Fox News: Bloodbaths, Taco Bowls and The Hunter Biden Nothing-Burger
A condensed overview of 15 hours of Fox News for the week ending 3/24/24
Last week Donald J. Trump said there would be a bloodbath if he was not re-elected during a rally in Ohio. While most media outlets expressed alarm over his comments Fox News declared his statement was taken out of context since it was tossed in the middle of an impromptu rant about the auto industry.
The same man who said he would “grab women by the pussy,” off camera and who said at a rally, "if you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of 'em, would you? Seriously. Okay? Just knock the hell — I promise you, I will pay for the legal fees. I promise. I promise,” was suddenly a completely serious candidate who was misunderstood by an untrustworthy media.
While Fox News hosts weren’t screaming about media figures criticizing their glorious leader’s rage-filled screeds they were ranting about invasions at the southern border. A short clip of desperate migrants rushing a border crossing was played repeatedly on Fox News on every show I covered last week.
The network attempted to hype another sleepy hearing held by the House Oversight and Accountability Committee on nonexistent Biden family influence peddling. In nearly every segment he appeared in Jesse Watters desperately hawked his latest book - one he almost assuredly didn’t write himself.
Shows I covered this week:
Fox & Friends - first hour
The Five
Jesse Watters Primetime
The Bloodbath Freakout Meltdown
On Saturday March 16th during a rally in Ohio Donald J. Trump said, “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”
Trump used the word bloodbath during section of his speech about the auto industry but given his history of using heated rhetoric and dehumanizing language the former president faced an avalanche of criticism for his choice of words.
Fox News and other right-wing media outlets pounced on Trump’s critics claiming he was taken out of context.
On Monday, on “The Five,” Dana Perino opened the segment about what Fox called, “The Bloodbath hoax.”
“It's a real bloodbath for the media, its credibility, liberal press all saying we have to take Donald Trump completely out of context over comments the former president made about a bloodbath in the auto industry,” said Perino.
Judge Jeanine Pirro brought up Rep. Nancy Pelosi, (D-CA).
“The whole idea of that last sound of Pelosi saying, is he going to exact a bloodbath?”
Jesse Watters compared the media coverage of Trump’s statement to an incident where the actor Jussie Smollett invented a fake hate crime.
“This hoax, I believe, was quicker than the Jussie Smollett hoax fake election that was.”
Jessica Tarlov Explains the Freakout Over Trump’s Language
Jessica Tarlov, the best liberal voice on Fox News, didn’t appear on the Monday broadcast. On Thursday the topic was brought up again and Ms. Tarlov came prepared with a list other alarming language the former president has used.
“When they told him (Trump) again that he had lost, that he said,
‘It would induce violence in the street. Bad things will happen and bad things lead to other types of bad things,’ quoting Trump.
In 2023.
‘Death and destruction. If I'm charged by the Manhattan D.A,’ quoting Trump.
In 2023 after the Mar-a-Lago search in August.
‘Terrible things are going to happen,’ quoting Trump.
In 2024
“Bedlam in the country. If criminal charges against me are successful,” quoting Trump.
For added context, Trump opened the same rally where he made the ‘bloodbath comment,’ by saluting the national anthem sung by a choir made up of people who have been either arrested or convicted for various crimes involving the January 6th attack on the U.S. capitol.
The former president referred to them as hostages even though they’ve all had due process. They had a right to counsel and a trial by a jury of their peers.
Trump used terms such as monster, animal, snake and not human to describe migrants. He also claimed or implied that the 2020 election was rigged or stolen 15 times during the same speech.
Other things Trump said during the same speech:
“If this election is not won, I’m not sure we’ll ever have another election again.”
“We have to hit hard and the reason we have to hit hard is we have to win. We have to hit our enemies hard.”
“We don't have free speech anymore today. You speak if they want to put you in jail today. You speak they want to put you in jail, even if you're telling the truth. They want to put you in jail.”
“They're very smart, very streetwise, and I would do the same thing if I had prisons that were teeming with MS13 and all sorts of people that they've got to take care of for the next 50 years. Right? Young people, they're in jail for years, if you call them people. I don't know if you call them people. In some cases they're not people, in my opinion.”
“They're sending their prisoners to see us. They're sending and they're bringing it right to the border and they're dropping them off. And we're allowing them to come in. And these are tougher than anybody we've got in the country. These are hardened criminals and we've got hundreds of thousands of them.”
“And we're not going to take it. We're just not going to take it. We're destroying they are destroying our country. I'm telling you.”
Doocy Goes Rogue When He Explains RICO
On Wednesday the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability held a hearing on ‘Influence Peddling: Examining Joe Biden’s Abuse of Public Office.’
