Bill O'Reilly Tries To Punk Sen. Coburn For Negative Comments

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When will Republicans learn that you can't speak negatively, true or not, about Rush Limbaugh or Fox News. Sen. Tom Coburn had the guts to call out Fox News for their inflammatory, sensationalized news when responding to a constituant worried about being but in prison by the IRS for not buying health insurance. WITH VIDEO

As expected, Coburn was summoned to "The Republican Party HQ" aka: Fox News to walkback his “Don’t catch yourself being biased by Fox News” comment.

Sen. Coburn -(R) appeared on The O’Reilly Factor last night (4/13/10) to discuss his remarks at a recent town hall. Coburn also said at the town hall, to a constituent who claimed that she could go to jail for not obtaining health insurance, “That makes for good TV news on Fox but that isn't the intention.”

Without saying so directly, Coburn also made no bones about Fox News’ conservative bias. Bill O’Reilly insisted that, contrary to Coburn’s assessment, nobody on Fox News had ever said that under the new health care legislation, you can go to jail if you don’t buy health insurance. But not only was O’Reilly wrong, one such claim was made by Glenn Beck right on The O’Reilly Factor. Interestingly, O’Reilly never argued that Fox is “fair and balanced” and without bias.

Right off the bat Coburn offered as a given that Fox News is biased. “The constituents that come to my town hall meetings? They routinely and uniformly listen to your network and every network has some bias.” He also said that his constituent who worried about going to jail, “didn’t make that up. She heard that.” Coburn added, “The point is this, Bill… We have to win on the real facts of the issues. And when we change those to where we inflame them, we lose our credibility.”

O’Reilly replied, “And I’ve been saying that more than anybody, that personal attacks are foolish.” That’s true to some extent but O’Reilly has also been touring with Mr. Number One inflamer, Glenn Beck.

Then O’Reilly said, “Can you tell me one person on Fox News, just one, who has told this audience that they’ll go to jail if they don’t buy health insurance?”

Unfortunately, Coburn could not name a person. But here is just a few for starters: Neil Cavuto, Bill Hemmer, Foxnews.com (H/T The Nation) and Glenn Beck. He even said so on The O’Reilly Factor, no less. Rep. John Shadegg also said it on On The Record and was not corrected by host Greta Van Susteren.

O’Reilly claimed he had researched whether “anybody on Fox News had ever said, ‘you’re going to jail if you don’t buy health insurance.’” He concluded, “Nobody’s ever said it.” I think O'Reilly needs a new researcher. Later, O’Reilly revealed what I think really bugged him about Coburn’s remarks: “You know, YOU KNOW, that the far-left cranks that dominate the media took what you said and ran with it all day long.”

Coburn wasn’t buying it.

“Here’s the problem, Bill… First of all, you all are running the media now in Oklahoma. I guarantee it, …and across a larger and larger percentage of this country. But when that becomes the news story, instead of us trying to not add to the debt, when we do take a courageous stand and we say, ‘We’re not gonna pass an unemployment insurance bill that we’re gonna charge to our grandchildren… it’s that the story on the networks is more important than the actual happenings that are going on. And that’s a problem in the media because they don’t want to talk about the real substantive issues. You do. But many do not.”

WATCH VIDEO

CODE BLUE at C St: Religious Right On Damage Control

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CODE BLUE at 133 C St. SE: The Religious Right is on damage control over the shinanigans that have come to light at the secrative brick building on C Street. The fact that three out of six congressman that lived there were caught up in sex scandals speaks volumes. We now know that in the case of the 3 married congressmen, their affairs where known by other members of the C St. Fellowship.

It seems disingenuous that anyone would try to defend the C Street Fellowship at this point in the game. Perhaps they forgot that we reap what we sew and in the future, instead of assisting in the coverup of these sexual affairs, they’ll tell the offending member this type of behavior is unacceptable and suggest they move out immedaitely.

A post on POLITICO today said that the large townhouse is valued at more than $1.8 million, and that it’s run by Christian network of nonprofits and ministries known as “The Fellowship.” Headquartered in Arlington, Va., the group focuses on what Fellowship leaders call the “up and out,” or powerful politicians struggling to confront their personal demons. I guess it is safe to assume from this point forward that congressmen both Republican and Democrat connected to the C Street Rehab are in the process of confronting their personal demons.

By ministering to the most powerful, The Fellowship believes, it can bring Christian beliefs to the larger culture. Jeff Sharlet, who wrote a book about his time in The Fellowship's Virginia headquarters, said the group believes that lawmakers have been "chosen" to lead by Jesus Christ.

In February, Nevada Sen. John Ensign — who lives at the house — was confronted at C Street by colleagues who wanted him to end his affair with a staffer.

