Krugman Distorted Michele Bachmann Quote in Controversial Column
Of all the pundits trying to pin the Tucson massacre on conservatives, perhaps none has been more nakedly partisan and ignorant of the facts than Paul Krugman.
Putting aside the sheer comedy of calls for civil discourse from a columnist who, when he didn't get his way, encouraged readers to hang a sitting senator in effigy. All hypocrisy aside, Krugman has now taken it one step further and begun quoting conservatives out of context in order to make his case - and completely distorting what they said in the process.
Michele Bachmann was given the Krugman treatment in a column on Monday. Krugman had this to say:
And it's the saturation of our political discourse -- and especially our airwaves -- with eliminationist rhetoric that lies behind the rising tide of violence.
Where's that toxic rhetoric coming from? Let's not make a false pretense of balance: it's coming, overwhelmingly, from the right. It's hard to imagine a Democratic member of Congress urging constituents to be "armed and dangerous" without being ostracized; but Representative Michele Bachmann, who did just that, is a rising star in the G.O.P.
Krugman defined "eliminationist rhetoric" in this context as "suggestions that those on the other side of a debate must be removed from that debate by whatever means necessary." Bachmann's statement was the only example he provided.
But true to form, Krugman quoted Bachmann out of context, and completely turned around the meaning of her statement in the process. What did she actually say? Here's PowerLine's John Hinderaker:
As it happens, I--unlike Krugman--know all about Michele's "armed and dangerous" quote, because she said it in an interview with Brian Ward and me, on our radio show. It was on March 21, 2009. The subject was the Obama administration's cap and trade proposal. Michele organized a couple of informational meetings in her district with an expert on global warming and cap and trade, and she came on our show to promote those meetings. She wanted her constituents to be armed with information on cap and trade so that they would understand how unnecessary, and how damaging to our economy, the Obama administration's proposal was. That would make them dangerous to the administration's left-wing plans…
For the record, here is what Michele said: "I'm going to have materials for people when they leave. I want people armed and dangerous on this issue of the energy tax, because we need to fight back." Yes, that's right: she wanted Minnesotans to be armed with "materials"--facts and arguments--not guns. If this is the best example of "eliminationist rhetoric" that the far left can come up with, you can see how absurdly weak the claims of Krugman and his fellow haters are.
Bachmann wanted her constituents to be engaged and knowledgable in the political process. This, apparently, was the only example Krugman could come up with, and it doesn't actually support his point.
Weak stuff, Paul.
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Comments
Too late.
Submitted by Red Jeep on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 9:58am.
Damage done.
Crude Krugman
Submitted by Cactus Kurt on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:07am.
Once again, Paul Krugman's crude assertions are completely wrong. It's Krugman and his ilk that perpetuate the "climate of hate". Krugman should heed the President's advice.
But watch out... big, bad Paul Krugman is "gonna haul out the next guy who calls him 'crude' and punch him in the kisser".
I have to disagree. "Wrong"
Submitted by Chris Norman on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:18am.
I have to disagree. "Wrong" means "mistaken". Krugman is deliberately lying about all of this and manufacturing "evidence" to support his lies.
Hey Crudman
Submitted by hbnolikeee on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:32am.
You're crude! Come and get me!
Paul, I suppose we could
Submitted by inquiringmind on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:07am.
Paul, I suppose we could always bring a gun to a knife fight... like President Obama once said.
No, no, no. . . .
Submitted by DontFeedTheTrolls on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:32am.
What I heard Obama say was "Bring a gun to a rally in Arizona.". Yep, I heard it. He said it. It was after he said the citizens of the United States who didn't support him are "enemies' and he wants to "keep his boot on their necks". I heard him.
Please don't tell me I didn't hear this. If the left can have selective hearing, so can I.
Krugman has taken low and
Submitted by Chris Norman on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:16am.
Krugman has taken low and contemptible down to a new sub-level. He must be nearing the earth's core by now.
I just wish Krugman would
Submitted by Barack_must_go..... on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:16am.
I just wish Krugman would pull the trigger and follow thru on that sex change operation he obviously yearns for.
