Fox and Friends distorts video clip to attack Rep. Keith Ellison

By Eric W. Dolan/Raw Story

The hosts of Fox and Friends lashed out at Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) on Tuesday, accusing him of having "Bachmann derangment syndrome" for claiming that Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) and conservatives lawmakers like her have a poor record on women’s issues.

"We live in an era of extremism," Ellison said July 6 at the 2011 Campus Progress National Conference in Washington, D.C.

"These same people who want to shrink government till you can drown it in a bathtub also want mom to get back in the kitchen and take her shoes off and get pregnant. You understand? They are offended by strong, powerful women. And here's the sad part -- some of them are women themselves. Michele Bachmann being an example."

Fox and Friends co-host Gretchen Carlson angrily responded to a clip of the speech, saying that as a strong woman herself, she was very offended by the comment.

"You don't know what she wants," she said. "You don't know that she thinks it's OK to be back in the kitchen and pregnant. Are you kidding me? She wouldn't be running for president unless she was a strong, powerful woman."

But Ellison was answering a question about women being consistently paid less than men, not accusing Bachmann of being a weak woman. Ellison noted that progressive Members of Congress had passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, allowing victims of pay discrimination to sue their employers. Bachmann and other conservatives voted against it.

Fox and Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade added that if Ellison was worried about extremism, "maybe he can focus on getting the burqa off" of Muslim women. Ellison is the first Muslim to be elected to the U.S. Congress.

In 2006, Bachmann reportedly urged women attending her local church "to be submissive to your husbands."

Watch video of Fox and Friends, as clipped by Media Matters, below:

Watch Rep. Keith Ellison's full speech below:

Fox Continues Ignoring Economists To Downplay Debt Ceiling Consequences

From Media Matters:

Fox News figures have continued their assault on plans to raise the debt ceiling ahead of the August 2 deadline, claiming the negative economic consequences of failing to raise the ceiling is "pure fiction" and that Democrats' warnings are "doomsday rhetoric." But economists agree that failing to raise the debt ceiling is an "unthinkable idea."

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Fox Downplays Effects Of Allowing Debt Ceiling To Expire

Carlson: "Some Republicans" Are Asking Whether Debt Ceiling Deadline Is A "Democratic Ploy." On the July 12 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, co-host Gretchen Carlson claimed that "some Republicans are saying that August 2 deadline, as I alluded to at the top of the show -- is that a Democratic ploy, or is that a hard and fast date now? Remember, back in April that was the first deadline date, and everyone kind of pooh-poohed it, and before you knew it, in the middle of that horrible earthquake tsunami in Japan, the Treasury secretary moved it." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 7/12/11 viaMedia Matters]

Hannity: Democrats' "Doomsday Rhetoric Would Have You Believe" That If The Ceiling Deadline Passes, The "Economy Would Crumble." On the July 11 edition his Fox News show, Sean Hannity said: "As the deficit reduction talks continue in Washington, Democrats have been ramping up their efforts to scare the American people into supporting this deal. Now, the left's doomsday rhetoric would have you believe that if Congress does not vote to raise the debt limit by August the 2nd, the American economy would crumble." [Fox News, Hannity, 7/11/11]

Dobbs Calls Debt Ceiling Deadline A "False Date" And "Pure Fiction." On his July 11 Fox Business show, host Lou Dobbs called the August 2 deadline for raising the debt limit a "false date" and "pure fiction." Dobbs made his comments in response to J. Dennis Hastert, former Republican speaker of the House, who said that "the federal government can decide what it's going to pay, when, and where." [Fox Business, Lou Dobbs Tonight, 7/11/11 via Media Matters]

But Economists Agree Failing To Raise The Debt Ceiling Would Have Disastrous Consequences

Politico: U.S. Going Into Default Is "An Unthinkable Idea To Many Economists And Market Participants." From Politico:

Republicans are growing increasingly concerned about the impact a bruising fight over raising the nation's $14.29 trillion debt ceiling could have on U.S. financial markets.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has had conversations with top Wall Street executives, asking how close Congress could push to the debt limit deadline without sending interests rates soaring and causing stock prices to go lower, people familiar with the matter said. Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said Tuesday night that he was not aware of any such conversations.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has warned Congress that without new borrowing authority, the federal government could hit the statutory debt limit by May 16.

Treasury could then implement emergency measures to continuing making interest payments on existing debut until around July 8. After that, the U.S. risks going into default, an unthinkable idea to many economists and market participants who say such an event could drive scores of large banks into failure, send interest rates skyrocketing as foreign investors abandon U.S. securities and crush the already slow-going economic recovery. [Politico, 4/13/11]

MSNBC: If Default Causes Interest Rates To "Rise Too Far, Too Fast, The U.S. Economy Could Face The Risk Of Another Recession." From an April 11 article on MSNBC's website:

Washington is gearing up for a battle over how many trillions the federal government can borrow to pay its bills, and it's shaping up to be an even bigger brawl than the one just resolved over funding the government for the next six months.

While investors viewed last week's budget brinksmanship as a minor event, they are beginning to grow concerned that many lawmakers and ordinary Americans, [sic] fail to grasp the implications of even suggesting the United States would default on its debt obligations.

What is a political football to Congress could end up flattening the economy and hurting consumers by lowering the nation's pristine credit rating and sending interest rates sharply higher.

[...]

So far, bond market investors apparently are not very worried; the United States has never defaulted on its debt and many have long thought a default unimaginable. On Monday, amid the rancorous aftermath of the budget battle that nearly shut down the government, bond prices were flat.

But some investors are betting that bond prices are headed lower. As the Federal Reserve wraps up a $600 billion round of bond buying designed to keep interest rates low, many investors are wondering what will replace that program when it expires in June. On Monday, the giant investment fund PIMCO, which recently dumped its holdings of U.S. Treasury securities, disclosed that it has gone even further and is now selling U.S. debt short -- a bet that bond prices have further to fall. 

Falling bond prices hurt more than the investors who hold them. As prices fall, interest rates rise. If they rise too far, too fast, the U.S. economy could face the risk of another recession. Without borrowing authority, the government would be powerless to pay all its bills, much less assemble another stimulus package to revive the economy. [MSNBC.com, 4/11/11]

Ex-Treasury Official: "This Would Make the Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy Look Like A Walk In The Park ... They're Really Playing With Fire." From The Huffington Post:

If Congress doesn't raise the $14.3 trillion debt limit by mid-May, the U.S. government will have to resort to emergency measures to avoid default. One missed payment, which could happen as soon as July if the ceiling is not raised, would likely set off a widespread global panic, causing borrowing costs to skyrocket and severely crippling the nation's economy.

But Republican lawmakers have said they will use the debt limit as a means of enforcing fiscal austerity, insisting they won't raise it without winning concessions from Democrats.

