Rachel Maddow: Frank Schaeffer - "STOP THESE FLAKES from suddenly becoming our national leadership."

[Hissyspit]

Run time: 12:22 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npK7VXSdmsM   Posted on YouTube: September 18, 2010 By YouTube Member: FixedNewsChannel Views on YouTube: 301   Posted on DU: September 18, 2010 By DU Member: Hissyspit Views on DU: 4010

 
MSNBC The Rachel Maddow Show - 18 Sept. 2010: Rachel reports on the people appearing at the "Values" Voters Summit. Interview with Frank Shaeffer, former right-wing fundamentalist, author of 'Crazy for God.'

MADDOW: "Everybody keeps saying that what is happening with the Republican Party this year is the emergence of a whole new crop of conservatives. It is not a whole new crop of conservatives. These folks have been around conservative politics for a long time.

This is just the first year that so many of them have tried to make the miasma of very, very, very far-right conservative movement politics into a cogent Republican party platform for the mid-term elections.

Joining us now is Frank Schaeffer. He is the author of 'Crazy For God: How I Grew Up As One of the Elect, Helped Found the Religious Right, and Lived Take All of It or Almost All of It Back.'

- snip -

Everybody's been saying all year that the religious right is really disenfranchised in Republican politics right now; fiscal conservatives have taken over the party. It seems to me like the religious right is really back. Do you think that it is?"

SHAEFFER: "Look, it's like claims for cures for cancer. There's always something coming along that says 'now there's a cure,' but it always comes back that it's not quite the cure.

The religious right is a fundraising operation. It's not a political operation at all. People like Gary Bauer, who I knew back in the day when I was in the religious right and my dad was a leader and I was a leader, back before I dropped out, in the early '80s, was in the same business he was in tonight.

And, so, when he comes in there bashing Muslims, but, say, wasn't bashing them before 9/11, or when people show up and say it's refreshing to be in the Middle East before 9/11 and then come back and change their minds - you have to understand they don't have a real ideology, these are fundraising opportunists, not political opportunists.

And, of course, the Republican Party is now saddled with the leadership that are so cowardly - people like Mitt Romney and McCain and the others - that they don't stand up against these guys and say 'Look, we need you like we need a hole in the head, what you're all about is raising money for things like your family organizations and all the rest; you keep changing your tune; it's Gays, it's Blacks, it's Muslims, circle the wagons, real Americans stand up' - the Sarah Palin schtick.

And Sarah Palin is the greatest example. She serves half a term as governor and drops out to make a buck.

These are flakes. And I used to be one of them.

And Thank God I got out, and I mean that literally because I'm still a believing Christian - I'm not that kind of Christian, but I'm a Christian. And you have to understand that these people are about fundraising for their organizations and they will latch onto anything, and if that means they're sometimes sounding like they're fomenting a little violence, they'll do it. If it comes off as racist or xenophobic or anti-Muslim, they'll do it...

And let me just say this. I had a son who was in the Marine Corps, and I'm loyal to the Marines and the men and women in the Marine Corps and our other armed services, and it MAKES ME SICK to see a group that wraps itself in the flag, stoking the flames of anti-Islamic-phobia in exactly the way that will result in people like those young Marines who served with my son getting killed, while these cowards raise money based on stoking these flames. That's who Newt Gingrich is, that's who these people are today, and IT'S DISGUSTING."

MADDOW: "Frank, I feel like the Beltway media take on what's going on in the Republican Party and the conservative movement right now hasn't really yet caught up to the fact that there's a lot of people from the religious right who've been long-time conservative movement figures who are really rising to power here.

I mean, somebody like Christine O'Donnell has been running for office for a long time. Somebody like Sharon Angle has been active in movement politics in the southwest for a very long time. These folks are not new. What do think that people who are used to covering just Red vs. Blue/Republican vs. Democrat should understand about the influence of this religious right conservative movement, as you say, fundraising operation, in the Republican Party? What should people be on the alert for?"

SCHAEFFER: "Well, they have to dig a little deeper the way you do on your show, and the fact of the matter is, the media doesn't do this. They always say 'on the one hand this, on the other hand that,' and they take these people at face value.

The first thing you have to do is strip away this idea that these are serious people. They're not.

The religious right is a fundraising operation for various organization, whether that is Focus On The Family, or any of these other groups. People like Gary Bauer, if he's not running for President and trying to raise money that way, the same way Pat Robertson did, which was never a serious run, it was just about Pat's building his empire, and so forth, will cycle back, always into the mixture until they just grow old and die in it.

And we have these new people coming along like Christine O'Donnell, new to the nation, but have just used old baggage when it comes to this group - it's always the same people.

