Politics

Garofalo: Tea Party racist, liberal media ‘a myth,’ Justice Thomas suffering Stockholm syndrome

Jeff Poor Media Reporter
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This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, but comedienne Janeane Garofalo still has a low regard for the Tea Party movement and just about all other things conservative.

On Current TV’s Thursday broadcast of “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” during the “Web extra” segment, Garofalo admitted she wasn’t happy there were those that despised her for her 2009 remarks declaring the Tea Party “a bunch of teabagging rednecks,” but she stood by them.

“I do not enjoy when people don’t like me,” Garofalo said. “I would prefer to be well like in any and all situations. And I also feel it’s quite unjust to be punished for calling racism ‘racism.’ And I don’t know why so few people, especially back then a couple of years ago were willing to say that word.”

According to Garofalo, a double standard exists for black politicians compared to white politicians.

“If it was a white Democrat, you couldn’t get so many Tea Party people so upset whatever it is they’re upset about — showing up armed to town hall meetings,” she said. “By the way, if a black person showed up armed at a town hall meeting where a white politician was speaking, it would be on lockdown martial law and we’d never hear the end of it.”

Olbermann agreed and said it is impossible to imagine any other reason other than racism inspiring the Tea Party and any other suggestions like fiscal issues, health care, etc. were just disguises for racism.

“[I]t is absurd to me — the liberal media trope that has always been a myth that is leveled at someone and unfortunately a lot of people in the media will back away from being perceived as … there is no liberal media bias. There’s never been a liberal president. There’s never been a liberal machine in power, per se. And you’re quite right — anything that the right-wingers are doing, you will know what they are doing by what they accuse their opponent of doing.”

Garofalo also indicated she was still hung up on the election of 2000, in which former President George W. Bush prevailed over former Vice President Al Gore, after the Supreme Court intervened. But the mention of that SCOTUS decision offered the opportunity for Garofalo to rail against

“Explain that one to me,” she said. “You have an African-American gentleman married to a white woman who is in cahoots with a group that has a lot of racists in it. Is that Stockholm syndrome on his part? What’s going on?”

Olbermann offered his theory which was since the Tea Party will often show they’re diverse movement, the fact that they are offering any defense in itself evidence it is a racist movement, which he offered Thomas’ marriage to Virginia Thomas, a Caucasian female as an example.

“Something that does give me pause is — now it may be cynically motivated by monetary concerns on her part, she’ll align herself with whomever it seems prudent to be aligned with, it just would seems like Clarence Thomas at some point would have some type of dark knight of the soul sign and say ‘Wow, I should be insulted by this that my wife is involved with the Tea Party.’”