During one heated exchange Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) got into a bit of a shouting match with Tony Bobulinksi, a former business associate of Hunter Biden.
Ocasio-Cortez wanted Bobulinksi to name a specific crime President Biden had committed. Bobolinks gave back a muddled answer that seemed to indicate he was referring to Hunter Biden not his father as he included corruption statutes, RICO and conspiracy, FARA (Foreign Agents Registration Act).
Ocasio-Cortez answered back, “RICO is not a crime, it’s a category.”
Fox News played the brief discussion between the Congresswoman and Bobulinksi on every show I analyzed on Thursday including “Fox & Friends.”
Lawrence Jones started the segment.
“And to see that there is a prosecution that is going on currently against Donald Trump. I mean, it is the Democrats signature charge against the former president, the United States, and to have a sitting member of Congress get up there and not just not be aware of what RICO is, but other laws that he presented to us.”
Ainsley Earhardt attempted to describe RICO.
“RICO is corruption. RICO is racketeering. It stands for Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. It's people who are dishonest in business. And that's what they're accusing Donald Trump of. They're saying that he was corrupt by trying to influence elections in 2020.”
Steve Doocy cleared up the confusion.
“Right. RICO is an act. And essentially what it does is it's a federal law that makes it easier to charge a whole bunch of people, for one thing, and then that can include dozens of actual crimes. It could be murder, it could be racketeering, it could be gambling. It could be conspiracy. And I think at one point Tony Bobulinski did point to it. Yeah, he mentioned conspiracy.”
Normally no one single person could commit a RICO crime since it requires a group of people acting together in a conspiracy to commit a crime or a series of crimes. RICO charges are usually brought against organized crime syndicates or drug cartels.
In the case of the RICO charges against Trump in Georgia he was charged with multiple other individuals who according to the charges levied against them worked together to try to overthrow the outcome of the 2020 election in that state.
Normally RICO charges are brought against groups involved with illegal gambling, murder, kidnapping, extortion, arson, robbery, bribery, dealing in obscene matter, or dealing in a controlled substance.
The RICO law in Georgia is more expansive than the federal law which is one reason why Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis was able to charge Trump and his alleged co-conspirators with RICO charges.
Doocy is a Wet Blanket for the Impeachment Inquiry
Later on, during the same segment Doocy continued to push back against his co-hosts.
“Why didn't Hunter show up? He kept saying, I want to public hearing,” asked Earhardt
Steve Doocy dominated the discussion.
“Hunter didn't show up. Devon Archer didn't show up because his attorney said he was not notified. He didn't have enough time to proceed and prepare. So yesterday was a big day for the committee. Let's see where it goes from here. Right now, I was reading an Axios, apparently, they don't have the votes for impeachment on the Republican side. It sounds like they could wind up just simply taking their stack of stuff that they have assembled over the last number of months, giving it to the Department of Justice,” said Doocy.
He was interrupted by Brian Kilmeade who just spoke right over him.
“They want the president to testify. They are inviting the president to come testify. That's the news. That's coming out of this.,” said Kilmeade.
Doocy took control again.
“Right. I think we heard yesterday from the White House that that is unlikely. But nonetheless, it sounds like they will try to get a criminal referral for the stuff that they presented in the committee from the Department of Justice. But then again, it's Joe Biden's Department of Justice. Will, something happened?” asked Doocy.
The Migrant Invasion Will Turn into a Squatting Invasion
On Thursday producers on “The Five,” featured a short video clip of migrants rushing a gate on the Southern border in El Paso, Texas. They had somehow broken past a line of razor wire.
As the group of migrants tried to break through the gate a few of them got into minor physical altercations with armed Texas National Guard soldiers. No one was hurt during the brief scuffle. The National Guard was able to contain the crowd quickly.
Judge Jeanine Pirro was outraged that there was only one arrest and that the migrants were let past the gate and processed.
She also made a strange leap to assume that the migrants would all attempt to illegally move into people’s homes and refuse to leave under squatter’s rights.
“We let them in, and we say they're on parole. That's baloney. They're not on parole because if you're on parole, your parole officer knows where you are every minute. So, they don't know where they are. They're gone. So of course, they can't give him an NTA notice to appear. That's why nobody is appearing. They don't get the notice because nobody knows where they are in the first place.
This is basically the destruction of civilization. It's the elimination of borders. It's the creation of a globalist landing spot where people are not happy to be here. They're demanding that they be here, that they be accommodated with homes, and they're going to look for your home to enter. And the laws in the United States, in all 50 states to allow squatters to have rights.
It's just a question of 30 days or more than 30 days of your intentionally intending to make this your permanent resident. Here's a bottom line. If these legislators in this state or Congress want to pass a law to give American citizens their right of ownership, they can eliminate all of this squatter nonsense because they're not tenants, they're trespassers. And more than that, they're burglars.”
