Over the Line…
There’s a big supposed “gotcha” moment that’s circulated the blogosphere today. Politico’s Dylan Byers writes about the case of Jesse Watters and the Obama Campaign donation…
One week after the 2012 election, Fox News correspondent Jesse Watters told Bill O’Reilly that Obama voters were “zombies” who supported the president “as long as there was Obamacare, gay marriage and abortion on demand.”
Per the FEC filing above, Watters, who resides in Long Island, N.Y., contributed $500 to Obama Victory Fund 2012 in late September. You’ll note “News Corp.,” which owns Fox News, is listed under “name of employer.”
I’m not in favor of “outting” stories, even if they are true which this one appears to be. I’m no fan of Watters and his shtick, but If Watters is perfectly comfortable with grilling Progressives via ambush interviews and in general making them look bad in his clips while at the same time making campaign contributions to Progressive politicians, that’s his business. It’s not our business. I imagine most of us at one time or another have done things in our jobs that were against our nature but we did them anyway. We all make calculations in our day to day lives about what we’re willing to do and what we’re not willing to do and everyone’s matric is different. Some will quit before doing something that is against their nature. Some won’t. It’s not for us to judge.
Watters had to have known that making that contribution could eventually become exposed and he went ahead and did it anyway. The mischievous side of me does wonder if he did it as a stunt just to see who would bite but it doesn’t seem likely.
December 7, 2012 at 7:27 pm
Unless you’re portraying yourself as a neutral journalist, I see no problem with contributing to campaigns. If you’re portraying yourself as a conservative dumbass attack dog for Bill O’Reilly while voting Democrat, all the better!
December 7, 2012 at 11:34 pm
you mean… *GASP* people are being deceived by what they see on tv news?!?!!? zomg!!! #NotShockedByThisAtAll
December 8, 2012 at 1:47 am
Ok while I watch allot of Fox I never watch the opinion shows unless I know somebody I want to see is on…so I don’t keep up but I know who Watters is and I thought he was called a producer. That’s allot different than a correspondent and wouldn’t that be a demotion. I don’t see how anybody but a partisan hack could have any problem with a producer or correspondent for that matter giving money to somebody.
This is America if somebody wants to give their own money to somebody I don’t have a problem with that really as long as they do it in their own name. I thought the whole KO business was 90% bunk except that he had them on his show and didn’t tell people he had donated to them.
I think this has allot to do with his ambush interviewers that the far left hates unless it 60 min doing it of course.
December 8, 2012 at 7:26 pm
@ gaxter
Spelling is not my strength.
But… there is no word, “allot.” It is “a lot.” Forever and always.
Other than that, I think you’re right.
December 8, 2012 at 8:46 pm
If Byers thinks this was a big scoop, I seriously question his judgement.
December 8, 2012 at 9:39 pm
“But… there is no word, “allot.” It is “a lot.””
Yea I know…its a very bad habit I picked up when I was kid and fall back to when Im lazy.
December 9, 2012 at 12:48 am
I find him much more interesting/tolerable now that I know he’s a lefty. I might be strange.
December 9, 2012 at 3:49 pm
If Jesse’s a leftie, he’s a really good actor. He asked the best question of any reporter pre-election during the “war on women” concerning who should pay for contraception. He asked a woman, You don’t think the government belongs in your bedroom, right? And the woman said, Right. Then Jesse asked, Then why should the government pay for what goes on in your bedroom? The woman was at a loss for words then said to Jesse, Good question.
December 9, 2012 at 4:36 pm
Can someone explain “government pays for contraception” to me? Who’s getting government-paid health insurance that covers it?
December 10, 2012 at 8:51 am
@gax
The only reason I know that (and really, my spelling is laughably bad) is because of my 4th grade teacher, who took off a full point from any test or quiz that had “a lot” spell wrong.
No worries.