Helen Thomas on Tuesday not only admitted that she was a liberal, but also claimed she's as far left as you can go.
Chatting with some of the folks from the Fox Business Channel, the long-time member of the Washington Press Corps also said Barack Obama ISN'T a liberal: "Not in my book."
Thomas also felt the President isn't beating up enough on corporate America: "Poor American business, what the hell have they done to us now? The whole country's in shambles."
When asked about the current divisions in the nation, she blamed it all on Republicans (video and partial transcript follow with commentary):
You have to admire her honesty.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if ALL the liberals in the media would just admit it? Then Americans would know who they were getting their news from.
Transcript:
VARNEY: Here's our question: you've covered every president since John F. Kennedy. We're a financial program. Do you think that this president, President Obama, beats up on business more than any other president in your experience?
THOMAS: Not enough.
VARNEY: Not enough, says Ms. Thomas. But you think that he does?
THOMAS: Well, you know, I -- you can go back to Roosevelt, when we had a Great Depression similar to what I think we have now, I think President Obama has the right to beat up on them, and find out where they are. Republicans are tying to block every kind of move for improving the situation. How can they ignore what's happening?
VARNEY: Some of the critics say that you are a liberal, and you let your politics show very, very clearly, and that maybe you should not let your politics show when you're a White House correspondent.
THOMAS: I'm a columnist. I'm an opinion columnist, and I have a right show my opinion. And I am a liberal.
VARNEY: Would you say you're on the far left?
THOMAS: I would say I'm as far as you can go.
VARNEY: And do you think that President Obama is with you?
THOMAS: No. He's not a liberal.
VARNEY: He's not?
THOMAS: Not in my book.
VARNEY: He's got the stimulus program, he's vastly expanded government --
THOMAS: So did President Bush when they were really down on their [unintelligible].
VARNEY: But this president has vastly expanded government and government services and entitlements.
THOMAS: How?
VARNEY: Well, health care.
THOMAS: Health care? Okay, Social Security, Medicare, what do you mean? You haven't been in this country long enough.
VARNEY: Well, forty years, but nonetheless. Isn't health care the biggest new entitlement program in several generations?
THOMAS: No.
VARNEY: What is?
THOMAS: Social Security.
VARNEY: But that's many, many generations ago. In the modern era, post World War II, isn't the health care program the biggest new entitlement program since Medicare?
THOMAS: It was so needed. Nobody in this country should go without health care.
