John Amato watches Fox so you don’t have to. Last night featured a particularly pungent puddle of poison:
Joe Biden gave his first national address as president on Thursday night. The speech was cohesive and meaningful. Biden showed that he empathized with the pain felt by the country over the pandemic and lockdown, and also spoke to lift up the hopes of the American people.
Similarly, Fox News hosts didn’t even try to analyze the speech at all and instead foamed at the mouth.
Up until Joe Biden has been elected, any presidential address since I’ve been covering politics (17 years) Fox News would convene their all-star panel, formerly lead by Brit Hume, Brett Baier along with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace, Megan Kelly, Martha McCallum, Dana Perino, Karl Rove, Charles Krauthammer, Juan Williams, and they would discuss what was said by the president and how they thought the overall speech was, including how the believed the public would view it.
Then after 30 minutes or so Fox News would go back to their original programming.
That wasn’t the case last night at all. Instead we got screams, COVID deniers, anti-Vaxxers and right wing hysteria.
Tucker Carlson immediately attacked Biden and screamed outrage over designating the Fourth Of July as a possible rallying point for the country.
“Who you talking to,” Carlson said. “This is a free people. This is a free country. How dare you tell us who we can spend 4 July with!”
Carlson’s first guest was Covid denier Alex Berenson, a faux COVID expert and anti-vaxxer, who called the entire speech bizarre.
On Fox Business, Mr. Meghan McCain (yeah) Ben Domenech of The Federalist, ranted and raved, “This is another garbage speech full of lies from a senile person who thinks they’re in charge of America but actually isn’t running anything. The reality is this guy who’s been trolled out to us as the being the President of the United States…”
Sean Hannity, the Trump sycophant, was furious Biden didn’t thank Trump, but was forced to admit that Biden was coherent and on point during his speech.
That didn’t stop him from trying to claim the president is mentally ill.
Hannity said, “But I do need to give Joe Biden a congratulations tonight. He stayed up an hour past his beddy time after days and days of practice. He was able to read from the TelePrompTer for almost 20 whole minutes without making a total fool out of himself. Now, the problem with this is, ‘See, Hannity, he did it, he did it!”
Hannity clapped his hands like a trained seal.
“Johnny hit the baseball! Good job!’ Is that the lowest bar possible for a president? Isn’t it a little kind of sad that we even have to wonder or even discuss it? It’s kind of sad to me.”
“This is a guy who is clearly not doing well,’ Hannity proclaimed.
Fox News and its right wing imitators all attacked Biden’s mental acuity through the entire 2020 campaign cycle and their efforts fell flat on its face.
But that’s all they have, along with the faux culture wars.
I don’t think I’ve seen a group of snotty little bitches like this since I was in junior high and overheard a bunch of creepy boys rating the girls’ bodies in their homeroom class. It’s definitely still Donald Trump’s party.
I do have to wonder how all this senility talk is hitting their audience. After all, more than half of Fox News viewers are over 65. It just doesn’t seem like a smart approach. On the other hand, the right is so psychologically damaged that maybe those old, white fogies who love Tuck and Sean can’t see that they’re being mocked as well.
Amato is right about this:
If Roger Ailes was still alive, he would have reconfigured their shows to fit the day and make it even more glossy, but instead, Fox has now taken up the mantle of the deranged QAnon Trump cultists and descended down the road of Newsmax and OANN. Pure outrage propaganda.
Without Ailes, they have lost their way. Bigly.
Oh, and by the way:
Update:
Here’s are a few more Fox highlights you just can’t believe…
I feel sick watching that fatuous nonsense. After five years of Trump bootlicking, which they seemed to genuinely enjoy, they have smoothly transitioned back into full time character assassination. They do love their jobs.