[...]

Meanwhile, Jim Millstein, the former restructuring officer at Treasury, who helped reorganize AIG, outlined how disastrous the consequences of default would likely be. Speaking on CNBC on Tuesday, he said that a Treasury default would affect investors of all sorts, and he criticized those who downplay the consequences.

"This would make the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy look like a walk in a park on a sunny day," he told CNBC's David Faber. "They're really playing with fire." [The Huffington Post,4/13/11]

Fox Has Consistently Downplayed Debt Ceiling Fears

Napolitano: "If I Were In The Congress, I Would Encourage Everybody To Vote Against Raising The Debt Ceiling." On the April 11 edition of his Fox Business show, Freedom Watch, host Andrew Napolitano interviewed Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ). During the interview, Napolitano spoke repeatedly about the debt limit and at one point said, "If I were in the Congress, I would encourage everybody to vote against raising the debt ceiling." [Fox Business, Freedom Watch, 4/11/11 via Media Matters]

Napolitano Has Repeatedly Spoken Against Raising The Debt Limit. Napolitano has frequently used his Fox Business show as well as guest host positions on Fox News to speak against raising the debt limit. As a guest host on the March 10 edition of Fox News' Glenn Beck, Napolitano urged Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) to vote against the debt limit. During the January 4 edition of Freedom Watch, Napolitano said, "It's an easy one for me -- the debt ceiling should not be raised." [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 3/10/11; Fox Business, Freedom Watch,1/4/11]

Hannity: "I Would Not Vote To Raise The Debt Ceiling." During a panel discussion on his April 12 show, Hannity said, "If I was in Congress, I would not vote to raise the debt ceiling." [Fox News, Hannity, 4/12/11, via Nexis]

Bolling: "I Say Let Them Default." On the April 13 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, guest host Eric Bolling told Fox Business host Stuart Varney, "I say let them default. ... What's going to happen?" Varney replied, "Armageddon is going to happen." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 4/13/11 via Media Matters]

Big Dodge: Breitbart Again Ducks Responsibility For His Own Website

 by Oliver Willis/media Matters

Andrew Breitbart has once again ducked responsibility for a story published on one of his own websites.

In March 2011, Jason Bradley, wrote a blog post on Big Peace titled "Terror Babies': A Growing National Security Threat." In his story Bradley promoted a conspiracy theory called "ludicrous" by one expert that pregnant terrorists are coming to America to have babies.

In an interview that aired on today's edition of Univision's Al Punto, host Jorge Ramos challenged Breitbart on the post, asking Breitbart whether he shared Bradley's position. In response, Breitbart said, "I didn't even read that article" and "I've never read that, I've never heard that and I'd have to see the context of that to give you an opinion. I would never call people that are born in this country who are from Mexico terror babies."

JORGE RAMOS (HOST): In one of your websites, in "Big Peace," there was an article written by Jason Bradley titled "Terror Babies: A Growing National Security Threat." Do you share Mr. Bradley's point of view?

ANDREW BREITBART: I didn't even read that article but I can tell you this, I created the Huffington Post in the United States of America which is a left of center blog. I created my blogs which are mostly right of center and I believe in open debate in our society. That's why I believe so strongly in the first amendment, so I don't know the specifics of that article, had I known going into this interview, I would've read it and we could have talked about the specifics.

RAMOS: Well the specifics is that Mr. Bradley's view is that children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants are terror babies.

BREITBART: I've never read that, I've never heard that and I'd have to see the context of that to give you an opinion. I would never call people that are born in this country who are from Mexico terror babies.

The full masthead of Big Peace says, "Andrew Breitbart Presents Big Peace." This isn't a website he's just loosely affiliated with, but one which is directly tied to him.

The masthead of his website notwithstanding, this isn't the first time Breitbart has claimed ignorance when challenged about things related to his website.

When Media Matters detailed the conspiracy theories of Big Hollywood/Big Peace/Big Government contributor Michael Moriarty -- including his belief that the September 11 and Oklahoma City attacks were the work of the U.S. government -- Breitbart claimed, "I didn't know that when he first started writing, but he does not have a platform to put that on my site."

Last year, Media Matters detailed the work of then-Big Government contributor Kevin Pezzi, who used racial epithets in his postings there while also peddling a cure for cancer and sexual inventions on his website. Soon after, Big Government pulled Pezzi's work and said, "Since publishing the articles, we have been made aware of other writings from this author which do not reflect the principles and values of this site. Because of this, we have removed the articles from Big Government. While we stand by the information contained in the articles we published, we do not wish to see the underlying issue confused or diminished by other work the author has done." Big Government never mentioned Pezzi by name.

When confronted with Pezzi's record by MSNBC's Martin Bashir in April, Breitbart stated that Pezzi had submitted a piece to one of his sites for publication, but "the second we found out about him, we got rid of him."

Each Breitbart site notes that "Andrew Breitbart presents" them, but when pressed to take responsibility for what he publishes, Breitbart acts as if he has no control. But his name is above everyone else's.

As Government Revenues Reach A 60-Year-Low, DeMint Claims They’re At A ‘Record’ High

By Alex Seitz-Wald/Think Progress

It’s an often-repeated talking point among Republicans as Washington debates taxes and spending: “We don’t have a revenue problem, we have a spending problem.” It’srecycled, like much of today’s Republican thinking, from President Reagan, but Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) stretched the argument to its breaking point on MSNBC this morning when he said that government revenues are currently at “record” highs:

DEMINT: Four of the last five years, we’ve had record levels of revenue. And next year we have projected the highest revenue levels in history. We don’t have a revenue problem.

Watch it:

The GOP talking point on spending vs. revenue fundamentally un-serious, as both are flip sides of the same balance sheet. But even so, DeMint is just wrong.

DeMint appears to be using nominal dollars to measure revenues, instead of revenue as a percentage of GDP, which is used by all official arbiters on revenue matters, including theCongressional Budget Office. And as a percentage of GDP, government revenue is nowhere near a “record” high. In 2010, it was at its lowest level in more than 60 years, according to data from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), at just at 14.9 percent.

Next year, revenues will still be at just 16.6 percent of GDP, several points below the average rates under every president since Franklin Roosevelt, including Reagan. The record high was 20.6 percent in 2000, which coincided with a balanced budget.

This makes sense — on top of lost revenue from the massive Bush tax cuts, the recessiondevastated economic output and thus the American tax base.

And DeMint seems to know this, choosing to qualify his statements about revenue with the odd time frame of five years to completely mislead viewers. He’s right that revenues in terms of dollars were at an all time high at one point in the last five years — 2007 — but he seems to intentionally ignore the fact that revenues fell of a cliff in 2009. In terms of actual dollars, in 2010, the government brought in $2.16 trillion dollars — down from $2.56 trillion in 2007.