The real story here is this: The Republican Party has to be held to account. These are your people, my fellow, former fellow Republicans. If you don't speak up against them, they become your problem. And the problem is the lines are fuzzy. And so you have all these Republican candidates who actually pick up part of fundraising pitch from people like Gary Bauer, fold it into their own machinery. Use it. They know perfectly well that these guys are flakes. They know perfectly well that they're not serious.

They also know perfectly well that there are a lot of people out there, particularly in white middle-class and lower-middle-class America who are disgruntled enough to be moved by messages of hatred and xenophobia, and they're cashing in on it.

It's the same old playbook again and again and again and again and again.

But now it's taken a dangerous twist with all this anti-Islamic rhetoric, because our men and women will get killed because of the kind of things being said by these people. And there is absolutely no need for stirring up a wartime situation to take advantage of it for short-term domestic gain. So the Republicans deserve what they're going to get in November, which is far less result than they are hoping for.

And I would just urge people, you know, you're saying 'what to do about this, now to stay alert...' Well, one thing we can stay alert for is that, whether we agree with everything the Obama administration is doing or not, or whatever it may be, we have to root for Democrats and reasonable people in the next election to STOP THESE FLAKES from suddenly becoming our national leadership."

[indimuse]

1. knr! n/t

[mwb970]

2. republicans are just so disgusting.

:puke:

[DemocraticPilgrim]

3. I think our side spend so much time in our own corner some forget what the right are like, Franks...

been thee he gets it. He understands the right have too many issues to fix issues.

[Enthusiast]

4. Thanks for the clip, Hissyspit.

Way to go Rachel! Expose those damn nuts! These nuts only represent a tiny minority of America. The voter will reject them if they understand how extremist they are.

[truth2power]

5. I hope you all caught what that Peterson guy said, about 2:20 in...

Referring to Pres. Obama, "I've been seeing his little feet on that birth certificate, so I don't know what he is."

Hmm....talk about a dog whistle. Remember that guy at the Palin rally with the toy monkey dressed like Obama? Yeah.

These people are poisonous! Hateful, evil, mean. And the ignoramuses cheer them on!

[pattmarty]

6. Look, you have to expose "these people" for exactly what they............

.........are, NUTS. We have to start labeling them crazy or nuts because that's what they are. Also, when they "misspeak" we have to label them and call them what they are; LIARS. Some of "our" pundits are finally starting to do this, but we have to make sure the national media outlets like CBS, ABC etc start doing the same. We have been bad at this type of thing and it has hurt the liberals badly over the years. It's good we finally have good, intelligent people like Olberman, Maddow, Uygur, Schultz, Lawrence O'donnell, Hartmann and Malloy to finally speak up LOUDLY for the liberals.

[marias23]

7. Mr Bauer : Remember the Crusades?

....inspired by..... the BIBLE!

[bulloney]

8. I noticed the Heritage Foundation logo on the display behind Bauer at the Values summit.

The HF is a source of talking points for "mainstream" Republicans. What does say about the mainstream Repubs if the HF is putting its name out in events like the Values summit?

[lumpy]

21. I did notice that . Mainstream Repubs have embraced the

Heritage Foundation for what it is, a right wing outlet for money grubbers.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

9. It was a coincidence

that in the last week or so, I was wondering about Frank Shaeffer - I had missed him. So, it was great to see him uninterrupted on Rachel. He is an incredibly persuasive speaker - complete sentences, very articulate and on point. I'm glad he's on our side now.

K&R

[Turborama]

10. K&R Their fund-raising by fearmongering tactics are endangering civilians in Muslim countries, too.

Thanks for posting, Hissyspit.

[GreenTea]

11. This ex-republican & fundamentalist is quite amazing & breathtakingly right on the money!!

Frank Schaeffer offers powerful facts and attacks about his former, and still lying hateful greedy slick republicans & "Christian" hucksters.

Schaeffer has them pegged just as we have always known they are, but are never pinned down by the complicit corporate whore media.

Frank Schaeffer articulating anger is a breath of fresh air!

[scarface2004]

12. we are on your side frank...

you are absolutely spot on

[WillyT]

13. K & R !!!

:kick:

[Bitwit1234]

14. And the republicans want to know why the world doesn't

trust or care for republicans. It seems to me the world is much more savvy than a lot of Americans. More's the pity.

[BrklynLiberal]

15. The people at that "convention" and their speeches, literally make me physically ill.

They are hateful evil people. It scares me to death....makes the hair on my arms stand up..to think what they could, and might do to this country if they ever got enough power to actually put some of their ideas into practice across the country. I know that people like this have always existed...but they are now being given the recognition and standing of a mainstream group....the MSM gives them attention and time on the "front pages". It is beyond horrifying.

