Obama aide fires back at Beck over Mao remarks

[Judi Lynn]

Source: CNN News

Obama aide fires back at Beck over Mao remarks
updated 30 minutes ago

By Ed Hornick
CNN


WASHINGTON (CNN) -- White House communications director Anita Dunn fired back at criticism from TV commentator Glenn Beck on Friday, saying that a Mao Tse-tung quote Beck took issue with was picked up from legendary GOP strategist Lee Atwater.

"The Mao quote is one I picked up from the late Republican strategist Lee Atwater from something I read in the late 1980s, so I hope I don't get my progressive friends mad at me," Dunn told CNN.

As for Beck's criticism: "The use of the phrase 'favorite political philosophers' was intended as irony, but clearly the effort fell flat -- at least with a certain Fox commentator whose sense of irony may be missing."

On Thursday night's program, Beck showed exclusive video of Dunn discussing the communist leader, who was responsible for a cultural revolution in 1966 that included re-education camps and setting the army and students on witch hunts against his opponents.



Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/16/becks.dunn/index.html

[bluestateguy]

1. This woman (Dunn) is a pitbull

She won't take any crapola from Fox.

[24601]

22. So you are saying she is a dog? n/t

[BOSSHOG]

2. But beck knows what his listeners will believe

If President Obama promoted walking as a way to fitness, beck would declare that obesity and poor health were patriotic.

Hey, glen says he's gonna open a can of worms next week. I bet his lemmings can hardly wait.

[emulatorloo]

3. I can't make heads or tails out of this story. Very poorly written by CNN.

It is not clear what Dunn is trying to say. Just seems really garbled to me.

Maybe somebody can explain this to me in plain English.

[WriteDown]

7. Looks like Dunn claimed that Chairman Mao is one of

her favorite philosophers. I'm fond of Stalin myself. :eyes:

[question everything]

13. Same here. But a post downstream #4

explains it.

[Judi Lynn]

4. NY Times blog: White House Vs. Fox: Chairman Mao

October 16, 2009 , 1:52 pm
White House Vs. Fox: Chairman Mao
By Sheryl Gay Stolberg
The war of words between the White House and Fox News is intensifying — and getting personal.

Glenn Beck, the outspoken Fox commentator, has unearthed a video showing Anita Dunn, the White House communications director, giving a speech in June in which she identifies Mao Zedong, the Chinese communist revolutionary as one of two favorite political philosophers. (The other, she said, is Mother Teresa.) Ms. Dunn’s take was all about how people can make their own choices to get involved, or in quoting someone seeking Mother Teresa’s help, as “Find Your Own Calcutta.”

The video has sparked an uproar in the conservative blogosphere, fueled by Mr. Beck, who claimed on his program that there are “Marxist revolutionaries who have dedicated themselves to principles that will destroy our nation as we know it.” He installed a red phone line in his studio and demanded, on air, that Ms. Dunn call in.

So far, the red phone isn’t ringing, and Ms. Dunn said she isn’t planning on using it anytime soon.

In an e-mail message, Ms. Dunn said, “My source for the Mao quote was actually the late Lee Atwater, either in an article or bio I read after the 1988 election. Now that I’ve revealed this I hope I don’t get Keith Olbermann angry with me. Let it be noted that I also quoted Mother Teresa, but no one is accusing me of being a saint!”

The speech she gave was a high school commencement address. Ms. Dunn says that the line about Mao and Mother Teresa was intended to be ironic – neither are political philosophers – and that she used it simply to illustrate a larger point about the importance of challenging the conventional wisdom.

It’s no surprise that Mr. Beck singled out Ms. Dunn. She has been on the forefront of White House pushback against Fox News. On the White House blog weeks ago, she took apart Mr. Beck’s list of the so-called “czars,” pointing out that many on his hit list were confirmed by the Senate or positions held in the Bush administration.

More:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/16/white-house-vs-fox-chairman-mao/?hp

[Judi Lynn]

5. Paging Glenn Beck: Norquist hung a portrait of Lenin in his Washington living room

Paging Glenn Beck: Norquist hung a portrait of Lenin in his Washington living room
October 16, 2009 1:59 pm ET by Brian Frederick

In recent days, Glenn Beck has turned his neo-McCarthyite crusade against communism and "czars" against Anita Dunn after Dunn said of Fox News: "As they are undertaking a war against Barack Obama and the White House, we don't need to pretend that this is the way that legitimate news organizations behave." Beck devoted most of his October 15 Fox News show to claiming that Dunn "worships" and "idolizes" "her hero" Mao Zedong. Dunn had once commented that Mao and Mother Teresa were two of her "favorite political philosophers."

Of course, Beck excels at turning molehills into mountains of misinformation. If Beck were to actually turn his specious spotlight on conservatives who have cited or praised influential communist figures, he would have at least a week's worth of shows. That list includes fellow Fox News friend Newt Gingrich; former Christian Coalition director Ralph Reed; Stephen Shadegg, adviser and "alter ego" of Sen. Barry Goldwater (Beck has repeatedly called on Republicans to "get back to the conservative roots of Barry Goldwater"); Peter Germanis, who served as a senior policy analyst in the Reagan administration; and even President Bush, who encouraged Karl Rove to read a Mao biography and whose Social Security reform strategy was reportedly influenced by Lenin.

Beck's crack research staff could fill in the details and no doubt find even more tenuous communist connections among conservatives. But there's one conservative that would provide Beck with endless material if his anti-communist witch hunt was actually anything more than a shtick to smear the Obama administration and play to his conservative base.

More:
http://mediamatters.org/blog/200910160023

[WriteDown]

6. Ugh...Mao? Seriously?

Foolish thing to ever utter.

[Wickerman]

9. even in jest that is a tough choice...

But if you go carrying pictures of chairman Mao,

You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow

[Arugula Latte]

20. Don't you know it's gonna be all right.

[Hercules40]

8. Her words are fine

Sorry -- she has said nothing alarming or upsetting. It's just that Glenn Beck is not intelligent enough to understand what she said.

And of course, he will find any excuse to attack her.

[Arugula Latte]

19. Welcome to DU, Hercules40!

:hi: :toast:

[sabra]

10. Obama aide fires back at Beck over Mao remarks

Source: CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) – White House communications director Anita Dunn fired back at criticism from TV commentator Glenn Beck on Friday, saying that a Mao Tse-tung quote Beck took issue with was picked up from legendary GOP strategist Lee Atwater.

"The Mao quote is one I picked up from the late Republican strategist Lee Atwater from something I read in the late 1980s, so I hope I don't get my progressive friends mad at me," Dunn told CNN.

As for Beck's criticism: "The use of the phrase 'favorite political philosophers' was intended as irony, but clearly the effort fell flat — at least with a certain Fox commentator whose sense of irony may be missing."

On Thursday night's program, Beck showed exclusive video of Dunn discussing the communist leader, who was responsible for a cultural revolution in 1966 that included re-education camps and setting the army and students on witch hunts against his opponents.

Millions of Chinese suffered or died, most notably teachers, writers, political opponents or anyone deemed a "reactionary."

Read more: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/10/16/obama-aide-fires-back-at-beck-over-mao-remarks/

[liberal N proud]

11. Beck is a clueless little pimple on Limbaugh's ass

[stlsaxman]

12. Liumbaugh played the same Dunn tape today and ranted a while about it.

[Mari333]

17. Michael Savage played it all evening tonight also

[stlsaxman]

21. it's like- that's all they got!?!?

I think Obama's "Grab a mop" sound bite yesterday is gonna go viral!

[madrchsod]

14. the chinese communist government and chinese communist military

are our biggest trading partners.they also hold most of our debt.

so glen...you should make sure everything you buy is made in america

[Canuckistanian]

18. They can't risk insulting the Chinese

After all, the government is still solidly communist with a direct lineage to Mao.

Who am I kidding? They'll insult anybody for political advantage.

[Cha]

15. All I got to say is..

Fuck the ghost of joe mccarthy and his latter day wannabes.

[classysassy]

16. Oh Glennie

my boy,how much longer will you be able to fool,the fools that watch you on the faux.?