On Monday's The Kelly File, Ann Coulter and host Megyn Kelly hit liberal hypocrisy in reaction to a series of AP photos that appeared to show a gun pointed at the head of 2016 presidential candidate Ted Cruz (R-TX). Both Coulter and Kelly were stunned that the AP actually suggested that these photos were unintentional. Coulter noted that this “is so outrageous. Don't insult our intelligence by saying, oh, we didn't even notice.”
Kelly added that it makes little sense to think this happened by accident: “[I]t had to get by the photographer and the photographer had to take the picture. They had to crop the picture. The editor had to okay the picture.” The Fox News personality then contrasted the reaction to the Cruz photos to the blame that Sarah Palin faced after the Gabby Giffords shooting for displaying crosshairs on a website that identified congressional districts for Republicans to target:
But let me ask, because when Sarah Palin went up with her ad that had crosshairs on it, just crosshairs, not an actual gun, saying these are the Democratic districts that are targeted, she wound up getting blamed for the shooting of Gabby Giffords. For the shooting of her.
Elaborating on her original point, Kelly wondered how the media would react if something terrible were to happen to Ted Cruz: “But it’s okay – like, God forbid anything were to happen to Senator Cruz, you know, as a result of this threatening photo. Would there be similar outrage? Shouldn't everyone be more careful if they're go to apply that kind of a standard to messaging?”
Coulter also pointed out that Bush was frequently a target of hateful speech, but the media rarely, if ever, commented on it. Kelly then maintained that if Senator Cruz were “a Democrat and not as vocal on the Second Amendment,” he would likely be receiving very different treatment from the media. When the Fox News host began to suggest that the picture might be viewed as subtle to some people, Coulter cut her off and said, “no, look at that picture. It’s not subtle.”
The relevant portion of the transcript is below.
Fox News
The Kelly File
June 22, 2015
9:16 p.m. Eastern
KELLY: If that had been Hillary Clinton, if that had been President Obama, the left would have been losing their mind over this.
ANN COULTER: Oh, yes.
KELLY: And the AP, would they have done it?
COULTER: That is so outrageous. Don't insult our intelligence by saying, oh, we didn't even notice.
KELLY: (sarcasm) It was a mistake.
COULTER: Who would have seen something like that?
KELLY: Because it had to get by the photographer and the photographer had to take the picture.
COULTER: Look at it.
KELLY: They had to crop the picture. The editor had to okay the picture.
[...]
KELLY: They try to stand up, they say, against racism and so on. However, that’s the same group that once deemed Ben Carson, I think, some sort of threat to the United States. But let me ask, because when Sarah Palin went up with her ad that had crosshairs on it, just crosshairs, not an actual gun, saying these are the Democratic districts that are targeted, she wound up getting blamed for the shooting of Gabby Giffords. For the shooting of her.
COULTER: Yeah.
KELLY: But it’s okay – like, God forbid anything were to happen to Senator Cruz, you know, as a result of this threatening photo. Would there be similar outrage? Shouldn't everyone be more careful if they're go to apply that kind of a standard to messaging?
COULTER: Yes, but they aren't. I mean, during Bush's presidency, there was both a book fantasizing about his assassination and a documentary portraying his assassination, which, you know, got rave reviews in the Washington Post. Nation Magazine called it the best date movie of 2006. And you can go to this website, Zombie Time, I don't know if it is still up, but it was all the assassinations, decapitations, guns to Bush's head at liberal protests. Obama comes along, there’s a Tea Party protest and there’s a picture of Obama that, you know, looks like a monkey. We're in the grips of racism once again. Oh my gosh, can we compare the two presidents?
KELLY: Typically what we have seen with President Obama has been – people have been talking about this on Twitter today – the halo effect. He's pictured and they put, sort of, this halo on him. Look. Look. Look at this. And look what happened to Senator Cruz. Look. I mean, it’s like, ahhhh. And Senator Cruz, were he a Democrat and not as vocal on the Second Amendment, who would be the first Hispanic president, you know, would he be getting different – I mean, it’s subtle to some people, but not to others.
COULTER: No, look at that picture. It’s not subtle. I’d also mention that Ronald Reagan took an assassin's bullet one month after being elected. Little, harmless Jerry Ford had two crazed liberals take a shot at him. Loaded gun, fired right at him. So maybe we can back off on the hysteria about America being a racist country every time anything – the sun rises.