Maybe then she can, with proper hormone therapy and a snappy pant suit, finally get those raging hormones under control.
Barack_Must_Go.....
It's just not fair
Submitted by blablablather on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:22am.
Krugman is nothing but a big ole bully.
The first rule of socialist journalism
Submitted by Huapakechi on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:21am.
Never let truth or context get in the way of an attack on the enemies of the socialist order.
OMG, Barack Must Go, that was
Submitted by marpel on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:22am.
OMG, Barack Must Go, that was hilarious....
Clearly, Krugman is as much of a mental case as that nutjob who pulled the trigger on Saturday. Instead of bullets, he uses his manifestos to injure the innocent. There's not enough Lithium in the world to fix this A-hole.
"Deep within my heart lies a memory. A song of ol' San Antone..."
Barack_Must_go
Submitted by solo4357 on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:44am.
You wish Paul krugman would "pull the trigger"? Clearly inflammatory rhetoric designed to get him to pick up arms and incite violence against himself. Do we really need this sort of imagery to get our point across? The optics are very bad. Please refrain from using this sort of needless martial and weapon based imagery.
See you can tell how smart I am cause I can see violent symbolism in everything and am definitely superior over you mouth breathers who glorify violence. I also use words like "glorify" and "optics".
Krugman is in career death
Submitted by Free Thinker on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:45am.
Krugman is in a career death spiral. Failed and disgraced as an economics commentator he is in a desperate search to hang on to the dwindling readers of his column in the New York Times. I really thought he would have come out and apologized after his disgusting statements over the weekend, but no, he doubled down on stupid and embarrassed himself in a column that was unfit for publication.
With the epic failure of his dear keynsian economic theories he is struggling to stay relevant and venturing into partisan, hack politics which has turned into another monumental failure for him. I would advise him to go on vacation for a while, evaluate himself truthfully, perhaps take some basic economics classes and try and reinvent himself as a credible economist that has seen the light and the need for free market capitalism. There are enough leftist hacks with far more experience than Krugman. No need to embarrass himself any further.
Somebody check Krugman's Meds!!
Submitted by Quasi-socialist on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:48am.
Stat!!
Distortion to cause alarm (and let's face it reaction)...not fearmongering in the Dem dictionary. Hmm....
And it's the left
Submitted by HockeyKid on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:52am.
that is liberally populated with bomb throwers both rhetorical like Krugman, Overbite, Tingles, and Sheriff Dipstick (goes right down to the nutroots level); and literal like Ayers and Dohrn, who should be rotting in federal prison.
"Beauty is only skin deep, but liberal's to the bone." - me
Krugman is just a sniveling little bastard.......
Submitted by richard on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:56am.
who needs to be set in his place, once and for all. The gig has been up for you for a long time Paul. Your not the brain thrust that you prepose to be. You are merely a left wing demagogue hack with a mild ability to string some words together in proper literary form.
As I stated, you need to be put in your place, and that place would be a girl scout camp, where you could run and jump around with your arms and legs flailing about. And oh yes, you could wear your little shorts that would really bring out your deep seated feminine side, together with your scraggy beard and bulging eyeballs.
He probably thinks that awful
Submitted by Seashell on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 11:09am.
He probably thinks that awful beard makes him look intelligent.
delete
Submitted by Seashell on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 11:08am.
delete
Insanity?
Submitted by okiehawk44 on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 11:39am.
When I first heard Democrats in America described as lunatics I chuckled for several reasons and because my sister is a hard-wired one but the past two years have convinced me that while this descriptive word is harsh it is also correct.
I am not going to go hide or to walk on eggshells around lunatics.
Democrats and specifically the hard leftists within that party who hate America and hate how it was founded and wish to destroy it and then rebuild it in their idea of purity & perfection -- even when they can't admit that their attempts in Russia, China, Cuba, Cambodia, North Korea, etc. failed miserably -- just get insane projecting all sorts of motives on those of us who do not agree with them. My sister is a very educated person but she resorts in every discussion we have ever had to Democrat talking points -- no paraphrasing just repitition of the likes of Krugman or Hillary Clinton. It's as if she can't think on her own and just turns into a robot. I think she goes politically and socially insane and I no longer chuckle.
