ThinkProgress.org: On his Fox News show yesterday, Glenn Beck escalated his character assassination war against the Obama administration, promising his audience that he was going to show them “something that will melt your brain.” “I’m going to ask you to do something I don’t think I’ve asked you to do before,” said Beck. “Stay the hour with me. Please, watch this hour. Call your friends. There is information that you’re just not going to see anyplace else.”
After retelling his theory of communistic sympathies in the White House, Beck revealed that his big surprise was a video of White House Communications Director Anita Dunn quoting Mao Zedong and calling him one of her “favorite political philosophers,” who she cites to “deliver a simple point, which is, you’re going to make choices.” Beck then used the video to connect Dunn to the millions of people Mao killed, saying “this is her hero’s work!” Watch it:
The Washington Independent’s Dave Weigel, noting the audience’s laughter when Dunn praises both Mao and Mother Teresa as political philosophers, writes “it’s a joke to everyone but the grim-faced Beck.” Weigel then points out that Dunn is not the only prominent political figure to quote Mao in order to “deliver a simple point,” linking to a video of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) saying, “in the words of Chairman Mao, it’s always darkest before it’s totally black.” Watch it:
Media Matters notes the many prominent conservatives who have cited Mao, Lenin and the Viet Cong for political advice. Barry Goldwater adviser Stephen Shadegg said that he always followed “the advice of Mao Tse-tung” in the campaigns he ran (Beck has implored Republicans to “get back to the conservative roots of Barry Goldwater.”) Strategist Ralph Reed has been quoted saying, “Mao Tse-Tung said politics is war without bloodshed. Clearly, there are some metaphors that sit nicely with politics.” Also, Karl Rove said President Bush urged him to “read a Mao biography.”
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