As he attacked Burkman, the MSNBC host smeared Tea Party activists generally as promoting "nonsensical, virulent, uneducated hatred." Olbermann: "For the second time in three days, a hardline GOP stalwart managed to get fed up with the nonsensical, virulent, uneducated hatred pushed by one of these flip Tea Party types, and he called BS on it. The first was Karl Rove wigging out over the lump of dumb and judgmental that is Christine O’Donnell."
Below is a transcript of the relevant portion of the Friday, September 17, Countdown show on MSNBC:
KEITH OLBERMANN: And our winner, Jack Burkman, a self-described Republican political strategist. This is less about him than it is about what he precipitated on Fixed News. For the second time in three days, a hardline GOP stalwart managed to get fed up with the nonsensical, virulent, uneducated hatred pushed by one of these flip Tea Party types, and he called BS on it. The first was Karl Rove wigging out over the lump of dumb and judgmental that is Christine O’Donnell. But now, it’s former New York Republican Senator Al D’Amato, no shrinking violet he, only he literally called BS on this Burkman.
JACK BURKMAN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST, ON FBN, CLIP #1: Most of these guys working in the post office should be driving cabs, and I think we should stop importing labor from Nigeria and Ethiopia. That’s about the skill level.
BURKMAN CLIP #2: That is why I allege they should be bumped down to driving cabs and we should stop importing labor to drive cabs.
FORMER SENATOR AL D’AMATO (R-NY): You are a nasty racist when you bring in the race-
BURKMAN: That’s crazy.
D’AMATO CLIP #1: Well, I’m going to just make my observation. I have a right to do it. You brought in the fact there’s a bunch of Nigerians.
D’AMATO CLIP #2: Let me just tell you, that’s a bunch of bull [BLEEP]. And you should be ashamed of yourself and have your mouth washed out. What the hell are you talking about? It’s one thing to say that they’re out of control – wait a minute, you shut up! I listened to your racist bull [BLEEP]. It’s one thing to say that they’re hiring people who are unskilled, that you can save money, that you can run it better, that it is inefficient, ineffective, and I agree to all of those things. But for you to bring in this bull [BLEEP] about, oh, a bunch of Nigerians, etc., that’s out of line.
OLBERMANN: When Alfonse D’Amato, who once filibustered a bill killing off jobs in his state by singing the lyrics to South of the Border Down Mexico Way, when he is the voice of reason and introspection in the Republican party, when Al D’Amato is calling out the BS and the racists, all I can say is he’s right.
