Ed Schultz in 2010: Don't Vote! Ed Schultz in 2011: I Never Said Don't Vote!

What a shock, more revisionism from Ed Schultz.

Schultz is responding testily to criticism that he urged Democrats in 2010 to refrain from voting to protest congressional Democrats not pushing hard enough for extended jobless benefits. (audio clips after page break)

First, here's what Schultz said on his radio show Friday (audio) --

You know the word -- it's viral. When something goes viral, like a rumor or something. Uh, I'm going to do this one time. There's something floating in the liberal sphere out there where people continue, and I think there have been, I know for a fact, a few talkers out there that have filled in for other talkers that have perpetrated this lie. I got on a commentary last year and I made this statement and the case that people who are running for office need to earn your vote. And we were talking about vetting candidates! That's what we were talking about! Apparently it's over the head of some of these people and I'm gonna start calling some of these people out. Like, Julie who just tweeted in the Twitter world -- Ed on record, you told voters not to vote in 2010, using your vast media access. Julie, what you need to do is bend over and pull your head out of your rear end. That is not true and I'm just, you know, sometimes you just get enough of stuff. That is so far from the truth. At no time have I ever told people don't go vote. I have never done that! But the Ed haters of the world out there take it and twist it.

The conversation we were having and we'll have it right now -- let's have it right now! -- do you just throw your vote to anybody? Is that what you do?! We're talking about voter suppression right now. And so now they're digging up this garbage about, well, I told people not to vote and here I am doing it on voter suppression. Look, uh, I will call you out and I will make you look like a fool. Because it's absolute garbage.

Here's audio of the gah-bage in question, from Schultz's radio show on July 30, 2010, commentary he couldn't bear to broadcast this past Friday. (C'mon, Ed, call me out!) --

But I'm not giving up on this (advocating for extension of jobless benefits for long-term unemployed). And I think the best way for the 99ers (Schultz's pre-Occupy name for those without work nearly two years) to get the attention of the Congress is to form an unemployed coalition and just flat-out tell the Democrats, we're not voting in the midterm. Look, if they don't realize the seriousness of this, then they don't deserve to be in office. It's that simple. Because they are not serving the people and they're just taking the problem and passing it to the next generation. We have got unprecedented unemployment in this country and the people have to be heard. The people have to be heard! This isn't about saving anybody's congressional ass. This is about saving lives at this point. And if Harry Reid doesn't have the guts to keep the Senate in to move on this issue, in my opinion, he should not be re-elected in Nevada. I don't care who he's going up against. We'll just have to go through this generational fight and make it a lesson for the Democrats and make sure that they know that the grass-rooters are serious, that we mean business, and you gotta do it for people and if you don't, we're not going to vote!

And I'm announcing today, I'm not gonna vote in the midterm. I'm not gonna do it! You can say it's un-American. No, it's rather revolutionary is what it is. I'm at that point. I'm checking out. I'm checking out of the Democrats because they are proving to me that they don't know how to handle these big babies over on the right that say no. You know what you do? You get in the driver's seat, you hit the throttle and you run over 'em. That's what you do. And the Democrats just don't have the guts to politically do that. So they have to be taught a lesson.

How curious indeed that congressional Democrats have invited Schultz of all people to "motivate" them at an annual retreat in January.

Not so curious that Schultz is now denying he ever urged Democrats to stay home on Election Day, seeing how he's about to speak before congressional Democrats who depend on the party faithful turning out at the polls.

Back in March, Schultz huffed and puffed through another strenuous denial that he had suggested Democrats refrain from voting. Then as now, Schultz declined to play the July 2010 audio of him doing exactly that.

Here, for your listening enjoyment, are Schultz's strident calls for voter inaction juxtaposed with his deceitful claim that he never said it. (audio)

Looking forward to being called out, Ed!