From Karl Rove To Caliphates: Glenn Beck's Long, Steep Slide Into Extremism And Isolation

by Simon Maloy

On January 19, 2009, the first episode of Glenn Beck aired on Fox News. Sitting at a desk in a brightly lit studio, Beck read off the day's headlines and transitioned from one discrete segment to the next: the "Hot List," the "One Thing," etc. He discussed the economy with Ben Stein and Obama's inauguration with Karl Rove. The second half of the show was eaten up by interviews with Sarah Palin and the wives of border patrol agents. Beck had big-name sponsors, and his overall tone was hopeful: "I've been thinking, what is the message that I want to bring? And it is -- we're in tough times but we're going to make it, if we count on each other, if we become 'we, the people' again."

In short, it was a standard-issue conservative opinion program with Beck's unique touches.

Fast forward two and a half years, to the June 15, 2011, episode of Glenn Beck. Standing in a darkened studio surrounded by chalkboards, Beck warned that George Soros was involved in the "final collapse" of Greece. He insisted that the Three-Fifths Compromise was designed to "help free slaves." After warning that "violence" might soon be "coming to America," Beck theorized that postal workers would be armed and made part of a nefarious "civilian force" that would rival the military. There were no guests (save for one of Beck's radio co-hosts pretending to be a founding father) and no discrete segments. Just Beck, standing in front of his chalkboards, delivering an extended monologue that was periodically interrupted by ads for survival seeds and shady gold sellers.

The differences are stark -- not just in the tone and content, but in the format of the show. When he started out on Fox, Beck's program dealt in the day's politics and was a prime venue for GOP officials and conservative pundits and academics to get some cable news face time. But as the show progressed, Beck's rhetoric became darker and more extreme, and he became increasingly isolated. He went from discussing electoral politics with Karl Rove to warning of a biblically prophesied Islamic-socialist caliphate threatening to undo Western civilization.

In an early promo for his Fox News program, Beck claimed to disavow those on the "right" who talk about progressives and Democrats "trying to turn us into communist Russia." His high-minded commitment to eschew red-baiting proved short-lived, as Beck accused President Obama of being a socialist who "surrounded himself with Marxists his whole life," and launched a segment called the "Comrade Update," in which he played the tongue-in-cheek part of an insider to the communist scheme to destroy Western civilization.

As 2009 progressed and right-wing anger at Obama steadily increased and mutated, Beck's show became a platform for prominent conservatives to take shots at the president. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) appeared on Beck's program to promote the anti-census movement, of which she was the de facto leader. He teamed up with Andrew Breitbart and James O'Keefe to release the fraudulent ACORN videotapes. Even Rush Limbaugh, who is peerless among right-wing commentators in terms of reach and influence, called into Beck's program to spout his distinctive brand of anti-Obama vitriol. Summer 2009 also saw the beginning of Beck's "In A Nutshell" segments and his habit of spotting "connections" between progressive groups that, he claimed, everyone else the in the media were missing.

Most important, though, was Beck's decision to start attacking Obama over racial issues, which led to the defining moment of his Fox News career: His attack on Obama as a "racist" with a "deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture." That moment sparked the advertiser boycott of his show, which reportedly cost Fox News millions of dollars in ad sales.

Beck, in the meanwhile, kept updating his shtick and sinking deeper into conspiracy theorism. Hestarted using the now-famous chalkboards and began talking about the "Tree of Revolution." Beck's rhetoric also became increasingly violent; he said the Obama administration was "putting a gun to America's head" and wielded a baseball bat as he warned that "you too could be the next victim of the killing spree." More often than not, the talk of violence and conspiracy mongering were accompanied by attacks on the Tides Foundation, which Beck often placed at the center of his chalkboard diagrams.

After spending most of 2009 warning, sometimes literally, that the end of America was nigh, Beck kicked off 2010 by promoting himself as the person who would "restore honor" to the country. But even as he imagined for himself a grander and grander role among the pantheon of American heroes, his Fox News colleagues were starting to view him as a problem. In a March 2010 Washington Postcolumn, Howard Kurtz reported that "Beck has become a constant topic of conversation among Fox journalists, some of whom say they believe he uses distorted or inflammatory rhetoric that undermines their credibility." Kurtz's article prompted Fox News chairman Roger Ailes to warn employees off intramural sniping: "Glenn Beck, does his show and that's his opinion. It's not the opinion of FOX News and he has a right to say it."

Not long after Ailes defended Beck's right to voice his opinion, the real impact of Beck's rhetoric -- specifically his continued, unfounded smears of the Tides Foundation -- was realized on a California highway as Byron Williams was stopped by the highway patrol and opened fire on the police officers. Williams told police afterwards that he had intended to kill people at the Tides Foundation and the ACLU, and credited Beck with "exposing" information that "blew my mind."

Nevertheless, Beck continued to enjoy significant clout leading into his "Restoring Honor" rally in Washington, DC in late August 2010, which featured Sarah Palin and Republican members of Congress among the featured guests. Beck had spent months promoting the event on Fox News and casting himself as a modern-day Martin Luther King, Jr. He also framed the rally in explicitly religious terms, telling attendees to expect "miracles" and prefacing the actual event with a religious rally at the Kennedy Center.

The overt religiosity of "Restoring Honor" continued to permeate Beck's show as he mixed wild conspiracy with apocalyptic rhetoric, recasting (relatively) mundane political squabbling as epic battles between good and evil and putting himself in the same category as biblical leaders. He also began promoting religious extremists and fringe academics, some of whom were ardent anti-Semites. And Beck himself began trafficking in anti-Semitic rhetoric in his relentless attacks on George Soros, calling him a "puppet master" who controls the media, and falsely accusing the billionaire financier of collaborating with the Nazis.

Neither condemnations from Jewish groups nor the ongoing advertiser boycott did anything to change Beck's behavior -- he instead boasted that he was still on the air despite what he claimed was a campaign against him orchestrated by -- who else? -- George Soros.

Beck's ratings, however, were declining rapidly, and his increasingly eccentric behavior was alienating more and more people at Fox News, including Ailes. The New York Times's Mark Leibovich reported in October 2010 that Ailes was increasingly upset with Beck's use of Fox News' airwaves to promote his own ventures. Leibovich also noted: "When I mentioned Beck's name to several Fox reporters, personalities and staff members, it reliably elicited either a sigh or an eye roll. Several Fox News journalists have complained that Beck's antics are embarrassing Fox, that his inflammatory rhetoric makes it difficult for the network to present itself as a legitimate news outlet." At the time, Beck's ratings were down about 30 percent from 2009.

