On Wednesday’s "Your World" on FNC, host Neil Cavuto talked with talk show host Montel Williams about the election and asked if Williams was backing anyone, to which Williams responded: "You know, I'm into the election year, but I got to tell you I'm -- here I'll do something controversial, so it'll get us both fired. But I'm sick right now of the way the media is attempting to control this election rather than just report the news." [audio available here]
Williams' condemnation of media went further: "People keep being called or claim to play a race card, when it's really us in the media that are playing the race card, trying to bait people to play into the race card. I'm sick of some of what I feel is some of the most divisive politics that I've seen in the last 20 years."
Cavuto again attempted to find out if Williams was supporting any particular candidate, but instead Williams articulated his responsibility as an influential television personality not to endorse anyone:
And I -- can I say this, honestly, different than most people in my position in this world, I really assume the responsibility of being invited into people's living rooms for 17 years as a really, really serious responsibility. I have the ability to convince people to make decisions on things and I don't have a right to convince you who to vote for. So I'd rather say, 'let me educate you.' I'm not going to tell you who I'm going to vote for, I'm going to go into that booth, pull my lever, and come out and not tell a soul and be proud of what I did.
When Cavuto pressed him, "You dodged me, you dodged me, you didn't answer a question." Williams declared that all the candidates were too "divisive" for his taste:
Well, you know what can I tell you this though, I'll tell you who I don't like, and I don't like any one of the candidates right now. And so far Hillary's been in the mix of this a lot, and so has McCain, and Obama has tried his best to sidestep it, but he does it in a different way. Anybody's who's trying to play a divisive game right now in a country that needs to be all-inclusive and try to figure out a way to get through this together, I will not get my vote, period.
Here is the full transcript:
4:46PM
NEIL CAVUTO: You into this election year? You got a horse in the race?
MONTEL WILLIAMS: You know, I'm into the election year, but I got to tell you I'm -- here I'll do something controversial, so it'll get us both fired. But I'm sick right now of the way the media is attempting to control this election rather than just report the news. In the last couple of weeks I keep seeing things pop up that's really angering me. People keep being called or claim to play a race card, when it's really us in the media that are playing the race card, trying to bait people to play into the race card. I'm sick of some of what I feel is some of the most divisive politics that I've seen in the last 20 years.
CAVUTO: Who's at fault? The media?
WILLIAMS: We are, but also some of the candidates, because they then allow this to happen and don't go back to pull things back. I'm --
CAVUTO: Do you have a candidate?
WILLIAMS: I don't. And I -- can I say this, honestly, different than most people in my position in this world, I really assume the responsibility of being invited into people's living rooms for 17 years as a really, really serious responsibility. I have the ability to convince people to make decisions on things and I don't have a right to convince you who to vote for. So I'd rather say, 'let me educate you.' I'm not going to tell you who I'm going to vote for, I'm going to go into that booth, pull my lever, and come out and not tell a soul and be proud of what I did.
CAVUTO: You just dodged me. You dodged me, you dodged me, you didn't answer a question.
WILLIAMS: Did I dodge you?
CAVUTO: You dodged me.
WILLIAMS: Well, you know what can I tell you this though, I'll tell you who I don't like, and I don't like any one of the candidates right now. And so far Hillary's been in the mix of this a lot, and so has McCain, and Obama has tried his best to sidestep it, but he does it in a different way. Anybody's who's trying to play a divisive game right now in a country that needs to be all-inclusive and try to figure out a way to get through this together, I will not get my vote, period.
CAVUTO: Wow. Alright, Montel best of luck, congratulations.
WILLIAMS: Thank you so much.
CAVUTO: Great run, my friend, great run.
WILLIAMS: Oh, thank you.
