Opining on HBO’s Real Time on Friday’s Islamic terror attacks in Paris, former MSNBC host and liberal activist Dylan Ratigan explained that the reason Islamist extremists despise the United States and Western Civilization (and thus carry out attacks) is due to U.S. “financ[ing] the capital flow into Saudi Arabia” that cause poor Muslims to commit such atrocities against innocent people in the West.
Host Bill Maher kicked off the panel discussion with Ratigan, Jay Leno, and MSNBC political analyst Michael Steele by asking a question that arguably all of those affected by Islamic extremists have been wondering for decades: “I'm going to ask this question what we asked after 9/11 because I still don't think we know the answer. Why do they hate us?”
Following a long pause and Maher admitting that perhaps he had “stumped the panel,” Ratigan chimed in by blaming the United States:
Because we finance the capital flow into Saudi Arabia that then arms the population that has power in Saudi Arabia to oppress the population that does not have power in Saudi Arabia which then is deprived of basic resources inside of Saudi Arabia which is then radicalized inside the Muslim religion and then lashes out irriationally, violently, and murderously against innocent people who did nothing.
As Maher tried to interrupt him to partially disagree, Ratigan added that the U.S. “need[s] be accountable in our own government and our relationship with Saudi Arabia.”
The HBO host shot back that Ratigan’s argument has not been “what terrorists say when you capture one or when you leave a note.” Rather, he put forth the notion that it’s because of the U.S. involvement in Middle Eastern affairs as a whole and he blurted out: “I have a crazy idea, why don't we get out of Muslim lands?”
Steele joined in next to only bolster both what the two liberals had stated by ripping into the Bush administration:
[T]hat’s a big part of it. I think the idea — I think the idea of importing democracy, that — that concept that sort of emerged in the early 2000's, certainly part of the Bush Doctrine at the same time, to talk about sort of taking our values and transplanting them elsewhere has wholly been rejected[.]
The former RNC chair during the later years of the Bush administration continued hitting his own party over the varying foreign policy outlooks among the 2016 GOP presidential candidates:
Yeah, and that's a lot of the struggle you see within the party today is that fissure that’s growing between big-government Republicanism, for example and this idea that Rand Paul and others are talking about where, you know, ,let's be more common sense about how we project power.
The relevant portion of the transcript from HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher on November 13 can be found below.
HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher
November 13, 2015
10:20 p.m. EasternBILL MAHER: Okay, so, we're Friday night here in L.A. We’re live in L.A. It’s about 7:15 on the West Coast. Paris is 12 hours ahead, I think, so we don't have every bit of information. The last body count I heard was over 150. When the Charlie Hebdo thing happened and the week after everybody said Jui Suis, Charlie, hut they didn't really stick with them, like Asra and I were just talking about. I asked her if things would be different. I'm going to ask this question what we asked after 9/11 because I still don't think we know the answer. Why do they hate us? [PAUSE] I’ve stumped the panel again.
DYLAN RATIGAN: Because we finance the capital flow into Saudi Arabia that then arms the population that has power in Saudi Arabia to oppress the population that does not have power in Saudi Arabia which then is deprived of basic resources inside of Saudi Arabia which is then radicalized inside the Muslim religion and then lashes out irriationally, violently, and murderously against innocent people who did nothing. The United States lack of — internal account — we need to be accountable in our own government and our relationship with Saudi Arabia.
MAHER: What's — that's not what terrorists say. When you capture one —
RATIGAN: But the terrorists are irrational.
MAHER: — or when you leave a note, you know what they say in because you're there. Because you're in Muslim lands. I have a crazy idea, why don't we get out of Muslim lands?
MICHAEL STEELE: That's a — that’s a big part of it. I think the idea — I think the idea of importing democracy, that — that concept that sort of emerged in the early 2000's, certainly part of the Bush Doctrine at the same time, to talk about sort of taking our values and transplanting them elsewhere has wholly been rejected because now —
MAHER: Even by the Republicans.
STEELE: Yeah, and that's a lot of the struggle you see within the party today is that fissure that’s growing between big-government Republicanism, for example and this idea that Rand Paul and others are talking about where, you know, ,let's be more common sense about how we project power.