The beginning of 2011 saw the conservative establishment finally turn on Beck and his increasingly extreme brand of conspiracy theorism. After Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak was deposed, Beckclaimed that the revolution in Egypt and unrest in other North African countries were the first steps towards the establishment of an Islamic caliphate that, with the help of communists and socialists, threatened to engulf the Middle East, North Africa, and even Europe. William Kristol of the Weekly Standard deemed this "hysteria" and likened Beck's fearmongering to that of the John Birch Society. The National Review's Rich Lowry slammed Beck's "wild theorizing," and Wall Street Journal columnist John Fund criticized Beck's "apocalyptic conspiracy terms about America becoming an Islamic state -- that goes too far." Andrew Breitbart, who had collaborated with Beck on the ACORN tapes, also turned on Beck, claiming that Beck had thrown him "under the bus" on the Shirley Sherrod story.

Beck, in response, lashed out at Kristol and others and angrily insisted that not only was he right about the "caliphate," but that his warnings of the coming destabilization were informed by a "gift" of "being able to see slightly over the horizon."

By the time Fox News announced in April that Beck's show was ending, it barely resembled the program as it began in 2009. Beck's first Fox News show was a comparatively tame, even hopeful assessment of America's future. By contrast, on his April 6, 2011, program -- the day he confirmed his planned exit from Fox News -- Beck suggested that there was some sort of connection between the unrest in North Africa, earthquakes in Japan, and a Soros-convened meeting in the U.S. The next day he described Iran's relationships with Russia and Turkey as the fulfillment of a prophecy from Revelation: "This is the alliance of Gog and Magog."

In two and a half years, Beck's Fox News show went from went from Karl Rove and Sarah Palin, to Gog and Magog. And that provides a tidy explanation for how Beck went so rapidly from Fox News ratings phenom to right-wing pariah and outcast.

It's Not Just Race: Fox's Bolling Has A Long History Of False Claims, Inflammatory Rhetoric

From Media Matters:

As Media Matters reported, Fox Business' Eric Bolling recently made unacceptable and bizarre racially charged comments on Fox, including accusing President Obama of inviting "hoodlum[s]" to what he called the "hizzouse." But this wasn't the first time Bolling acted inappropriately while employed by Fox. Bolling has a long history of making false and misleading claims as well as using inflammatory rhetoric and smears during his time at Fox.

Bolling's History Of Racially Charged Remarks

Bolling's History Of Other Inflammatory Rhetoric And Smears

Bolling Habitually Scapegoats And Stokes Fear Of Muslims

Bolling Has Promoted Numerous Conspiracy Theories

Bolling Has Demonized Immigrants

Bolling Has Made Numerous False Claims About Energy And Repeatedly Shilled For More Oil Drilling

Bolling Regularly Mocks, Denies Climate Change

Bolling Has A Long Track Record Of False Claims About The Economy And Taxes

"Crush Collective Bargaining": Bolling Targets Labor Unions

Bolling Has Made False Claims Regarding Obama And Foreign Policy

Bolling Hyped Debunked ACORN Videos, Attacked ACORN

Bolling's History Of Racially Charged Remarks

Bolling: "What's With All The Hoods In The Hizzy?" During the June 10, 2011, edition of his Fox Business show, Follow the Money, Bolling teased a segment about Obama hosting Ali Bongo Ondimba, president of Gabon, by saying: "Guess who's coming to dinner? A dictator. Mr. Obama shares a laugh with one of Africa's kleptocrats. It's not the first time he's had a hoodlum in the hizzouse." In a subsequent tease, Bolling said, "Smile for the birdie," while footage of a smiling Bongo with a flashing tooth, apparently made to resemble a gold-plated tooth, was shown on-air. Bolling continued: "Our president's sitting with one of Africa's most wanted. It's not the first time he's had a hood in the big crib." Footage of rapper Common appeared on air as Bolling spoke. Bolling began the actual segment by saying: "So what's with all the hoods in the hizzy?" [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 6/10/11, via Media Matters]

Fox Graphics Show Gabon President With A Flashing Tooth, And Mention "Hoods In The House." During Bolling's show, Fox aired on-screen text saying, "Hoods in the House" and depicted Bongo with a flashing tooth:

Bolling Apologized For Using "Fast And Loose" Language. On June 13, Bolling apologized for his controversial remarks, saying, "We got a little fast and loose with the language, and we know it's been interpreted as being disrespectful, and for that, I'm sorry. We did go a bit too far." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 6/13/11 via Media Matters]

Bolling Tweet: Obama Is "Chugging 40's" In Ireland "While Tornadoes Ravage MO." Promoting the May 23, 2011, edition of his Fox Business show, Follow the Money, Bolling wrote on his Twitter feed: "Obama chugging 40's in IRE while tornadoes ravage MO."

[Eric Bolling, Twitter, 5/23/11]

Bolling: Obama Was "Chugging A Few 40s" Instead Of Responding To Joplin Disaster. On the May 23, 2011, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling commented:

BOLLING: [N]ow, tornadoes devastating the heartland, killing scores, and leveling just about every building in Joplin, Missouri -- Mr. Obama, you've decided that chugging a few 40s and rediscovering you're Irish is more important than a presidential visit to a community trying to figure out what just hit them. Leadership, Mr. Obama, leadership; it's about choices and you seem to be fresh out of the right ones. [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 5/23/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Subsequently Tried To Dial Back "Chugging 40s" Comment. The night following his "chugging 40s" comment, Bolling pretended he hadn't engaged in racially charged rhetoric, asserting that he "took some heat for saying Obama should have delayed his European bar crawl." From his show:

BOLLING: I took some heat for saying Obama should have delayed his European bar crawl or whatever he's doing over there, head to Missouri, check out the devastation, let the people in Missouri know that he's there for them, or, at least, if you're still going to go through with that European trip, maybe swing by Israel on the way back and say, "Hey, tip of the hat, guys, I've got your back." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 5/24/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling On Obama's Budget Proposal: "Maybe" It Makes Sense "In Kenya, But Certainly Not Here." Discussing Obama's budget proposal, Bolling stated: "How does increasing taxes count as spending cuts in your world, Mr. Obama? Maybe in Kenya, but certainly not here. This plan will amount to deficit increases, not reductions. It's a load of crap, and I'm offended that you think we're dumb enough to accept your math or your plan." From the April 13, 2011, edition of  Follow the Money:

BOLLING: After about 25 minutes of trashing the GOP plan to tackle $6 trillion in deficit, Obama finally got to his gimmick -- I mean, his plan. His plan is a 12-year, four-part scenario that breaks down like this. Number one, use the $38.5 billion in savings from last week's budget deal, but the president's math is a bit more than fuzzy: 38.5 times 12 is not $750 billion like he proposes, it's $462 billion. So, maybe he should keep the funding for education -- his own.