Reminds me of "They Thought They Were Free" by Milton Mayer....
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/511928.html

They Thought They Were Free
The Germans, 1933-45
Milton Mayer

But Then It Was Too Late

"What no one seemed to notice," said a colleague of mine, a philologist, "was the ever widening gap, after 1933, between the government and the people. Just think how very wide this gap was to begin with, here in Germany. And it became always wider. You know, it doesn’t make people close to their government to be told that this is a people’s government, a true democracy, or to be enrolled in civilian defense, or even to vote. All this has little, really nothing, to do with knowing one is governing.

"What happened here was the gradual habituation of the people, little by little, to being governed by surprise; to receiving decisions deliberated in secret; to believing that the situation was so complicated that the government had to act on information which the people could not understand, or so dangerous that, even if the people could not understand it, it could not be released because of national security. And their sense of identification with Hitler, their trust in him, made it easier to widen this gap and reassured those who would otherwise have worried about it.

<snip>

I hope that those out there like Frank Schaeffer are given the same time and attention as these psychopathological hucksters and grifters.

[MadMaddie]

16. This is mind opening

<snip>
It provided an excuse not to think for people who did not want to think anyway. I do not speak of your ‘little men,’ your baker and so on; I speak of my colleagues and myself, learned men, mind you. Most of us did not want to think about fundamental things and never had.
<snip>

I felt this way when Junior was in office and then 9/11 happened. No one could ever explain why Cheney was involved with the Air Force Jets training that day and why they didn't have weaponary on board. No one explained why Saudi royalty was allowed to leave the country....The lead up to the war in Iraq...no one ever was allowed to ask what did Iraq have to do with 9/11? Don't forget the "Dixie Chicks", they were crushed by the Right and destroyed by fellow Amiercans......

One more thing, many people are starting to get it the groups like minorities, gays, poor, Liberals and atheists have been under constant attack for the last 30 years. It was mostly covert but the mask has been pulled off now and we are all under attack.

I beleive 2010 November elections will be critical for this country. If the Democratic party loses the House and the Senate this country will be at a stalemate for the next two years. Which means that the unemployment rate will increase further into the teens. There are consequences to not voting this November.

If Democratic invidivuals choose not to vote, they have made a choice.

GET OUT THE VOTE in November!!

[BrklynLiberal]

18. 100% right on target!!

:thumbsup:

[Beartracks]

17. K&R

"The first thing you have to do is strip away this idea that these are serious people. They're not."

The MSM seems to act like ALL opinions are valid opinions... the extension of which is that there is always "another side to the story" regarding FACTS.

:eyes:

-------------------------

[CBHagman]

19. Really just an excellent video to run.

Schaeffer's mention of the fundraising aspect of this, and of course the life-and-death issues (i.e., young service members getting killed for, in effect, the unhinged rhetoric of people Stateside) is very timely and devastating.

Thanks for posting this.

[MickeyD]

20. Thank you.

Great video.

[Carnage251]

22. How far right are these fascists going to go?

[Douglas Carpenter]

23. kick and recommend!!

[Norrin Radd]

24. kr

[blackbart99]

25. doesn't get said any better than that......

[Bluenorthwest]

26. Frank owes the world far more than just more paid words

This man, he is responsible for much of what we are now enduring as a nation. He and his father are part of a multi-generational hate machine. I have protested Frank. He was a vicious invective filled money magnet. Anything for a dollar, anything. His old man was worse, all couched in an intellectual style, but a monster, and Frank, he kept every dime he ever earned from undemining America and doing harm to minorities he and his Dad hated, often sending out messages of intolerance from their Swiss Chalet. Rich, rich, from hate, rich. And Frank kept it.
He built his house upon hate and division and lies. Still lives in that house.
Frank needs acts of redemption for which he is not paid large media dollars to prove to me he is not the same old money grubbing verbiage machine that thousands of good Democrats have protested over the years. Prove it, Frankie. How should you then live? Without the fear mongering.
I just don't trust him. He needs to apologize to many individuals, for many wrongs, and he has not done so.

[LiberalLovinLug]

28. Frank is paying his debts with his books and public comments

What more do you want him to do? Not earn a living? Give all he has to the poor, until he joins them?

Seriously I have so much admiration for Frank. I grew up in an evangelical house, and there is huge indoctrination and pressure to perpetrate the myth. It must have been 100 times the pressure for him to take the easy way and make his millions by following his father and becoming another charlatan, and cozy up to the Teabaggers. It takes incredible courage to stand up to such a powerful machine as the new Christian Reich.

The progressive movement will never grow if we don't accept into the fold those who were formally on the right but now see the error of their ways.

[Overseas]

27. Excellent! //nt

[Amonester]

29. Don't these flakes know it's un-patriotic to critisize the President

of the United States in a time of war? :shrug: