CNN’s Glenn Beck compares Santorum to Winston Churchill

February 26, 2008

Remember, CNN pays this guy lots of money.

This morning on NPR, host Steve Inskeep asked right-wing pundit Glenn Beck who the “rising star” is in the conservative movement. Beck’s response? Defeated senator Rick Santorum. “I think the guy is a Winston Churchill in many ways,” said Beck.

“You know, there’s really only one guy that I’ve talked to that I really really like. I think the guy is a Winston Churchill in many ways. He blew his Senate campaign because he spoke the truth. His advisers kept saying, ‘Don’t say this, don’t say this, this is going to hurt you.’

“And that’s Rick Santorum out of Pennsylvania. I think this guy really has it. I think he really understands the world we live in right now.”

So, when Beck isn’t calling Democrats communists on the air, or suggesting wildfire victims “hate America,” or agreeing with al Qaeda about America’s shortcomings, or defending the John Birth Society, Glenn Beck is arguing that Rick “Man on Dog” Santorum reminds him of Winston Churchill.

I’m curious, do you suppose CNN ever feels a twinge of embarrassment signing this guy’s very large checks?

For what it’s worth, Amanda at TP notes that Santorum probably approves of the historical comparison.

Whereas Churchill was actually battling Adolf Hitler and the Nazis in World War II, Santorum likes to pretend he is fighting a similar foe. In 2005, he blasted Democrats blocking President Bush’s judicial nominees and compared them to “Adolf Hitler in 1942”:

“Some are suggesting we’re trying to change the law, we’re trying to break the rules. Remarkable. Remarkable hubris.

“I mean, imagine. The rule has been in place for 214 years that this is the way we confirm judges. Broken by the other side two years ago, and the audacity of some members to stand up and say, “How dare you break this rule?”

“It’s the equivalent of Adolf Hitler in 1942: ‘I’m in Paris. How dare you invade me? How dare you bomb my city? It’s mine.'”

Amazing this guy only lost by 18 points.

Why the hell is NPR even talking to Beck? Who cares what he thinks about anything?

  • Why the hell is NPR even talking to Beck?

    Because they’re the Nice Poilte Republicans.

    I love how they still put Juan Williams on all the time, without ever noting that he works for Fox.

  • Leaving aside the insane Churchill comparison, how is a Senator who got his ass handed to him in the last election a “rising star”? More like an imploding one.

  • Beck may be deranged and Santorum may still be pond scum, but I bet ol’ Ricky will be back. Come to think of it, Santorum is deranged too.

  • Yes, as Former Dan notes, we here in Seattle had a contest for a new definition of the word “Santorum” a few years ago. It was quite fitting, IMHO. Google it sometime with “Dan Savage” added to it.

  • Now, simmer down, everyone. What Mr. Beck says is quite true – Winston Churchill and Rick Santorum actually have quite a bit in common. After all, they’re both men. Leaving out the fact that Mr. Churchill is dead, and so cannot accurately be said to have any characteristics anymore, when alive he had arms and legs. Mr. Santorum has arms and legs, which he will gradually lose when he dies.

    Oh….wait. A dog has a nose. Rick Santorum has a nose. I….I’ve discovered….Rick Santorum is a dog!

  • I’m curious, do you suppose CNN ever feels a twinge of embarrassment signing this guy’s very large checks?

    Well, considering that people keep talking about the guy and the idiocy that emanates from that hole under his nose, no … they’re probably quite happy about it. After all, look at all the traffic he generates to their site.

    Don’t get me wrong — I’m not saying CB and others are part of the problem. Just noting the conundrum: Do we ignore jerks like Beck, or do we spend time trying to show his jerkitude in the hopes the pressure force him to go away?

    Wish I had a good answer …

  • “He blew his Senate campaign because he spoke the truth. His advisers kept saying, ‘Don’t say this, don’t say this, this is going to hurt you.’”

    So is Beck saying that Pennsylvanians couldn’t handle “the truth”?

    And what is “the truth”?

    That consensual sex between two adults will lead to the mass molestation of farm animals?

    That intelligent design “is a legitimate scientific theory that should be taught in science classes.”?

    That he wanted to prohibit the National Weather Service from publishing weather data that’s free to the public?

    Don’t see how the voters would find these “truths” just a bit scary….

    “Santorum, that’s Latin for asshole.” -former Nebraska senator Bob Kerrey

  • well actually he doesn;t generate much traffic, my u nderstanding is that his show is the lowest rated of all the talking head shows on the cable news news channels. which has people wondering why the hell they keep him around.

  • Oh….wait. A dog has a nose. Rick Santorum has a nose. I….I’ve discovered….Rick Santorum is a dog!

    well, that makes the man-on-dog comments from him much more understandable.

  • Churchill has been dead for 43 years, and he’s still smarter than Santorum. Less putrid as well.

  • In case you wondered, you still get something remarkable as the top result of a Google search on “santorum.” 🙂

    (Warning – NSFW.)

  • Why the hell is Beck making more than the minimum wage and why is he able to spout his spew to people other than the other guys working on the loading dock with him? If only the right wing would rail against wingnut welfare queens as vehemently as they did to against the truly poverty-stricken receiving government funds.

    NPR, and CNN, are shadows of their former selves, but I would hope NPR redeemed themselves by t least adding a laugh track after Beck’s comments. When the next administration comes in, either Barack or Hillary needs to seriously reform public broadcasting.

  • “It’s the equivalent of Adolf Hitler in 1942: ‘I’m in Paris. How dare you invade me? How dare you bomb my city? It’s mine.’”

    Okay, I was a European History major in college (back in the Dark Ages) and am very well read on the subject and I have no FUCKING idea what Santorum was trying to say.

    I’ve looked at the sentence for a few minutes now, and I can’t figure it out. Does anyone have ANY idea what he’s saying?

  • This is the political equivalent of driving a stake into any hopes Santorum had of resurrecting his political career. Entire books have been written about what a brilliant man Sir Winston was, and Santorum demonstrates his singular brand of stupidity every time he opens his mouth.

    But now his equally retarded buddy Beck has saddled him with trying to live up to that comparison for the rest of his life, at which he will obviously fail miserably. So long, Ricky baby, I know you’ll figure out how to work the doorknob eventually.

  • Does anyone have ANY idea what he’s saying? — phoebes, @20

    My guess is he’s saying “don’t know much about history…”

  • Did Beck compare himself to Clementine?

    Poor Winston. Let’s just hope the dead know nothing of the world of the living.

  • Well, Churchill was the bulldog of Britain and Santorum is unduly fascinated with the thought of having sex with dogs…

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