity talks about the media these days:
HANNITY: The media has been corrupt and lying to you, the America people. At the end of the day they are nothing but propagandist, an extension of the Democratic Party and tin foil hat conspiracy theorists that are so pathologically locked in their hate of President Trump they don't know any better at this point.
Monday night, Hannity was delighted by a crowd shouting taunts at CNN reporter Jim Acosta. “Best newscast they ever did, actually," Hannity said.
I wonder how amused Hannity would be if a crowd of liberals shouted taunts at him that way.
But yeah, I’m sure the Maryland shooter got the idea from Waters, who never said anything attacking the press or endorsing violence. Unlike Hannity’s beloved.
Listen to Hannity blame Waters for the Maryland newsroom shooting below, from the June 28, 2018 The Sean Hannity Show, via Media Matters. Underneath, watch his glee over what could have been a very dangerous situation for CNN’s Acosta, from the June 25, 2018 Hannity, via The Contemptor.
Hannity cackles with glee over CNN's Jim Acosta being heckled by Trump rally crowd during live report. "Ouch! Ouch! That hurts. Best newscast they ever did, actually." #civility pic.twitter.com/4NbORAdmhi
— Contemptor (@TheContemptor) June 26, 2018
We want the masses to call every talker on radio, local and national, and remind the nation that the rhetoric coming from this old hawk is what’s wrong with the world today.
Add sting to your comments by using this comment:
“I find it disheartening that nonprofit organizations continue to invite him to speak at their events. They must condone his hateful rhetoric, as well.”
Pie and Darth Trumpy have risen from the Abyss, exposing their six horns to the world.
From what I can see, the man was a deranged lunatic who, surprise surprise, was able to arm himself with guns and enough ammo to not only attack the newspaper office, but to calmly reload while he was in the middle of the office shooting people. This has nothing to do with Maxine Waters, and everything to do with how the Right Wing has emboldened angry people to act on their vilest impulses, particularly against the “Fake News”. And of course it’s example 256,156 of how the NRA has choked off all discussion of limiting people’s access to dangerous weapons.
In Foxie land where dumb is king,
When Sean is on here’s what we sing:
When you spew right wing views
And your friends all hate Jews
That’s A Moron,
When you lie with such glee
With an I-Q of three
That’s A Moron,
Bells will ring ting-a-ling-a-ling, ting-a-ling-a-ling
And your friends will sal-i-vate,
Hearts will play tippy-tippy-tay, tippy-tippy-tay
Don’t peddling hate pay so great,
When the spin makes you croak
Like a nut-zoid on coke
That’s A Moron,
When you bitch and you moan like a paranoid clone
You’re insane,
When you rally your troops
With your big piles of poop
Jesus weeps,
‘Scuz-a-me, can’t you see, here in reality
That’s A Moron, A Moron, That’s A Moron!
:^)