Conservatives Attack Shepard Smith, Call For His Firing
Well you just knew that Shepard Smith's off the reservation intellectual honesty at Fox News would backfire—Conservatives are going after him, some demanding Fox fire him, for the heresy he committed by making comments critical of right-wingers yesterday.
Reporting yesterday after the shooting at the Holocaust Museum, Smith credited the accuracy of a recent Homeland Security warning about violent, right-wing hate groups on the rise. He also mentioned an influx of nutty emails being sent into Fox. For this, he has drawn scorn.
Media Matters points out that a number of anti-Shep diatribes have emerged, not the least of which came from de facto Republican leader Rush Limbaugh.
During his June 11 radio program, Rush Limbaugh said of Smith's remarks: "For liberals to now claim that the atmosphere is somehow more violently anti-Obama is simply preposterous." Limbaugh also said Smith was "whining and moaning and complaining about emails." After stating that he, too, got "vile, sick emails," Limbaugh said, "Shep, you got nothing on anybody out there."
The conservative blog Atlas Shrugs went all the way in calling for Shep's head in a post titled, "Please Shepard Smith Out the Door"
Shepard Smith is scolding us for the 89 year old Nazi Von Brunn — a nut case who served six years in federal prison in the 1980s. Von Brunn had walked into the headquarters of the Federal Reserve System with two guns, a package he said contained dynamite, and a desire to improve the nation's economy, D.C. police said. A certifiable sicko.
How amusing that Shepard feels the need to take this opportunity to scold us for doing the job the Shepardsmithmug media and schmucks like him won't do. He also took the opportunity to vouch for the DHS report on right wing extremism. You know, the one that targeted vets, tea party attendees, Jewish extremists — as the real threats to the country. The 89 year old Nazi Von Brunn served in World War II — are those the new terror threats? WW2 vets? Scary stupidity.
FOX could do so much better than this pompous elitist. If Beck proved anything, it's that if you are halfway talented, your numbers will go through the roof. Beating the competition when you're on FOX is no biggie. The competition of CNN, MSNBC et al drives people to FOX. Leading the leftwing media asshats is not the bar to beat. FOX numbers are the bar. I am sure, for example, if FOX dropped Beck into Greta's spot, he would increase their numbers at 10pm by 30%.
But Shep sucks. And Shep has always sucked, and it's time to get rid of the deadwood.
And World Net Daily, the most widely-read conservative site online, launched a blistering attack, essentially insinuating that Shepard Smith is a closet crazy person capable of snapping just like James von Brunn did:
Smith made numerous references to a Department of Homeland Security report warning of potential violence from "right-wing extremists," and said he's been personally disturbed by an increase in e-mail to him from people "who are way out there on a limb ... out there in a scary place."
He read what he called a representative message that asked, "How dare you tell us to get over the birth certificate ... ?"
Ironically, Smith himself allegedly engaged in activity some might deem questionable.
As WND previously reported, during the presidential election fiasco in November 2000, Smith was arrested at the Florida Capitol for allegedly driving his Mazda Millenia into another reporter who was standing in a parking space she attempted to save for a friend. The victim, freelance journalist Maureen Walsh of Tallahassee, was hospitalized and released later the same day with bruises on her knees and legs.
The St. Petersburg Times reported Capitol Police Sgt. Edwin Maxwell said Smith drove up and "shouted some profanities at her and basically just struck her, striking her at the knees, which threw her up on the car."
According to NewsBlues, a witness to the incident said Smith "intentionally ran into her with his car to try and get her to move from the parking spot. She was thrown onto the hood of the car and ended up on the ground. Smith then parked the car, turned off the engine, turned to the crews assisting the reporter and said "f—- you" and walked into the state capital. Police and paramedics were called."
"When arrested on the street outside the capital, Smith said he couldn't understand why this was happening ... they then handcuffed him."
Meanwhile, Smith talked by phone to an ex-wife of James von Brunn on his show today, who said that his hatred for Jews and blacks began "in New York, when he worked there at an advertising agency." Very fitting.