Feeds: 
symbol identifies content for paid subscribers only.
Glenn Beck's Sources.
At the Windy, Dave Weigel traces the cause and effect of a Glenn Beck "investigative" story and outbursts at town hall meetings. After Beck ran a hit piece on Van Jones, Special Advisor for Green Jobs at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, referring to him as Obama's "green czar" and accusing him of a radical conspiracy to funnel money from the stimulus bill to "left-leaning allies," his talking points were echoed at a town hall in Indiana.
There's no doubt that Beck is playing a crucial role in fueling the mad, conspiracy-driven town hall events. But he didn't dream up the idea of targeting Jones for being a former communist, and for driving smears that he was part of an evil plot by radical black communists to take over the U.S. government by purloining federal funds for their own insidious uses. Back in April, World Net Daily ran a piece by Aaron Klein, "Will a 'red' help blacks go green? White House appoints 'radical communist' who sees environment as racial issue."
Klein is no stranger to accusing Obama and his allies of being communists with links to terrorists, both domestic and foreign. Last year, in the Nation, Ari Berman detailed Klein's role in circulating accusations of Obama's "terrorist connections." These breathless claims made their way around the conservative media, and eventually into the mainstream media as well. After Obama was elected, Klein focused on red-baiting, penning stories like "Communist Party strategist maps out Obama's agenda."
On August 13, two weeks before Beck's broadcast, Klein's public relations firm sent an email with the subject line, "Obama's 'green jobs czar' worked with terror founder." In that email, he claimed that Jeff Jones, a director of the Apollo Alliance, on whose board Van Jones served, was a founding member of the Weather Underground. Sound familiar? Terrorists, communists, they're all taking over Washington!
But Beck is so tangled in his conspiracy theories that he can't tell a communist from a capitalist. After his Jones broadcast this week, he worried on the air that Obama was going to "seize power overnight" -- raising the communist fears -- but simultaneously claimed that his rival network, MSNBC, which is owned by General Electric, number six on the Fortune 500 list -- is in on the act. It's all quite mad: while asserting that communists were poised to control government coffers, he was insisting that MSNBC is an "organ" of the White House. Next thing you know, Beck will be claiming that Jack Donaghy is a communist terrorist jihadist racist bent on destroying America.
--Sarah Posner
COMMENTS (14)
We should investigate Glenn's
relation with KKK and other white suppremasist who are trying to destroy our country.
Posted by: John Q. | August 28, 2009 4:18 PM
You can say conspiracy all you want. You can't answer why there are a lot more than half of America "AGAINST" Obama's ideas now. As for Van Jones, he is an attorney. If Glenn Beck said "ANYTIHNG" at all untruthful why doesn't he sue him? I think even you know that answer.
Posted by: ThatGuy | August 28, 2009 4:21 PM
How the hell is the KKK any different from the Black Panthers. our local KKK order are every bit as peaceful as the militant Black Panther members I have seen.
Posted by: ThatGuy | August 28, 2009 4:24 PM
Glenn Beck and Limbaugh want to destroy the country and blame Obama. They really need to face a federal or criminal charge, because if I had gone carrying a firearm at a Bush rally, I'd still be in jail.
Posted by: Bill | August 28, 2009 4:49 PM
@ ThatGuy - because to sue someone for slander, the individual who is suing needs to prove damages, and it doesn't appear that the lies have damaged Van Jones in any legally sufficient way. Moreover, for public people, the standard is very high. It really wouldn't be worth it to sue an idiot like Beck.
Posted by: Amy | August 28, 2009 5:07 PM
How dare Beck use actual quotes, video footage and arrest records to prove his points. He is not being sued bc truth is an absolute defense to libel and slander.
Posted by: Publius | August 28, 2009 5:16 PM
History does repeat for those who do not understand or study history. Adolf wanted vast social change too. Zeig heil! Hugo chavez even called Obama comrade. Guilty by association.
Posted by: John wilkes boothe | August 28, 2009 6:54 PM
The following URL gives you the truth about Glenn Beck's attach on Van Jones. What more do you need? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eva-paterson/glenn-becks-attack-on-van_b_271518.html
Posted by: MaryAnnT | August 28, 2009 8:03 PM
The Huff and Puff post the piece of garabage is printed in obamas garage isn't it. Beck tells the truth and "you people" can not stand it.Well get ready for a whole hell of a lot more.
Posted by: ThatGuy | August 28, 2009 9:43 PM
I was hoping that this post would actually dispute Beck's charges. Why didn't Sarah make any attempt to refute them?
Oh, because they are true. It's not conspiracy-mongering to say that Van Jones was a communist. he said so himself.
Now if Sarah wants to make the claim that Communists in the government aren't a problem, then she should defend that claim, not attack the people who are telling us that Jones was a communist.
Posted by: Adam Herman | August 29, 2009 3:13 AM
aaron klein is no. 1!!!!
Posted by: amit | August 30, 2009 7:36 AM
Aaron Klein makes good ice-t
Posted by: MYFIT | August 30, 2009 7:39 AM
It should be clear to all you disgruntled Paultards that he(Beck) doesn't actually do any research, on the show The View he openly admitted that when cornered on his blatant lies. He's got nothing so he's gotta fill time with something...
"This is what really happened. On May 8, 1992, the week AFTER the Rodney King disturbances, I sent a staff attorney and Van out to be legal monitors at a peaceful march in San Francisco. The local police, perhaps understandably nervous, stopped the march and arrested hundreds of people -- including all the legal monitors.
The matter was quickly sorted out; Van and my staff attorney were released within a few hours. All charges against them were dropped. Van was part of a successful class action lawsuit later; the City of San Francisco ultimately compensated him financially for his unjust arrest (a rare outcome).
So the unwarranted arrest at a peaceful march -- for which the charges were dropped and for which Van was financially compensated -- is the sole basis for the smear that he is some kind of dangerous criminal.
Beck also bizarrely claims that Van was arrested in the Seattle WTO protests. That is just a flat-out falsehood.
You don't have to take my word for it. Arrests and convictions are all a matter of public record. Beck is at best relying on Internet rumors or even inventing claims to boost his ratings.
A simple Internet search shows that this claim is false. A March 10, 2009, press release announced that Van was hired by the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality - to work on her staff as a "special advisor."
In other words, Van is within the normal White House chain of command, reporting to an office confirmed by the United States Senate, just like most White House staffers. Media outlets sometimes use the "czar" shorthand. But the facts show that Van has no mysterious role or extra-constitutional powers.
Beck has implied on two occasions that Van Jones and other Obama appointees were not vetted by the FBI. False. I was interviewed in my own office by an FBI agent, dutifully vetting Van. Yet another fabrication on the part of Mr. Beck.
Beck also claims that Van has somehow gained control over $500 million in Green Jobs Act funding and can hand out millions of dollars at his whim. Again, that is patently ridiculous."
You people's ignorance will be your downfall.
Posted by: Manamongst Hussein | August 31, 2009 9:38 AM
Manamongst Hussein yeah I will get my info from someone that doesn't sound like the fuckin 20 terriost.
Posted by: ThatGuy | September 3, 2009 4:40 PM