Full Frontal host Samantha Bee devoted her entire opening monologue Wednesday night to trashing Fox News. Throughout the course of her anti-Fox tirade, Bee described the network as “BDSM for the soul” and compared it to “North Korea’s state television.”
Bee began her opening monologue by discussing 2020 Democratic Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg’s recent Fox News town hall. After playing a clip of Buttigieg receiving a standing ovation from the crowd, Bee remarked: “what a touching reception for a candidate on a network that doesn’t believe his sexual orientation entitles him to a wedding cake.”
After telling 2020 Democrats that “you do not have to go on Fox News,” Bee said that she was shocked that independents and/or Democrats watch Fox News. Bee informed her audience that “the only time I watch Fox News is when I want to get rage horny before date night with my husband” before describing the network as “BDSM for the soul.”
Bee expressed her agreement with Elizabeth Warren’s characterization of the network as a “hate-for-profit racket,” adding that it is “the first profitable racket that Donald Trump has ever been involved in.” Bee also implied that Fox News personality Jesse Watters is a racist, suggesting that he locks his car doors every time he hears hip hop.
Bee continued to paint Fox News as a racist outlet by playing a clip of the network mistakenly showing pictures of Senator Kamala Harris during a report on a shooting at the University of Utah. After playing a clip of anchor Jillian Mele apologizing for the error, Bee sarcastically called it “an honest mistake.” According to Bee, “they accidentally filed Kamala’s photo under ‘black people, murderers’ instead of ‘black people, born in Kenya.’”
Shortly after declaring that “in its entire history, Fox News was never on the level” and calling it an “extension” of the Trump administration, Bee urged Democrats not to go on the network; declaring that “if you play along with Fox, you don't look principled or bipartisan, you just look stupid.” Bee argued that when Democrats go on Fox News, “you are legitimizing them,” adding “you wouldn’t want to go on North Korea’s state television, right?”
The TBS host concluded her opening monologue by telling Democrats “there are easier ways for you to get lots of Fox News air time. You can talk about climate change or wear pajamas or if all those options fail, just be Hillary Clinton.”
Bee has plenty of company among late night “comedians” when it comes to incendiary remarks about Fox News. Recently, Bill Maher of HBO’s Real Time described Fox News and President Trump as the “axis of evil in the world now” as he devoted his closing monologue to trashing President Trump and Fox News Chairman Rupert Murdoch. It looks like these comedians/left-wing activists might be a little perturbed that Fox News is crushing their preferred cable news networks in the ratings.
A transcript of the relevant portion of Wednesday’s edition of Full Frontal is below. Click “expand” to read more.
Full Frontal With Samantha Bee
05/22/19
11:30 PM
SAMANTHA BEE: Welcome to Full Frontal. I’m Samantha Bee. On Sunday, candidate Pete Buttigieg held a Fox News town hall, as I’m sure you did not see since it was the same night as the “Game of Thrones” finale. Buttigieg seems like a smart candidate but this was the worst scheduled media event since Jay-Z decided September 11, 2001 was the day to release his iconic album, “9/11 Will Never Happen.” Oh my God. How did he even know we were going to call it 9/11? Now, like “Game of Thrones,” Pete’s Sunday telecast had a twist. A Fox News standing ovation for a Democrat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE BUTTIGIEG: I hope you will join me in making sure that that next era is better than any we’ve had so far.
CHRIS WALLACE: Thank you, Mayor, and thank you…wow, a standing ovation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEE: Awe, what a touching reception for a candidate on a network that doesn’t believe his sexual orientation entitles him to a wedding cake. The South Bend Mayor’s remarks received the kind of warm touch Fox usually reserves for mayors of New York and/or hell. Fox town halls have become a dilemma for Democratic candidates.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KING: To Fox or not to Fox is a lightning rod issue in the Democratic primary. Following Bernie Sanders’ high ratings town hall with the network, these candidates signed on for theirs. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Kristen Gillibrand but sharply declining invitations from Fox in recent days, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEE: No Kamala Harris or Elizabeth Warren? That’s like hearing B.T.S. is going on tour but without Rap Monster. He’s the Bowser to their Sha Na Na. And some talking heads think it’s a mistake not to go on Fox.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
ADRIENNE ELROD: They’re too scared to go in front of Fox News viewers.
WILLIE GEIST: I agree that you’ve got to, if you can’t go into a town hall meeting, I’m…we’re not asking you… Democrats aren’t asking to you to go sit across from Sean Hannity if you don’t like to...
DONNY DEUTSCH: Yes, absolutely.
GEIST: …but if you want to have Bret Baier or Martha MacCallum or Chris Wallace conduct a town hall, if you can’t handle that and you view that as somehow endorsing the views of Sean Hannity if you object to that, I think that’s just wrong.
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
BEE: First of all, if you want to talk about being afraid of the opposition, the Republican President’s own press secretary has done fewer briefings this month than Gene Simmons. Oh, my God, are we invading Iran with the “Kiss” army? Second of all, if you think Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris are scared of talking to anyone. Have you met them?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
BRETT KAVANAUGH: I would like to know the person you’re thinking of because what if there’s…
KAMALA HARRIS: I think you’re thinking of someone and you don’t want to tell us.
JOSEPH OTTING: No one has been more tougher on Wells Fargo than myself. No one has been more outspoken.
ELIZABETH WARREN: You mean at the O.C.C.? That’s a low bar.
OTTING: I would disagree with that. I find that insulting that you would make that comment.
WARREN: Good.
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
BEE: Every time one of these women speaks to a Republican, it ends up on a shirt. My entire wardrobe is made of their inspirational quotes and sick burns. Look, Democratic candidates, this is obviously a complex issue. No, wait, I’m sorry, it’s not. You do not have to go on Fox News. I mean, okay, yes, there are some benefits to crossing the media aisle to try to reach new voters. While many Fox News viewers identify as Republicans, some Democrats and independents also get their news from it, which is shocking to me because the only time I watch Fox News is when I want to get rage horny before date night with my husband. It’s like BDSM for the soul. Look, it’s great to talk to as many voters as possible but where you talk to them matters. As Elizabeth Warren put it when she refused to appear on the network, Fox News is a hate-for-profit racket, which in all fairness, would make it the first profitable racket Donald Trump has ever been involved in.
(APPLAUSE)
BEE: Beyond that, why would you appear on a channel that talks about you like this?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
PETE HEGSETH: Well Senator Elizabeth Warren, she’s running for President, also goes by the name Pocahontas.
GERALDO RIVERA: You wanted to go with the young buckaroo with flamboyant ideas and an aggressive point of view, maybe, maybe you go with Mayor Pete.
JESSE WATTERS: Kamala, you’re not hip-hop. Trump’s more hip-hop than you are.
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
BEE: Yeah, Jesse Watters knows hip-hop. He locks his car doors every time he hears it. Seriously, Kamala, are you sure you don’t want to put yourself in the hands of the journalistic institution that once mistook you for a murderer?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JILLIAN MELE: The university going on lockdown as police searched the massive campus for the shooter. The suspect, Melvin Rowland, found dead after shooting himself inside a church off campus. Police believe Rowland, a registered sex offender, was the victim’s ex-boyfriend. Now, in an earlier version of this story, we showed you the wrong video. We showed you pictures of Senator Kamala Harris instead of Melvin Rowland’s mug shot. We apologize for that error.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEE: Look, in Fox’s defense, it was an honest mistake. They accidentally filed Kamala’s photo under “black people, murderers” instead of “black people, born in Kenya.” In its entire history, Fox News was never on the level. But in the Trump era, the network has become an extension of his administration or maybe vice versa. They don’t pretend otherwise so why should anyone else? I’ll remind you of just one example. Fox actually had the Stormy Daniels story before the election and they killed it in order to help Trump win. At a certain point, if you play along with Fox, you don’t look principled or bipartisan, you just look stupid. Nobody is impressed by how Charlie Brown reaches across the aisle to Lucy’s football. Look, guys, I’m not a political operative, you obviously know a lot more about running for President than I do. Apparently, the first rule is safety in numbers. If you’re sure that going on Fox is strategically the right thing to do, I guess go for it. In two years, I’d rather be mildly disappointed in President Buttigieg than dancing for my birth control under President Trump. But I am sure that it is not morally the right thing to do. When you go on Fox News, no matter how lit your town hall game is that night, you are legitimizing them. You wouldn’t go on North Korea’s state television, right? Although I’d understand if you wanted to be a judge on Kim Jong-un’s favorite show, “The Masked Rodman.” And if you do go on, they’re just going to take you out of context anyway. Here’s what Pete Buttigieg said on his Fox town hall when asked if streets and events named after Thomas Jefferson should be renamed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUTTIGIEG: I’m not planning that, no the, the…but I think there’s a reason why, Democratic Party’s, when we’re thinking about for the future our events, especially think about how burning of an issue something like racial equity is, we’re thinking twice about naming our events after Jefferson and, and Jackson but this is a great example actually of how the media noise machine on the right wing takes things out of control.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEE: And here is how “Fox and Friends” spun it the next morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)
STEVE DOOCY: Meanwhile, 2020 hopeful Pete Buttigieg clarifying his comments after going after our Founding Fathers.
BUTTIGIEG: We’re thinking twice about naming our events after Jefferson and Jackson. Maybe we should name it for a person who’s living, maybe we should name it after a person of color, I don’t know.
BRIAN KILMEADE: What a clown. Should we really be trying to erase our country’s history? Would we be a country without those men we’re trying to erase?
(END VIDEO CLIPS)
BEE: No, he said he wouldn’t rename streets named after Jefferson and they made it sound like he would. Why even bother doing a Fox town hall? As Democrats, there are easier ways for you to get lots of Fox News air time. You can talk about climate change or wear pajamas or if all those options fail, just be Hillary Clinton. We’ll be right back.