Earlier this month, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford — who lived at C Street when he served in the House — said C Street was where he’d been asked the “hard questions” that were “very, very important” in his decision to admit an affair with an Argentine woman.

And last week, the estranged wife of former Rep. Chip Pickering said he carried on a long-term extramarital affair while living at the “well-known C Street Complex.”

But Christian lawmakers say Washington prayer and Bible-study groups — and the secrecy that surrounds them — provide crucial counseling for their lives in the nation’s capital.

“One thing about having members meet with members is they kind of understand what each other goes through and the stresses and the pressures and those kinds of things,”

Congressional Prayer Caucus Chairman Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.), who participates in a small Bible study group on Wednesday mornings. “And one member can tell another member, ‘I don’t think that’s the right thing for you to do.’”

In an interview with the evangelical World Magazine, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) described living at C Street as “one of the best parts” of life in Washington.

“We kind of make that commitment to each other to get together once a week,” he said.

“Sometimes it’s a Bible study; we always have a spiritual or scriptural thought. But sometimes we just talk about each others’ lives, try to get to know each other, remind each other that we are not important, that it’s just a title.”

Although titles may not be important, there are plenty of them at C Street. In addition to DeMint and Ensign, C Street residents include Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and Reps. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.), Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.). Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) lived in the house before moving to his own condo, and he still attends events there. Former Reps. Steve Largent (R-Okla.), Jim Ryun (R-Kan.), and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) have also studied at C Street.

John Ensign And His Religious Path To Politics

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When religious men suddenly fall from grace and particularly politicians, it's not unresionable to assume that their overly publicized connection with the Lord is nothing more than a manufactured persona or a storyline if you will. It's their way of insuring that only one storyline remains in the minds of Americans and particularly those that are constituants who weild the power of the all mighty vote.

In the case of Republican Senator John Ensign of Nevada, his connections and affiliations with everything religious and holy have left a trail of bred crumbs that are casting a far more sinister light on the political path of rightousness that he took on the way to Washington. There are more men who do not violate their marriage vows then there are that do. And among those who stay true to those vows are men who are not particularly religious. In fact, some haven't stepped foot in a church since their own wedding day.

Yet Ensign on the other hand, chose to publicly involve himself with Promise Keepers, a religious mens group that is based on seven promises. A closer look at the religious group gives it the appearance more like a "self help" group based on it's 7 principles like Alcoholics Annonymous is based on it's 12 steps. It is a way for those who have strayed onto a path of dangerous and unhealthy behavior to find their way back with the help of those suffering from the same afflictions. One of the most striking things about Promise Keepers besides their 7 promises is the chronological order of importance in which they have been placed.

Promise #1 Of course is to honor Jesus Christ. But it's Promise #2 that's amazing not just for the basic premise of the promise itself, but rather because it's the second promise in order of importance only to Jesus and well ahead of the promise to fedility in ones own marriage. Promise #2 says and I quote "A Promise Keeper is committed to pursuing vital relationships with a few other men, understanding that he needs brothers to help him keep his promises."

If you are so weak in spirit that you need to surround yourself with a support system to keep you from screwing around on your wife, then it's obvious that you have already done it and are trying not to do it again, or that you are doing it right now and are trying to stop. With the lid being blown off of what goes on a 133 C Street SE in Washington D.C. and that Sen. John Ensign himself is a resident and a member of "the family" speaks volumes.

This is the epicenter of where the conspiracy was hatched to pay-off Senator Ensign's mistress and that in fact, a $96,000 dollar payment was made. According to Doug Hampton who is the husband of Ensign's mistress, Sen. Tom Coburn (R) of Oklahoma, who also has a connection with "the family" and the "C Street" residence attempted to negotiate a pay-off to the Hampton's before Mr. Hampton went public by sending a letter to Megyn Kelly of The Fox News Channel. Shortly after Hampton sent the letter to The Fox News Channel, Ensign suddenly and unexpectedly went public with the affair.

John Ensign, Nevada Senator, copped to having an affair with Cynthia Hampton, who was for a time on his campaign staff. The television media got all worked up about it, saying things like, "This is bad news for Ensign, one of the GOP's presidential contenders." And people like me replied, "Wait! John Ensign is a presidential contender?" later adding, "Seriously, you can't possibly think this guy was ever going to be a presidential contender." And Ensign was thought to be working out all his difficulties with some group called the "C Street Foundation," which describes itself as a "Bible study group" but is actually some sort of detox facility for Congresspersons who are way into sexcapades. To assert that the $96,000 was a gift is an insult to reasonable people, but it has not detered Ensign or his consiglari from making the assertion anyway. Nor will it stop them from pulling out the bible and reminding those who they've drawn in with their religious perception that forgivness is not just a word, it's an obligation. It's what makes Jesus smile.

