Television's Norman Lear, in a speech celebrating the 30th anniversary of his far-left organization People for the American Way, called James Dobson, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Karl Rove hate-mongers.
In his December 5 address published at the Huffington Post Tuesday, he also accused the Republican candidates for president of having a "holier-than-thou sanctity" (video follows with transcript and commentary):
NORMAN LEAR: I want to suggest we lefties start laying claim to what we see as "sacred" -- and serve it up proudly to the Religious Right -- to the James Dobson, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Karl Rove hate-mongers, sheathed in sanctity -- and to the Koch Brother types that fund them -- and use them so effectively for their own political power-grabbing purposes!
Over the past several decades, the power-grabbing right has built a powerful infrastructure of radio and TV networks. They've built think tanks, colleges and law schools. And funded political groups that prepped the way for the Supreme Court, in Citizen's United -- to grant Corporations the right to provide any amount of financial backing to a candidate or a cause just like any other average citizen. And all of it carried off with an air of holier-than-thou sanctity -- no less apparent than Pat Robertson's when he told me my arms were too short to box with God.
And now, as frightening as it is, where do we find that holier-than-thou sanctity most apparent in politics today? Among the seven candidates attempting to prove in every debate we have seen that they are the right kind of Christian to be the Republican candidate for the Presidency of the United States.
When you hear Lear speak this way, you have to seriously wonder whether he was the model for Rob Reiner's character on the hit series All in the Family - aka "Meathead."
For those that can stand it, the complete address is available at the Huffington Post.
