The White House joined the criticism directed at Fox News anchor Greg Gutfeld for mentioning a bestseller written by a Holocaust survivor during a discussion with co-host Jessica Tarlov on the falsity of Florida’s new black history curriculum.
On Monday’s episode of “The Five,” when Tarlov, who is the show’s liberal “token,” mentioned the Holocaust to bolster the made-up Florida fuss that slaves “benefited” from slavery, Gutfeld responded by bringing up the best-selling book by Viktor Frankl, who was imprisoned in concentration camps and had to learn survival skills in order to keep from being killed by the Nazis.
“Frankl talks about how you had to survive in a concentration camp by having skills. You had to be useful, remarked Gutfeld. “Utility. Utility kept you alive.
The New York Times called Frankl’s book “Man’s Search for Meaning” “An enduring work of survival literature” and CNN’s Anderson Cooper hailed it, saying, “This is a book I reread a lot… it gives me hope… it gives me a sense of strength,” However, liberals and their allies who were ready to score political points over a political rival and his company were outraged by Gutfeld’s comments.
The White House, which is wholly committed to the fabrication about Florida’s curriculum, couldn’t pass up the opportunity on Tuesday to attack the Fox News comedian who frequently criticizes the government.
“What Fox News allowed to be said on their air yesterday — and has so far failed to condemn — is an obscenity,” White House spokesman @AndrewJBates46 says https://t.co/Q8T4amYfYw pic.twitter.com/3RVtTZ6gzY
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) July 25, 2023
Deputy White House press secretary Andrew Bates told CNN that “What Fox News allowed to be said on their air yesterday — and has so far failed to condemn — is an obscenity,”
“In defending a horrid, dangerous, extreme lie that insults the memory of the millions of Americans who suffered from the evil of enslavement, a Fox News host told another horrid, dangerous, and extreme lie that insults the memory of the millions of people who suffered from the evils of the Holocaust,” he insufferably went on.
“Let’s get something straight that the American people understand full well and that is not complicated: there was nothing good about slavery; there was nothing good about the Holocaust. Full stop,” Bates continued, attempting to tie the Florida false controversy into Gutfeld’s remarks about the Holocaust. “Americans deserve to be brought together, not torn apart with poison. And they deserve the truth and the freedom to learn, not book bans and lies.”
Gutfeld was attacked by the left’s over-the-top front liners for making what, to any sane person, appeared to be a wholly innocent remark. One of them, the notoriously neoconservative Bill Kristol, appeared to advocate that Gutfeld’s fellow “The Five” co-hosts quit Fox News in an effort to discredit them.
Everyone else at Fox fine with Gutfeld suggesting Jews sent to concentration camps could survive “by being useful?” How can any of his fellow panelists show up tomorrow to sit there next to him? https://t.co/iMmBa7MPwI
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) July 24, 2023
However, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which often supports the Democratic Party, responded with more restraint.
The group added in a statement to the Daily Beast that “It is not clear from Gutfeld’s comments if he is arguing that Jews learned skills in the Holocaust, or that Jews who had skills had a better chance of staying alive. The latter is something that is well-documented, while the former is nonsense. That said, many millions of Jews, who, in Gutfeld’s words, had ‘utility,’ were still murdered.”
The Daily Beast also claimed anonymous “Fox News staffers and insiders” who the left-leaning publication described as stating that it had been a “disgusting thing” for Gutfeld to have said that if he had done it “at any other place, his career would be over.”
Frankl’s work has “been translated into more than fifty languages and sold over sixteen million copies,” as stated by Amazon, since its 1946 release.
Gutfeld has always been a popular personality on Fox News, known for his sharp wit and unapologetic conservative views. But when he launched his own late-night comedy show in 2015, many were skeptical about how well it would perform.
However, Gutfeld’s show quickly became a hit, and according to a recent report, it’s been seeing some impressive ratings.
Gutfeld’s success is particularly impressive given the competitive landscape of late-night television. He’s literally going up against Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel, two of the biggest names in late-night, and he’s beating them.
WATCH: @greggutfeld gets his first SuperBowl ad for @Gutfeldfox as ‘King of Late Night’ pic.twitter.com/z4nVaKNLea
— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) February 8, 2023
“Gutfeld!, brought in 2.2 million total viewers on Tuesday night, beating its lead-in, The Ingraham Angle. Roseanne Barr joined Gutfeld! as a guest,” Mediaite in February of this year.
Gutfeld! was the 6th highest-rated show overall on cable news in total viewers and the 3rd highest-rated in the key 25-54 age demographic — behind Tucker Carlson and The Five — which was co-hosted by Greg Gutfeld.
His success is no doubt due in part to his unique blend of humor and politics. This appeals to conservative viewers who feel alienated by the overwhelmingly liberal slant of mainstream comedy.
Greg Gutfeld’s HILARIOUS roast of woke Disney will have you in TEARS laughing pic.twitter.com/8d7Wf1Yp4N
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) February 10, 2023
Gutfeld! is a testament to the power of conservative humor and the enduring appeal of common sense values. With ratings like these, it’s clear that he’s struck a chord with viewers across the country.
The post White House Attacks Greg Gutfeld for ‘Career-Ending’ Comment appeared first on The Republic Brief.
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