Ensign claims the affair continued into August 2008, months after Hampton claims it had broken up. Ensign, Hampton claims, then paid "more than $25,000" to Cynthia as "severance" out of his own pocket — an amount now known to be $96,000 paid by Ensign's casino-owning parents to four members of the Hampton family.

He also maintains that Ensign personally paid Cynthia's insurance to compensate for Doug's loss of government benefits — all while continuing to pursue a sexual affair with Cindy Hampton.
Ensign has disputed Hampton's account and has accused him of a million-dollar shakedown effort.

Some excerpts:

— "[Ensign] orchestrated the creation of November Inc. and me getting [out] of the state and getting out of his official office. He told me, basically, at the same time he said, 'I'm in love with your wife' — 'You can't work with me anymore.'"

— "He made you feel incredibly guilty if you weren't part of making this go down the way he wanted it to."

— "I hope that the [Senate] Ethics [Committee] does a tremendous investigation. ... I would hope that the government would do some things as an employer."

The payments, made in $12,000 increments, were "consistent with a pattern of generosity" by Ensign's parents, the statement said. Ensign's father, Michael, is a former casino executive who helped bankroll his son's political rise. The admission came after Doug Hampton gave a television interview to Jon Ralston, a commentator and Las Vegas television host, in which he painted Ensign as an unrepentant wife-chaser who tried to buy his mistress' silence.

Once the story about the payment hit the media, Ensign's camp disclosed that Ensign's parents had actually paid out $96,000 to the Hamptons. But not because anyone wanted this affair kept a secret! No, no! Ensign's parents "decided to make the gifts out of concern for the well-being of long-time family friends during a difficult time," and these monies were "consistent with a pattern of generosity by the Ensign family to the Hamptons and others." So, TOTALLY NOT some kind of end-run around ethics requirements at all! What grown up senator wouldn't want his mom and dad giving large sums of monies to random friends, anyway?

Mark Sanford's news conference today was unusual for lot of reasons, but here's a less obvious one: The South Carolina governor referred to "C Street," a Washington dormitory for lawmakers funded by a highly secretive Christian organization called the Fellowship. (The Fellowship is the group behind the National Prayer Breakfast, where President Obama rolled out his Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships earlier this year.) It's rare for elected officials to publicly allude to C Street or to anything affiliated with the Fellowship. But here's the exchange between Sanford and a reporter:

QUESTION: Did your wife and your family know about the affair before the trip to Argentina?

SANFORD: Yes. We've been working through this thing for about the last five months. I've been to a lot of different—as part of what we called "C Street" when I was in Washington. It was, believe it or not, a Christian Bible study—some folks that asked members of Congress hard questions that I think were very, very important. And I've been working with them. I see Cubby Culbertson in the back of the room. I would consider him a spiritual giant. The Associated Press wrote about the Fellowship in 2003. Interesting to note that Sen. John Ensign, who admitted to an extramarital affair, is also closely affiliated with the group and is a resident of C Street:

Six members of Congress live in a $1.1 million Capitol Hill town house that is subsidized by a secretive religious organization, tax records show. The lawmakers, all Christians, pay low rent to live in the stately red brick, three-story house on C Street, two blocks from the Capitol. It is maintained by a group alternately known as the "Fellowship" and the "Foundation" and brings together world leaders and elected officials through religion.

The six lawmakers—Reps. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn.; Bart Stupak, D-Mich.; Jim DeMint, R-S.C.; Mike Doyle, D-Pa.; and Sens. John Ensign, R-Nev. and Sam Brownback, R-Kan.—live in private rooms upstairs. Rent is $600 a month, DeMint said.

"Our goal is singular—and that is to hope that we can assist them in better understandings of the teachings of Christ, and applying it to their jobs," said Richard Carver, a member of the Fellowship's board of directors who served as an assistant secretary of the Air Force during the Reagan administration.

The house, valued at $1.1 million, is owned by the C Street Center, a sister organization of the Fellowship. It received more than $145,000 in Fellowship grants between 1997 and 2000, according to IRS records—including $96,400 in 1998 for reducing debt.Its tenants dine together once a week to discuss religion in their daily lives.

"We do have a Bible study," said DeMint, a Presbyterian who asked to move into the house less than a year ago when there was a vacancy. "Somebody'll share a verse or a thought, but mostly it's more of an accountability group to talk about things that are going on in our lives, and how we're dealing with them."

Hopefully those in the future desirous of a career in politics will see that there is no religious path. It's a slippery slope at best.