Number two, cut defense, $400 billion. Let's see, three wars; Al-Qaeda and Taliban want to kill us. Cutting defense spending now is just plain stupid.

Number three, use the blurry numbers they use to jam Obamacare down our throats, and save -- get this -- save a trillion dollars. Meanwhile, premiums keep going up, and, by the way, how does Obamacare save the government money again?

And number four, get this, reduce spending in the tax code. How does increasing taxes count as spending cuts in your world, Mr. Obama? Maybe in Kenya, but certainly not here. This plan will amount to deficit increases, not reductions. It's a load of crap, and I'm offended that you think we're dumb enough to accept your math or your plan. [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 4/13/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: Border Around Long-Form Birth Certificate "Had To Be Photoshopped In." Following the release of Obama's long-form birth certificate, Bolling claimed that the birth certificate's "green border" "had to be Photoshopped in." Bolling also suggested Obama's birth certificate wasn't authentic because the doctor "who signed it" didn't tell his family he had helped deliver baby Obama. From Follow the Money:

BOLLING: You need to know this. You see this fold? This has clearly been photocopied from a book. You see that? It kind of folds back to, like, almost like the binding of a book. And then for some reason, there's green -- there's a green border around it that had to be Photoshopped in, and I'm trying to figure out why they would do that.

PAMELA GELLER (conservative pundit): Well, this whole border is suspect. I mean, if you're taking a scan of something, it would, to your point, it would be white. Why is this the color of the same -

BOLLING: Note this. Note this, you guys, April 25, 2011 -- two days ago -- is when this was requested from the state registrar -- registrar Alvin Onaka. So we'll keep our eye on it. We'll keep digging. Hey, listen. It may or may not be, but certainly opens up the can of worms that there are at least questions for it.

[...]

BOLLING: Very quickly, Pamela, this doctor right here, the guy who signed it four days after the birth. He passed away, but his wife today, TMZ had his wife saying I had no idea.

She didn't know about it. His son said I had no idea. It came as a complete shock to him as well. If you gave birth to the president of the United States, don't you think your family would know about it?

GELLER: Yeah, well, maybe he doesn't know about it, either. I mean, I think it's very telling that for three years, he didn't release it. There's a big question there. We have to say why. Why didn't he release it after three years? [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 4/27/11, viaMedia Matters]

For the truth about Bolling's claims, click here

Bolling: Downtown NYC Islamic Center "May Be A Meeting Place For Some Of The Scariest ... Some Of The Biggest Terrorist Minds." On the August 19, 2010, edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, Bolling claimed that a proposed New York City Islamic center "may be a meeting place for some of the scariest minds -- some of the biggest terrorist minds." Bolling also smeared Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the Sufi leader spearheading the project. From Fox & Friends:

BOLLING: Unfortunately, with this guy, Imam Rauf, he's not a great -- he's not a good guy. He's being portrayed as, you know, a moderate Muslim. This guy has questionable ties. I mean, there's questions whether he has ties to Perdana, which was the group that sent that flotilla towards Israel. Remember that whole conflict on the water? He may have ties. Perdana and Muslim Brotherhood are a handshake apart.

BRIAN KILMEADE (co-host): Precursor to Al Qaeda.

BOLLING: Muslim Brotherhood is -- what they want is they want Sharia law throughout the land, and sometimes they're willing to use jihad to get Sharia law. They're very, very aggressive, not very reformist Muslim activities -- Hamas, maybe. And here's the one that we should all really worry about. Where's Iran in this? Perdana, Iran have been loosely tied to Imam Rauf also. So do I want -- 560 feet away from where a lot of my friends died and I lived and I worked -- do I want a mosque that may be, that may be a meeting place for some of the scariest minds, some of the biggest terrorist minds?

KILMEADE: Yeah, the next Hamburg cell could be right downtown.

BOLLING: Who knows? Who knows? [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 8/19/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling Pushed To Start "Aggressive Profiling," Including "Cultural Profiling," At TSA. From the November 27, 2010, edition of Fox News' Bulls & Bears:

BOLLING: Here is what we should do: privatize [TSA]. Fire them all. Let independent companies come in, take it over, and then do this: aggressive profiling, not just behavioral profiling, cultural profiling as well. Get the airways safe again. [Fox News, Bulls & Bears,11/27/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling's History Of Other Inflammatory Rhetoric And Smears

In "Street Meat" Graphic, Bolling Pictured Rep. Barney Frank "Appropriately Positioned ... Catching, Of Course." The May 11, 2009, edition of Fox Business' Happy Hour featured a graphic of various politicians pictured around a baseball diamond. When pointing to Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), who is openly gay, Bolling said that Frank was "appropriately positioned ... catching, of course." On the May 14 edition, Bolling addressed the fact that then-MSNBC host Keith Olbermann had labeled him the "worst person in the world" for the segment by attacking then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi and concluding, "Hey, I'll tell you what, Olbermann -- you didn't like that? ... I'll let you catch. And you know what else I'll do? Things -- this is the way we play. Sometimes he'll pitch, you'll catch. Sometimes you'll catch, he'll pitch. Take turns pitching and catching -- that's the way we roll over here on Happy Hour." [Fox Business, Happy Hour, 5/11/09, 5/14/09, via Media Matters]

Bolling Dismissed Enhanced Interrogation Techniques As "A Typical Weekend At My House With My 12-Year Old Son." On the May 4, 2011, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling defended enhanced interrogation techniques by listing some of the practices detainees have been subjected to and dismissed them as "a typical weekend at my house with my 12-year-old son." [Fox Business,Follow the Money, 5/4/11 via Media Matters]

Bolling Tweet: "Obama And Chavez Sittin In A Tree...K I S S I ...." On April 20, 2009, Bolling tweeted:

[Twitter, via Media Matters, 4/20/09]

Bolling Accused "Free Spending Social Progressive Liberals" Of "Ruining This Great Country As Fast As They Can." On May 12, 2010, Bolling tweeted that "free spending social progressive liberals" are "ruining this great country as fast as they can." From Bolling's Twitter feed:

Bolling later tweeted that he "refuse[d]" to "apologize. Sorry liberals/progressives, we deserve more than spend, tax, & redistribute":

 

[Twitter, 5/12/10 via Media Matters; Twitter, 5/13/10 via Media Matters]

Bolling Repeatedly Called Commerce Secretary Nominee John Bryson An "Eco-Terrorist." On the June 2, 2011, edition of Fox & Friends, Bolling said that Commerce Secretary nominee John Bryson "is so pro-green" that "you could almost call him an eco-terrorist." Bolling repeated the "eco-terrorist" smear on the June 3, 2011, edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 6/2/11, via Media Matters; Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 6/3/11 via Media Matters]

Bolling Attacked Native Americans For "Getting $timulus." In a September 20, 2010, Twitter post, Bolling previewed his Fox Business show, renamed Money Rocks, by attacking Native Americans for receiving stimulus funds, writing: "Big Show tonight: Corruption at the U.N., plus Indian Reservations don't pay taxes and now getting $timulus??"

