On Monday’s Joy Behar Show, HLN host Behar devoted a segment to chiding former Republican House Speaker New Gingrich’s over the top declaration in his latest book that the "secular-socialist machine represents as great a threat to America as Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union once did," as she charged that Gingrich "throws the word (Nazi) around like its nothing," and asked, "What is he, losing his marbles?"
After playing a clip of Gingrich from Fox News Sunday, with host Chris Wallace taking him to task and reading the quote from his book, Behar asked of guest Susan Molinari, former moderate Republican Congresswoman from New York: "Susan, when Bush was called a Nazi, the right wing went berserk. And yet, Gingrich just throws the word around as if it`s nothing. What is up with him? What is he, losing his marbles?"
But Behar has her own recent history of comparing some conservatives to Nazis. On Monday’s The View on ABC, she invoked Nazi Germany and suggested that those who oppose Arizona’s new immigration law protest by taking a lesson from a legend – which she incorrectly cited as factual – from the days of the Nazi occupation of Denmark:
During World War II, in one of the countries where the Nazis were occupying -- I believe it was Denmark -- the king of Denmark also wore the Jewish star. So then everybody had the star, and the Nazis did not know who was Jewish and who wasn't. I suggest that the people in Arizona all get out there and protest this and get some kind of thing to show that they don't like this.
On the same day’s Joy Behar Show, she asked of the Arizona law: "Doesn't it feel like sort of Nazism a little bit? I don't want to overstate it, but, ‘May I see your papers?' you know?"
She also has on multiple occasions uttered the phrase, "May I see your papers?" to deride the Arizona law.
Below is a complete transcript of the relevant segment from the Monday, May 17, Joy Behar Show on HLN:
JOY BEHAR: Newt Gingrich was challenged on Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace about some of his fiery rhetoric. Take a look as Wallace reads a quote from Gingrich`s book.
CHRIS WALLACE, HOST OF FOX NEWS SUNDAY: "The secular-socialist machine represents as great a threat to America as Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union once did." Mr. Speaker, respectfully, isn`t that wildly over the top?
NEWT GINGRICH, FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER CLIP #1: No.
GINGRICH CLIP #2: The secular-socialist left represents a fundamental replacement of America, a very different world view, a very different outcome. I think it`s a very serious threat to our way of life.
BEHAR: I`m back with Hilary Rosen and Susan Molinari. Susan, when Bush was called a Nazi, the right wing went berserk. And yet, Gingrich just throws the word around as if it`s nothing. What is up with him? What is he, losing his marbles?
FORMER REP. SUSAN MOLINARI (R-NY): This has always been, let me distance myself from that remark, first of all, in all seriousness. To compare anything that is going on in this country to the atrocities of Nazi Germany in any way, shape or form is just crazy. And you know that Newt was so smart. He, you know, got the Republican majority back in a generation, Contract with America. And then, you know, moved quickly into a government shutdown and complained about his seat on President Clinton`s plane. This is Newt. He can be really smart sometimes, and sometimes he can just say some absolutely outrageous things, and I would like to be in that corner of saying that is outrageous.
BEHAR: Right, good, I`m glad you did that.
HILARY ROSEN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: He’s like a hyperbolic nut case and the problem is-
(LAUGHTER)
BEHAR: (FIRST PART INAUDIBLE) ... mean that in a bad way.
ROSEN: He’s not, but, you know, in all farce, of course, he`s, the problem with Newt Gingrich is that he actually says what most of the folks in the leadership of the Republican party are actually promoting. So, you know, they may not be calling the President a-
MOLINARI: That is not true. No, no, no, no, no.
ROSEN: Wait, wait, wait, let me finish. They may not be saying that the President is presiding over Nazi Germany, but they are out there fomenting a level of discourse and anger and craziness.
BEHAR: Why? Why are they doing that? Go ahead, Susan. But he and John McCain were the moderates and now they`re really swinging to the right. What is the problem?
ROSEN: They`ve completely denounced all moderation.
MOLINARI: If this was just – first of all, the Republican leadership has – I’ve not heard any comment saying that Newt Gingrich was right or close to being right or this was an appropriate, smart thing to say. But if this was just about, you know, the Republican party moving to the right in terms of fomenting, a lot of – and let`s just take Newt off the table because that`s just not even worth talking about.
BEHAR: Let`s put him under the table.
MOLINARI: Right, exactly, thank you.
BEHAR: Okay.
MOLINARI: A lot of what is happening right now in this country is a level of dissatisfaction with the direction of this government. At a time when we have a deficit that is now at something like $84 billion, $83.7 billion, when last April it was $20 billion. When people have said to this government, record deficits are a major concern of ours, and yet they have not been addressed. You know, there’s just, there is this level of dissatisfaction that the government is not responding to the concerns of the people.
BEHAR: Hilary?
ROSEN: Every time, every time one of the leaders of the Republican Party, whether it`s Sarah Palin or whether it`s Newt Gingrich or whether it`s a media guy like Rush Limbaugh says something outrageous, the leadership of the Republican Party is silent-
BEHAR: That’s true.
ROSEN: -because they want these guys out there saying what they`re saying.
BEHAR: Right, they need to open their mouths.
MOLINARI: I don`t think that they think that that is the smart thing and helps our party in any way, shape or form.
BEHAR: But they need to say it, Susan. It`s not enough to think it. They have to say it.
ROSEN: But they don`t say it.
BEHAR: Okay, thanks very much.
MOLINARI: Maybe they haven`t read Newt`s book.
BEHAR: Who`s going to read that?