Jesse Watters - Trump Understands Latinos Because He Makes a Good Taco Bowl
On Wednesday, on “The Five,” Jesse Watters made one of the strangest comments I’ve seen since I started this project in February 2022.
The producers included a clip of President Biden speaking to Latino voters in Phoenix, Arizona.
“The meds looked like they were all from the State of the Union pills. The man is basically running on fumes. One word, actually, two Judge (Judge Pirro), taco bowls. Donald Trump sells taco bowls. They're the greatest taco bowls you've ever eaten. I've tried them. They're delicious. Does Joe Biden sell Taco bowls? No. His family thinks Mexican Americans are tacos. But if you read between the lines about what that statement said, he said, Trump hates you and you like me because I'm Irish.”
There are so many things in a statement like that. Taco bowls are a Mexican inspired American dish.
The first taco bowl was invented sometime during the 1950’s by an American, Elmer Doolin, the founder of Fritos. The first taco bowls called ‘Ta-Cups’ were sold at the Fritos restaurant in Disneyland.
According to the Pew Research Center Mexican Americans make up 34% of the recent Hispanic immigrant population. Another 36% of recent Hispanic immigrants to the U.S. are Guatemalan, Honduran, Dominican or Venezuelan.
I’m also not sure why the fact that one of Trump’s owned restaurants includes taco bowls on its menu would have any connection to his relationship with Latino Americans.
Brian Brenberg Makes Up Economic Theories to Trash Student Loan Forgiveness.
Last week President Biden announced a new program that would forgive $5.8 billion worth of student loans for 78,000 public sector workers who had been making payments for the last 10 years.
On Friday while a guest on “Fox & Friends,” Brian Brenberg of Fox Business trashed the program.
“It's going to take a while for the courts to say, no, you can't. And by that time, November 2024 has already happened. It's very cynical. And as you brought up, it's an inflationary kind of thing. It makes prices worse for people. And so it hits people in all sorts of ways.”
I’m not an economist but I doubt any program that only includes 78,000 Americans would have much of an effect on the national economy.
The average student loan payment is around $500 a month. The public sector workers who will qualify for this program won’t get checks for whatever amount they owe on their loans. They will now have approx. $500 a month they can spend on something else besides their student loan debt.
The United States population is roughly 330 million people with 258.3 million over the age of 18. The civilian workforce amounts to about 166 million adults. A group of 78,000 Americans would account for 0.3% of the total adult population and 0.4% of the adult workforce.
Stories Fox News Ignored
Every week I compare the hours I’ve watched on Fox News to five hours of the PBS NewsHour. The following stories were covered on PBS NewsHour but not on Fox. These stories are as of Friday 3/22/24.
Updates in the Israel-Hamas War
A U.N. backed report found that nearly 1 million people in Gaza are grappling with extreme hunger and Palestinians in Northern Gaza could face famine as soon as May.
In central Gaza 28 people were killed due to three separate Israeli air strikes.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry the total death toll in Gaza so far has reached 32,000 people. The agency does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke virtually to Republican senators in a closed door meeting. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) rejected a request for Netanyahu to address the Senate Democratic Caucus. Schumer said it would “not helpful to Israel,” to have these discussions in a partisan manner.
Updates in the war in Ukraine
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaking in Germany at the 20th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, said that the U.S. remains committed to supporting Ukraine despite additional military funding that is stalled in Congress.
Debris from a Russian missile attack in Kyiv wounded at least 10 people. The Ukranian air force said it shot down two ballistic missiles that were shot from Russian occupied Crimea.
The European Union has devised a plan to use profits from frozen Russian assets to help pay for military support in Ukraine. Under the E.U. plan, 97% of profits generated from assets seized since the start of the war would go to Ukraine.
One million people lost power in Ukraine after the Russian military attacked the civilian electrical grid. At least five people were killed and 14 wounded during the assault.
PBS produced a segment about federal housing assistance programs. Unlike other social safety net programs that continue to expand, federal housing assistance has shrunk to its lowest level in nearly 25 years, even as homelessness and rental prices have hit historic highs.
President Biden announced a new program to help working families lower their housing costs. The plan includes mortgage relief credits and down payment assistance for first generation homeowners.
The National Institute of Health found no evidence of brain injuries or biological abnormalities with Havana Syndrome. The NIH acknowledged the severity of the symptoms related to the mysterious illness.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced a comprehensive ban on asbestos. It is still found in products such as brake linings and gaskets and is used to manufacture chlorine bleach and sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda.
The Supreme Court weighed the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) free speech case against a former New York regulator during oral arguments last week.