 

[Twitter, 9/20/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling Habitually Scapegoats And Stokes Fear Of Muslims

Bolling And Geller Agree: "The Sensitivity Issue" Of Islamic Community Center And Burning Qurans Is "The Same." During the September 7, 2010, edition of Money Rocks, Bolling commented on the efforts of Florida Pastor Terry Jones to burn the Quran. He stated: "We looked far and hard for someone to say that it is OK to burn the Quran." He then stated: "The sensitivity issue seems to be the key here for the mosque. Is it not the same issue with the Quran burning on Saturday?" He then asked: "So therefore, if you don't want them to burn the Quran on Saturday, why wouldn't Muslims -- moderate Muslims -- simply say, 'Hey, it's too sensitive an area downtown; move the mosque?'" Guest Pamela Geller, who has helped lead the push against the Islamic community center, said that the two were "the exact same issue." [Fox Business, Money Rocks, 9/7/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling: If Rauf Is "A Moderate Muslim," Why Won't He Move The Mosque "Two Or Three Blocks Away And Make Everybody Happy?" Discussing the controversy surrounding the cultural center and mosque on the August 16, 2010, edition of Money Rocks, Bolling asked: "This imam says he's a moderate Muslim, if I'm not mistaken. If he's a moderate Muslim, why wouldn't he propose to move this mosque two or three blocks away and make everybody happy?" [Fox Business, Money Rocks, 8/16/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "Should We Really Go So Far As To Make Sure That Muslims Are Cool With Our Space Program?" On the July 6, 2010, edition of Fox & Friends, co-host Steve Doocy introduced video of remarks made by NASA administrator Charles Bolden by saying Bolden made "such an extraordinary claim." Bolden had stated that Obama "wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science ... and math and engineering." After airing a portion of Bolden's interview, Doocy said, "Huh? Huh?" Guest host Eric Bolling asked, "Should we really go so far as to make sure that Muslims are cool with our space program?" [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 7/6/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "Any Time You See That Arab Youth Fist Pump, You Know You're Going To See Pain At The Pump." On the January 31, 2011, edition of Fox News' America's Newsroom, Bolling said of the uprising in Egypt: "Here's what's happened. Bill, 22 years in the oil -- in and around the oil business, I'll tell you, any time you see that Arab youth fist pump, you know you're going to see pain at the pump. On Friday, 8 cents a gallon higher on the wholesale level for gasoline eventually that will get to our pump. That will get to our grocery aisle." [Fox News, America's Newsroom, 1/31/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Has Promoted Numerous Conspiracy Theories

Bolling Repeatedly Suggested Obama "Let" Deepwater Horizon Rig Leak So He Could Limit Offshore Drilling. Following the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico, Bolling suggested on the May 3, 2010, edition of Fox & Friends that the Obama administration might have "let" the rig leak before "address[ing] it." On the May 27, 2010, edition of Happy Hour, Bolling again wondered if Obama "let" the rig leak so he "could renege on his promise ... to allow some offshore drilling." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/3/10, via Media Matters; Fox Business, Happy Hour, 5/27/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling Asked If Obama Is "Just Playing Games And Intentionally Causing Pain At The Pump."On the May 24, 2011, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling asked if "the administration is just playing games and intentionally causing pain at the pump." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 5/24/11, viaMedia Matters]

Bolling Used "Beck-Approved" Chalkboard To Attack "Sugar Daddy" George Soros. On the October 22, 2010, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling invoked the "shocking" conspiracy theory that George Soros is the "sugar daddy funding many left-leaning organizations," citing donations to NPR andMedia Matters, "all to promote the liberal agenda of massive taxing and spending." [Fox Business,Follow the Money, 10/22/10 via Media Matters]

Bolling Allowed Ann Coulter To Bring Madrassa Lie Back To Fox News. Serving as a guest host for The O'Reilly Factor on December 28, 2009, and Fox News' Glenn Beck on December 30, 2009, Bolling hosted conservative author Ann Coulter, who falsely claimed Obama "attended madrassas." As previously reported by Media Matters, Bolling did not challenge Coulter's claims on either show. [Media Matters, 12/31/09]

Bolling Has Demonized Immigrants

Bolling: "We Need A Concrete ... Electrified Fence" On The Border With Mexico. During the February 17, 2011, edition of America's Newsroom, Bolling stated: "We need a border fence. We need a concrete fence going along the 2,000 miles of our border with Mexico with electrified fence on both sides." [Fox News, America's Newsroom, 2/17/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling  Claimed "Illegals" Are "Not Paying Taxes." On the May 1, 2010, Bulls and Bears, Bolling claimed that American citizens "pay taxes," as opposed to "illegals not paying taxes," saying: "We're all paying tax. If you remove the illegals who are not paying tax with Americans or legal immigrants who do pay tax, everyone wins, everybody wins." [Fox News, Bulls & Bears, 5/1/10, via Media Matters]

For the truth about undocumented immigrants and taxes, click here

Bolling: Immigration Reform "Can't Be Good For The Economy Any Way You Slice It." On the May 10, 2011, edition of Glenn Beck, Bolling stated that immigration reform "can't be good for the economy any way you slice it." [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 5/10/11, via Media Matters]

For the truth about the economic benefits of immigration reform, click here

Bolling Has Made Numerous False Claims About Energy And Repeatedly Shilled For More Oil Drilling

Bolling Repeatedly Claimed Bush's Drilling Moratorium Decision Caused Oil Prices To Drop From $147 To $33. In at least six instances from January to March 2011, Bolling claimed that President Bush's July 2008 decision to lift the presidential moratorium on offshore drilling caused oil prices to drop from "$147 straight down to $33 a barrel in six months." Energy experts told Media Matters that Bolling's analysis is "nonsense." Moreover, reports from 2008 and 2009 attributed the drop in oil prices to economic slowdown. [Media Matters, 3/8/11]

Bolling Dismissed Role Of Speculators In Oil Price Surge. On the April 15, 2011, edition of America Live, Bolling claimed that "[t]here are economic reasons for oil to go up or down. If you take away that economic reason, if you add supply to the market it can't rally. You can't blame speculators and you certainly can't blame any futures traders. It really -- you just need more oil." [Fox News, America Live,4/14/11, via Media Matters]

For the truth about the role of speculators on oil prices, click here

Bolling Promoted Drilling In ANWR: "I Would Sacrifice A Few Caribou." On Follow the Money,Bolling advocated for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), stating that he "would sacrifice a few caribou" in exchange for lower gas prices. [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 3/8/11, viaMedia Matters, 3/10/11]

