Schultz: I 'Absolutely' Believe Cheney Wants Americans To Die

By Mark Finkelstein | June 16, 2009 | 09:22

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There was a tell-tale moment during Ed Schultz's repugnant rant on today's Morning Joe. In the course of alleging that Dick Cheney wants Americans to die in a terrorist attack, Schultz boasted: "I got a lot of support when I said that on the Ed program, I got a lot of support overnight when I said it again." [H/t reader Melody and Mitchell Blatt.]

Translation: the ratings-starved Schultz will say pretty much anything if it garners him a few more eyeballs on the paranoid-lefty fringe.

Here's Schultz spewing his bile . . .

JOE SCARBOROUGH: Do you agree with the CIA Director that it's as if Dick Cheney hopes Americans die so that he gains a political advantage?

ED SCHULTZ: Absolutely. Absolutely.

JOE SCARBOROUGH: So you believe Dick Cheney wants Americans to die --

SCHULTZ: I want Dick Cheney to come out and say "I do not want this country to get hit, and I will do anything I can to help the president so we don't get hit."

SCARBOROUGH: You just said "absolutely." So again, I want this on the record: you believe the former Vice-President wants Americans to die in a terrorist attack so he can gain a political advantage?

SCHULTZ: You got it, Joe. You got it. I think Dick Cheney's all about power. I think Dick Cheney's all about seeing this country go conservative on a hard right-wing and I think he'll do anything to get it that way.

And a bit later . . .

SCHULTZ: I'm telling you what I think; I'm telling you what I believe. I got a lot of support when I said that on the Ed program, I got a lot of support overnight when I said it again. I think Leon Panetta backed off of that because he probably got a talking-to.

SCARBOROUGH: But you know what? You can also say that America took down, that we plotted to destroy and kill Americans on 9-11. You'd get a lot of support if you said thattoo.

SCHULTZ: I don't believe that.

A bit later still . . .

MIKE BARNICLE: I certainly don't believe that the former Vice-President of the United States is sitting there in McLean, Virginia saying "you know, I hope today's the day." Do you believe that?

SCHULTZ: I really do, Mike. I do. I really believe, because I think it's all about the conservatives grabbing the power and keeping it. These folks hate. Just my opinion. I mean, I don't want to offend anybody.

Of course not.