During an interview last Monday Former President Donald Trump said that Jews who vote for Democrats “hate Israel” and hate “their religion,” sparking harsh criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
A new national security law in Hong Kong gives the Chinese government more power to crack down on dissent. Critics say the law would further erode the city's autonomy and lead to more abuses on civil liberties.
Two Mississippi police deputies received long prison sentences for their role in breaking into a home with four other white officers and torturing two Black men. U.S. District Judge Tom Lee sentenced Christian Dedmon, 29, to 40 years in prison and Daniel Opdyke, 28, to 17.5 years.
A new study by the United Nations International Labor Organization found a 37% increase in illegal profits from forced labor since 2014.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was formally accused Tuesday of falsifying his COVID-19 vaccination status, marking the first indictment for the embattled far-right leader, with more allegations potentially in store.
The record-breaking heating of the world oceans enters its second year in a row alarming climate scientists. Experts explored a link to El Niño, the climate pattern known for warming up the Pacific Ocean but nothing could explain the dramatic increase in temperatures.
Federal reserve officials decided to keep interest rates steady for the moment but said they expect to make three rate cuts in 2024.
The Congressional Budget Office’s latest long-term budget and economic outlook report projects publicly held debt to reach 166% of gross domestic product, or GDP, in 2054. That’s down from an earlier budget projection that predicted 181% of economic activity in 2053.
More than 230 Americans were airlifted out of Haiti via helicopter last week. The State Department agency reiterated that U.S. citizens should not travel to Haiti and should depart the country when transportation options are available and it’s safe to do so.
Former President Donald J. Trump said he would support a national ban on abortion after 15 weeks in a pregnancy. This is the first time he’s voiced a specific limit on the procedure.
President Biden announced a plan to provide $8.5 billion in grants and loans to Intel under the CHIPS & Science Act to help the company build and expand semiconductor facilities in Arizona, Ohio, New Mexico, and Oregon.
Richard Higgins, one of the last remaining survivors who witnessed the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor has died at the age of 102. On that day, 2,403 U.S. personnel, including 68 civilians, were killed by the airstrike. The U.S. declared war on Japan and entered World War II soon after the attack.
By a razor thin margin California voters have approved a measure that will impose strict requirements on counties to spend on housing and drug treatment programs to tackle the state's homelessness crisis.
Some 1,100 World War II soldiers who served in the so-called "Ghost Army" were honored last week. During the war, they belonged to units that specialized in trickery to outwit the Germans. Their methods included inflatable tanks, sound effects and phony radio transmissions. Thursday, three of the seven known surviving members accepted the Congressional Gold Medal.
Arizona State Senator Eva Burch shared her own personal story about needing an abortion to terminate a wanted pregnancy that is not viable. In order to access care in the state, Burch said she had an "invasive transvaginal ultrasound" that she didn't need.
Dartmouth told the National Labor Relations Board that student basketball players aren't employees. The team voted to unionize earlier this month.
A new study found suicide rates among tank brigades are the highest in the U.S. military. Since 9/11, more than 30,000 active-duty service members or veterans of the post-9/11 wars have died by suicide. That is more than four times the number of those who have died in combat.
President Biden’s nomination of the first Muslim American to a federal appeals court appears to be in peril. Adeel Mangi is a veteran litigator unanimously rated “well qualified” by the American Bar Association, but he’s faced attacks from Republican senators. The White House calls it an Islamophobic smear campaign.
Richard Slayman, 62, of Weymouth, Mass., who is suffering from end-stage kidney disease, was the first human patient to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant.
A new study published in JAMA (Journal for the American Medical Association) showed that the mortality rate among renters who faced eviction was twice as high than expected during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Comprehensive is the understatement of the day describing this edition of Fox Hunt Live, cataloguing their grievances and noting their ignorance, as in ignoring real news. Important work IMO.
Trump is the boy who cried wolf. He is guilty 10x over of using language that encourages violence.
I watched the ‘bloodbath” quite in full. The entire hour+ speech. And as incredulous as it sounds… he was in fact talking in context of a financial bloodbath for the auto industry.
But like the boy who cried wolf, it does not matter when he later cries it truthfully. He is finally and rightfully judged for his previous offenses. Trump has called for violence again and again and again. He has pointedly dodged questions about political violence. He is guilty as sin. And the poor, sensational coverage around “bloodbath” is like a football ref giving a make-up call after inadvertently making a bad call earlier in the game.
Believe me, using “bloodbath” to describe an auto industry tariff situation SOUNDS like bull shit because we KNOW who Trump is. Whether or not the assessment is correct. Trump’s comeuppance certainly IS.
It’s fine to enjoy the poetic justice. In the big picture, it is the correct assessment of the language EVEN if it was truly not his intent in THAT moment.