For the truth about the environmental impact of drilling in ANWR, click here

Bolling Used Egyptian Unrest To Shill For More Oil Drilling. Guest-hosting the February 2, 2011, edition of Glenn Beck, Bolling and guest Stephen Moore used unrest in Egypt to advocate for more domestic oil drilling, saying that "the case for drilling is this: since the protesting in the streets, since you saw the Molotov cocktails, the bombs, the rocks being thrown, the price of oil has shot up, skyrocketed, gasoline skyrocketing; but natural gas has gone down." [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 2/2/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "With World Oil Prices Surging ... Shouldn't We Be Drilling Here, Now???" In a post on Facebook announcing Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell as his guest, Bolling wrote: "We have Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell tonight... with world oil prices surging on Middle East rioting... shouldn't we be drilling here, now???" [Facebook, 1/28/11]

Bolling: "Drill Here, Drill Now ... Drill, Baby, Drill." In the wake of the BP oil spill, Bolling responded by calling for a continuation of offshore drilling, suggesting that the "six-dollar, seven-dollar diesel fuel" is "more harmful" for fishermen than the oil spill. He said: "We need to drill here, drill now, and hey, drill, baby, drill." [Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, 4/30/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling Regularly Mocks, Denies Climate Change

Bolling: "Blizzard Versus Global Warming. Who Do You Believe: Al Gore Or Your Freezing Butt?" On his Fox Business show, teasing an upcoming segment on energy policy, Bolling asked: "Blizzard versus global warming. Who do you believe: Al Gore or your freezing butt?" He later stated: "A massive storm just swept through the country, so it's a great time to start talking about what? Global warming." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 2/2/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: Warming Of The Earth Is "Disputed." On his show, Bolling called into question the science behind climate change, saying that the "basis for the argument on global warming or climate change" is "up for debate." Bolling added, "This is just a big scam." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 1/10/11, viaMedia Matters]

Bolling Mocked Global Warming. In a post on his Twitter feed, Bolling mocked global warming, writing: "Global Warming. hahaha. Yesterday....Houston first snow earliest on record and its [sic] snowing here right now!" [Twitter, 12/1/09, via Media Matters]

Bolling: Snow "Breaking Al Gore's Heart Because" It's "Burying His Global Warming Theory."On Your World, Bolling stated: "The mid-Atlantic region on the verge of breaking all-time records for snowfall, up to 16 inches already falling in parts of Maryland, and it's not just the Northeast. Sixty-three percent of the country is now covered in snow and it's breaking Al Gore's heart because the snow is also burying his global warming theory." [Fox News, Your World, 2/10/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling Suggested Snow Disproves Global Warming. On Fox & Friends, referring to the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Cancun, Bolling stated: "I think, a couple of years ago, they were in Washington. It was snowed out. The global warming issue wasn't, I guess, a factor there. But they solved that problem going to Cancun." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 12/9/09, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "The Globe Gets Warmer And It Gets Cooler." On his Fox Business show, Bolling repeatedly cited a Newsweek article from 1975, saying the article is proof that "the globe gets warmer and it gets cooler and it's not a matter of one direction or the other." Bolling also referred to the manufactured "Climategate" scandal, saying that "a climate center in England basically said, hey, let's hide some of the science in these e-mails, let's make sure we don't expose all, you know, the science." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 1/11/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "Thirty Years Ago, We Worried About Global Cooling. Now We're Worried About Global Warming." During an interview with Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), Bolling read headlines from 1974 about cooling temperatures and stated, "Thirty years ago, we worried about global cooling. Now we're worried about global warming. Is this not just the global cooling and warming over the course of 30-year periods?" [Fox News, Your World, 2/11/10, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "I Think We Warm And We Cool. It's The Globe." Discussing a Rasmussen poll asking respondents, "[H]ow likely is it that some scientists have falsified research data?" Bolling stated: "Listen, you know where I stand on this. I'm not -- I think we warm and we cool. It's the globe." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 12/4/09, via Media Matters]

Bolling Suggested There Is No Proof The Globe Is Warming. Discussing clean energy on February 2, 2011, Bolling stated: "It used to be cold in the '60s. Is there any proof of -- I mean, again, you say we should all agree that the globe is warming. I'm not sure I agree with that assessment." His guest, Brian Sussman, a radio host and author of Climategate: A Veteran Meteorologist Exposes The Global Warming Scam, replied: "No, no. The globe warms and it cools, and right now, we may indeed be going into a cooling phase." Bolling interjected: "Exactly." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 2/2/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: "Honestly, It Was Global Warming, And Then Things Got Cold So They Called It 'Climate Change.'" During the same February 2, 2011, segment, Branden Daly, former communications director for Rep. Nancy Pelosi, pointed out: "Global warming is also known as climate change. So, scientists have told us that not only are there gonna be more extreme summers, that sometimes we'll have more severe winter storms, as well. So, just the fact that we've had a severe storm in the Midwest doesn't mean that it's not climate change." Bolling replied: "Mr. Daly, honestly -- honestly, it was global warming, and then things got cold so they called it 'climate change.' " Bolling added, "It's not unlike -- not unlike the Obama administration sort of first saying that the stimulus plan, the $800 billion stimulus plan, was going to create 4 million jobs and then it was 3 million jobs and then it was 2 million jobs, and then it was 'save or create' and no one could figure out what that means." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 2/2/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Revived Debunked Climate Email Claim In Attack On Scientist. Bolling used a grant awarded under the stimulus bill to climate scientist Michael Mann to revive the debunked claim that emails stolen from the Climatic Research Unit at East Anglia University, some of which were written by Mann, undermine the scientific consensus on manmade global warming. His guest, Tom Borelli, further stated that Mann was "at the center" of the controversy, adding, "[T]hese emails that they're all looking at, it seems like the scientists themselves don't believe there's such a consensus because they have their conclusion that man's causing it, and now they're trying to ram the data to force-fit it. It's the round peg in the square hole." Bolling did not disclose the fact that Borelli's organization, the National Center for Public Policy Research, has received funding from the oil industry. [Fox News, Glenn Beck, 1/15/10, via Media Matters]

For the truth about climate science, click here

Bolling Has A Long Track Record Of False Claims About The Economy And Taxes 

Bolling  Claimed The Stimulus Has "Done Nothing To Help The Economy." On the September 1, 2010, edition of Fox & Friends, Bolling claimed that the stimulus has "done nothing to help the economy" and that "the economy is far worse than it was when we signed over $750 billion that turned into $862 billion." Bolling added, "Forget the other programs, it's literally trillions of dollars of economic stimulus that aren't working." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 9/1/10, via Media Matters]