I know how you feel,
Submitted by ant on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 2:08pm.
I know how you feel, okiehawk, I have liberal family members and no matter what the discussion, heck, I could be talking about shutting off the water to farms for the sake of the delta smelt or censoring Huck Finn, and it always devolves into " but Bush..blah,blah", or "Fox news..blah,blah". It's like students who are forced to memorize certain facts for a test but don't really want to embrace understanding.
When the left admits that it
Submitted by allouchsit on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 12:14pm.
When the left admits that it is responsible for the current "climate of hate," then, and only then, can we all begin to come together. Until then, the blame for the current conditions fall squarely on the shoulders of ALL who lie and deceive the American People, including Mr Krugman.
Krugman lies, is unethical
Submitted by Beukeboom on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 12:18pm.
Krugman lies, is unethical and has no morals. Anything, whether hook or by crook, to force his liberal agenda upon us "ignorant masses."
Princeton tuition
Submitted by billb on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 12:21pm.
Does anyone have any idea what the the tuition is at Princeton that people are willing to pay to worship at the Krugman alter.
Oh no..........................
Submitted by Patriot II on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 12:45pm.
Distorted? by a liberal dipwad.......how can that be? lol...gimme a break!
Krugman calls for VIOLENT ACTS...
Submitted by Jack Bauer on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 1:06pm.
I have carefully read Mr Krugman's most recent musing and can only conclude that he wants violence in America.
These are DIRECT QUOTES, but you of course are free to make up your own mind.
"Saturday’s atrocity will be just the beginning." Wow. This is eliminationist rhetoric.
"those on the other side of a debate must be removed from that debate by whatever means necessary." More eliminationist rhetoric.
How can the New York Times in all conscience employ this krugman who want sto eliminate all oposition buy ALL MEANS POSSIBLE.
All of the above Mr Obama? --- How about ALL OF THE BELOW, instead.
What rising tide of violence, Paul?
Submitted by CobraMan on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 1:47pm.
"And it's the saturation of our political discourse -- and especially our airwaves -- with eliminationist rhetoric that lies behind the rising tide of violence."
What rising tide of violence would that be, Paul? According to the latest reports, the frequency of violence in America has been dropping since 1993, as even the NYT's has reported.
Be honest, Paul, that "rising tide" only exists within you own head.
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States. The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus. The US Supreme Court
Or Anwar al-Awlaki.
So that's what it is
Submitted by jon_torlin on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 2:22pm.
Be honest, Paul, that rising tide only exists within you own head.
Also known as "Water on the Brain." Usually deadly, but for liberals, it's known to cause delusions of various types in 20% of people. Coincidentally, that's the same ratio as recently revealed of 1 in 5 people are liberals.
-Jon
I Blames Liberals
Submitted by USAmerican on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 8:35pm.
Why are thay so stoopid?
Thay say things I donet get and than thay get noble prizes. All those big werds. Who is he tryin to empress?
Michelle Bachman is so smart, she should be president of America.
Parody troll alert^^^
Submitted by Quasi-socialist on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 9:00pm.
Text here.
Hilarious! You are just
Submitted by ant on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:06pm.
Hilarious! You are just special. I mean that. Third grade schoolyard comebacks. I know you are, but what am I ! Go waste somebody else's time somewhere else.
Kiddie pool is
Submitted by Boudin on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:15pm.
Over here
Weak stuff, Paul.
Submitted by ckc1227 on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 10:10pm.
Is there any other when it comes to Paul Krugman?
Don't Worry, Paul
Submitted by IrateNate on Thu, 01/13/2011 - 11:24pm.
We understand your anger, your paranoia, your dementia. We know you're just worried that people will soon find out you're actually a brain-dead liberal douche, with no clue about what's happening with the economy.
But don't worry, Paul, that Nobel Prize? That's yours, you can keep it. Nobody's going to make you give it back. And you can keep the money, too. Just sit there, breathe, relax, and think happy thoughts.
And, hey - just between us, I'd ease up with that horse's ass attitude of yours - very unbecoming of a Nobel laureate.