For the truth about Bolling's stimulus claims, click here

Bolling: "Half Of Filers [Who Make] Over $250,000 Will Be Small Businesses." On the November 19, 2010, episode of America's Newsroom, Bolling and co-host Bill Hemmer discussed the debate over extending the Bush tax cuts for those making more than $250,000 a year. Bolling claimed, "Half of the filers over $250,000 will be small business. So they'll be affected." [Fox News, America's Newsroom,11/19/10, via Media Matters]

For the truth about Bolling's small business tax claims, click here

Fox's Bolling Called For Abolishing IRS, Establishing "Fair Tax." During the February 16, 2011, edition of America's Newsroom, Bolling said: "We've been talking a lot about this on my show. A fair tax would eliminate the IRS completely." [Fox News, America's Newsroom, 2/16/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Repeated Talking Point That U.S. Has "Either First Or Second Highest" Corporate Tax Rate In The World. Bolling asserted on the January 26, 2011, edition of America's Newsroom that the U.S. corporate tax rate is "either first or second highest" in the world. [Fox News, America's Newsroom,1/26/11, via Media Matters]

For the truth about the U.S. corporate tax rate, click here

Fox's Bolling: Social Security "Kind Of Like A Ponzi Scheme ... They Should Rename It The Madoff Social Security System." During the August 14, 2009, edition of Fox News' The Live Desk, Bolling said that Social Security is "kind of like a Ponzi scheme. ... It's almost like they should rename it the Madoff Social Security system." [Fox News, The Live Desk, 8/14/09]

Bolling Claimed House Health Bill Puts Us "$1.2 Trillion Further In Debt." On the November 9, 2009, edition of Glenn Beck, Bolling claimed of the House health care reform bill, "If the Congressional Budget Office is right and the government program actually costs what they tell you it will cost," then we "woke up Sunday morning $1.2 trillion further in debt." [Media Matters, 11/9/09]

For the truth about the budget effects of health care reform, click here

Bolling Attacked Obama For His Decision To Stop Receiving Daily In-Person Economic Briefings. On the June 7, 2011, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling claimed that "the daily vital economic briefings have disappeared from the president's schedule" and that "the economy ... not a huge priority for the president." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 6/7/11, via Media Matters]

For the truth about Obama's economic briefings, click here

Bolling Claimed "43 Percent Of Households Don't Pay Any Federal Tax." On the March 10, 2010, edition of Fox & Friends, Bolling claimed that "43 percent of [American] households don't pay any federal tax" to suggest that "socialism" is coming if the nation doesn't change course. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/10/10 via Media Matters]

For the truth about federal taxes, click here

Bolling Credited Bush Tax Cuts For Job Growth. On the April 2, 2011, edition of Bulls & Bears, Bolling cited job growth figures in the first two months of 2011 and said: "What happened right before that? Well, we extended the Bush tax cuts going forward -- it has a lot to do with that." [Fox News, Bulls & Bears, 4/2/11 via Media Matters]

Bolling Claimed Only 595,000 Jobs Have Been Created By The Stimulus. On Fox & Friends, Bolling claimed of stimulus money: "$272 billion has been spent," but only "595,000 jobs [have been] created." He added that "that's $450,000 per job." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 2/16/10, via Media Matters]

For the truth about the stimulus, click here

Bolling Hyped Falsehood That Federal Employees' Compensation Doubles That Of Private Sector. On the June 1, 2011, edition of America's Newsroom, Bolling used a USA Today article to falsely claim that "federal employees make double their private counterparts." [Media Matters, 6/1/11]

For the truth about public sector compensation, click here

Bolling Claimed Giving People 99 Weeks Of Unemployment Is "The Nanny State" And "We Need To Scale It Back." On the December 17, 2010, edition of America's Newsroom, Bolling claimed that extending unemployment benefits to 99 weeks is "way too long, scale it back." Bolling further claimed that "it's the nanny state, we need to scale it back." [Fox News, America's Newsroom,12/17/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Claimed Americans Deliberately Remaining Unemployed. On Fox News' Your World, while criticizing a proposal to extend unemployment insurance and tax credits to subsidize health insurance for the unemployed, Bolling appeared to suggest that a large number of workers deliberately stay unemployed in order to take advantage of unemployment benefits. [Media Matters, 2/12/10]

"Crush Collective Bargaining": Bolling Targets Labor Unions

Bolling: "We Don't Need Unions Anymore." On the January 15, 2011, edition of Bulls & Bears, Bolling told a panel, "We don't need unions anymore." [Fox News, Bulls & Bears, 1/15/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling: What The GOP Did In Wisconsin Was "Fantastic." On the March 10, 2011, edition of Fox & Friends, Bolling told the co-hosts that what the GOP legislature did in Wisconsin -- passing anti-union legislation to take collective bargaining rights away from public employees -- was "fantastic." [Fox News,Fox & Friends, 3/10/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Called For NFL To Follow Gov. Walker's Lead And "Crush Collective Bargaining." In a March 11, 2011, tweet, Bolling wrote that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, in pushing anti-union legislation, "does what the NFL should do...crush collective bargaining." [Twitter, 3/11/11, via Media Matters]

Bolling Has Made False Claims Regarding Obama And Foreign Policy

Bolling: "I Can't Remember Ever" When A President Said "Israel Back Off Your Border." On the May 20, 2011, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling stated, "I can't remember ever" when a president said "Israel, back off your border." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 5/20/11, via Media Matters]

For the truth about U.S. policy on the borders of Israel and Palestine, click here

Bolling Attacked Obama's India Trip Based On Price Tag White House Called "Wildly Inflated."On the November 3, 2010, edition of Follow the Money, Bolling said that Obama would be taking a trip to India that would cost "200 million per day." [Fox Business, Follow the Money, 11/3/10]

For the truth about the cost of Obama's trip, click here

Bolling Hyped Debunked ACORN Videos, Attacked ACORN

Bolling Hyped Breitbart-Promoted ACORN Videos, Praised Discredited Filmmaker O'Keefe. On the November 20, 2009, edition of Fox Business' Happy Hour, Bolling promoted videos made by discredited conservative activist James O'Keefe that claimed to show wrongdoing by ACORN employees, and praised O'Keefe, saying, "I'm all for this, you know, dressing up and catching them." [Fox Business, Happy Hour, 11/20/09, via Media Matters]

For the truth about O'Keefe's ACORN videos click here

Bolling Suggested Footage Of Chanting ACORN Protesters "Looks A Little Bit More Mob" Than Town Hall Disruptions. While guest hosting the August 7, 2009, edition of Glenn Beck, Bolling declared that footage of ACORN protesters "looks a little bit more mob" than protesters at health care town halls. [Media Matters, 8/7/09]